The Punishment
Kareen and Shareen were almost smiling as if Phetraâs screams had been some pleasant melody.
Cassandra couldnât help but feel a bit bad for her on the inside. From the way she was piercing their
ears, she must have been in such horrible painâ¦
The Emperorâs mouth was still open, as he was still processing what had just happened, staring at the
window. He finally turned to Kairen, angry.
âKairen, when I ordered for Phetra to be taken to the Imperial Prison, I actually meant for her to be
taken there through the door, the damn door!â He exclaimed. âWhy is it that you children are always
only thinking of fighting and killing each other!â
His yelling had no effect on his son. Kairen turned around and walked back to Cassandra, looking
almost satisfied. At least, his murderous look in his eyes was gone.
âWell, from what we can hear, Father,â said Shareen. âShe is still pretty much alive.â
The Emperor glared her way, not amused by her antics this time. He sighed, massaging his temples
and looking truly exhausted by all this ruckus.
âAnyway, someone goes grab her from⦠wherever she is now, and get her an Imperial Physician
immediately. Sheâs still going to the Imperial Prison. Now I have to find someone whoâll be willing to
marry this pest⦠Ah, what a headache⦠Those childrenâ¦â
While the poor Emperor kept rambling, the guards subtly glanced Cassandraâs way for a second, but
after thinking about it twice, figured it would probably be better to find another Imperial Physician. With
the current state of things, the Imperial Concubine probably wouldnât even have agreed to treat the
Princessâ rashesâ¦
Once the guards had left, Cassandra let out a little sigh of relief. Things werenât over, though. Vrehan
turned to their father, looking very serious.
âFather, we still have an issue to solve.â
âWhat? What now?â
When his eyes surreptitiously went Missandraâs way, Cassandraâs heart sank. She knew this wasnât
good. She had thought that man had been too cold, watching his sister being thrown out of a window
without saying a thing, but now, it was clear he had been waiting for this moment all along, and not
caring about Phetraâ¦
âThe servant. She still insulted an Imperial Princess.â
âShe did it to defend me!â Said Cassandra, immediately standing in front of her sister in a protective
stance.
âThe Imperial Law does not care about the reasons for her actions,â hissed Vrehan. âNo servant, slave
or anyone else outside the Imperial Family can be forgiven for insulting an Imperial Family member.
Isnât that right, Father?â
The Emperor sighed, visibly annoyed by the situation. He knew the law, of course, but he could tell that
servant had only acted to protect the young concubine.
âWhatever,â he said. âBring this servant forth.â
âYour Highness, please!â Claimed Cassandra. âShe isnât an Imperial Servant, she is my family!â (1
It was her last resort. Maybe, if Missandra couldnât be considered as part of the staff in the Imperial
Palace, the Emperor would forget about punishing her. However, she could see Kareen frowning, and
that didnât announce anything goodâ¦
âWhat is that now? Your Family, my dear white lily? How so?â
Missandra, trembling, stood forward and took out the veil she had been using to cover her face outside
of Kareen or Cassandraâs place. Her appearance was revealed, and she bowed lowly, acting docile for
once.
âShe is my younger sister, your Highness,â explained Cassandra. âWe have reunited not too long ago.â
âI invited her as my guest,â added Kareen.
âOh, is that soâ¦â Started the Emperor, but Vrehan interrupted him.
âGuest or not, father, no one in the Dragon Empire is allowed to defy a Dragonâs family. Those who do
should be punished regardless of their rank. Wasnât my sister just punished for insulting the
Concubine? Why should the Concubineâs sister get away with insulting my sister then?â
Cassandra was going whiter with each word. No matter what, she didnât want Vrehan anywhere near
her sister, or able to do her anything. She couldnât stand that man, his rat face and his cunning words.
Kairen moved his position, putting himself between Cassandra and Vrehan, and Kraiâs anger was now
directed at the Second Prince
However, it was clear that the Dragon wouldnât be able to injure him in any way from his position, and
so, the Second Prince ignored him completely. Vrehan kept his eyes on his father, with an accusatory
stance.
âAre you going to let everything go my Brotherâs way, Father? If you are so tired of seeing us fighting,
how about showing some equity for once? That favoritism of yours for the Concubine has to stop,
father.â
The Emperor had nothing to answer to that, and for once, Kareen and Shareen had nothing to retort,
either. It only worried Cassandra more. She had to hold on to Kairenâs arm not to fall, as her heart was
running crazy.
After a long while, the Emperor, who seemed hesitant, eventually sighed and nodded.
âThatâs right⦠I need to go by the rules. Sorry, my white Lily, but Vrehan is right, I cannot let it go so
easily. A punishment seems befitting of the situation.â
âMay I suggest, Father,â said Vrehan.
Whatever he was about to say, Cassandra knew she wasnât going to like it. Something in that horrid
face of his told her he was about to come up with something she didnât want to hear.
âI think⦠Being whipped for⦠letâs say five hundred and six times should do it.â
âFive hundred and six? Why would you come with such a ridiculous number!â Said the Emperor.
