Berheqt rose from the sand much like how mountains and canyons do in the inaccessible parts of Ser-Ib. Hesi craned her neck to gaze at the gate's smooth precipice, the glint of the overlay of sapphire tiles almost blinding her. From where she stood, the wall spanning as high as fifty humans seemed to go on forever west and eastward. Apart from the dark silhouettes of flat-headed mesas and other mountains, there was nothing quite as tall as the crafted royal capital in the immediate mile or two.

Hesi sidestepped a cart pulled by a grunting mule. The owner gave her a baleful look before whipping the animal's backside. She gritted her teeth at the pained cry the mule gave and watched it continue to pull the cart. All around her, bald demons dressed almost like the human traders with colorful tunics and scarves and fancy sandals walked in and out of the small gates punched in regular intervals along the infinite walls.

Guards dressed in leather plated with metal and jewels stood at each of the gates' entrance, sniffing the air for any sign of humans straying near the fortress. Hesi didn't need to guess what they would do should they capture one.

Her footsteps remained light over the fine layer of sand coating the cobblestones laid a few meters around the fortress. She lowered her shawl from covering her waist-length dark hair, following the advice of the Kuhrean women who were also on the way here. She resisted the urge to break the deshet branch currently clasped in her hand at the thought of human women being victims of the demons' desires.

If she had a choice, if not for the itch for revenge curling at the base of her gut, she wouldn't be here. If she hadn't lost her family, she wouldn't even think about meeting the demons in their own wretched stronghold to infiltrate the demon prince's bridal club. Funny how she wouldn't care firsthand about the Mayaware skewering her kind if not for her family once being at the blunt end of the metaphorical and literal spear.

Hesi gritted her teeth. She's not a saint and that's something she wouldn't deny a thousand times over. She's here because she has a personal grudge to settle. If the humans get freed in the process, she'd treat it as a bonus.

The gates loomed closer now with the sun seemingly noticing her approach by burning hotter and brighter. Hesi swallowed against the scratchy feeling in her throat and tucked her hands under her arms as she trudged towards the first gate with enough crowd she could find. She wrinkled her nose at the faint smell of incense wafting around no doubt from the traders' tents and from inside the palace as well. Those demons loved marshere incense, after all.

As soon as she got to the line where the people started milling about, she scanned the courtyard looking for the familiar characteristics of women being ushered inside the royal city. She bit her lip and pulled at the chapped skin with her teeth. The blood that sprouted from the wound after all the skinning was welcome. Helpful, even. She didn't bother wiping it off nor tasting it as she hobbled closer to the first line she saw with women in tattered tunics and dusty hair.

The Mayaware in charge of this particular queue was talking in rapid Breidye to the sentry posted at their designated gate. Hesi ducked in line and tapped the shoulder of a girl barely fourteen and still hasn't gained the right curves. The girl turned at Hesi's prodding, surprising her with a bruised cheek and a blackening circle around one eye.

"Oh," Hesi's words died down in a complete halt in her throat. This girl had been through worse than what Hesi had imagined. "I'm sorry. For that...uh," she gestured over her face to reflect the girl's injuries. "Were you taken by force?"

Mist shone on the girl's eyes but she nodded and bowed her head. "Yes," she said. "They wouldn't have left the oasis alone if I and the other girls didn't go."

Hesi narrowed her eyes. "Girls? How many of you are here?" She made a show of looking around but all she saw were lines of merchant carts in front of the other gates.

"Don't bother looking," the girl's tone was clipped. She had already lost hope. "We were separated into different groups on the way so we don't think of pulling something funny."

"I'm sorry," Hesi tucked her scarf closer to her neck and tucked the deshet branch back into her satchel.

The girl shrugged. "Wasn't your fault," she turned to the other shivering women in front of her—all of them bearing the same rugged look with wide eyes and dirt smeared across their beautiful tanned skin. "It's just how it is for us."

Hesi didn't bother arguing or opening her mouth at all. This was the right queue, then. "I was taken too," she gestured vaguely at the wild dunes shifting behind them. "They came at me at night when I was out alone."

The girl offered no sympathetic gaze. "Don't you have a village to belong to?" she asked. Not even about family since they both knew that word was as lasting as a drop of water against the warmth of the sand.

