Heir of Aurelian

Mitra stood within her brother Narseh's palace. She was currently drinking from a bottle of Roman fortified wine with a satisfied expression on her face. Her cheeks were flushed, showing that perhaps she had drank a bit too much, and yet despite this, her mind was still fully functional, albeit a bit slowed down.

Narseh had access to many of the most luxurious goods from across the Roman Empire, and had used them as bargaining chips to gain the support of many of his followers. Judging by the volume of wine which Mitra drank from, he wrongfully assumed the reason she had supported him was also because of this.

However, as the woman was enjoying a bottle of wine with the youngest of her brothers, an intruder appeared within the villa. A woman, who Mitra was all too familiar with stood gracefully at before the two siblings, she had been escorted into the house by a group of armed guards.

The moment Mitra saw this beautiful woman whose appearance rivaled her own, her mood soured instantly. Despite this, she wore a friendly facade as she stumbled to her feet and embraced Hayla as if she were a sister.

"Hayla, my dear friend, it is nice of you to come and visit. Though I thought for sure your father had sided with big brother Bahram, why are you here in Narseh's villa?"

There was an equally fake smile on Hayla's face as she greeted her long-term rival with a rather heart embrace.

"I can see you have already started drinking. Your brother Bahram wants to speak with you. In truth, I think he is a bit jealous of Narseh here, and wants to ask you why you have supported this fool..."

The moment Mitra heard that her brother Bahram wanted to speak with her she immediately sobered up. As if her mind was telling her she was in serious danger at this very moment. Thus she distanced herself from her petty rival, and clung to her other brother Narseh, refusing to budge an inch.

"Sorry Hayla, you can tell my brother that he will always have my love, but Narseh here is a better fit to be the King of Kings. It all comes down to what's best for the realm, and Bahram is not it. I'm afraid I'm going to have to disappoint you. If Bahram wants to speak with me, then he can come here himself. But there is no way in hell I am following you back to him."

This statement caught Hayla by surprise, it was clear to her that Mitra was afraid of Bahram, or else she would never cling so tight to the passive fool that was Narseh. Even Narseh had taken offense to his brother's brazen act, and quickly put his foot down as he stood tall before the persian beauty.

"I'm afraid I'm going to have to insist that you leave here, Hayla. If Bahram wishes to speak with Mitra, then you tell him that he will have to do so under my supervision. I don't trust that incestuous twat around our sister for more than a second without someone there to protect her from his advances."

Hayla immediately frowned when she heard this. If she did not get Mitra to follow her back to Bahram, then she would not be able to execute her plan to eliminate her. No, at this point, such a thing was no longer an option. It was highly likely that Mitra would stay in the arms of Narseh, and if that happened, the consequences would be disastrous.

Bahram would dismiss her from his service, her father would see her as a useless whore unworthy of his family name, and with his opinion, the rest of her family would follow. It might not even be long before she is disowned altogether and forced to sell her body to make ends meet. Such a fate was worse than death for a pampered noblewoman.

After dwelling upon all these possibilities in silence for a few seconds, Hayla sighed, and approached Mitra where she latched onto her forearm and tried to drag her away by force.

"I'm afraid I'm going to have to insist..."

When Mitra saw this, she reached into her satchel and pulled out a small knife which she quickly used to lunge at Hayla's neck. The noblewoman was surprised by this sudden, attack, but her reflexes were flawless, allowing her to make a clean getaway with nothing but a slight scratch on her pretty face.

Despite bing wounded ever so slightly, Hayla was enraged that her beauty had been tained by Mitra's violence and quickly ordered her escort of Bahram's guards to seize the Sassanid Princess.

"Seize her! Kill anyone who gets in the way!"

These guards were Bahram's most elite troops, who instantly unsheathed their swords and lunged towards Narseh. Who was quick to retaliate. The blades met in mid air, while a third guard rushed towards Mitra in an attempt to capture her.

Despite this, the young princess was too quick, and quickly scurried off, hopping over tables and furniture, which blocked access to her person. She called out to her brother in one last attempt to get him to flee before running off into the night.

"Brother Narseh, flee! This matter isn't worth your death!"

After saying this, Mitra jumped out the second-story window before climbing down a tree into the yard. Where she quickly gathered the guards of the villa who were loyal to Narseh.

"Bahram's agents attack your Prince! Hurry and defend him!"

The Persian Princess could only hope that the men arrived in time to save her brother from his fate. If not, she would have a lot of explaining to do to her roman masters. As for what she planned to do, she intended to scurry off to a safe house which Marcellus' Frumentarii had stashed away for her within the Sassanid capital. At the very least she could hide from Bahram and his agents there.