C8 Stay alive

Faeces?!

"Did you just say faeces?" I squeaked just to be sure that was exactly what she said and not something my mind made up.

She was already moving deeper into the room when my question escaped my lips. She stopped and turned to look at me.

"Do you have a problem with faeces, princess?" She asked, her eyes glowing softly.

My heart skipped a beat as fear wrapped around my insides. She was one of them.

I took a step back and shook my head at once. "It's fine. I am cool with faeces. Whatever color they may have. I am your girl!" I said with an awkward laugh.

"Better." Came Hilda's reply as she continued to another part of the room.

She didn't invite me in nor did she dismiss me. I stood out between the open door and the corridor.

I heard shuffling and scattering materials as she searched for something. Then a few minutes after she emerged in her uniform.

It was a small blue dress with white color and trimmings.

"Let's go," she stepped out to the corridor and started down the opposite direction from where I had come from.

She started taking a flight of stairs down an empty hallway and I wondered where exactly she was leading me.

Then I started hearing voices up ahead but all I could see was the yellow light above us as it spread to the surrounding stone walls.

Finally, we got to the source of the noise. There were about five people seated on the cold floor talking amongst themselves. As they saw us coming, they got on their feet at once.

"Good morning, Hilda," they chorused.

"Good morning. Meet your new member, Violet!" She chirped and then turned to me.

"This is your new team. They will show you where to sleep and change into work clothes," she said, eyeing the jeans and top I had on.

"I have to attend to the king, I will return when I am on break." She informed us and then left.

I watched her leave but my heart really wished I could go with her. She was going to be attending to the King. That means she had direct access to Axel.

"Are you ready to pack up some shit?" The older one said with stains to his teeth when he smiled.

I simply nodded and they led the way to the dungeons. I almost threw up as the strong smell of decayed faeces hit my nostrils.

It was the same place Axel had brought me the night before but for some reason, the smell increased ten times stronger compared to the last time.

"New girl, he is a shovel," one of the slaves I had come with said.

I stretched my shaky hands to her and took the shovel.

"There is a bag opened at the corner, when you pack enough, you take it there to discharge. Clear?"

"Clear," I nodded as my face almost turned purple due to the smell.

It was one of those smells that settled in your throat and then it turned bitter at the back of the tongue like you could taste it.

Now I knew why everyone were concerned when I said I wanted to come work in the palace.

I had my reasons for wanting to be here and yes, packing faeces wasn't the chore I had in mind but it would do.

In the dungeon, I could easily speak to my parents.

I started packing the waste with enthusiasm as fast as I could, swallowing the smell like it was nothing.

As I worked, I occasionally watched for my parents. As I got closer to the door, I was almost giving up when I saw them bundled in their cells.

I quickly ran up to them and grabbed the bars of their cell.

"Mum! Dad!" I called, softly enough not to gain the attention of the other workers.

My parents jumped out of whatever reverie they were in and looked at the bars. It was as if their brains had become slow for it took them a while before they realized that it was me.

"Violet? Is that you my child!?" My mother queried as she slowly got off her position and came to stand by the bars.

My heart broke at the condition they were in. Tears were pooling in my eyes but I quickly wiped them away.

My father finally summoned courage and came to stand beside his wife.

"How are you doing?" I asked them both. My voice was breaking with emotions but I refused to show them how much pain their situation was bringing me.

"We are not fine my dear. You need to save us!" My mother cried out.

I squeezed her hands through the bars and held them. "Mum I will. I promise. I am already working on it."

"Find your way to him and poison him!" My father said from beside her.

I passed a quick eye around us to make sure that there was no one watching or listening.

"Don't say things like that so loud Father," I scolded him. "I will get you out but it would be peaceful," I whispered.

"There is no way this is ending peacefully. That's why you need to kill him! Once he is dead, you will free us and we will take it from there."

There was a fire of determination in his eyes and I knew that he couldn't be convinced otherwise.

"Okay, Father. I will try my best." I held his hand and gave them kisses through the bars.

"Please take care of yourself. And be watchful of that demon! He is not the young boy of those days," my mum spat.

If there was anything she was right about, it was the fact that Axel was not the young boy I had spent my time with when I was younger.

"Hey, new girl! It's done!" The other slaves called for me.

I kissed their hands again and ran off to join my colleagues. They were heading back out.

"You shouldn't have engaged with the prisoners," one of the slaves hissed beside me.

I looked at her. A scrawny girl with protruding bones.

"Those were my parents," I retorted.

She looked at me and shook her head. "In here, we pretend not to know anyone for our safety. I hope they ignore this slip of yours," she said and walked faster.

I followed them as they walked out of the dungeon and down another set of rooms.

The leader pushed the door open and I realized it was a smaller version of the general area they had at the slaves' quarters.

Aside from being smaller, it wasn't as furnished either.

There was only one long couch in the corner and sleeping mats laying around.

"There is just one bathroom but we all try to use it at once because there is no time to wait for one to finish," the first lady explained, pointing towards it.

I nodded and we all marched into the bathroom. I got a bucket and got water filled into it from the tap. Then I moved to a far corner and stripped.

I knew that no amount of cleaning was going to take out the smell of the faeces in my head but I still scrubbed.

When I was done, they gave me a change of clothes and I couldn't be more grateful.

Just as we made to sit down and relax our straining back, the door opened and Hilda stepped in.

"The guards tell me you all did a wonderful job!" She said as she walked into the room and came to a stop before you. "And they also say, you had a little chat with the prisoners."

Her eyes had a glow in them and unlike the first time. She didn't transmit fear to me but anger.

"I have reported the case to the king and he will like to see you, right now!" She hissed.

A smile broke onto my face as I realized heaven was on my side. I heard soft gasps from the rest of her team and I could already guess why.

To them, I was in trouble and Hilda taking me to see the king meant I was going to get punished.

But to me, this was an answered prayer.

"Okay," I said with enthusiasm.

Hilda turned around and started for the door. "The rest of you can lay low until I have further instructions."

She said nothing as we moved through the stairs and multiple corridors until we got to a set of golden-edged gates.

"Stay alive!" She whispered and knocked on the door.

As movements resonated through, she squeezed my shoulder comfortingly and walked away quickly.

I took a deep breath and waited. Shortly afterward, the door cracked open. I waited for it to open wider but it seemed whoever was in there wanted me to push through on my own.

Slowly, I pushed the door further and stepped in. The light was dim and I had to squint my eyes to get accustomed to it.

As my sight focused, my heart froze at what was before me.