Chapter 2: The prophecy

Canna Emperor Palace

Yumi wore a straight gaze as she sat elegantly on the royal throne beside her husband, Gothem. They were in a meeting; women in Canna were given equal rights to political matters.

Yumi has proven to be a good queen; in all her years of serving her husband, she has proven to be a powerful ally. A lot of kingdoms dreaded Canna, because Yumi was the queen. Just then, a maid walks in, hanging her head down; she makes her way to where Yumi was and whispers something in her ear.

Suddenly the strict countenance on Yumi's face changes to fear.

"Forgive me, your majesty, I must take my leave." She said calmly before rising to her feet.

She immediately follows the maid out of the room….

"Are you sure of what you are saying, Mira? Yumi asked, her heart thumping in her chest.

"I am very sure My lady, Mira, the maid said, leading the way.

It was a long walk; they took a long hallway, then walked through a door leading to a tunnel, which had many spiral staircases. It was a secret pathway, and only three people knew about it.

By the time they arrived at the inner room, the girl on the bed was gasping heavily, her eyeball had turned white, and her black pupils had suddenly disappeared.

"What is happening to her? What is happening to my daughter? Yumi screamed, clenching the gown she wore.

"Sin! It always has a repercussion; you sinned, and now you will pay for it, Yumi." An old man suddenly stepped out of the shadows of the room; he had been standing by a corner for a while.

"Priest Kaal, please save my daughter; she is dying, I can feel it." Yumi's eyes stung with tears as she sat on the bed and gazed at her daughter.

"How long did she think she could keep it up? Not very long, she thought, but here she is 20 years later gazing at her daughter.

She has kept this secret for a long time, and it has been killing her slowly; it was like a burden.

"Save her, save her please." Yumi cried as she watched the lady on the bed jerk uncontrollably.

"Nothing can be done. Yumi, I told you years ago, didn't I? It was either she dies or Katie dies. You won't listen, you stubborn woman; you brought this upon yourself! The priest was angry; he kept holding on to an ancient necklace on his neck, caressing it with his finger as if his life depended on it.

"The gods are merciful; you can still set things right." He said, bringing out a knife.

"Kill her, Yumi, end this nightmare." Yumi turned around and gazed at the knife in Kaal's hand as if she had just seen a ghost.

"I will increase the funds for your temple; I will build you a new temple if you want. Your generation will be wealthy with a flick of my fingers. I beg you, Kaal, do not let Joya die." Yumi's eyes were red with tears.

"It doesn't work that way, Yumi; you act as though you were not there when the prophecy was told. I told you to kill this girl while she was still a baby; it would have been easier then. She would have been sent to the gods and would have been reborn in good health." Kaal started walking up to where Yumi was sitting.

Yumi's eyes were drained of life; of course, she remembered the prophecy. That dreadful night when she fell into labor, she had almost lost her life. Two days into labor, yet the child showed no sign of coming out.

Then it happened; on the third day, she finally gave birth…to two girls, twins.

"A sin has been committed! Kaal yelled that day. Right there in the labor room, Kaal fell into a trance, and by the time he was back to the physical realm, he had a leering look etched on his face.

He told her that one of the babies has to be killed for the other to stay alive. He told her to kill her own baby!

"Yumi, one of them will eventually die; I have seen it, but I don't know which of them because they are identical twins. Their fate is tied together; it is not a good sign. End this while you still can." Kaal had told Yumi that night, but she refused; instead, she called the midwife, Mira.

"Take this baby; when we return back to the palace, you will tell everyone that she is your child. No one must know she is a twin of the second baby." Yumi handed over the child to Mira that night. They were returning from a long trip, a wedding feast.

"No one would suspect anything; I will make you my new handmaid, and you will tell them you were heavily pregnant before you met me." Yumi had instructed the midwife.

For many years, the secret remained hidden, but then Joya's health began to deteriorate. She would become pale and then lean; sometimes she would refuse to eat. It was torture, living all these years and watching her child grow in pain, a pain she could not explain.

