- 8 hours ago
Blood and Pea
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Short filmTranscript
00:00Human soldiers tossed my sister Nerissa's body into a golded chest full of spoils.
00:05They scraped at her with daggers.
00:07Azu scales scattered everywhere.
00:09They didn't stop until they split Nerissa open, rumbled inside her, and tore out a glowing tide pearl.
00:15Queen Isoleth had heard that deep within the luminous deep lived the sirens,
00:20and that their queen bore a flawless tide pearl within her.
00:24Whoever possessed it would gain eternal beauty and youth.
00:27To please her, King Aldrich sent his men and mages to cut Nerissa open and take her tide pearl.
00:34That day, the sea ran red.
00:38My people floated everywhere, their bellies split open.
00:42Live, Serena! Whatever it takes, live!
00:48They knew the Siren Queen carried a legendary tide pearl.
00:51They had no idea there were two of us, twin-born queens.
00:55The other queen was born with the Siren's allure.
00:57Her blood could sustain a thousand shadow famillions.
01:00That queen was me.
01:03I dragged myself onto the shore.
01:06The pain ate at my bones.
01:08I grit my teeth and sang the old Siren curse.
01:11My tail turned into two human legs with a sickening crunch.
01:16I mastered blood sorcery in three months,
01:18a magic most humans never master in a lifetime.
01:20I clawed my way to the capital, Orillia.
01:23I slipped into the ivory palace disguised as a court dancer.
01:27I handed a greedy servant a bag of my Searing's grieved pearls.
01:31Soon, I had eyes on King Aldrich's every move.
01:34At night, moonlight spread across the shore.
01:38On Mirror Lake, I danced upon the water,
01:40my hair dipping into the lake and rippling the shallow moonlit glow.
01:44Siren's allure emanated with every move I made.
01:47Night moths and fireflies, drawn to the light,
01:49gathered around me and would not disperse.
01:52Aldrich stood motionless in the shadows of the trees by the lakeshore.
01:54As the dance ended, I turned my head and my gaze happened to meet his.
01:58I lowered my eyes, bent down, and reached for the soft-soled shoes I had left by the shore.
02:02It's like no one I've ever seen.
02:03Who are you?
02:03It's a dance from my homeland.
02:05Few ever get to see it.
02:06When the night breeze brushed past,
02:08I hugged my arms tighter, my shoulders humping slightly.
02:10He noticed.
02:11His silver-gray cloak was unfastened from his shoulders and gently prepped over mine,
02:15still warm with his body heat.
02:16I looked up at him, smiling brightly.
02:18My cheeks flushed.
02:19The delicate fragrance of Siren's allure drifted through the air,
02:21quietly tightening the ambiguous space between them.
02:23Aldrich's pupils dilated slightly.
02:25The Queen loves to dance, too.
02:26The Midsummer Chord is coming up.
02:27Perhaps you shall dance for her at the feast.
02:29Your Majesty, I didn't realize who you were.
02:32Please forgive me.
02:33No need to apologize, my lady.
02:35Just don't disappoint me.
02:36Or the Queen.
02:37I accepted.
02:38Watching Aldrich turn and leave,
02:39I flexed my fingers,
02:40and a tiny shadow fallible silently burrowed into his skin.
02:42By noon the next day,
02:44all of Ivory Palace was talking about the king meeting a beautiful dancer by the lake.
02:47By sunset, even the stable boys had their own version of the story.
02:51A sharp knock came at my door.
02:52It was Queen Isleth's mistress of the household.
02:55They marched me right to Queen Isleth.
02:57That was her,
02:58the woman who slaughtered my people and killed Nerissa,
03:00all for a single tide.
03:01She didn't even blink at me.
03:03This is what my husband sends me?
03:05A scarred little creature from the gutter?
03:07Before stepping inside,
03:09I used a glamour weaver to hide my face under a grotesque mask of fake whip stars and pocloans.
03:15Isleth was deadly jealous.
03:17If she saw my real face,
03:18I'd never survive the night.
03:20I dropped to my knees,
03:21digging my nails into my palms,
03:23and choked down the boiling hate in my blood.
03:25Rest assured, your grace.
03:26I shall wear a veil.
03:28You won't have to endure my face for long.
03:29Very well.