"No," was Hesi's only answer and a silent understanding passed between them. In a world like this, with them lining up to prefer one death over another, there's really not much to say or do except accept things as they were.

Not for Hesi, though. If she's going to die, she'd better do it fighting. That's why she's here.

"Fast! In!" a voice garbled in Breidye, ringing along the fortress' outer courtyard. The line in front of Hesi began moving as stifled sobs and swallowed whimpers filled the air, mixing with the salty humidity and the unfaltering smell of manure and corpses.

Soon, the shadow of the front face of the fortress loomed over Hesi like a giant cloud. The only difference was that this one was slowly devouring her and the people in front of her. Wood creaked against metal hinges as the gates swung open, ushering her to the heart of Iren-Washep.

Ribbed shafts decorated the columns rising from the ground and holding up the trading courtyard's ceiling above them. Each reminded Hesi of a lotus flower she saw once, floating along the Terheq River without a care for the world around it. They even got the paint right, letting the pale purple hue reflect as much sunlight as it could.

Something thumped against her backside and she turned to come face-to-face with a demon soldier staring at her with slitted pupils and a start of a deep growl. The butt of its spear was poised for another strike should she thought of doing something sketchy. Hesi stepped back, raising her arms in a gesture of surrender.

Where's her queue? Ah, they're already disappearing into a dark corridor between the tall walls and a cubical stone building leading to nowhere. Hesi smirked at the guard before peeling down the cobbled roads to catch up.

She cursed as soon as she was out of earshot of the Mayaware soldier from the rear. Running here made her look too eager to the demons. That might raise suspicions if these creatures were even thinking. She trudged after the women, bearing the loud orders from the soldiers up front, by the middle of the queue, and from behind.

Soon, they reached the cubical building's entrance and with another bump of the spear's butt against Hesi's back, she was shoved into yet another courtyard, this time minus the ceiling, giving her a full view of the unreachable blue sky overlaid with a thin and wispy layer of white clouds.

"Line!" the soldier from the front yelled and the women promptly fell in line parallel to the width of the courtyard, the line of more lotus-shaped columns to their backs. Hesi stepped into the line as ordered, keeping the girl she talked to by the gate in her periphery. The girl didn't speak nor move unless ordered by the soldiers. Didn't open her mouth or even let out a strangled sob. In short, the girl's face revealed nothing.

If anything, Hesi would think this girl was in it for revenge more than her.

"Clothes off!" another order rang along the bare stone walls. A few women shook their heads and attempted to step back from their line. They ended up getting hit on the shoulders by waiting spear handles. Hesi thumbed the hem of her tunic, watching the Mayaware stare down at the hesitating women. Might as well wait until the latest time so she could keep her garments to her skin for a while longer.

A scream emanated from the front, close to the exit as a soldier gripped a woman by the neck while another was ripping her tunic apart like a piece of hemp parchment. The sound of spun-fabric ripping came off as a warning of what would happen to their necks if they dare stall or disobey. The demons left the sobbing woman on the floor, completely bare from the head down. They didn't even spare her sandals.

The demons stopped and matched the line of women with identical smirks on their faces. "Clothes off," the one in the middle of the queue—no doubt the leader of this venture—said. "Not repeat me second chance."

The women needed not be told twice. Hesi watched the women wrench their clothes away from their skin as if they're made from poison. By the time the last of them had finished tugging off their garments, the off-white and beige textiles almost painted the courtyard's stone floor anew.

A shadow fell over Hesi and she looked up to meet the leader's watchful eyes. "Well?" it said, its forked tongue slipping from between its lips in a quiet but threatening hiss.

Hesi forced her lower lip to show a little quiver and her eyes to widen a bit but she dropped her satchel to the ground, causing a few soldiers to wince at the sight of the deshet branch jutting from it. Then, as slow as ever, she began stripping.

When her clothes, no matter how smelly and dusty they were, joined the other women's on the floor, she ducked her eyes from the Mayawares' stares. She came here knowing she'd be humiliated beyond imagination and thought she was prepared. But, apparently, she's not.

Now, as the dry desert wind kissed her nipples exposed for all to see, she couldn't fight the heat creeping to her cheeks and coating her ears. She crossed her legs to prevent the sand from entering the region between her legs and her fingers clenched around each other as she fought the tears forming at the corner of her eyes.

This was temporary. She'd get her clothes back. Soon.

