The Red Glaive

The wedding was set for the day after the blood moon. Having a wedding before the its passing was deemed a bad omen as the nightsalker were always most active in the nights leading up to it. The day right after a blood moon, however, always seemed much cleaner and the sun seemed to shine its brightest, so that was the day that was chosen for the wedding. Tonight was the blood moon, Aeria only had a day before she was wed.

Aeria had yet to see her beloved husband-to-be to be since their eventful dinner. A big nasty cut was starting to scab over but the surrounding brush still remained a nasty shade of purple. Her healing ability only worked on others, Aeria couldn’t heal herself. The best she could do was conceal it with magic like she had done with her tear streaks. She’d have to put up with the bruise a while later.

Strangely, Aeria had found herself spending time with Baron Stone and stranger still, she found she enjoyed his company. He was like a long lost uncle she never knew she had, he was always laughing and jolly in nature. It was hard to imagine that someone like him could lord over a county run on the backs of slaves. As much as she wanted to hate the man, she just couldn’t.

“I’ve always wanted a daughter.” Barrett Stone beamed studying Aeria in one of the many wedding dresses he had brought for her. Having no formal dressing room in the castle, Aeria’s fitting took place in the library. It wasn’t a massive library, but it was large enough to hold the stories her mother had read to them before bedtime.

As little girls, they would all sit on the fur near the fireplace as her mother read them fables from far away places or times long past. Of gods and kings and heroes and champions. The girls would sit in a line on the white bear fur while their mother sat by the hearth of the fireplace. Alita and Amberjill were only infants then, so they would go off to bed first. Then Adelaide would loose interest and leave to get her beauty rest. Aget not long after. Only little Aeria stayed until the end, listening to her mother’s stories and when they became too scary she would wrap herself around the fur as if it could defend her against the greatest of evils.

Those moments on the fur hearing her mother’s stories were the few memories of her mother that still remained to her. After her passing, the room had been left untouched until now.

Aeria stood before a large mirror which had to be moved down from her father’s own study. A series of dresses lay scattered on the floor.

Madame Salver was at Aeria’s feet trying to adjust the hem of white silk dress. “But having Dorian nearly killed Kenna, we couldn’t have another.”

“I’m sorry.” Aeria said looking the Baron through the mirror. Her father wasn’t there. He was off discussing with his counts how best to distribute the newfound wealth Baron Stone had brought with him. Her father should’ve been the one with her, but Aeria was content to have Baron Stone.

“It’s quite alright.” Baron Stone said. “I’ll have daughter now.” Aeria smiled.

“Finished.” Madame Salver stood and stepped back. Aeria turned slowly to face the pair. The dress was gaudy and heavy on her hips. It was heavy with beads and gemstones and all manner of embellishments that it felt more like a grotesque caricature of what a wedding dress should be. Not even Adelaide, who married a Duke, got such an extravagant dress.

“Add more!” the Baron exclaimed, the dress was still unfinished. It was missing the fur cloak that the Baron wanted to be removed from another dress and added to this one along with the pierrot collar of the first dress she tried on.

“What do you think child?” Madame Salver said watching Aeria’s face strain with the weight of it. The only way the dress stayed on her body were the thick laces that Madame Salver tightened with the machine. If she wanted to bend down she could not and had to turn her whole body if she wanted to look at something.

“It’s a little heavy.” Aeria replied. “It hurts.” Madame Salver’s eyes went wide, Pain is beauty she always said. Just don’t let anyone know it. She was supposed to hide her pain.

The Baron laughed, a loud booming laugh. “Honest to the bone!” he said nudging Madame Salver, “Just like Don, that one! You’ll get used to the weight.”

“How do you know my father?” Aeria asked stepping off the small pedestal she was standing on. The bones of the bodice scraped painfully at her sides but she brushed it off.

“I knew him back when he was a Glaive of the King.” he said. “What your father never told you?”

“No.” Aeria said. “He didn’t.” Her father never spoke of Baron Stone. When he would visit her father would treat with him in the hall but Aeria and her sisters stayed their distance. On the days he brought his awful family with him they would go to Patton Ney’s farm and spend the their time with his sons who were always more than happy to have them.

“Your father rescued Kanna from a Chimera.” Baron Stone said. From what she understood Chimeras were horrible monsters that arrived during the darkest of nights. A type night devil that swallowed up other creatures to add to its own grotesque body. “You should've seen it Aeria. Never seen someone move that quick! Your father single handedly dispatched the beast with a single fell swoop of his sword. He killed it before it could even hurt my Kanna, of course, had known then that she would turn into such a frigid bitch I’d let the chimera take her right then and there!”

He laughed heartily and Aeria couldn’t help but smile. Her father never spoke of his days in the service of the King, he had become a recluse and shut away from all those he knew from that time.