03:30Looking like that,
03:31you couldn't cause a ripple in a bathtub.
03:32I'll accept Aldrich's gift.
03:33Isleth waved her hand.
03:34The mister of the household dragged me out.
03:36Right outside the doors,
03:37I ran straight into Aldrich.
03:39He took one look at me.
03:40This scarred, ruined face looked nothing like the girl from the lake,
03:43but my scent gave me away.
03:45He instantly knew I was fighting for my life.
03:47If Isleth had seen the real me,
03:49there'd be a corpse on the floor right now.
03:51Aldrich's brow slowly fronted.
03:52He didn't say anything,
03:53but when his gaze swept toward Goldenbrough's hall,
03:55the line of his mouth turned cold.
03:57I walked past him with my head down.
03:59What did it matter if she held the king's favor now?
04:01The higher they rise, the harder they fell.
04:03Back in my room,
04:04I shed the glamour weaver.
04:06The face in the mirror was flawless,
04:08luminous as moonlight.
04:10Isleth.
04:11Didn't you want the siren's allure?
04:12Didn't you crave eternal youth?
04:14I was gonna make sure everything you ever wanted
04:17slipped through your fingers.
04:18Nyx silently climbed onto my wrist,
04:20its serpent tongue flicking against my pulse.
04:22Soon, Nerissa.
04:24Soon.
04:24She will be the first I send screaming into the dark
04:26to answer for what she's done to you.
04:29The Midsummer Court.
04:30Three days of feasts, fights, and dancing, and no sleep.
04:33White water lilies covered Mirror Lake overnight.
04:35The lords whispered.
04:36Some called it a blessing from the stars.
04:38Others, a dark omen.
04:41Where is the gift you promised, your majesty?
04:45As the music began, I stepped barefoot onto the lily pads.
04:49The delicate fragrance of siren's allure permeated the air.
04:54A dance for her grace's honor.
04:56May the king and his queen know joy unending.
05:00Rise.
05:00You were extraordinary.
05:03How delightful.
05:05The whispering hex was working.
05:07You like it?
05:08Good.
05:09Give her to me, King Aldrich.
05:10In return, my father's armies will never cross your borders.
05:14Who speaks?
05:16Sire, Norvang Crown Prince.
05:19King Aldrich, I am Crown Prus of Norhaeg, Kasvar.
05:24A hundred years of peace.
05:25For one woman, I'd say you're getting the better deal.
05:28A crown prince offers a crown for a dancer.
05:31Any woman in this kingdom would weep with gratitude.
05:33The Council of Lords traded looks.
05:35Politically, it was the perfect bargain.
05:37He knew exactly what he should say.
05:39So why did his chest suddenly tighten?
05:41I looked up.
05:42I stared right at him.
05:43Tears began to well.
05:44Aldrich spoke.
05:45The words ripped out of him before he could stop them.
05:47You come too late, Prince Kasvar.
05:49She belongs to the crown.
05:51Your majesty?
05:52A slow smirk spread across his face.
05:55Then he turned and vanished into the crowd of nobles.
05:57Thankfully, I hadn't called the whispering hex back yet.
06:01Without that shadow in his mind,
06:04Aldrin would never have claimed me aloud.
06:06A sealed Rhett.
06:08I was officially named the Crown's Grace,
06:10moved to Dawnlight Hall,
06:11and placed under the king's personal protection.
06:14As I left the dancers' quarters,
06:16I stopped at the end of the hall and stared out into the dark.
06:19Nerissa, are you watching?
06:21I was going to make them pay a thousandfold for what they did to you.
06:26When I got to Moonveil Tower,
06:28Isolette was already waiting.
06:30She stared at my bare face in the moonlight.
06:32The veil was gone.
06:34You lied to me!
06:35Had I shown you this face that day,
06:36I wouldn't have lived long enough to bore you with it.
06:38You read me well.
06:40But guess what?
06:41Parade Around is the king's new favorite all you want.
06:44Crown's Grace or not,
06:45I will kill you just the same.
06:47So you've already decided how I die.
06:49Is that so?
06:49A tragic palace fire.
06:51The lovely Crown's Grace, Serea, reduced to ash.
06:55Aldric and I were wed before he the crown.
