Chapter Four
SILENCE FILLED THE DUNGEON. The only sound echoing around the darkness was the heavy breathing from Lilyan and the shackles that binded her. She stood at the corner, eyes wide open. She was feeling cold but she felt confused even more.
The last thing she remembered was the events from earlier when the old prophet dropped dead at the door of her bedroom. The later events remained blank on her mind and how she got to the dark dungeon was a rather confusing factor.
Her life has became so messy in minutes, what was exactly going on?
While she stood there, frozen in fear, the whispering grew louder, more menacing. Lilyan's heart raced, her breath coming in short gasps.
Suddenly, the torches on the walls flickered and died, plunging the dungeon into total darkness.
Lilyan's eyes strained to adjust, but there was no light to be had.
The whispering stopped, replaced by an oppressive silence. Just as she thought she couldn't take it anymore, a faint light appeared in the distance. A torch, carried by a prison guard, cast eerie shadows on the walls as he approached.
"Time to eat, prisoner," he growled, his voice devoid of emotion. He placed a tray on the ground beside her, the metal clattering against the stone floor.
Lilyan's eyes fixed on the food, her stomach growling with hunger. But she couldn't move and she couldn't speak,she was just numb and unable to do anything.
The guard snorted. "Suit yourself, then. Starve, for all I care." He turned to leave, but paused at the door. "And prisoner?"
Lilyan's eyes flicked towards him, hoping against hope that he would reveal some clue, some hint of how she had ended up in this place.
"The High Priestess is coming, you should get ready to serve her." Then he was gone, leaving Lilyan more confused and frustrated. Her eyes fell on the floor and the shackles around her wrists and ankles.
The touch of light immediately disappeared with the prison guard leaving her in darkness.
She remained seated, chin on her knees as she shivered in cold. Lilyan was in pain and couldn't even open her mouth. She looked at the little window which was up, not even helping with brightening the dungeon.
The following days passed momentarily with the same routine. The prison guard would bring her two slices of bread in the morning then rice in the evening. Lilyan counted days, yet the darkness and light that flashed on the small window filled nothing but anxiety in her heart.
She missed the comfort of her home, she hated the cold floor that sent shivers down her spine. They didn't even sorry for her as to hand her a blanket to keep herself warm.
Thus the cold made her feel like a rod.
While she laid unmoving from the corner, the faint light appeared and she moved her eyes, anticipating for the prison guard that usually came to bring her food.
However, there was a difference that evening though, the guards were two instead of one and they didn't have any plates or water with them.
"Prisoner! Come out!" One shouted. He was really ugly.
Lilyan's heart raced as she slowly got up, her chains clanking against the stone floor. The guards approached her, their faces expressionless. One of them grabbed her arm, pulling her out of the cell. She stumbled, her legs weak from days of inactivity. She definitely looked like a chewed gum thrown in a trash can.
All ugly and useless.
As they dragged her through the corridors, the air grew thick with incense and something else... something sweet and pungent. The smell of sacred herbs, burned in rituals to appease the gods found her nose.
They passed through ornate doors, designed with ancient symbols which were unfamiliar. Was she perhaps taken to a cult and she was going to be presented as a sacrifice? God should have mercy on her! While walking, Lilyan noticed the walls which were lined with intricate carvings, depicting the history of a land. Lilyan's eyes widened as she took in the grandeur of the holy place.
They entered a vast chamber, the ceiling lost in darkness. The room was filled with rows of pillars, supporting the weight of the sacred structure. At the far end, a massive throne sat atop a dais, made with gems and precious metals. It was breathtaking!
The guards pulled her up the stairs, to the foot of the throne. A figure, shrouded in shadows, sat upon the throne demanding attention yet the air surrounding that figure felt pure.
"Kneel, prisoner," one of the guards growled, pushing her down onto the cold stone floor.
Lilyan's eyes were fixed on the white dressed woman who sat like a Queen, she radiated too much power, Lilyan's heart was pounding in her chest thinking of so many possibilities. Firstly, she was young to be a sacrifice.
Secondly, she was still a virgin at the matters of heart. She has never fallen in love. How terrifying!
"High Priestess." The prison guard bowed in respect before he retreated a few feet away behind Lilyan.
"Speak," the High Priestess commanded, her voice like thunder in the silence. "What do you know of the ancient ones?"
Lilyan's mind raced, her thoughts a jumble of confusion.
What did she know? Nothing.
But something inside her stirred, a spark of defiance. She looked up, meeting the High Priestess's gaze.
"I know nothing," she spat, her voice barely above a whisper. "But I know I don't belong here."
"Who said you don't belong here?" The voice was soft and elegant, it held authority.
"I—I don't belong here." Lilyan said again.
Lilyan shivered, "I don't understand why I was in prison, may I ask what happened to me? Why was I imprisoned?" She should be glad enough that she was able to say more than a few sentences.
"Do you think you're that much of importance to be driven into prison?" The High Priestess questioned. "A lot of women are always captured near our borders. You're not different from them."
Lilyan's gaze flickered onto the floor, "Then, the High Priestess will…?'"
"You're very bold, do you want to know what will happen to you? Are you that curious?" The High Priestess looked at Lilyan who was gazing at the floor then she released a light chuckle. "What type of a creature was your father?"
"High Priestess, my father was human." Lilyan replied.
"Human? A human would never bore a being of such a special spiritual power." She said confidence.
Lilyan didn't understand what she meant so she didn't say anything as she continued to look down. A handmaid rushed in, eyes casted down with her hands in front of her.
She stopped before the High Priestess. "High Priestess, a summon from the palace."
"You can leave." The High Priestess said to the handmaid who retreated, walking out of the room.
"You will be given work to do and trained to become a Priestess. This is a holy place and only pure people remain here." The Priestess said. "I will have people check your purity before you take on the tittle of being an acolyte."
Lilyan breath out, looking up to the High Priestess but quickly back down. "What does it mean being checked?"
"You will know." The High Priestess stood, "Trish! Come and take this girl, present her to the sisters under my command. She shall be checked of her purity."
Two young women dressed in white walked in, they dragged Lilyan away to a sacred chamber. The chamber was all in white, presenting dignity and purity.
"What?" She gasped looking at the five women who surrounded the bed she was thrown on top of. The women didn't say a thing, they moved her dirty dress up and she was suddenly exposed to them.
They did what they were commanded to do then one of them whispered towards Trish, The High Priestess handmaid.