The sound of someone trying to force her door open made her stand straight, her hands curled around the handle of her frying pan, her gaze set on the door despite the dimming light of the candle. Everyone knew about the red moon and what had been happening after that. The madness that spread through the people, and how sometimes, their homes weren't even safe. Aniya took in shaky breaths, she really hoped whosoever that was would just go away. All she wanted to do was listen to her physician as she always did, and get better so that Lytio would finally let her see her son again.It had been months since her baby had been taken away from her. How long? She couldn't tell. Her time in confinement had messed up her calculation of time, but she had been out for a while now and she had been becoming better. The door shook violently in its hinges and her back pressed against the rough wall. There was really nowhere to run, this room was small and had everything in one. The bedroom, the
Belladonna had a dream. She dreamt about the Lady in the white flowing gown and long silver hair, she had heard her echoey voice. It sounded like she was singing, although she wasn't certain about that. The entirety of the woman's presence, however, filled her with dread, just as it had done before when she held that gem. She dreamt about Thanatou's soldiers too, they were still struggling against the wall that kept them in their realm. The invisible wall was developing cracks though, and that was making her start to worry. Before, she had convinced herself that the things she saw were from the past. But now, she was concerned that the things carved on her head were making her see into another realm, and the time might just be the present. That woman might be from Thanatou's realm too. Maybe, she was the one helping them go against the wall. Belladonna also had a feeling the pulling of the moon might be helping, a nature imbalance being helpful to other things going against th
Belladonna took in a deep breath as she toyed with the ring on her finger. Her gaze was fixed on the Blood Moon that stood rigid in the night sky. She could feel an odd sense of responsibility on her shoulders, as she slipped the twig - the prepared weapon, into her long, white chiffon dress. The gown that was planned for the grand wedding was more elaborate than this. Far more, she couldn't wait to wear it. That would be taking place in a week though. Tonight, however, was for the wedding ritual.Tonight was to break curses and find out hidden secrets.Tonight was for killing.She turned away from the window and went to the mirror, her face had been moderately dolled up. Something about that reminded her of how her mother had dressed her for the Choosing Ritual. She was probably dead now. Good. Belladonna traced a finger across a line of the henna Eli had taken his time to tattoo on her head again. He was certainly already down there, waiting for her. She should get going too.
Eli turned swiftly to the door of the hall, someone had slipped in at that moment but that person wasn't the one he was waiting for. It was a redhead. Forget this! He was done waiting, he would go and get her now. If Kestra hadn't gone on and on about how seeing her before the ritual wasn't going to destroy things, he would have gone to get her way before now. He did send guards to her though, and Sebastian had said she was fine, but just a little nervous. He was starting to feel that something was wrong other than just nerves, but he had been having that feeling for a while that he couldn't really trust it now. Being paranoid had been his major trait ever since those nightmares started troubling him. He had even ensured the castle was well-guarded for tonight. It was as if he was prepared to fight against an invasion while also attacking an enemy.What enemy? He couldn't know. Before coming down here for the Wedding Ritual, he had checked the dragon to confirm that it was still
Eli and Belladonna stood at opposite sides of the pillar-like altar between them. There were two golden goblets on it, filled with red liquid. Kestra was standing before them, chanting something for them to say after her. Eli kept his eyes trained on his Donna and as the moment passed by, he was starting to feel that something wasn't right. At all. Belladonna stared back at the mortal King in front of her, sensing his growing suspicion, knowing that before the chanting was over, he would question her.Everything that happened next was in a blur. In a second, Belladonna swiped out the twig to strike it against the ring. Kestra's ears perked with the sudden movement, a blast of magic erupting from her and throwing everyone a good distance away from her and her sacrifice.Eli's back hit the floor, deja vu and pain rushing through him, as he raced his way to the podium.Too late.A force repealed him. Red walls, that reached the ceiling, with red lines moving through them, blocked hi
Belladonna was sweating profusely, her eyes shut tight while she curled and uncurled on the bed. She wasn't sleeping, she wasn't awake either. Someone was cooing comforting words to her, but she could barely hear it. The images that raced through her mind made her struggle with sanity. She clenched her fists, digging her nails into her palm so she could hold onto physical pain, and focus on it rather than this mental turmoil. Her breathing was laboured, she could see the woman again in her mind, her silver hair and her overflowing white dress. The voices in her head became too loud, voices screaming for her to grant them freedom she never intended to steal from them in the first place. A warm hand pressed gently over her head and relief washed over her. The voices slowly became quiet, and the hotness in her veins cooled down. The minute she woke up, she bolted from the bed and staggered to the mirror. Her hands went over her neck, tracing a line where there should be a bleeding g
