Chapter 5 What A Joke

• But Taisiya did not owe her anything. It's not like they were friends or sisters. She was her mate's first love. She had disappeared from their lives for years.
• Then Aakifahlynn realized Jairus was her mate at the ripe old age of eighteen.
• Taisiya only returned to their lives about three years ago. However, their paths only crossed a little. Her real fight was with her deceitful and trifling mate of a husband.
• She was about to wail again at her husband but held her tongue. She would not further degrade herself in front of these people to give them the satisfaction of seeing her beg.
• Aakifahlynn, sadly, still had difficulty accepting reality. She could not grasp this. No matter how much she tried to make sense of everything, she couldn't, and the more she tried, her head throbbed.
• Even if she was not his mate or wife, how could he treat the one person who single handily took the throne for him this way?
• It was she that safeguarded the Kingdom of Tamman's borders for years with her magic. She had expertly cursed all weapons to kill any that would, unfortunately, come into contact.
• They would surely meet their demise, which made the King powerful in his people's eyes and in all the villages and towns far and wide across the beautiful continent of Anatola.
• As far as across the ocean, to other vast islands, where one would need one of those wooden sea transport to get to, know his name because of Queen Luna Aakifahlynn Mathiasen.
• He was so revered that whole packs and herds would travel to visit his Kingdom. He was the ruler of all magical beings, and as for his enemies, none that tried had come close to touching him within their ruling.
• His Kingdom had quickly grown, and it was like he had risen to fame for his skill in battle and training the best warriors.
• Bottomline, his Kingdom was to be feared, and no one dared to go against him.
• They had run this Kingdom together smoothly for five years, and the people were treated fairly. Things had blossomed tremendously for the Kingdom of Tamman in five years because of Aakifahlynn, and now she was tossed out like a decaying rodent.
• She desperately grasped at the hand in her hair, attempting to prise his fingers off, but his grip would only tighten.
• Reaching out the massive front doors of the Castle, Alpha King Jairus Mathiasen swung his hand and tossed her as if she was a bowling ball hitting some bowling pins at a bowling alley.
• Queen Luna Aakifahlynn rolled down the stairs and landed on the gravel and stone path below the steps in front of a crowd of magical beings, some humans among them.
• Her aching bones were bruised further as she hit each step on her way down.
• And only then did she hear what they were shouting as clear as day.
• 'PUNISH HER,' 'THE WEAK QUEEN,' 'UNFIT LUNA,' 'UNFIT TO RULE.' And some grunts and cheers of agreement.
• And at that moment, Aakifahlynn realized the depth of this betrayal. He would whip her in front of these people, further stripping her of any ounce of dignity she tried to hold onto.
• Surely they wanted to punish her, but why? However, at this moment, she wished for death.
• She felt empty yet full because of the mate bond. Every hurt, aching, soul-crushing pain and trauma racked her body. The mate bond would offer her a sense of calm and comfort.
• Lies, all lies, Aakifahlynn thought but resigned herself to the comfort it still afforded as she faced her faith.
• She tried to sit up, her frail body aching from emotional torture and the man handlings of her beloved husband and mate.
• Her husband, her mate, the Alpha King, she recited again as if still trying to process and reconcile.
• As her husband and his mistress descended the staircase, Aakifahlynn's pleading, wary, confused, lost eyes slid to every eye she could meet, these were her people also, and they were cheering him on, his mistress by his side.
• 'I guess I should have seen this coming.' She thought bitterly. 'But how? How could she?'
• Aakifahlynn squinted her eyes, and a feeble hand slowly crept up to act as a visor. It was difficult in the dark to meet their eyes, especially under the glow of the torches they held almost carelessly in their hands, thrusting it in the air as they voiced their disgust for their weak Luna.
• The wind was stagnant. However, Aakifahlynn felt the coolness of the night, but that was not why she recoiled into herself as she began to tremble.
• No, it was the trauma of her betrayal. The layers were too much. She prayed to the Divine Moon Goddess that these lashings would be the last thing.
• After all her sacrifices? She had sacrificed her wolf, only using the magic in her. She became obsessed with honing her craft to be the best Luna Queen and literally serve her people and husband.
• Jairus and Taisiya finally got to the bottom gracefully and stared out into the crowd, and suddenly the cheering stopped, and Jairus spoke, his voice booming out...
• "I have neglected my people for far too long, enabling a sick woman, a weak woman." Pausing in his words only to throw a disgusted look her way, his lips curled in a snare.
• Facing the crowd again, "And for that, I am sorry. I truly am," a hand rose to touch his chest over his heart. "Just as you deserve a strong Luna, you also deserve a strong Alpha, which is why today, as your Alpha, I am stepping up and doing what needs to be done for this KINGDOM'S SURVIVAL."
• He roared, fist-pumping the air, and the crowd went in and uproared frenzy of cheer and shouts of murder.
• Jairus raised a hand, signaling to stop, "We must stay strong. Our Kingdom must live on. Long live the KING." He pumped his fist in the air, and the crowd erupted again, hooting and hollering for their Alpha, happy he was finally making a stand.
• What a joke.