Prey of the Lion

Chapter 10: Lies, Deceptions, & Schemes

Chapter 10: Lies, Deceptions, & Schemes

My sisters, Lea and Canaria, along with my only brother Larnie, were playing tag around the flower bush of the Royal Rockery, it looked like a mini-maze with bricked pathway. At the edge is a big patio, right at the cliff, overlooking the ocean.

“Pan!” Halata ang tuwa kay Larnie nang makita niyang paparating kami. Given his reactions, he must have made friends with Pan yesterday. Mas lalong kumislap pa ang kaniyang mga mata nang napansin niya rin ako, “Lark!” He ran towards me while being chased by Lea.

“Hello, Larnie.” I grinned. Bahagya kong ginulo ang kaniyang buhok at lumabi lang naman siya.

“Pan, wanna play tag with me and my sisters?” Agad na alok ni Larnie. Ngumiti naman agad si Pan at tumango. I told them to have fun, and walked once more toward the patio where the rest of my family is. Tumigil si Akane sa entrada ng patyo habang nakatingin sa gawi ng mga bata.

Right at the patio was the King of Parzelin Kingdom, my father, Leviticus, and the Queen, my mother, Latifah. Beside them were my other sisters, the princesses, Lenny, Lafea, Leda, and Lorraine.

“Lark, it is good to see you, my son.” Hinila ako ni Mama at saka ako niyakap ang mahigpit. Papa gave me a brief pat on the shoulder afterward, “how are you faring here?”

“The people here are very nice.” I smiled. “I like it here.”

“Yes, we were expecting the other way around when we were invited to be at your grand coronation. The rumors about Liondale Empire are faux.” Saad ni Papa, “Emperor Leonhart has also promised to station a battalion in our kingdom to protect us from invaders. As he knows well how much we lack military power, as we are just an agrarian kingdom who relies on trade and agriculture.”

“Enough with the politics, Papa.” My eldest sister, Lorraine, said. “You always talk about politics.” She rolled her eyes and afterward, she smiled at me. “You’re one lucky man! I thought you had the worst luck when the Emperor has chosen to make you his Empress, but now that I am here—I just want to sigh! You’re the luckiest man ever!”

“Yes, though I am not sure if I agree with this set-up. I mean, you both are men.” This time, Leda talked.

Umiling naman si Mama, “Leda, love should not be based on gender... And love is a complicated matter, rather than trying to understand it, we should just feel it.”

“I agree with Mama.” Lafea chuckled.

“Yes, love... But I don’t think Lark and the Emperor loves each other at all, so it does not make sense. They just met when he was chosen.” Leda stated, “baka nga napipilitan lang si Lark dito dahil wala naman talaga siyang magagawa sa kagustuhan ng emperor na siya’y maging kahati niya. And we should also not forget that all Lark’s life, he was prepared to be the next King of our kingdom. And just a snap, everything falls apart.” Leda stated.

“Well, we really have no control over our own fate. Rather than going against it, we should just accept it and let ourselves be drawn by the flow of the wind and river.” Mama argued. “Isn’t that right, Leviticus?”

“Yes.” Ngumiti si Papa. “Anyway, Lark, we’ll be off soon, perhaps in a few hours. We have prior engagements at the kingdom, and given that we just became a kingdom under the reign of Liondale Empire, we have to retrack our trades and remove affiliations to the kingdoms that are enemies to Emperor Leonhart.”

“Alright.” I smiled. Being in the company of my family in this foreign land that is now my new home feels nice. Somehow, I feel like everything is going well and that I should really just entrust myself to my fate, as Mama has said.

We talked more about many things, catching up, I told them how I made some new friends, especially Castella, who did all my dresses. My sisters were very jealous because of how beautiful my clothes are, and I just had to boast Castella.

Hindi namin namalayan ang oras hangga’t sa oras na para mamaalam.

“We’ll pay a visit again soon, alright? But for the meantime, do not forget to send letters. We will too.” Mama said and hugged me. I hugged the rest of my family after as they hopped inside their carriages. When everyone of them were finally in, the carriage moved and I watched them retreat towards the city just beneath us.

“Your family is very nice.” Akane remarked.

“Indeed, they are.”

“Pan wants to pay a visit to Parzelin Kingdom someday too, and play with Larnie.” Pan pouted.

“Let’s do that someday.” I grinned. After that, we went back inside of the palace and went on our separate ways.

~*~

3RD POV

A portal opened and a lady with red hair came out of it, wearing her uniform. “How is everything going?” Tanong ng isang lalakeng nakaupo sa trono habang nakatingin sa isa sa kaniyang mga tauhan.

“Everything is going as planned, Lord Viseris.” Sagot naman nito, “my hypnotic magic has greatly made Emperor Leonhart believe the lie and it is only a matter of time until the Dark Lord awakens to dominate Terra Forma.”

Ngumiti naman si Lord Viseris nang marinig ang magandang balita, “indeed, we are the Luna Axis and the very reason why we are here is to fulfill our mission—the revival of the Dark Lord.”

It was this redhead’s magic that made Emperor Leonhart dream of Aurum talking to him, that he needs to find the one with the purple eyes and be with that person in order to make sure that the sinister magic sealed within this man remains contained. It was the opposite. They need to be as far away as possible from each other, because the key from unsealing the magic that will awaken the Dark Lord is only if they remain in close proximity and engage in intimacy. Emperor Leonhart and Lark are just tools for their goal of reviving the Dark Lord.

“It is only a matter of time.”

Kasabay nito ay ang pagbukas ng matayog na pinto sa silid at bumungad ang isang kabalyero. The man was holding a purple magic staff. Mas lalong lumaki ang ngiti sa labi ni Lord Viseris nang makita ito.

“Here is the staff that we stole from Meteor City.” Saad nito. “We lost five hundred followers, as Emperor Leonhart was there. A big casualty for us.”

“Marion, you did a good job. Surely, as we have obtained the staff of our Dark Lord, their deaths are not in vain. Everything is going as planned.” Saad ni Lord Viseris at saka siya tumingin sa babaeng nakatayo sa harap niya. “Go back now before they find out that you’re gone.” Utos ni Lord Viseris sa babae. A portal once again opened from her back and she crossed it, going back to Liondale Empire.