06:57My father and brother bleed for his kingdom.
06:59Do you truly think he'll mourn a dancer?
07:02Her guards grabbed me.
07:04They bound my hands and feet and threw me to the stone floor.
07:07They doused the room in whale oil.
07:10A spark dropped.
07:11Flames erupted.
07:13Isolette's vicious laugh echoed off the stone walls.
07:17Aldric is insensible with drink.
07:20No one is coming to save you.
07:22I didn't even flinch.
07:24I walked through the flames with Nyx.
07:26A shadow-swinner spider scuttied across the floor,
07:30leading the way.
07:31I sprinted after it.
07:33Thick smoke burned my lungs.
07:37Suddenly, I slammed into a solid chest.
07:41I jerked my head up, wide-eyed.
07:43Tears pooled in my eyes,
07:44but I bit my lip hard to hold them back.
07:46Aldric drew me against his chest.
07:47He glared out at the roaring flames.
07:49Who dared set fire inside my palace?
07:50Find them.
07:51Now!
07:51I pressed my face into his chest.
07:53I didn't say a word.
07:55He knew exactly who did it.
07:56That was pure theater for the court.
07:58He and Isolate had a history that went back to their childhood.
08:02Those roots ran deep.
08:04Aldric, I'm frightened.
08:06The sweet scent of my allure coiled around him.
08:09Deep inside him, my shadow phalive tugged at his darkest desires.
08:12His eyes quickly clouded over.
08:14They burned dangerously hot.
08:16He scooped me up in his arms and carried me straight to the king's chamber.
08:19Word would reach Islein fast.
08:21She wasn't going to take this lying down.
08:24Sure enough, I hadn't been in the chamber long before a guard called out from the door.
08:28Your majesty, the queen is unwell.
08:31She requests your presence at once.
08:33Shall I release you to your queen?
08:35I would hate to keep you from your duties.
08:37When you're beside me, I forget there is anyone else in this castle.
08:40I let out a soft laugh.
08:42We were the only two left in the chamber.
08:43He leaned in close, his hot breath brushing my neck.
08:46Then he went limp.
08:47A fleshy pink dream spire burrowed slowly into his forehead.
08:50I shoved him back onto the four-poster bed and pulled the covers up.
08:54I wove you a beautiful dream.
08:55Enjoy it.
08:56I bit my lip until blood welled up, then leaned over as if to kiss him.
09:00Instead, I let exactly three drops of cursed blood fall past his parted lips.
09:03Three drops tonight.
09:05Three tomorrow.
09:06Three the night after.
09:07Soon, the poison would seep into his bones so deeply that no healer could purge it.
09:11No one except him.
09:13I wiped the blood off my mouth with the back of my hand.
09:15I stared at the dark red scene on my skin.
09:17This is what your mercy left you with, Camaldron.
09:20A monster, my heart.
09:22Midnight had passed, and moonlight streamed faintly through the window into the room.
09:26A shadow-spur spider, no bigger than a fingernail.
09:29One of my many eyes inside the palace.
09:32Isselesby was coming.
09:34I straightened my robe and walked out.
09:37Isselet was standing right outside the chamber doors.
09:41It was a siege.
09:46The king is asleep, your grace.
09:48Perhaps come back tomorrow.
09:50You gutter-born nobody!
09:51I will kill you!
09:53Careful, your grace.
09:54All that fury.
09:55It'll age you faster than time.
09:57And from what I hear, time has not been kind to your...
10:00efforts.
10:01Five years of marriage.
10:03Still no heir.
10:05Her father's letters were getting shorter.
10:08Even the servants looked at her differently now.
10:11She had begged every street healer in the kingdom.
10:14Still no heir.
10:16Guards!
10:17Seize her!
10:18I want her flogged until there's nothing left to flog!
10:21I had just struck at the rawest wound she had.
10:24If I'm harmed, your grace...
10:27Say goodbye to the child growing in your belly.
10:35Well, am I with child or not?
10:38Your grace, there is a life force.
10:41You are undoubtedly carrying a child.
10:45Truly?
10:46The child, is it stable?
10:48Your grace, the life force is strong and steady.
10:51Everything is perfect.
10:53I finally have an heir.
10:54We should be celebrating.
10:56But you are a stain on this room.
