#131 The Path to Madness
Cassandra was torn. Between disgust, horror, and⦠compassion. A part of her was hearing Vrehanâs
story and seeing it through her own spectrum. Once pulled into the Dragon Empire, she had always
thought there was something wrong with it. She had thought even more so when she had met Kairen,
his mother, and heard their story. This Imperial Palace was the scariest place in the Empire. Filled with
beautiful women, treasures, all the food and gold one could want, and endless rivers of blood. This kind
of place wasnât an environment for children to grow up safely. It was a place for them to kill or be killed.
Her people had an expression for that. The river may not taste like the sea, but it doesnât get sweeter.
No one could completely be free of its birth condition, and no child born from the Imperial Palace could
be born without blood to be shed either. It was one endless circle of vengeance, jealousy and death
haunting those golden walls. How could they path their own way of staying free of all violence in those
conditions? Vrehan had undergone through his motherâs madness and became the monster one
womanâs tortured mind could create.
âI have done everything⦠I became the best in everything!â He yelled. âI was the smartest child, the
strongest, even the one with the largest beast, and yet, when this bastard came back, all this went for
nothing. My Father only saw Kairen and his dragon, nothing else. None of us mattered. He gave him
the best opportunity, the best chances. Even giving him an army, so he could come back after that
victory and be acclaimed by anyone!â
Vrehanâs anger came in every single word he spat. He had become about as red as his dragon and
didnât bother to control himself anymore. Cassandra looked at him, standing a few paces away, but she
was still nervously keeping an eye on the monstrous progeny also. Krai was growling in a low tone, but
his arched back and visible fangs made clear he was ready to attack as soon as sheâd give him the
word.
That jealousy between the siblings was no different from their mothersâ. They all longed for their
fatherâs attention, and a chance to survive. Yet, Vrehan.was the one who had gone too far, who had
fallen into this hole without any chance of repair. Cassandra knew this tone of voice, it sounded like
despair and madness, molten together.
âIt was always about Kairen, the prodigal son, the War God, Kareenâs son⦠Father was blind anytime
that woman or her children were in the room. Even his damn sister mattered more than us, his sons!â
Cassandra remembered seeing Shareen stand like an equal of her brothers. She was the only princess
allowed to do that, but part of it was because she had taken that right for herself. It wasnât Kareen or
the Emperor who had given her a chance to talk and dispute her brothers, to stand above her sisters.
The princess had chosen to stand her ground and become as strong as she needed to. She hadnât
gotten favoritism, she had made her own space.
Shareen couldnât have gotten that strong or became able to discuss matters of the Empire on par with
her brothers or her fatherâs counselor simply because she was the favorite daughter. On the contrary,
she may have become the favorite daughter because of everything she had become.
Vrehan was simply blind and deaf to her actions, just like he was to his own sisters. He couldnât see a
woman as a whole human being, only as a thing to be subjected to another man. To a father, a brother,
or a son. Just like her mother, Shareen had long decided she was more than that. Cassandra didnât
think that was simply her education that had molded her so, it was her nature.
âHe didnât have to do anything, he always came first in every fucking thing! The minute he was born,
that damn Kairen became the nemesis of my life!â
ââ¦Youâre wrong.â
After all of his vociferating, Cassandraâs soft voice took him by surprise. The Second Prince looked at
her, looking a bit lost for a second. He probably didnât think sheâd even dare talk back, but there she
was. The young concubine wasnât even afraid. She was standing tall, backed up by the strongest
dragon alive, and she was not about to step down. She wasnât impressed or scared by him.
Cassandra had found in herself the very same feelings she had the last time she stood in that arena.
She wasnât afraid to die, she wasnât afraid to stand in the face of a man-killing monster. A lot of things
had changed, and she
was stronger than before. She wanted to survive, this time, but she was also ready to give her life to
save her loved ones. She wasnât scared in the slightest, a strange halo of quiet was with her.
âYouâre wrong,â she repeated. âYou saw what you wanted to saw. Kairen never had it easy, none of
your siblings did. Youâre talking as if he had cheated, but youâre the one who took this for a game. You
nurtured your own jealousy after what your mother had experienced. You could have ended it years
ago. You could even have saved your mother, your sisters, but instead, you played this game of death
and you had fun until you didnât.â
Vrehanâs face was getting more and more distorted with rage as she spoke. Cassandraâs composure
was even more of a slap to his face. He couldnât stand a woman talking back to him without any fear in
her eyes and he couldnât stand her being Kairenâs woman. He wanted to gouge her eyes out. Those
eyes who looked at him like a pitiful thing, or a crazy animal. Those green eyes who judged him.
âYou could have led a good life if you had stopped it,â Cassandra continued. âYour mother was the one
who went havoc, but you happily followed her into the madness and you even pushed all the blame on
her. You used her. At least, she had her love for you and the Emperor as an excuse. But, you? You
didnât have any real reason to do all the damage you caused. No one forced you to kill people, injure
your sisters, or even fight your brothers. You could have spared many lives, but you just relished in
your power until someone overshadowed it. It didnât even have to be Kairen or Shareen. You needed a
bone to pick and you found one.â 2
Vrehan clenched his fists and his teeth, so furious he looked like he was about to explode.