"If she survives, Katie dies. How else can I explain this in a way that you will understand? You cannot battle with fate." Kaal inched closer; the long, worn-out plain gown he wore dragged on the ground as he walked.

Just then Joya stops jerking, and her breath becomes stable. Yumi sighed in relief; she placed a soft kiss on her forehead, trying to hold back the tears that were threatening to fall.

"My lady, the king has requested your presence immediately." Mira was suddenly beside Yumi. Yumi quickly rises to her feet and makes her way out of the room, but not before glancing at Luna one more time.

As she made her way to the main palace hall, she wiped her tears and tried to keep a straight gaze.

"My lord, you sent for me." Yumi said immediately she got to where Gothem was seated, drinking a cup of tea.

"What was the emergency? What did the maid tell you? Gothem asked, not raising his gaze.

"They were having a slight misunderstanding in the concubines' harem; I had to go and handle it." Yumi lied while keeping a straight face.

"This would be the last time you will walk out while we are in a meeting; it sends the wrong message, and the last thing I want is the council lecturing me on manners." Gothem was greatly displeased.

"Forgive me, my lord; it will not repeat itself again." Yumi said calmly, for years she had learned to master the art of pretending. She even pretended she loved her husband; she didn't.

"Your Majesty, there is a gift box that has been sent from Decreash." A guard who ran in, he said while panting.

Yumi and Gothem exchanged glances before shifting their gaze to the guard.

"Bring the gift to the throne room." Gothem, he said, making his way to the throne room. Yumi followed behind; she was curious to see what the King of Decreash had sent to them.

Ever since she gave away Katie to Ragaleon as his third wife and the third queen of Decreash. Goodness knows that she had sleepless nights every day for two straight months.

The gift box was dragged to the throne room; it was carried in by ten guards! It was that heavy.

Gothem felt pleased.

"I told you giving Katie away to Ragaleon was a good decision." He muttered to the dismay of Yumi.

"Open the gift." He commanded the guards, and they got to work. They inserted the key into the padlock of the big box; the key came along with the gift.

Immediately the box was opened, the guards fell into silence. The countenance of their face changed from shock to fear, then from fear to….

"What is in the box? Yumi asked when she saw how the countenance of their face changed. Was the gift that astonishing?

Just then the guards turned the box over, and a body rolled out. Yumi and Gothem were now in shock.

Yumi rose to her feet when she recognized the gown the lifeless body wore.

Suddenly time came to a standstill as Yumi climbed down the staircase leading to the king and queen's throne; her face was pale. Then suddenly she increased her pace, and immediately she got to where the corpse lay; she turned it over…

"Ahhh! Yumi screamed.

Gothem immediately rose to his feet…

"No, no! Katie! Yumi seemed to be having a heart attack.

"My daughter, my darling daughter, no, you can't be dead; speak to me now! She burst into tears as she sat on the floor and placed the body on her lap.

When Gothem got to where she was, his face became pale with shock.

For a while he stood aside watching his wife cry while holding the corpse of their daughter. The same daughter he had given out to Ragaleon

"Look at what you have done! This is all your fault! Yumi buried her head inside the corpse and screamed….

"Katie!!

Gothem slowly helped his wife up; she was crying and began to use her fist to hit his hard chest, but he didn't show any sign of pain. Instead, he wrapped his hand around her.

"Take the body away." Gothem's voice was cold.

"No! What are you doing? Yumi wanted to break free from her husband's grip, but he held on to her tightly and stroked her hair. Yumi buried her face in his chest; suddenly her voice became cold and icy….

"Avenge us, Gotham, avenge our daughter!

When Kaal heard Yumi crying, he started caressing the ancient necklace on his neck. He fixed his gaze on the lady on the bed, who seemed to be lifeless.

And just then, the body jerks up… Suddenly Joya, after many years, for the first time opens her eyes. Kaal shook his head from side to side.

"For many years I have waited for this day to come. But I cannot rejoice, for your mother is in pain." He said, gazing at the lady who suddenly looked full of life.

"Finally the prophecy has been fulfilled."