8. Heartbreaking Plea

The sun hung low in the sky, casting an eerie crimson glow over the kingdom of Eugola. In the grand hall of the royal palace, King Loch sat upon his ornate throne, his presence imposing and his gaze piercing. His daughters, stood before him, their hearts heavy with trepidation. The king's Cruelty had become apparent as he unleashed his wrath upon the sisters.

“Father, is something the matter?" Lana asked, breaking the tense silence. "You called us here so urgently. 

Loch stood and approached the twins. He stared straight at them, there wasn’t a single emotion on his wrinkled face. "Yes, my dear children, something of great importance has occurred. I have made a decision that will shape your futures."

Lana instinctively reached for Ramona's hand, the familiar gesture offering solace in the face of the unknown. The Cruel King took a deep breath, his voice echoing through the chamber with an air of finality.

"As the ruler of Eugola, it is my duty to ensure the peace and prosperity of our kingdom," he began, his tone unyielding. "To achieve this, I have decided to form an alliance with the powerful Lasei and Cera sects."

Lana and Ramona exchanged puzzled glances. Throughout their lives, the sisters had been taught to be wary of the three main sects in Eugol. From an early age, their mother had warned them about the Lasei, renowned for their cunning and deceit. The stories their father told them painted the Cerans as power-hungry manipulators who would stop at nothing to achieve their ambitions. And the third sect, the Gour, was where Reena was from and many families there possess supernatural powers, Loch avoided Gour and anything to do with them since he said they betrayed the royal family.

"You mean we are to marry into these sects?" Lana's voice quivered, her eyes wide with disbelief.

Loch nodded solemnly. "Yes. It is imperative that we secure these alliances for the future of our kingdom. You are to be married into the Lasei and Cera sects as soon as possible."

Ramona's hands trembled as she found the strength to speak. "Father, we understand your intentions, but is there not another way? Must we sacrifice our own desires for the sake of the kingdom? We sacrificed our lives to train, and educated ourselves for the sake of the kingdom is there nothing we can do by our own free will?

The Cruel King's glared at Ramona. "I know this is not the future you imagined, my dear child, but I expected more out of you…” he admitted. "As royalty, duty comes before personal desires. Your marriages will solidify our alliances and ensure the prosperity of our realm."

Lana's voice trembled as she tried to reason with her father. "But Father, we deserve a say in our own lives. We deserve a proper life as well, not just duty." 

The king's eyes narrowed, a menacing glint in his gaze. "Reconsider? My patience for disobedience has waned. If you refuse to marry into the Lasei sect, then you shall face the consequences of your defiance."

Ramona winced, didn’t dare to speak, leaving Lana to defend herself. Lana’s blood boiled, it always been like this… Ramona in the background while she took on their father and his decisions again and again. She loved Ramona more than anything, but it was clear her sister would never stand up for her.  Her blood boiling, but she managed to keep her emotions in check, she took a deep breath and spoke "Father, I implore you to think about our welfare. You have always claimed to love us, but this decision seems to be driven by cruelty rather than love. How can you bear to separate us and force us into such dreadful unions?"

The king's face twisted with malicious amusement. "Oh, Lana, you never understood the weight of my rule. This is not about love or welfare. It is about power and alliances. The Lasei and Cera sects are my key to solidifying our reign and securing the kingdom's future."

Tears welled in Lana's eyes finally. “How cruel…” she thought. After a short time, her defiance transformed into a desperate plea. "But what about our happiness, father? Is our happiness not worth considering? Are we mere pawns to further your ambition? Is this what mother would have wanted for us?”

As the bitter words flew between them, the tension in the room became palpable. Loch's eyes blazed with fury, his hands trembling with a mixture of anger and sadness. Lana stood before him, her voice quivering with emotion as she spoke of her late mother, Reena. But it was the mention of her mother's madness that struck at the core of Loch's being, churning up painful memories he had long buried. In a fit of rage, he lashed out, his words cutting through the air like shards of glass. 

"How dare you bring up your mother in the midst of this argument!" he shouted, his voice echoing with a mix of hurt and frustration. "She was a tortured soul, trapped in her own mind, and now you dare use her as a weapon against me? This is a battle you cannot win, Lana. Let her rest in peace, she has nothing to do with this."

King Loch's face contorted with anger, and his voice thundered through the hall as he continued. "How dare you question my decisions? You will marry into the Lasei sect, or you will face the consequences of your disobedience."

Loch looked at the girls once Ramona then Lana, he scoffed. “Both of you will listen to me and OBEY. I will not tolerate your empty yaps anymore. The future of Eugola hangs in the balance, I have enough problems without the two of you spouting about love and free will. Both of you out."

Silence engulfed the chamber as the weight of the Cruel King's words settled over the twins. They had been raised to be strong and obedient, but the thought of being trapped once again, with loveless and miserable marriages felt suffocating.

Finally, Lana mustered the courage to speak again, her voice determined. "Father, we understand the gravity of the situation, but we beg you to reconsider.”

Loch finally lost it and rushed towards Lana and struck her, his eyes filled with a mixture of hate and disappointment. After a moment of contemplation, he let out a heavy sigh."Get. OUT!”  Ramona rushed to Lana's side, her eyes filled with concern and guilt, but she knew better than to speak against their father. In that moment, Lana felt utterly alone, betrayed by the very people she should have been able to trust the most.

As Lana's tear-stained face looked up at her father, she pleaded silently for him to see the pain he was inflicting upon his daughters. Loch remained unmoved, his heart like a stone, he showed no mercy. Not even to his own blood. His was oblivious to the strength he held, blind to the suffering of those he claimed to love. Once again, in the cruel king's chamber, Lana's words fell upon deaf ears, destined to be drowned out by the cold heart of her father.

——

Lana and Ramona sat in Lana’s private chambers, contemplating the recent decree made by their father. The weight of their impending marriages into the Lasei and Cera sects hung heavily upon their shoulders, and they couldn't shake off the feelings of unease and apprehension.

Sitting side by side, Lana and Ramona exchanged glances, silently acknowledging their faith. It wasn't just their upbringing that had influenced their perception; news of the political games played by the sects had reached even the secluded palace walls. Lana walked towards her basin as she felt her mouth fill with blood. She looked in the mirror and noticed her lip bruised and parted in the corner. She was mortified, she closed her mouth and tasted metal. Her mouth was filling up with blood. She spat. Ramona shifted in her seat, wondering what to say.

"It’s not like father to not consider our opinion or our feelings" Ramona finally spoke, breaking the silence that enveloped them. 

"Father always cared more about expanding his power than our happiness." Lana smirked sarcastically and spit out some more blood. “Maybe he cared about your happiness, he never cared about mine…” a small teardrop rolled down her cheek, but she quickly collected herself. "We cannot let ourselves be pawns in their games, Ramona. We have to find a way to escape this fate."

But the task ahead seemed daunting. "The handmaidens! First, we need to find out the truth about mother… I cannot believe that she was a mad woman. Father always seems to have strong reactions when mother is brought into topic. Maybe will be able to uncover something, that will get us out of these marriages…”