âYou ignorant witch!â He shout. âYou think you know the ways of the palace? Do you think you have any
idea how cruel that world is? I was merely a child! I only followed in the path my mother hadâ¦â
ââ¦I was a child too when I was captured,â said Cassandra in a very soft and low voice. âI suffered. I
saw all the people I loved killed, tortured, raped, and sold by men I didnât know. I saw dozens of young
girls like me crying and suffering. I cried and I begged, too. I was whipped so many times, I thought Iâd
die. I was cut so deep I know the color of my own bones. I experienced the despair and the anger, too,
and it did not make me a monster.â
The Second Prince looked at a loss for words for a few seconds. Then, he scoffed.
âYou were merely a slave! You were insignificant, you were bound to be killed anyway! You couldnât
rebel! However, if you had the chance, just once, to hold the whip and torture the one who had done
this to you, tell me you wouldnât have done it! Tell me you would have remained all pure and innocent!
Do you think I am a monster? We are all monsters then!â
â⦠No one held the whip for you,â retorted Cassandra.
He blinked, having lost what she meant. This time, Cassandra simply looked disgusted at him, and
resolute. The Concubine shook her head and put her hand on Kraiâs neck as she stepped forward.
âNo one inflicted you such suffering, youâre the one who caused it. You mimicked your motherâs
craziness. You donât deserve to even compare yourself to any victim. You and I are not the same. You
only inflicted pain on others, but you never suffered enough to know about that pain you caused. You
just used it as an excuse to justify
yourself.â
âI am the victim! I wasnât born to be in someoneâs shadow! It is my throne! No one knows what I went
through, I did what I had to! Donât judge me, you damn slave! You know nothing! I am the new
Emperor, the only one that matters!â
His madness was beyond saving.
Cassandra realized that as she watched him scream, shout and empty his lungs dry. This man had
already sealed his own fate several times. There was no use in saving a fool running towards his end.
Moreover, even if it wasnât for all those reasons, Vrehan was not one that could be saved. Cassandra
glanced towards the damaged dragons that were still growling at Krai. It was nothing pretty to see.
Those things were never supposed to be created, yet they had been born out of one manâs madness
and a womanâs suffering. The vision of Phemeraâs terrified eyes came back to her mind, giving
Cassandra the conviction she needed.
âEnough,â she said. âIt ends now. All of your madness, your schemes, and all the pain you inflicted on
others.â
The Prince scoffed.
âHa! Do you think you can stop me? You, the slave woman? The white witch? I knew youâd be a
problem since Kairen saved you from this arena, I should have gotten rid of you faster⦠Itâs high time I
get rid of you, youâre an eyesore!â
Just as he yelled those last words, the dragons suddenly got more agitated, growling loudly and
running towards Krai. The black Dragon didnât move, staying close to Cassandra, but when the young
dragons reached them, he was ready. The sound of the first attack resonated throughout the arena.
Cassandra dived down to cover her ears, as one of the dragons growled even louder right above her. A
dragonâs growl could be as soft as a purr, but it could become a deafening siren when they wanted to
be heard. She rolled on the side, blinking through the dust clouds the gigantic bodies stirred. 2
So it had begun. She could hear Kraiâs anger unleashing, but she had to not stay around. She could be
crushed at any moment by their weight, or get scratched by a dragonâs claw if she wasnât careful. While
Krai had done his best to protect her, he couldnât focus on Cassandra when he had two fight two of
those dragons. She had to get out of there, as that fight was bound to get messier. She struggled to get
out of there, keeping on eye on the fight of all three dragons while not making the mistake to find
herself in Vrehanâs reach
She wasnât losing sight of the main enemy. Cassandra knew she couldnât match up to Vrehan in a fight,
but she ought to not lose him a second time either. She had to find a way to end thisâ¦
The second Prince didnât look willing to fight yet. He didnât have a weapon, and his face still bore the
horrible scar of the injury she had inflicted him earlier. However, his dark eyes were absolutely burning
of rage at her, and the deathly aura around him wasnât good either. Vrehan wasnât even bothered to
look at how the dragonsâ fight was going. The gigantic creatures were making a deafening ruckus, yet
he wouldnât glance. He was focused on one thing.
He stepped forward, making Cassandra shiver uncontrollably. She had gone out of the Dragonsâ reach,
but she was only a few steps away from the enemy, and perhaps she would have wanted to fight the
dragons more..
âYou⦠Everything went off-track because of you,â he hissed. âIf you hadnât pushed those ideas into
him⦠If you hadnât bore his bastard⦠2
Cassandra glared at him, as she tried to get back on her feet. Her leg was horribly painful, and about
all of her body, but hearing him insult Kassian gave her a new wave of courage. As he came closer,
she grabbed some of the dust around her and threw it at him.
âAh! You bitch!â He vociferated, rubbing his eyes and stumbling back.
Cassandra took those precious seconds she had won to get back on her feet and hurry in a different
direction, heading towards the cells of the arena. She didnât even have enough strength left to run. She
was limping and exhausted. Cassandra tried hard not to look at the fight that was raging between the
dragons, despite her concern for Krai. There werenât many doors open in the arena, but she had
remembered enough from her short stay in the arena to remember which to take.