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chapter 2

I laughed slightly at the thought of having the same rights as me, knowing that in the comfort of my own chamber, I was safe to do as I please; at least without the scrutiny of my guardian. But the people truly had no idea of what it meant to be a princess, of what it meant to be me; the world a small and simple place from where I stood. A world I would never experience like my brothers, a woman after all had no need to travel the world, to explore the lands beyond her home; that was not what civilization wanted of us. For if we travelled, met new people and learned of far off places; then perhaps we would not wish to return. Perhaps I would find something better, a future that I would choose for myself.

But that was never to happen, my destiny already written by the gods from the moment I gave my first breath, I would grow in elegance and beauty like my sisters before me; silently waiting for the day I would leave home. For the day my father decided it was time for me to marry. Until then, I would be a second class citizen as all females of our kingdom were; someone who would not argue with the rule of men. But isn’t that what is wrong with the world? What needs to be changed? Men only concentrate on war, while women create life. Is that the cycle of things? I create a son so that one day he will leave to fight and kill the sons that other women create? An endless road that always leads to a grieving mother, a heartbroken wife and children without a father to raise them.

I did not understand war, nor do I believe that I ever will. It was a brutish and putrid thing that destroyed homes, left whole kingdoms in ruin and people with no place left to call home. The only thing I had learnt of war was that no one would remain pure, that the good people in this world often lose their lives to protect what they love; what they believe. That the evil people in the world are those who create war, those who fight just so that they can control a piece of land; so that they can conquer and kill those who do not agree with their way of life. My father had avoided it for years, but no one can run forever and war had eventually come to our kingdom, the demonic creatures who survive on the blood of the living seeing our home as a beacon for them. A place that they could call their own, once they killed us all that is. I had never heard of vampires before they had come to the borders of our kingdom, before the dragons of the north had pushed them from their hiding places within the mountains. But why our home? Why could the vampires not fight to obtain the land that they had lost instead of fighting so hard to take the one that my father would risk everything to protect; to ensure that his people lived. My people.

I shook off the thought, turning over in the large bed as I attempted to return to my slumber, only I knew that sleep would not catch me as of yet. The day had begun almost an hour prior to me waking, but I did not move from my place, deciding that today, with no duties or lessons; I would remain in my chamber. Refuse to dress as I must every day, the smile that plays across my lips mostly always forced.

es, I complained about my life, always. But truthfully, I wouldn’t change a thing. I had a loving family, with many sisters and nine brothers; though one had not yet reached maturity, as much as he may think so. They were mine, a link to happiness and what life could be without the war. It may seem childish to believe in times of peace when the kingdom had always seen war, lived it, breathed it; every child for generations born into the fighting. The men moulded from birth to become a part of the great battalions, the army that other kingdoms cowered against; surrendering to a superior force. This is how we won most of our battles, by sending fear into the hearts of those who would invade my father’s land. The victories seemed wrong somehow; like we hadn’t earned them. But who was I to question it? I was just the princess, somehow who watched from the shadows, I didn’t understand the rules of war nor was I supposed to; that was a job for the men. Their calling while the women made more soldiers, birthed more troops for the ongoing war.

I flipped onto my back, groaning in annoyance as sleep never returned to me; my thoughts once again moving to complain about how things were. Why couldn’t I just accept life as it was like my sisters had? They always smiled and greeted people with open arms, holding themselves as women of the court should. But that was not me, not what I could force myself to appear. I was different from them and I knew why, a strange power coursing through my blood; one with great and destructive power. Yet, I had sworn never to use it against anyone, my curse deadly and that of a demon; the people cowering at my presence in the city. Why had the gods chosen me to harbour such a gift, one that could destroy all those around me if I were not careful?

My father often spoke to me of what I could do, of my cursed abilities that made me different from the others of our bloodline. On the night I was born, my name was written across the stars; the prophets from all corners of the kingdom speaking my name at once, paving my path in this world. And yet, I felt no different from anyone else, only, I could do things other of my family could not. The prophets spoke of how I would grow into a strong woman, of how my abilities will aid me in the struggles of life, vile or not; they were mine.

However, I saw nothing good in what I could do, in what I was capable of doing. I could bend and mould the very fibre of a person, stripping away their years as I killed them slowly.

How could that be good? – I questioned myself harshly – I could be seen as a demon, a witch. If it was not for my father, would I have been burnt at the stake? Killed brutally by fire like all those before me.

but thats enough of that, i had to get ready for the day, i couldn't stay here complaining until the sun went down.

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