The third maiden finally speaks, her words soft yet clear. "My lord, Mother Aela acted only out of concern for your comfort and the welfare of your child. She sought to ensure that the maiden could properly serve you." She steps forward carefully, keeping her gaze lowered. "Perhaps..."
You sneer "Seeking death! Life of a mere bastard worth more than my command,"
Aela's entire body shudders at your words, but she remains silent, face still turned toward the floor. The red mark on her cheek has darkened, a thin line of blood still trickling from where she bit her lip. Her chest rises and falls rapidly, her heavy breasts swaying with each breath. The first and second maidens whimper openly now, their foreheads pressed harder against the cold marble as if trying to disappear.
The third maiden bows deeply, her movements precise and controlled. "No, my lord," she says, her words soft yet steady. "Mother Aela's concern was for your lineage, not the welfare of any specific child." You lean forward slightly, staring at Aela with a burning intensity that makes her tremble. Her face remains lowered, but you can see the conflict in her eyes as she fights back tears, her throat working visibly as she swallows hard. Her hands have gone deathly pale where they grip the floor, knuckles straining with the effort of maintaining her position.
"A... yes, my lord," she finally manages, the words cracking. "I... I failed to properly... prioritize your command." A single tear escapes despite her iron control, rolling down her flushed cheek to drip onto the marble below. The second maiden whimpers again, her fingers digging into the floor hard enough to leave red marks on her soft skin.
You ask softly "How was head maid concern for her lineage?"
Aela's breath catches in her throat as she processes your question, her body tensing further. She hesitates for just a fraction of a second too long, and you notice her fingers curl slightly against the floor before she forces them still. "My lord..." she begins, then stops to clear her throat, still not lifting her gaze. "I... I sought to ensure that the first maiden you took would be... compatible with you."
Her words come out softly at first, then grow steadier as she continues. "The youngest has been trained since childhood for this purpose. Her womb was properly prepared, her body... conditioned." Aela swallows hard, her tongue darting out to wet her cracked lips. "I believed..."
You chuckle "If you all were so trained I don't believe the two of you would be acting as rebels. if you were trained so well you would eat dogs shit if I told you to and go through fire and ice at single gesture of Mine"
Aela's entire body goes rigid at your words, her knuckles turning white where they grip the floor. The first and second maidens flinch visibly, their breath catching in their throats. The third maiden's composure finally cracks, a small gasp escaping her before she can stifle it. Aela, however, remains eerily still, her only movement the slight quivering of her shoulders as she suppresses visible emotion.
"My lord..." Aela speaks, her words carrying the faintest tremor. "If you require a demonstration of our devotion, I am ready to comply with any command, no matter how... extreme." She slowly shifts her weight, preparing to rise. "The training was thorough, but..." Aela inhales sharply as she meets your gaze with clear, defiant eyes. "But a body can only endure so much before it fails, my lord. We were prepared for pain, for suffering—but no mortal flesh can truly be prepared for true torture. The body will break, no matter how strong the will." Her face contorts with emotion as she adds, "I would crawl through fire for you. I would drink poison. I would willingly let you flay the skin from my body with your own hands if it pleased you." She speaks softly as she adds, "But I cannot stop my body from needing air, from needing blood to circulate, from needing a limit to what is inflicted upon it."
The first and second maidens both make small, frightened noises, their bodies pressing tighter against the floor. Aela's declaration hangs in the air, her face showing the naked truth of her words. There is no artifice in her statement—only raw, painful honesty.
"Even the most loyal soldier has their limits, my lord," she continues, the words scraping from her throat. "We were trained to endure, but no one trains us to endure death. You can break our bodies... but you cannot force us to die without fear." Her breath comes faster now, her chest rising and falling rapidly beneath her thin robe. "Unless, of course, you command it." Aela's final words carry a strange weight, heavy with the implication that she welcomes death as a relief from the unbearable pain of existing. The first maiden, seeing her mentor's despair, lifts her face slightly to look at you. Her face is wet with tears, but there's something almost accusatory in her gaze now. "My lord," she says, speaking unsteadily but with growing boldness, "you... you break us so easily, yet you complain that we do not serve perfectly? Is it not your right to expect perfection?" She speaks with careful restraint, but a crack of defiance shows through.