10:58The very sight of you makes me sick.
11:00Her guards lunged forward,
11:02digging their fingers into my arms to drag me out.
11:06Isolade grabbed her belly and let out a blood-kitting scream.
11:09Forgive us, your grace.
11:11The child's strength is failing.
11:13The pregnancy cannot be saved.
11:15She had waited five years for a child,
11:17only to lose it seconds after finding out.
11:19You.
11:21Fix it.
11:22If I lose this child,
11:24I will burn everything you love to ash.
11:26Every person, every place, every single memory.
11:30I look down at her vicious, desperate face.
11:33Burn everything I love to ash?
11:34She had no idea.
11:36My people were already wiped out.
11:38I was the only one left.
11:40I crawled out of the deep sea hell for one reason only.
11:43To collect what she owed.
11:45I stepped forward and pulled out a silver ritual blade.
11:47I sliced shallow cuts into Isolade's wrists and her belly.
11:51The healers rushed back for a scan.
11:54The gold light was steady again.
11:56The night, I quietly planted a phantom womb hex inside her.
12:01The shadow perfectly mimicked every sign of being with child.
12:05It would be eating the mother from the inside out,
12:07draining her life force to feed itself.
12:09The shadow obeyed my will.
12:12If I wished it, she'd be dead in an instant.
12:14But taking Isolade's life wasn't going to satisfy me.
12:17The men who butchered my entire people were Isoleth's father and brother.
12:22Sir Victor Ashford, his thick, greasy hands tearing the scales from Nerissa's trailfin.
12:27Nerissa died in unimaginable pain.
12:30Are you watching, Nerissa?
12:32I'll make them pay a thousandfold.
12:35When I slipped back into the king's chamber, Aldric was still fast asleep.
12:40I dropped my robe and slid into bed beside him.
12:43I couldn't wait to see the look on his face when he woke up and heard the news.
12:46His wife was pregnant.
12:49After all, he was the one paying the crown alchemist to slip a barrenness dreft into her daily tea.
12:54She was never going to have a child.
12:56House Ashford already held half the seats in the Council of Lords.
13:00They commanded the entire Southern March army.
13:02If Isoleth actually bore an heir, her family would use the child to turn Aldric into a puppet king.
13:08Sure, Aldric might have loved her once.
13:10But love is a cheap joke next to a crown.
13:13Aldric woke up and stared at me.
13:15The days of the dreamspringer still lingered in his eyes.
13:18It looked like he enjoyed the fantasy I spun for him.
13:24Your Majesty, word has just arrived from the Queen's attendance.
13:28Her grace is with child.
13:29Did the news get out?
13:30Sire, Queen Isoleth has already sent a rider to Lord General Ashford.
13:34The air in the room snapped tight.
13:35I knew when to take my leave.
13:38You had a shock last night.
13:39Stay here and rest.
13:41I'll find you a better place to stay.
13:43Queen Isoleth was pregnant.
13:44House Ashford was smelling blood in the water.
13:46Aldric was fighting a war on two fronts.
13:48He had to crush the plotting in the Council of Lords.
13:51And he had to find a way to kill the thing growing inside his wife.
13:53Right now, no one was looking twice at a nameless crown's grace.
13:56It was the perfect blind spot for my revenge.
13:59Kasvar, Crown Prince of Norham from the Midsummer Court would be my blade.
14:02I didn't just want a few dead royals.
14:04They butchered my people.
14:05I was going to burn their kingdom to the ground.
14:07The little snake tracked Kasvar down.
14:09Following, I settled into Dawnlight Hall and waited.
14:12A few days later, someone pounded on my door.
14:15It was one of Isoleth's servants.
14:17My lady, the queen is in agony.
14:20Please, you have to come.
14:21Inside the hall, Juniper and Sage were burning in an iron basement.
14:24But the pungent smoke did not mask the smell of blood.
14:26Aldric had made his move.
14:27He must have ordered the crown alchemist to strengthen the dose.
14:29Too bad there was no child to lose.
14:31The deadly potion was just eating his lock alive and nothing.
14:33No one had leaked a word about me saving her pregnancy at 11.
14:36Aldric was completely in the dark.
14:38And I stand beside Isabel, watching me face twist in pure, miserable agony.
