“Who gave you the earring? Who is with the other pair?”Ula pointed at the man and he scoffed.Aniya smiled, and adjusted Ula’s scarf. “Good.” Ula trembled slightly, still afraid and unsure of what this interaction might bring. When Aniya offered her a hand, she flinched slightly, eyed it with suspicion and fear before she took it. The moment she was on her feet once more, she let Aniya’s hand go immediately and took a step back. “Face me with whatever accusations you have and let her go.” Aniya ignored him, instead she asked Ula if any child had been brought to the Temple recently to which Ula confirmed that it was true. “He cries a lot.” That brought Aniya no comfort at all. Arlo wasn't the type of child to always cry.By Ignas, what were they feeding her poor son?! Were they even taking care of him?“The Head Mistress tries her best.”That still wasn't enough. It didn't feel enough! The urge to see him rushed over her but from what she had learnt so far, sometimes others wer
Fuck.He didn't have time for this!Alaris covered the distance between them as swiftly as possible. He wasn’t as fast as he used to be and she had managed to take a couple of steps back before he finally grabbed her and threw her over his shoulder as he looked around in preparation to confront any beast that might come out to attack them. “You lied to me. You betrayed me.” Her voice was broken now. She wasn't even fighting him. “Why?” She asked as he continued their journey with her on his shoulder. He just couldn't wait to get out of here already. The thought of ending up with that ugly looking star-shaped creature made him recoil.“We had time.”“Yes and at the cost of a small part of my soul. I think I get to decide on how we use that time.”“They asked for it. I didn't want to give it to them, I told you every–”“I’m losing my dragon. I don't think I can live without him. The quicker we get to the gem, the better for me.” There was silence before he added like an afterthought.
There was no beast to be fought at the turning point to the Resurrection Ground, which Belladonna was most grateful for. Then finally, she was here. The place that promised to bring back everything to perfection in her life, only that it looked nothing like she had expected. She didn't even know what she had expected but certainly it wasn't a wooden bridge that had everything starting from the middle of it, concealed in a fog. The air was strange, it made her nostrils dry and it felt like the wind was whispering. Heart pounding, she took a step on the bridge and immediately a voice spoke from the fog, making her come to a halt. “Another Wanderer.” From the fog a lantern appeared mid air and a flame sparked to life in it, providing light. Still that light was too dim for her to see into the mist. “Tell me, who is it that you seek?”No one appeared to her yet, it felt like the mist itself was the one speaking to her. The voice was ghostly and cold.Words rushed out of her mouth. “
Aniya blinked, confused until she realized that the covers had slipped away from her body and her breasts had managed to find their way out of her blouse while she slept. She quickly tucked them away, adjusting her dress. After the guard had helped her to her room, she had started preparing to express her milk but strangely, she had fallen asleep. Ula must be gone by now.Aniya got out of bed to help the man on the floor. When she extended her hand to him, he took it but ensured that he kept his gaze to the floor.“Who are you?”“An omega, a servant. I saw nothing—”“It is safe to look up.”He did. Blood was running down the side of his face, the black curls that fell over his forehead hiding the cut away. He was just a little taller than she was, and he looked like he was around the same age as she was. His clothes were enough to tell of his status, he also had the leanness of a servant.“I ran here because I heard you screaming but now that you are alright—” he pulled his hand awa
The lantern slipped out of her grip and hit the ground. For a second it felt like everything had gone still, so still she couldn't even breathe. For that second, her world crashed down and built itself back up again. Eli. Her mind whispered but her lips were too still with shock to speak. Tears raised to the brim of her lower eyelids.“Donna.”Her body moved on its accord and she broke into a race, afraid that if she didn't get to him fast enough, he would disappear with the fog. Scared that he might even be actually there.She collided into his embrace as his warm arms slided around her, tears streamed down her cheeks and her lips met his that readily moved against hers in a gentle rhythm.Slow and filled with so many unspoken words.Her heart tightened with how overwhelming this felt but to pull away and feel his breath warm upon her face made it feel like everything had finally fallen into place.A bittersweet feeling.Her hands were around his neck, her fingers slipping into hi
She stumbled backwards as she pressed her hands against either side of her head. Her heel hit a rock and she sat on it, her legs feeling too feeble to hold her up. Afraid. Vulnerable. Overwhelmed. The words kept echoing in her head.A Life For A Life. Her hands trembled as she tried to force herself not to cry but think. Think, Belladonna!Think!At that moment, she felt his hands over hers, warm. For a second, the war that raged on her mind died down and when the tears that fogged her sight steamed down her cheeks, she saw that he was on a knee. His eyes looked like they understood what she was going through, even with his recent absence in her life, but that wasn't the only thing in his eyes. She cupped his face in her hands and he took in a deep breath. “Your eyes are a shade that I do not know.”They were black, completely black. It was surprising that she was just noticing it. “Death does make its changes, but I am still me, Donna.” His hands slipped down her waist. “I am