Belladonna had thought he had referred to the people as his because he had taken the throne during those three days she had been out. But to think that he was the King before, and Eli had been the one to take the throne from him was something she didn't expect.Eli was one to follow protocol and if he had gone against it, then there must have been a reason. A good one at that. She couldn't believe the story Alaris had told the people, he did say there were some added tweaks to it. Frustrated, Belladonna ran her hand over her head. The surface of her scalp was no longer as smooth as it used to be, the sharp end of the hair pinching her palm.There was no way she would believe anything Alaris was saying without talking to Eli first, it was obvious he had an ulterior motive for saving her. Alaris was very smart, she had to be smarter. "I want to see Eli." She folded her arms across her, determined eyes meeting his. It still felt strange to be able to see him, not just that, it felt st
Eli looked better than she had seen him on the night of their Wedding Ritual. It was probably good for one's health not to be under the weight of so many spells. The black lines on his hands were gone and her eyes watered when she remembered how much he wanted to touch something and not cause its death...how much he wanted to touch her.The heavy chains that attached his hands to the floor would make that impossible. "How are you? Did he hurt you? Are you okay?" He bombarded her with questions.Wasn't he even bothered about the fact that she had kept secrets from him? That she was part of the reason this was happening to him?She had expected to meet him a little defensive and angry, not totally just worried about her. "I am fine. You don't look too well." She said with a strained smile. "Tick-tock," Alaris said behind them. If she could have come here without him, she would have, but she realized that his presence somehow kept the voices away and stabilized this magic in her ve
“What is this?” Ny'ka asked, racing up to her feet.“The Stones of Prophecy. I already told you,” Ka'el replied, rising to his feet too. He groaned a little, his ribs hurting from the force that had tossed him aside.The stones had suddenly fallen to the ground, scattered; they were still glowing though. “I mean, what do they do?“I don't know!” There was a bit of panic in his voice, then he started to mumble to himself as he fell on his knees and started trying to collect the stones. “The King believes his daughter is in the Rebellion, and there are rumors of the Heir; he thinks they are working together.” He stopped and stared up at Ny'ka who watched him with a frown on her face. “That is why the Moon and the Sun came up in the sky because she is really here? But you said it didn't happen here, that it was from another Realm. It is from another realm, right? It isn’t true, Is it?”Ny'ka tried to grab one of the stones from Ka'el but it held it away from her. “Is his daughter truly
Then she felt like she was drowning and her words vanished from her lips. It felt like she was right in the lake and above it at the same time, hovering over the water and looking at the drowning child, while the drowning child looked back at her, struggling. Then she was finally in the baby and she could see Xinora floating over her as she felt herself dying in the baby — felt the baby dying. She saw Xinora stare right at her mother, who froze immediately like she had seen a ghost - it was what she looked like anyway, what she seemed to be. Then Belladonna felt the presence slam right into her immediately. Xinora had vanished and was now inside her as one being, the moment of her almost death creating the perfect space for Xinora to fit in. But just as Xinora had merged into her, she dissolved into the back of her mind like a mere pest fighting against a strong host. Her mother pulled her out of the water, her gaze blank and cold. Without a word, she wrapped her in a piece of clo
Trigger warning: Dealing with rape aftermath (from victim’s perspective) on page, and baby drowning on page. _________Belladonna paced the room. Two nights have passed since Alaris and her had discussed about Xinora. The Rebellion was healing, and she had sought out Ny'ka to help her with creating portals; although she knew that it might not work, just as it hadn't been working, but that was just how unpromising Channeling had been, and it had worked eventually. That wasn't the problem though. The thing was that Ny'ka was nowhere to be found. It didn't take long for her to figure out where she was.She was with Ka'el, most likely inquiring about their recent failure.Alaris had confirmed her suspicion, and here she was, in the room, trying not to drive herself mad with every single possibility that was crossing her mind.The Priest had drawn a tattoo on the top part of her chest, a little distance from her neck. He had smeared it with the blood of an animal, chanted some things th
