Hello all. This is my first story here. Hopefully I will grow as a writer from this. I hope you all love it. Sorry if there are any mistakes, I did not have an editor read over it.
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"Move along! No dawdling!"
The guard prodded my back with the butt of his sword. Holding back a snarl, I continued walking closer and closer to the throne room of the king of Andolin. I had been sent with four others to assassinate the king and his court. Our contact had said that he would not be so heavily guarded.
We were mistaken. The traitor had sold us out. When we arrived in the woods surrounding the king's castle, we were ambushed. My companions managed to escape; I had not been so lucky.
Once more, the guard's sword connected with the middle of my back, lurching me forward. Ahead, two guards pushed open the massive oaken doors. The guard and I passed through them. No sooner had we done so, did they close behind us. The guard grabbed my collar, pushing my head down and forcing me to walk straight ahead.
We stopped before a set of stairs. I looked up slightly, my view partially obscured by my blond bangs. I could only see the marble stairs, and a pair of brown leather boots at the top of them. "Kneel before your king!" The guard pushed me forcefully to my knees.
I slammed to the ground, bracing myself from falling flat on my face with my bound hands. The guard fell to kneel beside me. "You are dismissed. Leave the girl." I heard the guard shuffle to his feet before leaving the room. A few moments passed, yet I dared not lift my gaze. It would do me no good to have my head roll before I could complete my mission.
"How many more of you are there?" The king's footsteps echoed in the empty room as he descended the stairs to stand before me. "Well? Speak." I raised my gaze slightly, taking notice of how his hand rested on the hilt of his ornate sword. No doubt he was a masterful swordsman.
He unsheathed his sword, placing the flat of the blade under my chin, forcing my gaze higher. "Are you mute, girl?" I could keep up this charade as long as necessary. As long as my companions were able to escape and complete their mission. I did not answer the king. "Well, then. It seems that you need some persuasion." He removed the sword from my throat, sheathing it.
"Bring them in!"
The doors groaned as they were pushed open. My heart leapt in my throat as I heard the raised voices of my party. The guards forced them to kneel beside me. I flashed them all quick glances, hoping that it went unnoticed by the king.
"They were found in my woods. Maybe you may recognize them?" My companions and I lowered our heads. It was over...our mission would end with our deaths, not his. "It is not a rare occurrence for an assassin to be sent after my head. Who sent you? Lord Hardin of Gend? Perhaps, Lord Walsh of Prym?" True to our training, we remained stoic, never answering him.
"It is not matter. You will all die here and now. Kill this one first." He pointed his finger to the man on my left, a kind assassin named Gerard. The guards slung him forward, onto all fours. His bond hands trembled as a guard drew his sword, placing the sharp steel to the back of his neck. I made a mistake that day, many in fact, but this was the greatest.
I looked into Gerard's eyes. He stared back, pleading with me to help him. The guard raised the sword high above his head. The assassin clenched his eyes shut tightly. The guard swing down.
"NO!" I screamed, breaking the silence that hung over the room. The sword halted mere inches above his neck. The king watched me intently. "So she can speak. And such a lovely voice too." He walked closer to me. "Stand, girl." I obeyed his orders, pushing myself to my feet.
His long fingers wrapped around my chin, forcing my gaze to his face. I gasped at his features. He was truly handsome, with straight raven hair and eyes as blue and deep as the sea. If only his core matched his pretty features. A smiled curled across his face, showing off his perfectly white teeth. "I have a proposition for you, girl. I will let your friends go. Unharmed. They will be allowed to leave Andolin and crawl back to wherever you came from."
My heart pounded against my chest. "And what is the catch, Your Majesty?" The title tasted vile in my mouth. He was not my king. He did not deserve any kindness. His smile seemed to grow.
"I will let them go...if you spend one night with me. One single night." Shouts resounded around us. Gerard and the other assassins were shouting at me not to accept. I clenched my fists before me. "Swear it...swear that they will not be harmed and that they will go free. Swear it...and I will accept..." I lowered my gaze, shame burning my entire body.
The king let my chin go. "I swear it." He moved to his guards, shouting orders. The guards drug out the assassins one by one. Gerard fought the hardest, screaming curses at the tyrant ruler. I remained rooted to the spot, watching the ground, the weight of what I had just agreed to felt heavy upon me.
"Do you have a name, girl?"
"Julianna...Your Majesty"
"Such a beautiful name, like its owner." He reached a hand out to stroke my cheek. "Send her to a guest room. Make sure she is fed and bathed." The king shouted at his guards. "I will see you tonight. Good day, Julianna."
He turned away from me, ascending the stairs back to his golden throne, as his guards roughly grabbed me. As I was led out of the throne room, I could have sworn I heard the king chuckle.
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As the night grew nearer, my nerves grew worse. I stood alone in the guest room's balcony, listening to the night around me. A stray breeze whipped my unbound hair to the side. It wouldn't be long now before he called for me. I wrapped my arms around my chest, elevating my ample breasts against the robe I had been given. After I had been bathed roughly by unenthusiastic maids, I was only given the silken robe to wear, the rest of my clothes taken under the guise of them being laundered.
