“We have to, it is the only way we will survive!” Says the man at the head of the table. His eyes are white, his hair pitch black, shoulder length with long whips of silver. He is fairly young, with a full beard and nice clothes.

“But sir! This is dangerous! What will we do if we don’t have them? What if this does not work the way we wish it to?” Says a man in front of the black haired man. This ...

"It must be done," he said to his subordinates, whos faces were an array of shock and confusion.

"But why,sir?" the taller one asked. "What has she done to deserve this sort of punishment?"

"What hasn't she done," he grumbled. "Let’s start with the fact that at every turn she has been a thorn in our side, causing all sorts of mishief and mayhem. Making us all look like fools and what’s worse, she ...

“We have no choice.”

“There is always another choice Grand Master!”

“We are running low on food, and land, and crops. It’s the only other option!”

“Silence! I have made my decision. We will hold the annual hunger games, twice a year. The age range will be 10-19 years of age. Two boys and two girls will enter the games, fifty people in total. The boys chosen have to be dating and in love with the g...

“I made up my mind, and it’s final.”

“But your highness…”

“Are you contradicting me?”

Silence fell on the room and nobody dared to talk.

“Good. I’m your queen and I don’t like being told what to do.”

She stood up on the desk and looked around, challenging people to answer.

“You asked me to find a husband to abide by the law. That was something I didn’t want to take lightly and I still don’t. Havin...

“Your Highness, please reconsider,” the Right Hand gently urged. “The hill people make important contributions to our kingdom.”

The King could barely contain a sneer. “They are not part of our kind. It is time to end this farce. The hill people will be rounded up and shipped away from the Kingdom across the sea.”

“Who will clean our homes? Tend our gardens? Cook our food? My Lord, the hill peopl...

"We've reached an agreement." The high priest at the head of the table spoke with his hands folded in front of him, resting upon his massive desk at the alter of the temple. Two priests dressed in traditional robes standing on the other side of the table eyed the weathered old man in front of them, their eyes narrow.

"We aren't supposed to negotiate with them," the robed man on the high priest's ...

At least she said it straight to your face

Could have disappeared without a trace

Doesn’t hurt any less that’s for sure

Her intentions were somewhat pure

No point sticking around for an encore

There really is nothing left to restore

Go get all your honeymoon packed bags

Should have paid attention to the red flags

That led you to the devil in a white dress

Ditching you in a state of utter ...

WHAT WE WERENT TOLD. . .

Vargas looked around at the translators behind each government offical. He sighed and turned to his translator, Alliè.

"We need to decide on ONE language so these worker's lives aren't in danger." He said peacefully, watching as the most officials turned with uncertain eyes to there translators.

The Commonwealth's Emporor was one of the few to nod his head in agreement.

...

The two dukes climbed the steps to the king’s chambers, hoping for a resolution. His graces, Lord Beckford and Lord Thurston, had been in a decades-long blood feud, dating back two generations. Beckford’s great-great-grandfather had stolen parcels of land from Thurston’s ancestor. The two dukes had battled it out in a duel that saw Lord Thurston’s great-great-grandfather ram a sword into the belly...

Erika held out her wand. “Like this?”

Her mentor, Alexis, watched. “Perfect! Now, hold on a moment…” she hurried over and gently tucked Erika’s thumb behind the handle. “There. That should feel better.”

“Whoa… it does. A lot. Thanks!”

“That’s what I’m here for.” Alexis gave her a wink. “Now. Ready to try something a little daring today?”

“Sure,” Erika said, smiling. “What have you got in ...