CHAPTER 9- WELCOME II

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The guards dragged Elilia through long market roads, foodstuffs were thrown at her and many snarls were directed at her.

"We want her blood!"

"Cut her!." The sellers would scream spitting on her path.

Still she held her head high and snarled back at those who mocked her. What am I even doing here? She thought as an ugly old woman with one arm stood in front of her and stopped them, A guard nods at her and she rubbed a smelly jelly like cream on Elilia's eyes, she screamed as it burnt her having no way to stop the itching 'cause her hands were chained. 

"She is ready" the old woman said and the guards nodding turned and immediately they were transported to an abandoned temple. 

"Welcome prisoner. Start with your name, or a suitable option straight death?" 

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Elilia POV

As tears dropped from my eyes from the burn, I looked up at the woman who spoke.

She was beautiful and clothed in a deep red gown just like mine, but way more classy. She nods at the guards and the chains used you restrain me came off with one strike from his fingers or might I say claws.

Why do they have claws? and those weren't there a while ago.

I don't let my astonishment last and look at the woman while speaking, "I prefer the option where I am allowed to speak." 

With a bored expression she replied me, "Well, you wait as the king has other things to attend to at the moment." 

I gave no reply and stood silent, the woman did the same. But the strangest thing happened and the woman starts to spin in a position, and then whispering ethereal words, she turns so fast she becomes a...portal?

The thought is confirmed when twelve men clothed in red robes passed through and finally a floating crown begans to pass she screamed till the crown came out and rested on the skull of a clothed skeleton I was sure wasn't there before.

She keeps spinning and I look through her in time to see the head of the man who was in the dungeon with me roll to the ground, I gasped and watched in horror as those beasts I saw on the cave tear him limb to limb, choked noises involuntary leave my lips. 

"Enough."

One of the robed men spoke and she stopped spinning, frozen with shock I watched as blood dripped from her nose and her eyes, an obsidian swirl of darkness.

Another man stretched his hand and zapped her with fire from his fingertips and she turned normal again, her pale skin, the only sign of what took place.

I don't think I am in Demelza anymore.

"Yes, you are in another reality." One of them replies and I know I said that out loud.

A dry laugh leaves my lips at his word, "you can say that." 

I inhaled deeply ready to face whatever was coming. 

Possibly my death.

The woman goes to sit close to the skeleton with a crown, but she was interrupted by one of those men.

"No need to summon the king yet Delilah, let's finish with her first."

"I tender my apologies Elder Joachim but I was told by Cesar to summon him immediately you all arrived." I look back at the man she referred to as elder Joachim and a the flash of hatred passed his eyes, before a mask of indifference became one with his demeanor. I guess he doesn't like the Caesar guy.

I lock eyes with the said Delilah and holding my stare, she brought out a little dagger and sliced her palm open. Her blood dripped on the crown, down to the black diadem embedded at the center.

Immediately the gem turned red, I began to hear screams, high pitch screams, I tried to block the noise using my palms but I couldn't and as it continued I felt excruciating pain, like someone was running scratching fingers through my face before it suddenly stops and I breathe panting,

What the hell was that?!

"You feel what I feel, strange." 

A voice wraps around me and turning I see the grey eyed man once more. I can bet my life he's Caesar. Makes sense nobody likes him. I turn to look at Delilah and I am shivers ran through my spine as I locked eyes with her, no trace of the beautiful woman I just saw.

Her eyes had sunken, a red glow in its place, her lips black as coal and the diadem from the crown now on her forehead.

"What is it?" Delilah Booms, and I just know she is not the one speaking, the voice is deeper, she seemed possessed.

Heavens, I'm going crazy.

heavens this place is crazy 

"Please, what the hell is this?"

"What?"

"How? 

When! 

Which kind of kingdom is this?!"

"Instead of asking questions, confess your sin and a quick death will be given to you as penance for your sins." I start to laugh, 

why not? What the hell are they even talking about.