“Madame.” Kanna’s voice came from the entryway, her eyes narrowed into narrow slits and the Baron went deathly silent. Aeria had to put her hand over her mouth from stop herself from laughing.

“You know I love you woman.” he said but the Baroness looked past him.

“Madame Salver, I’m in need of your assistance.” she ordered before turning on her heel and leaving, Madame Salver close on her tails.

“Now I’m in hot water,” the Baron told Aeria cheekily before running after the women. “Wait woman, I was only fooling! Woman!” his voice vanished down the hallway.

Aeria turned waddled towards the mirror. All the folds of the dress threatened to tip her over at any second. Madame Salver had done up her hair only to make the changing of dresses much easier. A massive headdress sat on the table next to the mirror, the Baron wanted her to wear it. Something about all the Stone women wearing it on their wedding day but Aeria watched it in contempt. If she had to wear that thing along with the dress she was sure to topple over.

Next to the headdress was a pile of rejected wedding gowns. The Baron, however, had settled on the gaudiest of them all much to Aeria’s dismay. If the light hit her in the right angle, all the beaded gemstones would light her up brighter than all the winter stars. Adelaide would probably be green with envy while both Aget and Alita would be laughing at how ridiculous their sister looked.

“You know could almost pass for a lady.” Dorian said coming into the room and closing the door behind him. The bandage around his head ran red with blood right above his left eye where his father’s cup had hit him and Aeria was glad it was taking so long to heal. The bite of his rings wasn’t easy to forget. The bruise on her cheek still hurt despite being hidden with magic. Aeria glared at him through the mirror, in the dress she couldn’t turn to face him without looking like a complete fool.

“You try anything and I’ll tell your father.” Aeria warned remembering the look of utter fear he had given his father. But that boy was gone, he approached her like a predator. “He’ll beat you to a pulp.” Aeria warned, but not even that deterred him.

“That show?” he laughed coldly. “That was for your father. My mother will have him back under her thumb in no time.” A cold chill shivered down her spine. Outside the blood moon was a high in the sky. She could feel it even with no windows to tell her so. Every year she could sense it and all the evil that it brought.

Dorian placed a heavily bandaged hand on her bare shoulder as if to remind her of what she had done. “Don’t touch me.” Aeria demanded fiercely and did her best to move away but the folds of her dress caught on her feet and she tumbled slightly.

Seizing on the opportunity, Dorian grabbed her by the back of the neck and shoved her into the mirror then leaned in close so that she could feel his breath against her ear. “I’ll touch what I want,” he spat in her ear then began undoing the the laced back of her dress.

“You know, my mother told me to wait for our first night.” he said his hands making quick work of the laces Madame Salver had spent half an hour doing. “But I just don’t think I can.” Aeria’s heart raced as she had a sickening realization in the ease in which he undid the back of her laces: this was not his first time doing this.

Aeria’s legs lay awkwardly over the massive dress she wore while Dorian pressed her roughly by the neck into the mirror. Pressing her hands to the mirror, Aeria could hear it crack under the weight of her trying to right herself up again. She was powerless against him and that made her angry. Angry at him and at herself for being so weak.

Enough of the laces had been undone and Aeria could properly breathe again, but that was exactly what Dorian had wanted. He turned her inside her dress so she could face him and Aeria immediately began to to claw her nails into the soft flesh of his neck. His hands closed tightly around her wrists then held them firmly against the cold mirror.

As much she struggled she couldn’t free herself from his grasp, beneath her wedding dress she wore nothing but a thin stain slip which Dorian now eyed with a twisted smirk on his face. Aeria thrashed in his grip then stopped, her chest heaving from the effort. He seemed to enjoy her feeble struggle more than anything.

Then his filthy lips were over hers, crushing them in a violent hunger, and all Aeria could think of was how horrible her first kiss was. She felt cold, like he was sucking the very life out of her. Wet and slimy, his tongue forced its way into her mouth but Aeria bit down hard.

Dorian yelped, pulled away, then struck her on the same bruised check as before but Aeria barely felt it. She was already climbing out of her dress. Just when she freed her legs out of the mess of silk he grabbed her by the hair making her reach up to try and dislodge his hand.

“Why are you fighting!?” he said in gleeful amusement before throwing her onto the bear skin fur rug. Like a coiled spring, a sharp sting reverberated from her wrist up her arm when Aeria used her hand to brace her fall. The numb feeling indication of a nasty sprain. “If it doesn’t happen today, it’ll be tomorrow.”

He was right. Aeria stopped fighting and lay on the fur defeated. He was right. At the end of the wedding ceremony they were expected to have their first night where their marriage was to be consummated. An unconsummated marriage could be annulled, so the priest was often hired to make sure it happened. While her father didn’t seek out the priest for most of her sister’s weddings if the groom’s father requested it he would honor it. Baron Stone seemed like the type who would.

