A Fate Renewed

Chapter 19-New Faces

(Amira)

I went to stand, my legs giving out immediately, causing Gideon to rush to my side, his hand on my elbow as he helped me. My legs felt like jello, the muscles not having been used for five days. Alden looked at where Gideon held me, annoyance flashing through him as he spoke once more.

"He would also like to have a word with you." He said sternly before walking forward and gripping my arm tightly then proceeded to pull me towards the door.

I glanced back at Gideon, noticing his hands were now at his sides as they balled into fists..he looked mad..like, really mad.

Alden practically dragged me the whole way through the dungeon because I apparently wasn't walking fast enough for him..I made sure to close my eyes as we passed the wall where a new body was now hanging.

I couldn't look but from the groans I heard, I knew they were still alive...

After climbing the stairs I was brought through the same room as before, but this time we turned down a long hallway instead of going straight.

Alden opened a door and tugged me inside, causing a billow of steam to rush past me as I blinked my eyes at the sudden change of environment. Peering in front of me, I realized the steam was coming from the floor as a hot bath now sat before us.

I glanced toward Alden, who didn't even bother to meet my gaze.

"You will bathe here first." He spoke firmly, his voice seeming to only hold one emotion since the first day I met him...seriousness..

I won't lie..I perked up at the mention of taking a bath..it has been so freaking long and I know I have to stink by now..plus all the dirt on my skin is driving me crazy!

Just as a smile began pulling at my lips, I watched as a group of women suddenly came out of another door dressed in those sheer fabrics I had seen before as they walked over to me.

The group of women quickly took my hands, pulling me towards the bath as I glanced back at Alden who didn't even seem concerned as they pulled me further into the room.

I realized pretty quickly that none of the girls were even acknowledging me as their hands began working quickly while they whispered amongst themselves.

I noticed Alden standing by the door now, his eyes staring at nothing in particular but making sure he wasn't looking toward me..at least he seemed respectful..unlike some of the other guards I had passed by.

One of the women who had long beautiful red hair began pulling my dress off as a loud gasp escaped her now parted lips..her eyes burning into the bind mark that covered the space over my heart.

I felt exposed, trying to cover myself as the women treated me like an object rather than a real person.

They all glanced between one another before shooting their gazes back toward me with wide eyes.

"I have never seen one like this.." The redhead whispered harshly to a pretty blonde with mocha skin and blue eyes.

I began scanning their bodies for the binds they too must have...considering everything they wore was see-through it shouldn't be too hard to find.

Just then, one girl flicked her wrist and there it was, a small black dot on her fair skin...

I blinked my eyes in disbelief..a dot..a freaking dot? All they get is a freaking dot!

Annoyance filled me as I continued to stare at it. They got a small black dot and I was practically given a whole damn portrait.

I sighed, causing the girls to laugh as they must've seen it on my face, causing them to finally speak to me. The redhead leaned in closer, taking the lead.

"I hear you have been brought here to become the newest w***e. Most of the guards can't wait to get their hands on you." She whispered with a snarky tone, glancing behind me.

"Maybe some already have. Alden is one of the more generous ones isn't he?" She said with a smirk.

My stomach dropped...whore? I was meant to sleep with men here?!

Suddenly the woman pulled my underwear down, causing my eyes to widen as she walked me towards the bath.

Panic began to fill me as the urge to flee started to rise.

I knew I wouldn't get far, considering Alden was standing guard.

Plus running away naked might not be my smartest plan..I needed to assess the situation first before reacting unreasonably.

Maybe she was just trying to scare me...the smug looks on all of the girl's faces seemed as if they were all in on it.

At least that's what I hoped..

Stepping in, the hot water was a welcome feeling against my sore legs, my muscles so weak from everything I had been through.

I submerged myself up to my shoulders as everyone grabbed a sponge and began to scrub my skin roughly in circular motions. I felt uneasy, hearing what the woman had said. Another girl with brown hair began whispering to her friend.

"I heard Terik stormed Vardis, that was why my lord gave the guards so much shit." She spoke quietly, my ears perking up at the mention of Terik.

I wondered where Vardis was..is that where we are now? Was Terik..no he couldn't be..could he truly be trying to save me? My heart fluttered..were the rumors true? Did he think I was his mirror soul? The girl began speaking again.

"Do you think he will trade Theia? He spent so long trying to get her back..maybe he realizes how crazy she is." She laughed, prompting her friends to join in soon after.

Suddenly the redhead poured water on my head, scrubbing my hair vigorously as she washed it with soap.

I closed my eyes tightly, trying to hear as the girls continued to chatter.

"To think she believes the lord of darkness would still love her after she killed his father..." The brown-haired girl said as Alden cleared his throat loudly, cutting her off.

"Ladies, that's enough talking..get back to work." He snapped before glaring at them.

Theia killed Kamaris's father...did I hear that correctly? Was that why Kamaris killed her? Why would she even kill his dad in the first place?

