Amaria

~Ashmael Empire~

The round public square was surrounded by brick houses that were of different sizes and structures. At the center of the square were erected gallows, Many townspeople that gathered at the plaza were waving their fist in the air and threw stones toward the gallows and the five figures on it as they yelled angrily,

“ Blasphemy! ”

“ What a disgrace”

“ How dare you go against the temple of our dear Goddess Selena?”

“ Burn them alive! ”

One of the stones thrown hit Amaria's head, Amaria turned her head slowly away, but another stone hit her head. She groaned loudly as her eyes snapped open. She scanned her surroundings slowly, although her vision was blurry, she could still see people yelling and wondered why they were yelling.

Amaria tried getting up, but her hands were tied tightly behind her back,“ what is this? Why am I tied up? ”, she looked at her side and saw her comrades were also tied up.

“ Teresa? Elex? Dove? ” She mumbled, tears shimmered in her eyes, she was in pain; the fact that her comrades were also hurt, made her pain worse. She felt like she was forgetting something or someone.

The townspeople began to give way for a man in long white Alb, a white stole hanged around his neck with a white chasuble to complete the clothing, on the white chasuble was a golden symbol of the Goddess Selene.

“ The high priest is here, everyone give way,” A man said. The people gave way until he reached the front of the crowd.

The priest washed his hand in a clean bowl of water and said,“ O Goddess Selene, bestow purity to thy hand, so it shall be cleansed from all enormity”, After saying his prayers, he finally turned to face Amaria.

“ Amaria, That is your name, isn't it?” He asked.

“ Let us go” Amaria begged and attempted to free herself, but it didn't work.

“ You and your comrades know that it is a great sin to interact with Daemons or to even come in contact with one, right?” He asked again as he raised his right eyebrow and continued,“ but you travel with a Daemon ”. That's when Amaria finally noticed. ' Ammon? Where is he?! '

“ Where is he? Where is Ammon? What did you do to him? ” She cried out with a hostile gleam in her eyes; her face warped with rage.

“ We have not done anything to him , At least not yet. To answer your question, This Ammon you are so worried about is in a place best fitted for a low life like himself” The priest replied.

“ You must release him, you must release us, if you kill us, everyone in this empire will die,” Amaria said. The priest shook his head slowly and turned to her.

“ Is it true you and your comrades called the temple a lie? ” The priest proceeded, while he ignored everything she said. Amaria sough and retorted,“ you're asking like you don't know why? Like you don't know what's going on, I will continue to say it, the temple is a lie”

“ Keep quiet! you sinful wretch” someone from the crowd yelled.

“ you are in such a situation, and you dare to speak in such a manner? ” The Priest scoffed as he shook his head again.

“ What's the commotion here? ” a tall man with a huge body build, he had long pitch-black hair and sharp hazel eyes, said with a raucous voice that echoed as everyone went silent. The priest had a smug look on his face as he watched the man walk in his direction.

“ Alpha King Theon! These miscreants called the temple a lie” the priest said.

“And they even travel with a daemon” someone from the crowd said.

“ Despicable! ”

'What do I do? If the werewolves are involved we are done for but since it's uncle he might hear me out. I hope.' Amaria thought as she pursed her lips.

“ You do know this is a crime, right? so, why did you do it?” Theon asked.

“ Uncle Theon, please, let us go, the world is in danger, if you don't let us go now, everyone will die, I swear on the Moon Goddess, this is no blasphemy but the truth” Amaria replied as she stared into his bright hazel eyes, with hopes that he would at least listen to her. Theon had an angry glower on his face and said,

“ how many times have I told you not to ever address me as' uncle' but as 'your highness '?” Amaria felt a sickly lurch of disappointment as an empty laugh escaped from her chapped lips and mumbled to herself, “what was I thinking? Uncle will never be on my side, After the day he banished us... Ah! I should have known”.

“ Your decision will be the final word, your highness,” The priest said.

“ Bring the Daemon out of the Dungeon, we shall behead it,” Theon said with a dull expression. Amaria's eyes widened,' no, not Ammon'.

“ No, I beg of you, please, do not behead him!” Amaria screamed. Theon turned sharply and roared, “ silence! How dare you? I was not done with giving out my order and yet you have the guts to interrupt ”

Amaria bowed her head in shame as tears fell from her eyes , ' this is not right, I have to do something'

“And the rest of them? ” The priest asked with a subtle grin on his face as he waited for Theon's judgment,

“ Lock them up in the dungeon but behead that daemon first,” He said.

“Yes sire, as you wish,” The priest said and bowed. Theon glanced at Amaria for a while, turned and began to walk away.

Amaria, who had her neck bent downward, rose steadily from the ground and mumbled “ I won't let that happen”,

she was in pain, but it didn't matter. Right now, she was boiling with rage.

Theon turned to face her and asked,“ what did you just say?”. Amaria raised her head slowly to reveal her glowing blue orbs and growled,“ I said I won't let that happen! ”

Over the towering cliffs was a decrepit, respected, and antique castle-like structure with four square towers, each with azure coated top, distributed in a seemingly random pattern, built-in for an ideal defense and bound by strengthened, vast walls made of grey stone and a sizeable gate with thick wooden doors.

Within the Castle training yard, stood a fair maiden with long curly pitch-black hair, peering at the target with her dull pitch-black orbs. Her bow and arrow aimed at the target, she drew back her bow and let the arrow loose, and it drilled the target.

A man with a huge build long pitch-black hair and sharp hazel eyes, in black leather armor and black leather boots with a blood stain Claymore, walked into the training yard. All the guards present there bowed and said, “Greetings, your highness Alpha King Theon”.

Amaria rolled her eyes, took another arrow from her quiver, aimed at the target once again, drew the bow back, and let the arrow loose, but this t