The Seer of the Forsaken

Note - offscreen kidnapping/killing/SA. Captivity.

Mara lay her head on her arm, staring out the window at the distant forest. She sighed softly, enjoying the coolness of the stone under her arm.  It wasn’t even the height of summer yet but the heat was becoming unbearable even in the tower. 

On the other side of the forest was the home she barely remembered anymore. But she remembered that night, the night they came and took her from everything and everyone she loved. The sound of Mama’s screams, of Papa shoving his way towards her…her younger siblings screaming. What were their names? She didn’t remember. She didn’t even know if her family survived that night. If they had, did they miss her? Blame her for what had happened? She would never know because she would never be allowed to leave. 

Escape was impossible, she’d tried many times in those first years but had long ago given up. They would never let her go, even if she managed to make it out of the fortress, they would hunt her down and drag her back. This was her life, her fate. To live out her days in the tower, alone, all because of a ‘gift’ she’d never known about and had never wanted once she did. 

She was kept comfortable enough in the tower – she didn’t freeze in the winter or boil in summer unless it was so hot or cold that everyone was suffering. She had clean clothes, a bed to sleep in, food to eat…just no freedom. And that was what she longed for more than anything. 

When she heard the familiar thud of the solid oak door at the base of the tower opening, her heart began to race. Heavy footsteps moved ever closer, ascending the spiralling stone staircase. She closed her eyes, praying silently to the gods who had ‘gifted’ her and then apparently forsaken her. It wasn’t mealtime, there was no festival due, why was he coming now? The door to her chambers opened and he stepped into view, yellow eyes locking onto her immediately. She stared at his hand, knowing what was clutched within it. 

“Please,” she whispered, but he remained silent, striding across the room. 

His fingers dug into her scalp as he forced her head back, the bottle pressed to her lips, and then the cool liquid filled her mouth. She half choked before unwillingly swallowing, knowing what was coming next. 

It worked quickly, the room spinning around her, everything becoming hazy.

***

He watched the girl slump down, her eyes glazed as she began to speak. As always, the potion did its job, forcing her to See. She could deny her gift all she wished, but she was only useful so long as she could See for them. Her visions had already given them several victories in the war. They had been pushed out, forsaken, but with her visions to guide them, they were taking back what was rightfully theirs. 

When she was no longer useful, she would be given to the men until they tired of her or her body could no longer give them more children, then she would die. Just like the Seer before her. the gift was rare, finding the girls difficult since most were taken to the Capital as soon as they began to manifest. But she had been missed, left vulnerable and alone on a distant far. Easy pickings for them. 

Every year, her resistance faded further. He was honestly surprised there was any rebellion left in her given how young she had been when they found her and how long she had lived in the tower. 

She fell silent, head slumping forward, and he tugged the golden hair to pull her back up. He knew she wasn’t seeing him, lost to the potions power, which was why he was the only one to handle her. Others might not be so restrained and they didn’t want to lose the visions sooner than they would naturally fade. He traced a finger down a soft cheek, watching as her eyelids fluttered before falling shut, her breathing soft and deep. He let go, watching her slump to the floor, turning to leave. Let her sleep off the potion, he had what he had come for.

***

Mara walked behind them, veiled, staring at the ground. It was not her place to look up. She didn’t know where she was, but she had been taken from the tower, the only home she could remember, and now she was here. Where here was, she didn’t know. It didn’t matter, all that mattered was obeying, making them happy. She knelt on the cushion when nudged towards it, accepting the offered bottle. She lifted it to her lips and drank it, the empty glass slipping from her fingers as she slumped, the potion taking over, forcing her to See. 

She didn’t know that it was her last vision, that with her ‘help’ the Forsaken had won their war. The land she had been born in was now theirs, ravaged by war, but still far better than the rocky wasteland she had spent most of her life trapped in. She lay on the floor, insensate, her white and gold gown flared around her, veil draped over her. But unlike any previous vision recovery, she was not left alone.

***

Mara sat in the room, humming tunelessly, rocking her baby in her arms. The baby girl had her golden hair and violet eyes, the same shade her own had once been, not that she remembered that. She hadn’t seen her own reflection in so long that she had forgotten years ago. She cried silently when they took her baby from her but did not say a word or resist in any way. She hadn’t spoken in years, shortly after her last vision, and her ability to resist them had faded years before that. 

***

She took the funny looking bottle, looking up at the tall man curiously. Was this a new game? Or a treat? He motioned and she obeyed drinking it. She blinked, feeling so dizzy, unable to think as everything spun about her. 

***

They listened to the girl babble what she was Seeing. She was young, younger even than her mother had been when they kidnapped her. With their victory years ago, maybe they didn’t really need a new Seer, but when the baby had been born with violet eyes, they could not ignore the sign. Obviously, the girl had been born for a reason and so they would make her See for them and they would ensure their dominance over the land.