Chapter 4: Chapter 4 The Blood Queen

I buttoned up the last button on my suit jacket. The clothes I was attempting to wear resembled puzzles more than actual clothing. Why do people complicate clothing to this extent? Thank goodness I have my butler or whatever Marius is. That's a good question.

"Marius, What exactly are you? A butler or some other job?" As I asked, I thought about how strangely comfortable I became with him. I have only known him for a few days. Yet I am as calm as I am with my creatures. Strange.

"Well, young Master, I am a simple butler, as you have concluded." He didn't seem to want to be questioned. "We better be hurrying; the Duchess does not enjoy waiting."

Till this point, Marius only watched, but we no longer had the time. Spinning me around, Marius began un-buttoning and re-buttoning my clothes in their proper positions. What took me 15 mins of fumbling around and still getting wrong. He was able to fix it in a minute. He finished, standing up, and looked satisfied with his work.

"Young master, you look wonderful. We better hurry to the throne room. I am sure she has now completed most of her other affairs."

We began moving and entered the hallway outside. The hallways were huge. The design choices, like the carriage and most of the wardrobe choices, including the people in the hallway, were black and red. The rags I used to wear were replaced by a 2 piece suit. The jacket and pants were dark red with silver and black detailing. The ruffled shirt was black. All the buttons on my clothes were silver.

Marius informed me for each turn, he stood behind me and to the right. Which was more of a bother. Since he could have just led me to where I was supposed to go. I knew there was probably a reason, so I decided not to question it.

We finally got to our destination. The large door was open, and many people left the room with a whole assortment of clothes. Marius stopped me, "Young Master, please only speak when you are asked. I have seen people lose their arms for speaking out of turn."

He then gestured to me to wait and entered the room. Leaving me to my thoughts. There are rules everywhere, it seems. I might as well be mute. Since being taken from my "home," I have been trying to learn as much as possible about anything important. I will not be stupid and make a mistake now. This is my only opportunity to gain a foothold here.

"My boy!" Duke Voxian appeared behind me. "Are you ready for your final exam?" He looked extremely excited. "She is so beautiful and kind. My blood gets all nice and warm when I see her!" Marius returned from the room. "Time to go?" The Duke was directing his question toward him. He nodded in response. "Let's not keep her waiting! Guards, make sure to close the door behind us."

The Duke led the way into the throne room. The room was much darker than I had expected. Not because there needed to be light. But the fact that the room was made entirely out of black marble. Just like my room earlier. The pillars and ceiling were created from the same material. Large windows provide some light alongside silver chandeliers. The chandeliers had yellow crystals that provided a good portion of the light.

The floor was cut in half by the long red carpet. Leading to the throne. As we walked toward the throne. I adjusted my posture to the same as Marius'. The Duke, on the other hand, had a skip to his step. "Honey." He yelled from the middle of the room. "I brought your present." He now had a decent lead and moved up the few stairs leading to the throne. Marius instead of following Hendrick. Gestured for me to go and then kneeled with me. I followed his example.

"It's been a while since I have been able to see you!" The Duke doesn't know how to hold back. Standing amongst a few individuals, the Duchess turned and waved them away. I watched as Duke Voxian leaped for a hug. The leap was a good five feet above the ground. Before the hug landed, she gave a wave of the hand. Dark red blood appeared and grabbed him mid-air. "Ahhh, come on, it's been over a month!"

"Stop making a fool out of yourself. Be presentable, please." Her voice had both authority and a sound of exhaustion. I could tell that this was a common occurrence.

"Alright, I will do it for you." The Duke was released from the air. Moving closer, he handed her a document. He sulked as she took it.

As she read, she began walking down the steps toward me. This gave me a good look at her. She had straight, long black hair, matching the black marble throne room. Her corset dress was black and gold with red accents on the edges. Four small red gems lined the front of the top vertically. In addition, the black leather coat, having gold trim across it pulled her outfit together. What got my attention was her eyes. They glowed a dark red. I could feel the power and charm that they possessed. She was not one to be messed with.

She now stood a few feet in front of me. My head was down, and for some reason, I felt a pressure that surrounded my whole body. I have never experienced anything close to this. It was even hard to breathe.

"Ashe, is your name correct?"

"Yes, my Lady."

She glanced at me, "I see that the Great Marius Dane has taught you a few manners." Her eyes returned to the documents. "That is good." Continuing to flip through the page, she spoke again, "I am Arilain Voxian, Duchess of Voxtek. I am the one who governs this place." Her voice throughout the throne room made it clear it was purely business.

"It says here that you have a companion that came with you. Show him to me."

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"Yes, my Lady." I reached into my jacket pocket and pulled him out. I placed him down on the carpet. "His name is Pez," I made sure that Pez would look as cute as possible. He tried his best, but his head had other plans. He fell left and right, trying to hold his head. She probably thinks that I am useless.

"Explain in more detail your abilities."

"I can create creatures. Unfortunately, I could not gain the mana needed to create anything larger than Pez. I can show you the process that it takes." I showed the palm of my hand. A small black gem formed, and I pulled it out to show her. She grabbed it from me. "I finish the process when I breathe my mana onto it. It bursts into dust and then forms the creature. I would show you the process further, but the creature produced would be about the size of Pez's leg."

"I understand. Can you create mana naturally?"

"Unfortunately, no." With a couple of glances, I tried to look at her expression. She did not look happy. I started to get even more nervous. Trying to think of a way to salvage this. I don't even know my abilities. How can I prove anything? "May I speak, my Lady?"

"Yes."

"From the conversations I have had with the Duke. He shared that he knew "what" I was. I am sure I could be more useful if I knew more about this." I looked up and tried my best to look confident. "I have been locked away for a significant amount of time. If I had time to get stronger and discover more of my abilities. I am confident I can do more than I can now." She didn't even give me a glimpse.

"Husband, go grab your instruments." The duke fist-bumped the air. "In the meantime, I want to ask a few more questions. Please refrain from making any further outbursts." She gave me a look, and our eyes finally met. She noticed something, and her eyes widened for a few moments. Then regained her usual composer.

"Marius."

"Yes, my Lady?"

"Have you noticed his eyes? They are still pure white."

"Yes, he has not yet been corrupted. I have been wondering this myself."

This was the first time she had smiled so far. What made my eyes special?

The Duke entered the room with a few items. The equipment was being carried by Factils. Hendrick guided them and helped set them down. "Careful!" He exclaimed, "That's worth more than my arm!" Everything now was in position.

"Ash, come here. Get ready to place your hand on the orb right here." The Duke's hands were rubbing together in excitement. "This orb is a rare type of crystal that holds a specific kind of mana and a large amount of it. This will show us how much mana you can hold at once. Let me demonstrate."

The orb was clear except for the purple sphere in the center of it. Once the Duke placed his hand, a portion of the purple mana was sucked into his hand. The remaining mana was now a bit smaller. "I would normally now measure it. The size of the mana will tell us what your limits are." Releasing his hand forced the mana back into the center. "Go ahead and give it a try."

Stepping forward, I moved my hand onto the orb. Instead of looking at the results, I wanted to see the Duchess' reaction. She would give me a good gauge of my level. Our interaction made it clear that her opinion mattered more than anyone else in this palace.

Oh no.

Lady Arilain's eyebrows were furrowed. She looked pissed. I'm dead for sure.

I looked around my hand. Searching for the purple mana. The clear orb no longer had anything inside. I absorbed it all.

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