The world spun like a cruel carousel. Pain throbbed in her forehead, her lips tasted of iron, and the smell of damp stone filled her nose. Seraphina's eyes slowly opened, only to find darkness pressing close from all sides. She groaned, her wrists burning with sharp, tight iron cuffs. A coarse rope bit into her ankles. She tried to sit up, but the chain rattled, drawing attention, two shadows moved toward her cell.
"Finally awake, princess?" one of them said, his voice thick with amusement. "Thought you'd sleep forever."
Seraphina glared, letting out a soft laugh that was cruel. "Sleep forever? No. I'm much too stubborn for that," she spat. Her voice was hoarse, but fire burned behind her eyes.
The guards grinned at each other. They clearly didn't know who they were dealing with. Most people never did.
"You're lucky we didn't finish the job," the other guard said. He pointed a torch toward the wet floor. Shadows danced along the walls like ghosts, teasing her senses.
Seraphina rolled her shoulders, ignoring the dull ache in her head. She could feel the bruises forming along her ribs, but pain was nothing. She had survived worse. And she always would. Always.
As they shoved her forward, forcing her to her feet, her mind started turning like a wheel grinding against itself. She had been knocked out after the ambush, her seven husbands' faces, twisted with betrayal, burned in her memory. They had smiled while the king's men overran her palace, while they let her be captured like some common criminal. They had taken her crown, her villages, all for themselves. And she had once trusted them. Fool.
Now she was alone. No throne. No guards loyal to her. And yet… still Seraphina moved with quiet strength, every step measured. She let the guards pull her along, keeping her tone soft and playful. "You know, you're rough. I'd like it if you were gentler," she said, her voice low, mixed with amusement.
The taller guard sneered. "What, princess? Trying to joke while you're chained?"
Seraphina's smile was slow, seductive, and dangerous. "Maybe I am. Or maybe… I'm in a mood for some fun. Don't you want to help me enjoy it? Don't tell me you're going to be boring now."
The shorter one blinked. "Fun?"
"Yes," she purred, stepping lightly despite the chains. "I'm trapped, cold, and very, very lonely. Wouldn't you rather spend a few minutes… helping me?" Her voice dropped so low, softer, teasing. "Come on. I promise it'll be worth it."
The taller guard's brow furrowed. "You're tempting us, princess. That's dangerous."
Seraphina leaned toward him, letting her chains clink against the stone floor. "Danger is my favorite kind of company," she whispered.
It worked.
The first guard laughed nervously, rubbing the back of his neck. "Well… I suppose a few minutes won't hurt."
"Exactly," she said, letting a flicker of a smile curl across her lips. Her heart was hammering in her chest, not from fear, but from excitement. Every second counted. Every distraction could become her escape.
She followed them into the small cell, her steps careful and deliberate. Her wrists ached from the cuffs, but she moved with a predator's grace. As soon as the guards entered, their eyes still caught in the spell of her teasing words, she feigned a stumble, then suddenly grabbed the larger guard's wrist, twisting with all her strength.
"You should've been paying attention!" she hissed. The cuff rattled against the iron bar. The guard grunted, caught off guard.
Before he could recover, she spun, kicking the smaller guard's knee. The chain around her ankle snapped free from the wall as she pulled hard. Both men stumbled backward, unprepared for the queen who had fought armies with her bare hands.
Seraphina's laugh echoed in the cold stone corridor. "Oh, I've been so patient," she said, swinging a leg to kick the torch from the wall. Firelight flickered wildly across her armor, highlighting the sharp lines of her warrior body and the glint of steel at her hip.
The guards lunged, but she was faster. A twist, a punch, a hard elbow to the chin, it was all practiced, precise, and deadly in its subtlety. Neither realized how strong she was until they hit the ground, groaning.
Breath coming in sharp bursts, Seraphina pried open a door at the end of the hall. Freedom smelled like wet hay and dirt, faintly of horse sweat. Her boots hit the stable floor, her hair falling loose around her shoulders, and she paused for just a moment to take it in.
horses stood tied in a row. She ran her fingers over the sleek coat of a black stallion near the middle. The animal nickered, sensing her spirit, and she smiled. "You and I have a date with destiny," she whispered.
She swung onto the horse's back, the chains still hanging from her wrists. With a practiced motion, she broke the restraints against the stable post and kicked the horse into a gallop. The cold night wind bit at her cheeks as the village walls shrank behind her.
Behind her, the sounds of shouting guards echoed faintly. She didn't look back. Why would she? Every heartbeat, every thundering step of the horse, carried her closer to a new life.
Her mind raced, already planning the next steps. She needed allies, a hiding place, a strategy. Her husbands, drunk on greed and magic, were already tearing each other apart. She would watch them crumble. She would strike at the right moment.
The village disappeared behind the trees, the horses' hooves drumming a rhythm that matched her heartbeat. The moonlight glinted off her armor, off the steel at her side, off the chains she had left behind. Freedom tasted sweet, but it came with danger. Every night, every shadow, every distant horn could be a threat.
She laughed softly, a sound filled with defiance. "Let them come," she said to the wind. "I am Seraphina Nefari. And I will not fall again."
The first steps of her journey were over. Ahead lay villages oppressed, husbands fighting, magic twisting, and a destiny she had yet to embrace fully. But for tonight… she rode.
The forest swallowed her silhouette, the black stallion a shadow among shadows. And for the first time since betrayal, since chains, since pain, Seraphina Nefari felt the thrill of control returning to her veins.
She had survived betrayal, escaped captivity, and stolen a horse in the night. That was victory enough.
And she would have all the victories to come.