They stare at me with confusion in their eyes, and I laughed harder, their faces contorted with anger. What?

I can't laugh?

Delilah points a finger at me and I feel my limbs start to tighten and they fail me as I dropped to my knees and something like fingers caused me to bow.

"You would not disrespect the pillars of TREME! I would kill you but we need answers only you can give us, now, tell us how you are here."

Unable to control myself, as if on a leash. I explain my ordeal of running away from Vernagarkh and crossing the river down to when I see grey eyes. They is silence as the men look at each other. "Then how do you live with poisoned blood?"

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Caesar POV

"Poisoned blood?" she repeats incredulously, "I am a normal being, if there's anything poisoned it is you." I admire her secretly, no sign of fear, just surprise.

she seems very ignorant

indeed 

I smell no lies 

As the Elders deliberate telepathically, she turns to look at me and I don't think she sees what she wants as disappointment as well as the constant shock mar her face, Why does it distrub me? 

"Did anything unusual happen as you turned here?" Lucas ask her and she thinks for a while before replying, "The only thing that happened was me drinking sparkly water in a bottle." 

"Which bottle?"

"It's in my bag, grey eyes must have it."

I nod and raise her bag which I took when she was Imprisoned. Searching through it I see a little bottle with a water in it. 

"It's normal water" I tell them 

"Yes it is, sparkly has been drank already" she replies and does a thing with her eyes.

Looking at the bottle closely I see the sign.

"Drink and be drank not." I twist the cap and suddenly my skin starts turning black.

Now that's a surprise. 

" I have reason to believe she drank Damian's jewel." I say raising my voice above the murmuring of the elders.

"Impossible!" Delilah rebuked, my father rebuked, "Did you say Damien jewel?" The Elders, surprised just stare on as the conversation issued between the girl and my father.

"You are human?" 

"Yes" 

"The prince you married maltreated you."

"Yes"

"You thought of running away." 

"Yes" 

"You crossed the river and drank from a little bottle." 

"Yes"

"Where did you find that bottle?"

"It was lying there in my chamber." 

"You carry the bottle, why?" 

"I wanted something that could hold water

And it was there so I took it."

I don't believe this 

One who possess such treasures leaves it lying in a ladies room?

Such careless of something so powerful

She doesn't seem to have transformed.

She's lying, I feel it, something is off with her but I don't think the others notice as their mind is in the fact that she actually digested Damian's.

"I need her alive, just for the experiment" The thought of her death doesn't sit well with me. I don't know why but something about her tears at my beasts, "furthermore, I suggest we test her and see what she eat because I am sure you believe she's not human, no human takes in Damian's jewel and still survives her blood is still poisonous because of the noxious fluids running through her, If we can carry out a careful checkup on her and bring out this liquid from her surely we would have a chance to fight back those evil tribe."

the princess look sharply as me, " I am human. wholly human, I would not be anyone's lab rat", I barely spare her a glance as I continue telepathically to my father

think rationally.

"No! We kill her now, she brought death to a royal. Your brother!"

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Elilia POV

"No! We kill her now, she brought death to a royal. Your brother!"

I killed who?!

"Stop whining Jonas, a weak and careless son you have. One who can't even protect himself from a woman, imagine he dies because of a woman" the others chuckle at his words, I turn and look at that prince guy, and it dawn's on me that it wasn't what I thought initially.

He is not trying to help me, he just wants me locked up for his little alchemy experiments and I won't stand for it.

Never, I rather die. 

"We are not going to kill her Jonas. I am going to work on her."

Jonas turned to look at me with hatred in his eyes and I start to feel lightheaded again, and I know it is his doing. "lift your aura from her this instant." 

"She is my property from now on." Imposing my aura on Jonas, chaos erupts as the men start to argue.

"No, kill me!" The voices quiet down at my words, "yes kill me" I continue, "I rather die than be the lab rat for you creatures, I don't even know what to call you."

