Glass Heart [S1: Episode 3]
A Time Travel Romance
Thalia, a young psychologist with a troubled past is transported back in time, where she must navigate a kingdom ruled by a cunning lord and a melancholic king, all while confronting her own inner demons.
Episodes release every Thursday at 9:00 am EST. This is Episode 3 of 7.
CW: depression, suicide, violence, alcoholism
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Thalia found herself backing up against the wall as Lord Malgor inched closer and closer to her. She clenched her fists until her knuckles shone white, prepared to defend herself. He stood so close that she could feel his hot breath permeating her face and could see a strangely familiar gold amulet hidden among the heavy layers of his robes.
“You!” he spat, his eyes full of disgust. “I will have you removed from the court.”
But the king’s words rang in Thalia’s mind. ‘I will not have you disrespect The Great Traveler.’ She was a valued member of the court, whether Lord Malgor approved of her or not.
Thalia straightened her back, glaring at the court official defiantly.
“My life is not in your hands. It is in the hands of the king.”
Lord Malgor chuckled as he glared down at her. “It is not wise to put all your trust in the king. He can not save you. He can not save anyone.”
In one swift movement, he gripped her by the neck, slamming her head against the stone wall. “If I were to kill you right here, what could he do?”
Thalia gasped as his grip on her tightened like the dangerous embrace of a hungry snake. Air was escaping from her lungs faster than she could breathe and the world was starting to turn black. She wouldn’t be able to hold on for long. Her body was growing weaker and more limp by the second.
But just then, a court attendant approached them, seemingly unfazed by the violent struggle. The attendant motioned to Thalia, their eyes stone cold with disinterest. “The king requests your presence.”
Thalia ripped Lord Malgor’s snake-like grip off her neck and doubled over, gasping for air. She let out a sigh of relief as the color started to return to her cheeks. She had survived. For now. And despite Lord Malgor’s words, the king had managed to save her, although unknowingly.
Thalia scurried after the attendant without taking a single look back. But she slowed her steps as they approached the king’s private chamber. Why did he require her presence? Had he found out that she was a fraud? That she didn’t belong to this world?
She bowed her head as the doors opened and cautiously stepped into the room. Soon it was only her and the king.
“You may be seated.” His voice was gentle yet firm.
Thalia lowered herself to the ground before him. She sat silently, waiting for him to speak.
“I am afraid that I will be unable to implement your counsel,” he said, looking at her with newfound interest.
Thalia lifted her head up, unable to hide her shock. “Why not?”
It was then that she noticed that his eyes looked even more red than they had been when the two had first met. They looked shiny, unfocused, as if he had been weeping. Splotches of purple liquor stained his clothes, a physical reminder of the misery that hung in the air like a heavy mist.
The room suddenly felt very hot and Thalia feared that she would suffocate from the dismal state of the chamber. The theory that emotions were contagious seemed to be true.
“As you can see, I am not fit to run this kingdom.” The king motioned at the empty bottles of wine that littered his private chamber. “Lord Malgor, although a bit rough around the edges, is a more competent decision maker than I.”
“Then why did you bring me here?” Thalia asked. “Why did you force me into the court?”
The king gazed at her with glassy eyes. “Because you can see the future.”
He reached across the small table that had served as a partition between them and grasped her hands desperately.
“Please. Tell me. Will I ever be happy again?”
Thalia swallowed nervously. She was not fit for this job, for this position. She had failed to help Nisa overcome her demons and she would fail the king too.
But his hands were soft and warm; she could feel the pain radiating from his body, his mind, his very being. And in that moment, she was desperate to find the words that would heal him. She was desperate to find a way to make him feel better. To let him know that he did not have to bear the burden alone.
But this was very different from working with her patients back in her world. Here, she was not a newbie psychiatrist but a lowly subject and he was the king. The burden was his alone and there wasn’t much she could do to help him.
But how could she tell him no, he would never be happy again? That he would die in two month’s time. That whatever plans, whatever hopes, whatever dreams, he had, that they were all futile. Should she just focus on helping him enjoy his last moments?
“Look me in the eye and say that I will be happy again,” said the king. Worry laced his words as he peered at her anxiously.
Thalia slowly raised her eyes up to his only to feel like she was drowning in their swirling depths. The lines in the ancient book grew more vivid in her memory as she gazed at his sunken face. Would she be able to save the king?
The king sighed and pulled back, folding his hands back into his robes. “You refuse to give me an answer. That is an answer in itself.”
He smiled at her briefly. “You are wise despite your youthful face. You are wise despite your age. Maybe it is because you travel through time....”
“Then why do you not heed my counsel?”
“Adhering to your advice will only lead to conflict in the court,” said the king. “I brought you to help me change the future; however, that seems to be a fruitless wish. Instead, I will use you to help me go back to the past.”
“I can only travel between the future and past,” said Thalia. “I can not change the past. Instead, use me to change the future.” ‘Your future is my past,’ she thought to herself.
The king shook his head. “I do not deserve a future after what I have done.”
“What did you do?” asked Thalia. She could not imagine what this gentle king could have done to choose to carry so much guilt in his heart. What was his reason for no longer caring about his own demise?
The king’s next words made her blood run cold.
“I killed my fiancé.”
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Well, that was quite a twist 😧😧