05. The Cord of Expiration

Aakifahlynn felt her flesh being torn. Her skin stung as the whipper continued his whippings, and she was sure germs were already setting in from whatever filth the whip was soaking in.

Because among her blood that filled the air, there was also the stench of something foul.

*WATAX, WATAX, WATAX* came the sound of the final three whips.

Her back was a bloody mess. Her skin was stripped to pieces. Aakifahlynn was sure of it. She could feel her pale skin dangling off in the back there, hitting her softly as she swayed.

Her face was a mixture of tears, perspiration, spittle, and mucus that ran out her nose.

Suddenly, the whipper cut the rope that held her upright, and she fell to the ground and rolled, screaming out as pain caused by the sharp stones and gravel that penetrated her sore back shut through her.

Her breathing was still ragged. She heaved as much air into her lungs as tears streamed down her cheeks endlessly. She shook as it was now over. She whimpered.

Aakifahlynn hoped he would allow her to get her wounds cleaned up, but who was she fooling?

She had no clue who this person was. As such, she could no longer guess what he might or might not do.

Because this new husband has been shocking the life out of her every chance he got tonight.

All the while, the crowd had not stopped their traitorous chants. Aakifahlynn felt betrayed by her people, also.

Jairus raised his hands towards the crowd, getting their attention. Aakifahlynn was ready for this to be done with.

However, she felt a sense of dread in the pit of her stomach as her husband met her eyes before turning back to the crowd.

She instantly felt that this was not over yet. Aakifahlynn cried silently, now wishing for death. She could not take any more of this. Her body was already weakened and frail. 

'What could her husband possibly do to her now?'

Her entire body, every part of her, ached all at once, and she firmly believed she had sustained some broken bones.

No magic to come to her rescue, no wolf to heal her quickly. She was nothing less than a human.

"HANGING, for the weak Queen Luna, WHAT SAY YOU?" Jairus's eyes glinted wildly in triumph and something else, something more sinister.

When Aakifahlynn's dimmed, her heart constricted in her chest, as yet again when she thought the betrayal could not get any worse or cut any deeper.

Jairus had proven her wrong yet again.

The crowd went into a mad frenzy. Queen Luna Aakifahlynn even heard one shout, "Let's feed her to our wolves, and we shall all feast on the flesh of the fallen Queen Luna while the vampyres drain her dry or the ayacques to use her body."

"She might enjoy that," another random onlooker shouted, and Aakifahlynn knew why. The Ayacques are a species well known for their sexual expertise. 

They say the heights of pleasures are unheard of. Many women pass out due to too much 'joy.'

As if that was such a thing, though she never had the pleasure of experiencing it herself. They were considered enemies of the Kingdom of Tamman. They were conniving, cunning and deceitful.

They were also alluring beings, and that is precisely what made them dangerous. They had speed. The Ayacques were even considered faster than the Vampyres.

The Vampyres are actually a watered-down version of the Ayacques. They were considered failures.

And the Ayacques never surrendered to the throne.

Nevertheless, Aakifahlynn tried to crawl away but did not move one inch in all her efforts and struggles.

It was futile.

She painfully lifts her gaze to do a once-over at the crowd. She still could not make out much with the glare those flaming torches provided.

However, Aakifahlynn could see her mate and Taisiya very well. They were away from the blazing torches, with lighting from the five pillars in front of the castle.

If anything, the lighting highlighted them, not overshadowing them.

And Aakifahlynn had only just realized that a few select council members were there to witness this monstrosity being done.

They stood over to the other side watching, closer to the castle's steps, making sure to avoid venturing further.

Aakifahlynn eyed each and every one of them. She realized only five of the fourteen were present, and, somehow, she grabbed solace in the knowledge, knowing not everyone stood blindly behind her husband in his betrayal.

She eyed the five, their faces burning into her mind, the profiles of her betrayers. Queen Luna Aakifahlynn was becoming distracted again.

Two muscular hands grabbed her up again by her aching brittle arms and set her up on the contraption, wrapping the cord of expiration around her neck and placing a drum beneath. 

Surely to kick away and leave her to fall to her demise.

"Please stop," Aakifahlynn could barely hear. "Please don't do this... let me take her in. I would take her out of your hands. Please don't kill her." The mystery man pleaded. His voice quivered in fear of what the King was about to do.

"Queen Luna does not need to die. Surely the lashings were enough," he tried to assert. However, no one budged.

And that voice sounds vaguely familiar to Aakifahlynn.

Somehow, the crowd had slightly simmered as if those within view of what was happening were eagerly waiting to watch the show.

Aakifahlynn had screamed and bawled so much that her ears now felt clogged.

And it was hard even to muster up a coherent thought right now, but was this her savior? Her saving grace? Her knight in shining armor?

Who could it be that he spoke up for her?

Suddenly, out of nowhere at all, it was an Ayacque who had pushed and sped his way to the front, and he pleaded to have Queen Luna released into his care.

The Ayacque begged and pleaded with the King, his voice so distraught and dripping an emotion that was lost to Aakifahlynn. It also held a tenderness as he prayed for the King to spare his own mate and wife's life.

Show mercy, discharge her to him.

However, the King did not take that lightly, being second-guessed by anyone, let alone this snake. How dare he question the King's decision?

Alpha King Jairus worked hard towards this and has longed for it. He could almost taste it, and now this Ayacque wanted to play the hero? After the King pardoned him not long ago?

The King thought this Ayacque should thank him, not go against his decision.

"Be gone from here before I take back my pardon and execute you for treason," Alpha King Jairus boomed.

And yet the Ayacque did not move. Instead, he further defied the King, ensuring certain death when he said, "I can't leave without her. I...I love her...I always had." He confessed to the Alpha King Jairus.

Queen Luna Aakifahlynn wanted to know if this Ayacque was out of his mind. Was he genuinely willing to die for her? Refusing to live in a world where she no longer exists? Because that is what he was ensuring.

Certain death for himself. But the schemes of the Ayacques know no bounds.

Why? She wanted to tell him it was not worth it and to flee, but she couldn't utter a sound. As it pains her even to take the breath of air that she needs to survive.

Nevertheless, Queen Luna was out of strength and almost lifeless as she hung on the pole. For a fleeting second, she wondered if this was indeed her savior and if she would be saved from the hands of her treacherous husband.

'Did he come with an army?' She could not help but wonder.

But in the end, sadly, she had no such luck.

"SILENCE, I will NOT be questioned. MY ruling is FINAL. Queen Luna DIES NOW," he angrily roared. Who was this mere young disgraced Emperor to question his judgment and ruling?

At the declaration, the crowd went into another bout of uproar.

Alpha King Jairus was done with the disrespect. In the blink of an eye, he was in front of the Ayacque, only because he had the element of surprise.

And before the Ayacque could react, the King had already ripped his heart out of his chest.

Then the body fell to the ground. All Queen Luna Aakifahlynn heard was a soft thud of something hitting the ground.

She did not even have time to register correctly because, at the same time, Jairus sauntered toward his childhood friend, Luna, Mate, and his Wife.

His eyes were full of loathing, hatred, malice, and disgust with victory, and his lips curled in a smile that reached his eyes. 

Jairus leaned in and whispered in her ear loud enough that she could hear over the cheering but low enough so that wolves and magical beings nearby would not hear while she stood on a drum.

"How could I let you die without knowing? Hmm?" He teased and gently kissed her cheeks tenderly.