14:42Slowly, I drew my silver ritual of life.
14:44The shadow from the phantom wound hex remained untouched, thriving and multiplying inside Isoleth.
14:49My child, can you save it?
14:52I can, but it's going to hurt.
14:55Soraya, if you dare deceive me, my father and brother will not let you walk away alive!
14:58I took out my silver ritual blade and cut fresh slashes into her wrists and belly.
15:02I let my own blood drip in.
15:04One cut, then another, until there were ten.
15:06The pain ripped her apart from the inside, but she was in too much agony to even scream.
15:10She just lay there, shooting pure venom at me through bloodshot eyes.
15:14I actually wondered how exactly her father and brother were planning to deal with me.
15:17They were a little busy right then.
15:19I had handed Kasvar a few of my shadow familians.
15:22I told him to slip them right into the Ashford's food.
15:24The father and son commanded the entire Southern March army.
15:27The moment a general falls, the army breaks.
15:30Without them, House Ashfield's massive military threat would vanish overnight.
15:33Once the tenth cut sealed, I drew back.
15:36Isolet was completely drained.
15:38I waved a hand toward the heavy chamber doors.
15:40Send for the healers.
15:41Let them check.
15:42But the healers didn't arrive alone.
15:44Aldric entered right behind them.
15:45The healer held their hand above Isoleth's abdomen and cast magic, while Aldric and I stood by.
15:51I didn't know you had this particular talent.
15:53Just an old remedy from the deep waters, older than your kingdom.
15:57I had just ruined his perfect assassination plot.
16:00He wasn't going to let this go.
16:03The queen's child is safe, sire.
16:06He walked over to Isol and took her hand.
16:10Isoleth, you've suffered.
16:12For you and our child, it was no suffering at all.
16:16I stood in the corner, biting the inside of my cheat to keep from laughing out loud.
16:21Did the king look remotely happy to her?
16:23He looked like he couldn't even stomach the sight of her.
16:26We owe Lady Soraya our thanks.
16:28Her body was too weak.
16:29When every single crown healer hit a dead end, I was the only one who pulled it off.
16:34Lady Soraya, do you know what you've done?
16:36I understand my error.
16:37I acted recklessly.
16:38I am no trained healer.
16:40If anything had happened to the queen, the consequences would have been unthinkable.
16:43Reckless is an understatement.
16:44You are confined to your quarters for three months.
16:46You do not set one foot outside Dawnlight Hall.
16:49I bowed my head to accept the sentence.
16:51Aldric, please.
16:53I begged her to do it.
16:54Don't punish her.
16:55She wasn't trying to help me.
16:57She was just terrified.
16:59If Aldric tried to poison her again, she needed me out of house arrest to play her personal
17:03savior.
17:05Your Grace, I overstepped.
17:06I accept my punishment.
17:08Staying alive was my only concern right then.
17:10This is our first child, Isoled.
17:12We cannot be too careful.
17:13Do not plead for her.
17:17Deep down, she was thrilled I was getting locked away.
17:20I was escorted back to Dawnlight Hall.
17:23That very night, Aldric showed up at my door.
17:26He sat by candlelight, his thumb tracing soft circles over my hand.
17:30The flame danced in his pupils.
17:32There was something buried in his eyes I couldn't quite read.
17:34I hadn't fed him a shadow failure tonight.
17:37My magic was completely shut off.
17:39Saraya, give me a child.
17:42Kings don't belong to anyone.
17:43That's the first lesson every queen learns.
17:45And the last one that breaks her to bed before.
17:48A shadow could mimic touch for a while, but not forever.
17:51Keep it up long enough, and he would notice.
17:54Aldric couldn't get enough.
17:56He spent night after night in my chambers.
17:59When word reached Islet, half the crystal in Golden Row Hall didn't survive the night.
18:05She really thought Aldric put me under house arrest because he was sick of me.
18:08She figured she could deal with me the second she popped out her air.
18:12Instead of watching me rot in exile, she was met with very different news.
18:15I was pregnant, too.
18:17When Aldric heard Isleth was pregnant, he panicked.
18:20But when he heard the news about me, the joy on his face was real.
18:23He had sat on the throne for years without a single heir.
