His Caged Princess

The scorching heat of the sun burned down upon the green fields, the sweltering haze clear to the naked eye. The grass was long, reaching high towards the blazing sun, and the soft yet scarce breeze danced across the meadows like a soothing rhythm, a rhythm that was a stark contrast to the agonising screams of a woman in childbirth, for there was a small hut in the middle of these fields where a woman lay on a wooden bed. Her eyes stung with tears of pain.

"You are almost there," the elderly woman assisting with the labour encouraged her soothingly. Her eyes flitted to the sun in the sky.

"I must hurry before the eclipse…" The woman on the bed cried in pain, her light blond hair sticky with sweat.

"We cannot control the hands of time nor the cards of destiny, place your faith in God," the elder woman said, looking towards the handsome young man who stood in the corner. A rich navy cloak over his shoulders was the only thing giving away his wealth, but, despite that, he held an aura of importance around him. His sharp grey eyes held pride as they gazed at the woman who lay on the bed before shifting his gaze to the elder woman.

"Catherina... how much longer?" He asked quietly.

"My King, there is no timer on these things, but I believe when the blood eclipse graces our lands, the princess will be born," Catherina replied gravely. The younger woman looked at her defiantly, her red irises holding denial and refusal.

"It may be a boy," she said firmly.

Catherina simply smiled gently. The fate of this child was preordained, but she said nothing, not wanting to overwhelm the woman any more than she already was.

The skies darkened as a red glow blanketed the lands; minutes had passed, but it felt like hours. The rare blood moon blocked out the light of the sun, and everything seemed to be still as if awaiting something special…

The king held the woman's hand, kissing it gently as a scream tore through her body. Moments later, a blinding light emitted around the entire hut as a soft cry filled the air.

"Congratulations, Your Majesty, it is a girl," Catherina announced, clipping the cord and wrapping the child in a woven blanket. She turned towards the king, who stood still.

A storm of emotions swirled inside him; relief, happiness, and the sheer weight of the child his love had given birth to was not ordinary. The woman on the bed closed her eyes, turning her face away from the child and man and tugging her hand free as the king reached for the child. He took the bundle carefully. Looking back at him were two blazing eyes of red and gold, brighter than the sun, and the king was forced to look away from their intensity.

Catherina left the room, giving the parents of the child privacy. After all, even they did not know how special the child was, and she could not tell them, for the time was not right.

"Do you not wish to carry her?" The king asked the woman, cradling the child in his arm. She closed her eyes, sitting up, her back towards him.

"No. Take her and leave," she said quietly. Her heart broke into a thousand pieces, and she knew no matter how hard she tried, once something was broken, it could never be whole again. The moment her child was determined to be a female, she knew she had to let her go.

The young king looked at the back of the woman he loved with all his heart. Could they not flee? Live together as a family?

"Things do not need to be this way," he said quietly, looking down at the cooing baby in his arms. He felt his heart fill with warmth. How could you love something you had just laid eyes on?

"There is no other option," she replied coldly, her voice sounding icy.

If she had known his identity to begin with, she would have avoided this, but it was too late.

"Do you… have a name for her?" He asked softly. He knew the weight of their decision and the sacrifice they had to make for the safety of their child and the future of the kingdom.

"Layana," the woman answered as she gazed out the window.

Her trembling hands clutched the bed tightly. Her pale blond hair looked almost white in the sunshine that was now slowly returning to normal. Her voice did not betray the pain in her eyes, those red eyes spoke a thousand words, but she dared not turn to look into the eyes of her beloved.

She heard the sound of a door and turned to let out a strangled sob, her hand clamping over her mouth as she saw the room was now empty. He had taken her and left. The pain overcame her, and she began rocking her body as she cried tears of anguish.

The king closed his eyes, hearing the painful cries of a woman who had lost the man she loved and her child. Taking a deep breath, he strapped the child to himself and mounted his horse. There was no other option…

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TWO YEARS LATER

Fear. Death. Blood.

The three mixed together, tainting the very air one needed to breathe. The taste of fear lingered in one’s mouth, while death and blood, illuminated by the setting sun, filled the horizon.