Missandra was appalled, but Cassandra was even worse. She knew what that number was for. It was
the number of times Phetra had whipped the Concubine she had tried to defend, months ago. 1
She realized Vrehan was doing all of this on purpose. While pretending he didnât hold it against them,
he was clearly getting revenge for his sister. He was just not letting his emotions show at all as to not
seem revengeful.
âFather! This is too much!â Said Shareen, furious.
âWill you stop yelling! Iâm thinking!â Replied the Emperor, annoyed.
Cassandraâs heart was beating like crazy. He couldnât agree to that. If Missandra was whipped five
hundred times, she would die for sure! She exchanged worried glances with Kareen, but there wasnât
much the Imperial Concubine could do at this point. With Vrehanâs words about the favoritism they
already benefited from earlier, she couldnât say anythingâ¦
After a while, the emperor nodded.
âAlright, we will do this. The young servant will be whipped a hundred times. That will be enough.â
âYour Highness!â Screamed Cassandra, on the verge of tears.
She couldnât believe it. Missandra would have to suffer the whip a hundred times! She didnât even want
them to touch a hair on her sisterâs head. She almost collapsed, but Kairen grabbed her before that,
holding her.
âEnough, enough,â said the Emperor, leaving the room.
As the Emperor left, Vrehan was staring at Cassandra. He didnât seem happy or unhappy, his
expression was indecipherable, aside from his eyes as cold as ice.
âA hundred timesâ¦â cried Cassandra.
âHinue, donât worry!â Said Missandra, running to her side. âI can stand it. Donât worry please, please.
Donât cry. I⦠I did this to myself, Cassandra. Lady Kareen was right, Iâve been getting ahead of myself,
this is my punishment. Donât cry, please?â
However, Cassandraâs tears wouldnât stop. She felt horribly guilty for all this. Missandra had only tried
to defend her, and now she was being punished! Her younger sister had never been whipped in her
life!
Kareen came to her side, too, rubbing her back and consoling her.
âDonât worry, dear, it will be alright. His Highness wonât allow them to go too hard on herâ¦â
Meanwhile, Shareen was still standing still, on the side, glaring at Vrehan along with Krai. The Dragon
was still
growling after the Second Prince from earlier, even more frustrated to not be able to attack him.
âAre you satisfied, now?â Hissed Shareen. âGo and scrap whatever is left of your bitch sister!â
Vrehan stayed silent for a while and actually left the room without saying a word. Shareen clicked her
tongue, pissed.
As they were left alone in the Imperial Chamber, Kareen insisted that they go back. Cassandra didnât
want to return to her apartments, so they headed once again to the Imperial Concubineâs apartments.
Missandra felt more sorry for her sister than she actually was for herself. She had caused this, and now
Cassandra was worried sick for her. She couldnât even stand by herself, her Prince had to carry her all
the way back. She understood that she had to go through this, and how light the Emperorâs punishment
for her really was. Neither Kareen or her children had looked at her since it had been announced.
When they returned to Kareenâs garden, Cassandra had stopped crying, but she was still devastated
about what her sister would have to go through. Kairen gently put her in the deckchair, and Missandra
immediately sat on the grass next to her, taking her hand,
âHinue, please, donât worry, okay? Youâve suffered so much more than me already, I can stand this
much, trust me!â
No matter if she could stand it, Cassandra was already sick at the simple idea of her younger sister, her
flesh and blood, being injured.
A servant came running, bowing politely.
âYour Highnesses, Imperial Concubine Kareen, Concubine Cassandra, my greetings. His Highness the
Emperor has ordered for the servant Lady Missandra to be brought to the punishment cell for her
sentence.â
Cassandra almost broke into tears again, but Missandra confidently stood with a resolute look.
âIâm coming,â she announced, determined.
âIâm coming with you,â said Cassandra.
âCertainly not!â Roared Kareen. âYou are already sick enough, you are not going to watch that too!â
âI donât want to leave her alone through this!â She insisted..
âI will go with her, Cassie,â sighed Shareen. âDonât worry. They wonât dare go too hard on her if I am
there. I promise I will bring her back as soon as itâs over. Just stay here with mother and Kairen.â
Cassandra wanted to protest, but no one would side with her. On the side, even Dahlia silently cried
too, feeling sorry for Missandra. She internally regretted she hadnât been braver earlier and said
something to stop her or the Princess before things escalated.
She stood and hugged Missandra, holding back her tears.
âDonât grind your teeth, and donât get crispatedâ, she said. âItâll only make it worse. T-take deep breaths,
and⦠and⦠Iâll heal you when you come back. I promise.â (5)
âI know. My sister is the best healer in the world.â
Despite her confident smile, everyone could tell Missandra was just trying hard not to break down and
cause her sister more pain. After a while, they let go of each other, and Cassandra stumbled back,
Kairen helping her sit back.
Missandra gave her a weak smile and turned to the servant.
âIâm ready. Letâs go.â