The Empty Ones (Fantasy Romance)

2. The stones of the priory

When the redheaded quizm said it was going to be a hard day it was an understatement. I was awoken by a bucket of ice-cold water spilled over me by the quita woman, while still very much naked and now bruised all over.

I am uncomfortable with nakedness, and at that age, the feeling was even more acute. In the end, I was just a girl of twelve, that had been raised quite secluded, and now a little crowd of unknown people was staring at my very pitiful self.

The quita woman threw a white tunica my way that I wasn't able to catch. That made the little crowd laugh but they silenced abruptly when she frowned.

"Stand up. Put that on. The rules here in short are that you don't speak unless addressed, you don't move unless told to —"

"What if I have to pee?" I interrupted to ask. Not sure where that bratty attitude came from, as I was generally a docile child, but I probably resented her for the beating. And just like that, she gave me another reason to resent her. Her sharp quita claws dug into my arm leaving five punctual bloody marks behind and a lot of pain.

The circle gasped for whatever reason.

"Here you are taught obedience first of all. You are not at home anymore."

I had my fair share of complaints about home but that morning made me realize that my life so far had actually been good. At the palace, I was ignored, but except for some light slaps when I had been very naughty, I was never beaten.

Grumpy, and most certainly a bit entitled, I pulled the tunica over my head.

"Stand up. You have to fetch water and prepare breakfast. Since you are new it's your turn but you can choose one of the girls to accompany you."

That was the first time I actually took a look at the girls gathered around the bed. They were five in total. The first one to my right was a black-haired manab girl, that seemed, like me, southern. Then followed a smaller one with sandy hair and the pale skin of the mountain people. The red-headed quizm girl, that frowned at me to make sure I didn't choose her, was right in the middle. To her left, sat a blond one with shimmering golden eyes and little copper horns on her forehead, a ghazal. She was fascinatingly beautiful, just like described in the stories. And the last one in the half circle was ebony-skinned and willowy. She seemed human until she opened her eyes which were blood red, a trait of the people of the east, the midrib.

"Mairi, you go with her," said the quita woman. The quizm girl grimaced.

Great start to my new life.

"Come on, your not so royal highness," she said rolling her eyes.

I would have expected her to get hit by the quita woman too for that but nothing happened. So much for equal treatment.

Every movement felt like torture, as I walked slowly behind Mairi.

The Priory of the White Stones is rightfully called that. Everything was white around us, the stones of the walls, the statues of people I didn't know, that were set along the hallway, and all the garments. Mairi's hair was the only thing in deep contrast with the rest.

"Well, nice to meet you, Mairi," I said after we walked in silence several steps down the halls of the priory. She didn't answer anything and I felt stupid for having opened my mouth.

"This evening, when you will get your stone, try to stay passive and void of emotions. Don't resist it, else it will hurt to the point of unbearable," she said after a while after we were far enough and nobody could hear her.

That girl was strange, and cranky but didn't seem evil. At that point in my life, I hadn't met a lot of evil to recognize it though. What she said made me just want to cry. More pain?