18:27Since Isloid couldn't bear one, she quietly paid off the alchemists to spike the tea of
18:31every other mistress in the castle.
18:33I stared into his eyes.
18:34They were soft with tenderness.
18:36Did he actually love me?
18:37A siren's body is built for survival.
18:39Bearing young is practically effortless compared to humans.
18:42If I wanted a child, it was easy.
18:44The tragedy was, this child was never meant to be born.
18:47Every drop of blood in my body fed my shadow famillions.
18:50Siren magic is born of the living sea.
18:51Blood sorcery feeds on death.
18:53Those two forces ripped at each other inside my veins,
18:55leaving too little life in me to carry a child.
19:00I swear I felt it move.
19:03You're imagining things.
19:05It's barely two months.
19:06How could it move?
19:07I felt it.
19:08I'm sure of it.
19:09I'm probably just hungry.
19:11We both burst into laughter, tangled up together in bed.
19:14That was the exact scene Isolade walked in on.
19:17Isolade was finally showing, but the rest of her body was wasting away.
19:20Hollow cheeks.
19:21Dark bruised circles under her eyes.
19:23Her skin looked as thin as stretched parchment.
19:25Not even three layers of heavy powder could hide the decay.
19:27Meanwhile, I was curled up perfectly in Aldric's arms.
19:30My skin was as smooth as Alphamander.
19:32Cheeks flushed like early spring petals.
19:34I was glowing.
19:35My laughter still echoing off the walls.
19:37The second I saw Isolade, I went to pull away.
19:40But Aldric just wrapped his arms around me tighter.
19:43Why are you here?
19:43I heard the wonderful news about Soraya.
19:45I came to offer my congratulations.
19:47I just didn't expect to find you here.
19:49Aldric hadn't stepped foot inside Golden Rose Hall in Monks.
19:52He made every excuse in the book.
19:54He just refused to see her.
19:56Desperate, she had written to her father and brother.
19:58Still no reply.
20:00How have you been feeling, Your Grace?
20:02Isolade didn't even look at me.
20:04Her eyes were fixed on Aldric.
20:06Tears immediately spilled over her lashes.
20:09Have you grown tired of me, Aldric?
20:10I shared a bond forged since childhood.
20:12For a fleeting moment, Aldric's grip on me loosened.
20:15Honestly, if Isolade's pregnancy wasn't stressing him out of his mind,
20:17I probably wouldn't have kept him in my bed this easily.
20:19Don't overthink it.
20:20I'll come see you later tonight.
20:24Your Majesty, urgent dispatch from the Southern March.
20:26The Council of Lords is already waiting in the Council Chamber.
20:30Was there anything else, my Queen?
20:32I wish to rest.
20:34I underestimated you.
20:36But in this palace, carrying the King's heir means absolutely nothing if you don't survive the birth.
20:42I could say the same, though I suspect you already know.
20:45You conizing little Rhett!
20:46Don't push your luck!
20:47I still have my bloodline!
20:49I have my father and my brother!
20:50You're just a dancer!
20:51You are nothing beside me!
20:53Is that so?
20:54If I had to guess, that urgent dispatch was all about the Ashfield men.
20:58I had learned of it days ago.
20:59My splinter finale was shadowing Kasval.
21:02The tiny shadow carried the news straight into my mind through our soul tether.
21:05It reached me a full month before the King's fastest riders could.
21:08House Ashford had always hungered for war.
21:10They had long been eager to march on Norheim.
21:12But the royal vault was bleeding dry.
21:14And Aldric had zero interest in starting a war.
21:17So, the eldest son, Sir Victor, crossed the border and provoked them again and again.
21:22I had thought he could fight.
21:24But it only took a few clashes for Kasvar to knock him off his horse and shatter his leg.
21:29Kasvar didn't want a full-blown war.
21:31So he let the fool live.
21:33But the very next day, Lord General Ashford marched his army south.
21:37Swear to wash away the insult and avenge the humiliation of his son.
21:41The southern march was miles away.
21:43Even the fastest horse took a month to reach the capital.
21:46Aldric had no idea the old general had already been crushed and captured.
21:54My lady, his majesty's in the middle of a council.
21:57Let her in.
22:00I've had these headaches for days now.
22:02But when you're near me, they ease.
22:05I don't know why.
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