Aniya woke up to Oana shouting at her mother to do something about Ikrus still being in the dungeon.Their voices were so loud in the hallway, she could hear them right from her room. To put it more accurately, Oana’s voice was the loud one; she was the one shouting.“Why do you always just agree with him, Mother?!”“He is the Alpha,” The Luna answered calmly. Still foggy from sleep, Aniya missed a couple of lines of conversation. “Do something about it already! Please, Mother. Please!” “There is nothing I can—”“Ah, by the Moon!” That was followed by a yell at a guard to go to her room and take away all the presents that her father had given her that morning, most likely to appease her. Hurried footsteps, angry mumblings. And just when Aniya was ready to eavesdrop, her door went open and Oana was standing in the doorway with a smile on her face. “It's time for breakfast. I know you are worried about your mate and you miss him, but be at ease, my mother will do something about i
A hit to the face, a splatter of blood.Aniya hit the floor with a thud, her head ringing. Stupid Princess! How was she to be blamed for something like this that was out of her control?! Foolish— ah, pain. Pain everywhere.Goldie kept beating her up while the rest of the ladies snickered, giggled and laughed. With every hit, Aniya doubted her survival. Her hopes of Ikrus rescuing her was also dwindling. This mark was so useless, if it couldn't alert him whenever she got into danger. Or maybe it was but the dungeon was too powerful for him to escape from. This reputation was based on lies. Soon enough though, Aniya couldn't even think.All she remembered was the first crack, her bones breaking and the agony that unleashed in her veins after that. Goldie picked her up once again and Aniya looked at her with bloodshot unfocused eyes, the metallic taste taking over her mouth as her face twitched in pain that sprung from deep within her marrows. She was in too much pain, she couldn'
Her stomach rumbled, but it was quiet, and for the sake of her dignity, she hoped that he hadn't heard it. “You don't need the sun, you need food; I know a place.”“Get out of my sun.”“I’ll take you there.” Quickly she was on her feet, his arm along her waist to keep her stable. “Are you even listening or are you just deliberately ignoring me?”“Deliberately ignoring you.” “What? I expect the elderly to behave with more sense,” she jabbed, annoyed with his interference. “There are no elderly here.”In a flash, he is with Arlo. Then before she could tell, they were before a table that must have been prepared for them only moments ago. She was dizzy from the speed but the lovely aroma in the air could not be mistaken; there was food here. She felt Ikrus push her into a chair and she took her seat, blinking to regain her stability and clear vision. When she finally did, she looked around. They were in a kind of glass room with flowers on the ceiling. The table before her was smal
She cleared her throat, changing the topic. “Is my age a problem for you, Ikrus?”He sucked in a deep breath, looking away, still thinking about why he had brought her and Arlo here - still trying to figure out his thoughts. “No. I was merely surprised, that is all.” “I’m not bothered either.” She leaned closer to him, a hair’s breadth between them, catching him off guard with her action. “Don’t worry,” she skimmed her fingers over his hair and he stilled, forcing himself not to move as more of her fragrance consumed his air. “I have always fancied old men.”What?!Old men?!Old men where?!“I’m not old,” he said, clearly offended. “You are thirty-two,” she said as she lay down and closed her eyes. “Exactly. I am not old.”She felt his shadow over her and she sighed, wanting the warmth of the sun on her skin once again. “You are thirty-two… and blocking the sun.”“That is not old at all.” He sounded like he was losing his mind, but his voice was leveled. She shrugged nonchalantly
She turned to him sharply, wheels turning dangerously in her head already to come up with a lie, her lungs clogging with fear, only for her to discover that he wasn't looking at her but at someone else. “Look! Arlo is walking!” He declared in hushed excitement. Aniya rolled her eyes, taking a deep breath of relief, tucking away the poison bottle. He didn't catch her, she could still kill him. “Arlo can walk.”“For long distances like that?” He turned to her, surprised. “Yes.”“Oh.”“In fact, we must redesign the room to accommodate him. He keeps on trying to pull things down.”Ikrus frowned. In a flash, he was holding Arlo who was strongly protesting against being held. He certainly wanted to play on the ground. “How old is the little one?”“Arlo,” she said, emphasizing his name, subtly ensuring that he wouldn't call him “little one” again, “will be two soon.”Ikrus nodded, taking the information in as he easily moved Arlo from one hand to another in his struggle to get down. “H
