Wrath and Ruin by Ripley Proserpina

Author:Ripley Proserpina [Proserpina, Ripley]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Opal Moon Press

Polya’s First Train Trip

When Polya and her father arrived at the train station, they were met by soldiers and hustled onto a train car. Polya didn’t allow herself to stare at the car in fascination. Her mother had trained her. She was a princess; she was not to gawk at velvets and gilding like a peasant.

But she wanted to.

Everything was plush. The seats were deep, and when Polya sat on one, it seemed to envelop her body, cradling her. Thick velvet curtains held back by silk cords covered the windows. A footman stood ready to meet any request they may have.

Her father crossed his leg, his foot jiggling nervously.

Polya folded her hands and stared pointedly at his foot and back to his face. He shifted his position immediately, assuming an expression of ennui.

He didn’t fool her; she could smell the fear coming off him.

Polya glanced away from him. She could feel herself absorbing his anxiety, mixing it up with her own to heighten her own fear. She faced the window and watched servants pack up luggage and travelers led to other cars until the platform was empty.

A flash of blue and gold caught her attention, and she leaned forward without thought. She saw one soldier, and then another, and another. They marched forward stiffly but quickly. They were in their state uniforms, the ones with the tall ridiculous hats designed in the middle ages when the nobility didn’t wear the veneer of manners or civility.

They were surrounding something. She couldn’t see what it was, but it was being herded to the train.

It must be the king’s Beast.

Polya’s heart ached in sympathy. Here was a creature as trapped as she was.

She stopped looking. She didn’t want to see what they would do to him, but then she leaned forward again.

He was alive, and deserved to have someone witness what was happening. She didn’t know if he was evil and thoughtless, but she didn’t think so.

A flash of brown, perhaps fur, and it was gone. She craned her head, almost climbing onto her knees to see where they brought him, but he was gone. Instead she saw the blue and the stupid hats.

“Polya?” her father asked.

She turned around, sitting back. “It was nothing.”

A few moments later, the train hissed and steamed, moving roughly and hesitantly until it gained the momentum it needed. It ambled out of the city, over bridges and the Svetla River. Polya stared down at the water. It looked black like jet. She imagined jumping in. The cold would take away her breath.

Polya wondered how long she could hold her breath underwater. Would her body let her stay underwater, unmoving until her eyes closed and she floated away? Or would she be forced to gasp and sputter, kicking and clawing her way to the surface.

She closed her eyes, not wanting to see any more of the city or the countryside that would inevitably remind her of Bishmyza. If she survived this, she would go there, and it would be hers.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.