Dorian was already on top her, pressing her deeper into the fur. Aeria trembled with the realization of what was was going to happen. She didn’t want it to be this way. Not here. she thought as silent tears slipped from her eyes and she clutched tightly onto the the fur that had brought her so much comfort as a child. Please not here. . .

It didn’t matter to Dorian Stone who had already undressed and was already helping himself to the soft skin at the base of her neck. Maybe he thought she had turned away because she enjoyed it, that wasn’t the case. She couldn’t bare look at him, everything about him disgusted her. Instead she stared at the fire burning brightly in the fireplace and the shadows it cast against the back wall, each a twisting and twirling princess in a far away world. They had their princes to come rescue them.

Dorian pulled the slip down her chest exposing her breasts and he put his filthy mouth over on and callously groped the other. But Aeria wasn’t there. The shadows twisted again and a ferocious knight battled a dragon. Long ago, it was a game Aeria played with her sisters. Now just a shadow. The knight had to win, he always rescued the princess but now it seemed like the knight would loose. The knight would always loose from now on.

His brushed at the sensitive opening between her legs and Aeria gasped, her back jerking up to meet him. She couldn’t stop herself, her own body would betray her. A deep laughter choked out of Dorian’s lips before they closed over Aeria’s as if to swallow her traitorous gasp. Aeria felt nothing but shame. He began undoing his pants then released his lock on her lips to say, “And I thought you’d be harder to break.”

Break her like he would break a horse. . . .or a slave.

Something inside her snapped indeed. Snapped right back into place.

Aeria reached up for the bandage around his head and dug her nails deep into the red splotch. He shot up off her howling in pain but Aeria was unrelenting and went up with him refusing let go. Blood gushed through the bandages but still she dug until she felt the skin give.

Dorian shoved himself off her, stumbling with his pants around his ankles before pulling them back up, then yanked off the bandage off his head to cradle the fresh opening. Aeria shot up to her feet and pulled up the slip that Dorian had ruthlessly yanked off her body back over her chest. Her chest heaving with pure adrenaline. The library had no windows, just one exit and Dorian Stone now stood between her and it.

“You cunt!” he bellowed savagely, the flesh of his temple had been peeled back about an inch and flapped uselessly above his eye. He came at her like a charging bull. There was no way out than through him so Aeria raced towards him, much to his surprise which she used to duck to his right.

She could see the shut door in front of her, just a meter or two away, when she felt him take a hold of her long locks and pull her back. He tried to take a hold of her arms but she shot the palm of her hand right at his exposed temple. The bone of her arm seemed to shake and Aeria realized too late that she had used her sprained hand to strike him but it had been enough.

Dorian doubled over gently caressing the wound at his temple. Aeria raced to the door a path now clear but fumbled with the lock a second too long.

Dorian slammed into her crushing her between the door and his own body. Blood from his wound dripped onto her shoulder. “I thought I could be gentle, you are to be my wife after all.” his voice shockingly calm against her hear, “But I suppose you just couldn’t have that could you.” he said grabbing a tight hold of both her wrists behind her back in a single massive hand. “If you want to act like a fucking savage I’ll treat you like one.” he said before shoving his hand between her and the door and rubbed her opening painfully over her clothes.

Aeria cried out desperate. Book, I need a book! A large tome flew off the shelf and came barreling through the air to Aeria. The ferocity in which she called for it caused it to slam into the only barrier between her and it; Dorian Stone, it hit right on the back of the head and he staggered off her before tumbling to the floor.

Aeria fell to her knees, her good hand clutching the lock feebly. The spell had left her weak, coming out of her like a downpour of magic opposed to allowing it to well up and trickle out properly. Her head rested on the door, her vision blurry, as she focused on catching her breath.

On the floor beside her Dorian began to stir. Her legs shaky, Aeria stood, tome in her hand, and shuffled over to her betrothed. His eyes widened just before Aeria sung the book across his face with all the strength that was left to her. Dorian didn’t stir after that. She dropped the book at her side and collapsed next to his unconscious body.

Her hands trembled, and her breathing staggered. The adrenaline that had brought her strength suddenly leaving her, a sickening terror slowly beginning to fill the void. She brought her shaky hands to her body hugging around her stomach as if doing so would make them stop, but it was too late, the adrenaline was gone and all the terror that had been put aside came flooding back.

A singe terrible wail burst out her and preceded the sobs that had also found their way out. She couldn’t stop them. Never had she known a greater fear that in those moments when he had made her feel so powerless. She could never forget the way he brutally exerted his will over her and her body. Never again. She vowed.

Shambling out the library a single thought remained in her head, the only thought a savage like her could have; freedom.