A hitched whimper rang from the women near the courtyard's exit and Hesi leaned forward to see a woman being dragged out by her hair by a soldier. When they vanished into the bend leading to the outer corridor, the sound of teeth sinking into flesh could be heard, followed by a gut-wrenching scream and the wet splatter of blood against concrete. Then, no more.

The soldier returned, wiping blood dripping from its lips and trailing droplets of red liquid from its legs and armor. Hesi stood straight before the rest of the Mayaware noticed her leaning and gritted her teeth. Or that could happen. Either way, she's doomed.

One death over the other. Wasn't that the deal given to humans since the Mayaware appeared?

Soon, and after five more women getting devoured and having their blood water the parched corridors, the leader of the platoon stopped in front of Hesi once more. Its lips curled into a menacing growl as it lifted its hand and ran it down her arm. Hesi took a deep breath, holding the anger and disgust curling at the base of her throat. It's taking everything in her to not spit at the demon's face.

The demon moved its touch down her hair—the locks her mother couldn't stop praising ever since she gave birth to Hesi—and gave a small chuckle. "This perfect," it turned to its subordinates with a wide grin, showing off its sharp fangs. "Include."

With a nod, the soldiers closed in on Hesi and like what they did for the other accepted women, they gripped her arms with strong hands and hauled her out of the courtyard, going the opposite way where the devoured women met their end. The fresh smell of blood curled with the incense, making Hesi's stomach turn more than she permitted it to.

Before she could make sense of what was going on, she was shoved into a dark room with not a candle or lamp in bloom. Then, with a snap of a finger, cold water roared down on her. She gasped, the sudden cold making her chest constrict and her breath hitched. All around her, the other women were doing the same. After months of being in the desert, Hesi wasn't used to water dripping down her skin and matting her hair to her back.

Repulsive.

It was repulsive, for sure.

"Start the baths," a new voice rang through the room, making Hesi stop from wiping the water from her eyes. Human. It was a human's voice, judging from its rich texture and the near-perfect execution of the words in Birejyet. What was a human doing in a demon's roost such as this? Traitor. He's a traitor.

Someone threw another bucketful of water against her back, sending her careening into a rough wall she didn't even see because of the veil of darkness around her. She whirled, ready to tackle whoever did that, but strong arms gripped her hands. She clicked her tongue and tried to fight but the new voice hissed, tugging her closer.

"Don't fight me if you want to live," he said, his breath tickling her ear and driving the hairs at the back of her neck up. "I'm not going to harm you. It's just a bath."

Hesi didn't speak. Just the sound of that voice sent soothing vibes all over her limbs. Soon, she relaxed and he let go of her hands. "What should I do?" she asked, letting her own tone drop into a whisper.

"I'll handle everything," he replied. His voice carried enough sadness and bitterness that Hesi didn't even feel the need to give another scathing remark. "Just stand still."

And so, she did.

That way, for the next few minutes, she felt his hands all over her body, lathering soap and rinsing her skin with water that was starting to feel refreshing and enjoyable. When her eyes adjusted, the man had already finished washing the space between her legs and moved to rinse the soap off her hair. That's when she got a full view of his muscular back, his toned arms, and strong legs.

When he drew up to down the last bucket to finish her off, he stood at least a head taller. Hesi didn't close her eyes even as water cascaded down her face. She studied his chiseled features, the thin layer of hair covering his mouth and the wavy locks framing his face free of any turbans or shawls. He was...

"That's it," he drove her hair out of her face with a gentle hand. "Join the other women outside to dry off. I'll send you clothes as soon as you get settled in your rooms."

Hesi bobbed her head and strode towards a rectangular of blinding light, her bare feet making squelching noises against the puddles of soapy water on the floor. Her eyes stung as the sunlight struck it after a long period in the darkness. She turned to look for the human servant and found only the wind and a line of indoor plants and flower bushes lining the courtyard.

She touched her skin, now cold and surprisingly supple and smooth after the scrubbing. Who was he?

And what was he doing in the palace, aiding the demons and serving them?

She didn't get her answer as she and all the other women were shoved into a new communal room where at least a dozen Mayaware maids greeted them with rolls and rolls of textile. Soon, Hesi was no longer a girl from the outskirts of Rathome.

She was the demon prince's wife.