Chapter 49: Dungeon Punishment

Cold seeped into Renira’s bones the moment she woke up.

She groaned, her head pounding with an ache that she went from her jaw all the way to her temples. Her eyelids felt heavy, crusted with dried tears and the remnants of her applied makeup. She tried to move her arms, to push herself upright—

Clink.

The sound of metal scraping against stone echoed through the darkness.

Renira’s eyes snapped open.

She was in a dungeon.

The realization hit her like a bucket of ice water. The walls were rough stone, covered with moisture.

She looked down at her wrists.

Heavy iron manacles were clamped around them, the cold metal biting into her skin. Thick chains connected the manacles to iron rings bolted into the stone floor, allowing her only a few feet of movement. Her bare feet were similarly shackled, the rough iron scraping against her ankles.

Her gown was torn and filthy, the once-beautiful gown now stained with dirt, blood, and grime. She could feel a trickle of dried blood on her temple, and her jaw throbbed where Nalani’s fist had connected.

No. No, no, no.

This wasn’t supposed to happen. She was supposed to be free. She was supposed to be saving Leonidas, not rotting in a dungeon like a common criminal.

Renira tugged violently at her chains, the iron rattling loudly.

"Let me out!" she screamed. "Do you hear me?! Let me out! I am the daughter of Lord Vane! I have rights! I demand to see the King!"

Her screams echoed off the stone walls, bouncing back at her. But no one came. No guards rushed to her aid. No servants appeared to free her.

Only silence.

And then, a sound.

Click. Clack. Click. Clack.

The sound of heels against stone.

Renira twisted her head, straining against her chains, as a figure emerged from the shadows at the far end of the dungeon.

Empress Karina.

Her hair was tied back in a twist, and her eyes flared with a cold that made the dungeon’s chill seem like a summer’s breeze.

Behind her, the iron door of the dungeon swung shut, sealing them both in the darkness.

Karina stopped a few feet away from the chained woman, not uttering a single word but finding contentment in staring at Renira.

Renira’s initial terror curdled into something else, and she yanked at her chains again.

"Ah!" Renira scoffed, forcing a mocking laugh from her cracked lips. "Am I supposed to be scared of you?"

Karina tilted her head, her expression unchanged. "Maybe not me. After all, in a fair fight, you could probably kill me."

Renira’s eyes widened, her mocking bravado flickering. She hadn’t expected the Empress to agree with her.

"But you forgot something important," Karina continued. "I am the Empress of Zyleria. And I have access to resources you couldn’t even imagine."

Renira’s eyes darted around the dungeon, looking for an escape that didn’t exist. "I would sooner die than grovel at your feet."

Karina chuckled. It was taking everything within her to not descend upon Renira like a tiger. "Oh, you WILL die. But first..."

She took a step closer, her heels clicking against the stone. "Tell me. What did you think would happen when you came for my son?"

Renira’s lips twisted into a sneer. "I know what you are. You’re a witch. You’ve bewitched Leonidas with your dark magic. The real Empress, the weeping creature who couldn’t even hold her head up, she died the moment you took her place. You’re a fraud. A monster wearing her skin."

Karina laughed out again, completely befuddled by the level of delusion Renira had in her head.

"You could have come after me," Karina said quietly. "You could have tried to kill me. You could have challenged me, confronted me, fought me face to face. But you didn’t. You went after a child."

She took another step forward, her voice rising alongside the rage in her heart. "A six-year-old boy who had never done anything to you. A child who was finally starting to trust again. You tried to turn him into a mindless monster. You tried to make him suffer."

Renira’s sneer faltered. For the first time, something that might have been fear flickered in her eyes.

"You wanted to hurt me," Karina continued. "Fine. I can handle that. I have been hurt before. But going after my child—"

She stopped, forcing unshed tears back. "My CHILD. A six-year old. You’re an irredeemable monster, and I can not WAIT to give you your due."

Renira’s fear turned back into defiance. She spat on the ground, her saliva landing just inches from Karina’s feet.

"You don’t deserve him," Renira hissed. "You don’t deserve any of it. The crown. The power. Leonidas. It should have been me. I was the one who loved him. I was the one who stood by him. I was the one who—"

She lunged forward as far as her chains would allow, and spat directly at Karina’s face.

The warm, wet globule landed on Karina’s cheek, trailing slowly down her porcelain skin.

Renira’s eyes widened with manic triumph. "There. That’s what I think of your precious child!"

Karina didn’t flinch.

She reached up slowly, and wiped the spit from her cheek with the back of her hand. She stared at the glistening moisture on her skin for a long moment.

Then she looked at Renira.

Her eyes had gone completely cold. Empty. Like the eyes of a woman who had just crossed a line from which there was no return.

"Ah," Karina said softly. "I see."

She tilted her head, her lips curving into a smile that didn’t reach her eyes. "I would slap you. But no. That would be far too kind."

Renira’s triumph evaporated, replaced by a creeping dread.

Karina turned her head toward the dungeon’s entrance. "COME IN!"

CREAK.

The iron door swung open, and three figures stepped into the torchlight.

The first two were beastmen, massive panther warriors with dark fur and sharp fangs. They carried long, braided whips in their hands, the leather strands wrapped with wicked, glinting thorns.

The third beastman was even larger. He carried no whip, but his hands were clenched into fists.

Renira’s heart slammed against her ribs. "W-What—what is this?!"

Karina stepped aside, gesturing languidly toward the chained woman. "Are you ready to talk now?"

"Rot in hell!" Renira shrieked, thrashing against her chains. "I will never talk! I will never tell you anything! You can’t make me! I am a noble! I have rights! LEONIDAS! LEONIDAS, HELP ME!"

Karina ignored the screaming. She turned to the third beastman. "Grab her, and pin her down."

The beastman stepped forward. His heavy boots echoed against the stone, each step bringing him closer to the terrified woman.

Renira’s screams grew louder. "NO! NO! DON’T TOUCH ME! STAY BACK! STAY BACK!"

The beastman’s claws closed around her throat, forcing her head back. Two more beastmen stepped forward, grabbing her arms and legs. Together, they flipped her onto her stomach, pressing her face against the stone.

Renira’s cheek hit the floor, scraping against the rough stone. She couldn’t move. She couldn’t fight. She could only lie there, helpless, as the first beastman raised his whip.

"Last chance, Renira. Who—"

"Go to hell!" Renira screamed at the top of her lungs, still pathetically thrashing in the beast men’s grip.

Karina sighed. "Very well."

She nodded at the beastman. "Proceed."

CRACK!

The whip came down across Renira’s back.

"AHHHHHHHH!" Renira’s scream tore through the dungeon. The thorns bit into her skin, tearing through the thin silk of her gown and digging deep into her flesh. She felt something hot and wet trickle down her spine, blood. Her blood.

CRACK!

The second lash followed immediately, catching her across the shoulders. Renira’s body convulsed, her fingers scrabbling uselessly against the stone floor. Her screams grew hoarse.

"PLEASE! PLEASE STOP! STOP!"

Karina didn’t look away. She watched the lash fall again and again, each strike shredding Renira’s gown and the skin beneath it.

CRACK!

CRACK!

CRACK!

"PLEASE! I’LL TALK! I’LL TELL YOU EVERYTHING!"

Karina held up a hand.

The beastman froze, his whip poised for another strike.

"Start talking."