So many things just didn't make sense...suddenly all the girls began to giggle and looked at Alden, some flirting as they fluttered their long eyelashes at him.

Glancing over, he met my gaze quickly, his eyes wandering down my naked body before darting them away.. He began awkwardly clearing his throat and started ignoring us once more.

I would of hid my body but the girls were holding my arms firmly in place as they scrubbed them until my skin was a bright red...okay..my cheeks were red too..especially after that.

Once they were done with the washing, they then started to rinse me off.

I don't think I have ever been this clean in my life..the floral smell that now radiating from my skin was divine.

Soon they pulled me up, wrapped a towel around my body, and walked me to the other side of the room as Alden followed close behind.

I entered through a door and saw we were now in a room with red walls and an area that had three different vanities with stools to sit on.

There were racks of clothes and shoes against the walls between them and every station had tons of makeup and perfume bottles strewn about on shelves. Alysian was so baffling to me..sometimes it would seem like an old world where they didn't have electricity and modern things..and then there were instances like this..where the vanities had mirrors surrounded by stringed lights. I could even hear soft music playing from somewhere in the distance..it was a woman singing in a different language but the beat reminded me of a pop song we had back home.

Sitting me down, the girls started drying and then brushing my hair.

I glanced up into the mirror and let out a gasp..the woman I saw in the reflection was someone I had never seen in my life...then I realized it was me..I was this stranger in the mirror.

My once quite average features were now soft and feminine. I looked elegant and womanly as my hair was now chocolate brown with golden highlights. My lips were full and my green-blue eyes were practically glowing..I looked..beautiful.

I felt like I had changed so much..it was like my new body resembled nothing like my old one..only my eyes were the same.

I couldn't help but stare at myself, unconvinced this was me..

I never really thought I was ugly before..but now, seeing the way I look, I feel like a beautiful feminine woman.

I guess that's what turning into Athuney does to you..I witnessed it with my own eyes for Theia’s transformation.

The girls pulled and twisted my hair until it was up in a tight bun.

Next, they took out a pair of black pearl earrings and the redhead walked over to a dresser, pulling out a sharp needle..my eyes widened in disbelief as she glanced towards me.

"My Lord has requested it.. don't worry, it shouldn't hurt too bad." The woman smiled, making me swallow hard as she stepped towards me.

I shut my eyes tight..bracing myself for this pain as I took a deep breath and held it.

Two agonizing stabs to the ear later..the redhead went back to work with a huge smile on her face as she grabbed a black outfit and passed the matching panties to me, prompting me to quickly slip them on.

I was starting to think this redhead seemed to have some type of problem with me..she seemed to enjoy that way too much.

The dress I wore had a thin halter top with connected silver chains hanging across my ribs and down to my navel. The bottom was a form-fitting skirt that hugged my hips and went down to my ankles with a large slit up to my thigh.

My midriff was bare, only the cold silver chains covering pieces of my fair skin as I looked down in disbelief..I had never seen anything like it.

Every time I moved, the chains would rattle and cling, the cold silver brushing against my skin and causing goosebumps to prickle my flesh.

The girls brought me to a mirror and I was shocked to see my body fully for the first time.

My breasts were full and my waist had an hourglass shape while my hips were curvy with a round bottom.

The dress showed every single curve and slope of my frame as my chest was barely covered by this thin fabric.

How the hell was I going to be able to wear this?

I noticed Alden staring at me out of the corner of my eye..making my stomach drop as I soon realized this would be bad if Alden was even staring... He hadn't shown any type of interest so far. Well, besides the awkward bath thing..but he seemed just as embarrassed as I was.

In fact, he mostly ignored me as much as possible.

I stifled a groan, trying to just get through this so I could go back to the safety of my cell when a horrible thought crossed my mind..

Wait..what if Kamaris expected me to sleep with him!?

Just then Alden spoke, startling me.

"Let's go." He stated firmly, causing all the girls to disperse as they continued to whisper..mostly about me.

I hesitated, what if I said no? What would happen?

Just then a horrible pain shot straight through my chest right beneath the bind and caused me to let out a muffled groan, making Alden look over at me.

"We are running late." He mattered before walking over to me and grabbed my arm as he began pulling me along.

The bind mark sent another shooting pain through my chest as I dragged my feet behind me.

I didn't want to go, I would refuse to sleep with Kamaris. The thought alone caused my stomach to ache.

After the way he treated me, tricked me, lied to me, there was no way in hell. Alden dragged me through some more halls, guards gawking at me along the way, causing my anxiety to rise with each step.

Suddenly we were by a pair of black double doors.

They swung open slowly as a large dining room appeared in front of me. Then my eyes widened in shock as they landed on the man in the room..it was Kamaris and he wore the hugest grin on his face as those black eyes met mine.

"Amira..You're late..but you were never good at keeping track of time were you?"