We are the undesirables. In a world where everything was beauty and perfection, we were the aberrations. We were too fat, too thin, too plain and too weak and most of us without magic. We were invisible even to our clans and it would stay that way until the dawn of the House of Adelaide.
Adelaide Unna pioneered the principle of suppression. She had been born into the clan Unna the last and only girl in a long string of boys. She should have been cherished and showered with their affection, instead when it had been discovered that she had been born without magic and plain of features she had been immediately cast aside and hidden. She had never enjoyed any of the advantages of her station, attending the finest schools, the finest parties and finally her eclipse or initiation that would have declared her fully matured and ready for a mate. On Urasus our home there was no bigger occasion.
The kingdom of Uz on the planet Urasus is ruled by the four leading clans. There is Pegus at the bottom with their sons of wind, Serbius after with their sons of water, Tillius with their sons of earth and Aremus with their sons of fire at the head. In Uz when eligible females reach their maturity they have their eclipse. A grand feast is held and all eligible males and prominent houses are invited. The female's breasts are painted in green and gold leaf and exposed for all gathered to see and from here on she is permitted to partake of free mating.
There is such a thing as true mating in Uz, finding the person that nature and destiny have designated for you but over centuries such matches have become rarities. Typically after eclipse, female maturity, and dawn, male maturity, Uzians partake of each other's charms.... Freely, until possibly finding the person that they could live with outside of a true mating and bearing their clan's offspring.
Adelaide Unna of the clan Unna never experienced any of this. She was from one of the most powerful clans in Uz but she was never celebrated she was never even acknowledged in fact she was treated no better than a servant. In all her years she never complained she bore each slight, each insult with silent grace and dignity until that faithful night.
Crown Prince Daemon of the ruling clan Aremus had paid a call to the Unna Manor. Adelaide had heard of him before. The people called him the dark prince because of his penchant for dark clothing and even darker... games. He had the look of a dark God and at almost six and a half feet he towered over her. He had long unruly black hair that he held at the back with a leather thong and the blackest eyes that Adelaide had ever seen. The people whispered about those eyes and claimed that they would turn an unholy red with his temper. His features were cruelly handsome and there was not a scar to mar his perfection. His body was tightly corded with muscle without being stocky and was a testament to the many hours he spent practicing with his various weapons.
Adelaide was in awe of him, she was afraid of him and all at once she wanted to be near him. He had been invited to stay at Unna manor for the eclipse of one of the neighboring clan's daughters. He would do some trade with her father and then their convoys would travel on together. During the two days that Daemon stayed with them, Adelaide hid in her usual shadowy places and admired him. On the third day she was bundled up and hidden in the caravan with the servants for their journey and told to stay quiet and not draw any attention.
The eclipse was a grand affair; the Baharis or royal seductresses were invited and did their sultry dances for the men in attendance. Male members of the other ruling clans were also in attendance. There was drinking and feasting everywhere and Adelaide could feel the mounting tension and anticipation in the air. She was not truly supposed to be witnessing these events so she had climbed onto a small ledge above the feast so that she could witness the proceedings. Then it was time for the main event and all grew quiet.
The young lady in question was brought out draped in all white, her eyes were downcast and her fire red hair was braided through with golden thread and hung to her waist and glistened. Even her flawlessly smooth pale skin seemed to glow with its own inner light she looked perfect and so innocent. She looked the way Adelaide had always dreamed of herself, perfect and shining. She was an overly thin small weak thing with pale blond hair, pale blue eyes and no magic. She had a family, she had parents who loved her, she had magic and as Adelaide looked across she certainly had the attention of the dark prince his eyes seemed to practically burn into her. To Adelaide she seemed to have everything.