The prince smirks coldly and I feel ice chills on my skin, 

"Why yes, I'll make you suffer. What more do you want than her to suffer, you heard for yourselves that death is too flimsy a punishment, So I keep her."

"No no, you are getting me," I start to panic as they ponder on his words, "I have the right to choose my own path", shut up Delilah says and I quiet down and he starts,

"Those in favour for her to live and suffer", Caesar and about three men raised their hands and the rest choose my death obviously.

"the majority win then she is to die immediately."

I smile, but stop when I realise I'm about to die. I chuckled as tears involuntary leave my eyes, who knew one day I'll beg to die. But I have too, these people are barbaric. At least I'll get to be with my sister. I killed those who hurt her. She'll be proud of me. I raise my head, ready to embrace my death with out fear. 

"No she is to become my prisoner" his words cause another uprise but he simply look at them with a bored expression, pulls my hand and began to drag me out of the temple which I just noticed is floating on air, he keeps moving and a portal suddenly appears and I breathed a sigh of relief, I thought we were going to jump or something. 

"Don't move an inch I command you" Caesar turned and looked at Delilah "or what"

His eyes changes from grey to dark red. How do they change eye colour what are these people, I feel like he's communicating in a way I cannot understand and suddenly Delilah agrees, "You have thirteen days to do what you want and then you must hand her over for execution" 

"I agree, she is mine for the next thirteen days and no harm shall come to her lest he suffer"

"No! We kill her now, she brought death to a royal. Your brother!" 

"I am still here you know, you can't just treat me like a commodity, I am not yours."

I say suddenly irritated by his words of claim. He spares a glance at me and without a word he moves and I close my eyes as

we jump into the portal. 

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The duo arrived in a large dark room with a brooding aura, although it was clean and warm. It had this streak of constant danger.

"Where are we?" the Elilia asked the man who had brought her here, he looked at her and Elilia could not help but feel hypnotised, his black eyes like swirls of an endless abyss..

Wait.

Black eyes?

They were grey for crying out loud!

She didn't ponder on this for too long but kept on staring at him. His raven black hair stopped at his shoulders, his skin... so pale ... So beautiful. she couldn't help but look at his eyes again, it pulled her in and then she noticed how handsome he was, his face devoid of any emotions and his well cut out jaw made her squirm... "are you done staring?"

Caesar asked when her gaze on him started to affect him, he did not like it one bit.

She blinked back to reality and looked away flustered, 

"no shame" Elilia mummured like she wasn't the one staring..

"Say what you like" he said and moves to open the curtains, "you'll be staying here for the next few days you have, he moves to open a door, "this will be your space," she moves to see it clearly and was surprised at how spacious it is. A bed, a desk and a large window, Nothing much but it had to do, better than the dungeon. 

"I am not doing to work with you, rather just kill me and save us both the trouble." 

I wish I could, He thought, but doesn't respond and starts to unbutton his shirt. Elilia's eyes grew wide as she stuttered, "What are you doing?" With dark amusement in his eyes he stalked towards her and she stepped back out of instinct and when she hit the wall, her breath hitched with panic written on her face, "Dont come closer, or..." Her words died as with one quick move, Caesar pulled he close to him to the extent the tip of their nose touched "or what?" His deep gravel voice asked.

With her this close,Caesar couldn't help but look at her lush lips and wicked thoughts ran through his head. Elilia stood frozen surprised at the amount of cold Caesar emitted, as soon as he felt the urge to taste her he moves back a bit. 

"You have come to a big bad world, dear princess" he says with mockery in his tone, "one with no mercy, your type are nothing more than dinner to me."

"What becomes of me now," Elilia couldn't help but ask, seeing her teary eyes and her pitiful gaze on him, he was dumbstruck, she should not cry, oblivious to his thoughts, she continues to ask. "what are you?,"

In a deep hoarse voice he replies her with finality in his voice.

"I am darkness itself and you my prey. Welcome prisoner."

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 *Hehehehe*

Remember, I'm open to corrections and please vote and comment. 

Have a great day and don't forget to smile✨