Aniya told her about the strange lily she found in her coin bag while telling her how she had come by it, although leaving out part of the poison, while watching to see if the witch had told Oana about what she was searching for. It didn't seem like the witch told her anything. “I have seen something like that in my room before,” Aniya said. “I’m scared of what it means and I am afraid—” she looked over to Arlo for the umpteenth time, “of harm coming to Arlo or me.” Oana was very concerned and she said she would tell the Alpha and Luna about it so that they could give orders for the Pack House to be thoroughly searched. Then Aniya asked, “What about last night? Why did the sun suddenly come up and merge with the moon?” She rushed to the window. “Everything seems normal now.”“Elder Superior said it was a result of something that happened in another realm. It is none of our concern; our Realm stays unaffected, and all the portals remain sealed.” Aniya panicked.Another realm? Wha
That night, after they had both eaten, Alaris took Belladonna to a nearby river, where a burning incense was placed on a leaf pad to float away. “It is to let go of the past and begin anew,” he has explained. It was something that helped Belladonna even though she hadn't known she needed it. Her heart felt lighter and with a more positive perspective, she left the river bank.The Belarion Rebellion and the rest of the Cave had fully returned now. Shortly after, Belladonna and Alaris started trying to create the army. They were once again under an open sky. Nyka watched from a distance, just like every one of the dragon people had been advised to do. Her father was right next to her, he wasn't supposed to be here. He was still injured from the torture he had received from the White King’s warriors that had captured him but he was terrified that if he as much took a step from her, the Heir would seize her and kill her. “What do I do?” Belladonna asked, trying to shake off the press
[LYCANS’ REALM]The coins vibrated on the floor, clanking as they added to the slight trembling she could feel around her. Aniya’s heart jumped. Quickly, she dashed to her bed and grabbed Arlo, taking him swiftly into her arms. She could hear a bell ringing from a distance. Voices of terrified people seeping into the air, even with her ordinary human hearing, the building chaos felt loud to her.What was going on? Before she could make it out of the room, though, she felt someone sweep her away, and in a flash, she was in an enclosed space, an arm around her, so that she held Arlo between them. She knew it was Ikrus; with such speed and the feeling of momentarily ease that went through her, it could be no one else. She hated the Matebond for many things but for this little ease that she could feel right now, she appreciated it a little. Even if this relief was a lie that everything was alright, it was better than the sheer terror she had been experiencing.The rumbling continued,
Finally, they were under an open sky.The Moon was full in its glory above them. “It is a perfect night,” Ny'ka said before intertwining her with Belladonna's.“Close your eyes.”She obeyed. “Think of the Bearer, of her grave, of her presence, and connect with her.”The Bearer. Belladonna allowed her mind to roam, remembering the silver-haired woman she would always dream about. She had never seen her face so there was no way she could see that. The image was blurry and soon it was nothing but darkness. “Open the windows, open the door,” she could hear Alaris' voice. Then she remembered her way of sealing the windows and the doors of her mind. So many things were happening in her mind. She could see the path to the castle, down to that room, to that sarcophagus, Then she was back in that room again - with the windows sealed and the doors locked.There was a white beam outside the window and a woman with long silver hair that shadowed her face.“Open the doors and the windows!”
“Don't kill me please, I believe now. You are the Heir, you are the savior. I see it.” Ny'ka begged. They were in one of the underground rooms, away from the people of the Belarion Rebellion and those of the Cave. This was something Alaris didn't want many to know about.“Please, take my life instead and spare my daughter,” Leader Tyrek begged. He knew what crimes Nyka had committed, the Priest told him everything.“You tried to kill me,” Alaris said to Ny'ka who was still on her knees, begging, tears running down her cheeks.“It was a mistake. It won't happen again.”Alaris smiled. “It won't.”He held her wrist and pulled her up, but while he did that, he crushed her bones, and pressing his flames into her skin, he healed her, just like he had seen it happen with Nightshade and that stranger in the Castle during their escape.It was an excruciating moment for Ny'ka and it didn't help that he did it again and again and again…By the time he was done, she was back on her knees, breat
The moment the ambush came upon them, some guards had taken Ny'ka and discreetly escaped from the scene. They were headed to the White King’s Castle to be highly rewarded for bringing to him the daughter of the leader of the revolution against him. They were supposed to take Leader Tyrek along too, but it seemed the guards who had him in captivity had been attacked. There would be much to tell the King upon getting to the castle. While they silently snuck away, Ny'ka found a way to free herself from the bondage and attacked them. She would rather die than have them take her alive; it was looking like that was the only option for her until she felt she had until Alaris' showed up. He descended from the sky with his massive leathery wings and he saved her; he killed the guards and swept her up into the air in his arms. In that moment, she saw what the others saw in him. A saviour.In that moment, something changed. “You saved me,” she said, the wind almost stealing her words away