Ny'ka went to Ka'el that night as the Heir had ordered, only to find out that he was with someone. Tsiri?What?What was she doing here? Why was she here? How long has she known about Ka'el? How did she get here?Why was she here?By Ina, what had she told him?!The White glow of the crescent moon above glimmered down on them through the shadows of the scanty leaves of the tall trees around them. The smile on Tsiri’s face was plain for Ny'ka to see, just as obvious as the doubt that dotted Ka’el’s eyes. What had she told him?!“Is it true?” Ka'el asked, his fist tightening around the small bag he had in his hand. She wondered what was in that bag but his next words made her aware of the greater problem she had before her. “Are you just fooling me?” He asked as his free hand anchored around Tsiri’s waist, making her smile widen. Disappointment flashed in Ny'ka's eyes and she frowned, blatantly ignoring Tsiri. “Fooling you? What nonsense are you talking about? And why are you with o
“Nightshade, do you have any memories of Jyris?”He was crouching in front of her. This room suddenly felt too small. Where was the air of ease?“No, except that he healed my ankle, gave me that gold ring that you tossed away and he was at the table with the King. Nothing else. I’m trying to but I don't remember anything else.” She wouldn't tell him about the strange feeling of familiarity she had when she had first seen him. That would be too dangerous. “You were in her dreams even when you weren't in captivity. So can you just go into people's dreams? Can you still do that?”“No. Her dream was the only one I could get into without being in captivity. But My freedom does come at a price. It was hard to lure the brides with my soul, and certainly, I prefer this freedom to that.”“Did killing her hurt you? Since the gems are supposed to be a pair.”“I struck her stomach.”“Why didn't you strike her in the heart or behead?”“I wanted to behead her and take her heart as my own; a litt
He heaved a sigh and sat next to her. “Well, it was after being King. I think the wars I had fought strengthened the connection with my gem; the lives I had taken fed it, and I dreamt of Xinora — well, she dreamt of me. It was the first time I would be in anyone's dreams.”Belladonna nodded, taking a mental note of that. “She was crying and lonely, and because the Gem perceived its master to be distressed, it sought a connection and found me. Xinora was terrified when we met; I was confused, too; it was strange. But then, I realized who she was and why I was there. At that time, I really wanted to come back here, to Vestros, but I knew it wasn’t time, I wasn't powerful enough back then.” He paused, before he continued. “The White King would kill me easily, but being in her dreams was like fate being on my side. She was the only weapon that could be used to kill me—”The only weapon?“Wait. Only a Bearer can kill a Bearer?”“Yes.” “So,” she turned to him squarely so she wouldn't mi
“And you didn't tell me? Why?”“It was over two centuries ago.” He stood up. “She stayed dead during those times, why would I think anything would come out of her now?”Belladonna said nothing and Alaris continued. “With you, I believed she had already been replaced. A new Master, her time was over, gone. The gems will always have their masters, I have discovered. At first, I was worried, but then you proved to be more than one with a mere link.”“I had visions of her. I told you everything.”He shrugged. “I thought it was just her lingering presence since she was the one who was connected to the gem before you. They are just mere visions, they don't suggest a powerful presence to get bothered about.”“You must be joking,” she stated, flabbergasted. “I had dreams of her every time and nothing ever really happened as a result,” he replied with a dismissive tone.“You know that is not true.”“Nothing “real” ever really happened.”With a realization, she stood up. “You are doing it aga
It felt compelling to desire more, it felt right… yet it didn't.Alaris pulled away being the first one to snap back from the spark pulling them together. “I’m sorry, I shouldn't have done that.” He was gone in a flash, leaving her flustered. She couldn't think; the foreign and overpowering feeling was a driving force that sent her out of the room to go after him. She did, reaching the surface, however, and feeling the warm glow of the moon on her skin. Something else seemed to have possessed her, and she went towards the lake instead, strangely seeking the comforting feeling of the water and the floating relief. The reflection of the full moon was cast over the still water and the trees seemed to create a path for her. She walked into the water as a shadow warrior emerged from behind her; the only one of Alaris' shadow warriors that wasn't killed. It swiftly moved into the water, reaching out to pull her back but she turned sharply to it. “Go Back!” She ordered, her voice a gr
Breathing heavily, he turned back to her. “I’m sorry— I just— I was afraid that you’ll shift—”“I have been terrified that this day would come but I thought I was stronger, as strong as I was in your Realm. I knew I would be lacking the moment I saw that annoying thing healing your ankle with his flames,” he laughed, the sound dry of humour as he swept his hand over his hair, pushing it back. “At that moment, I knew there were many things that I lacked, many skills, so many things. I might have been a King there but here, I am like a child. I’m not better than any of those dragon shifters. I’m useless.” “You are not.”With a huff, he sat down next to her, feeling exhausted. “My pretense to know what I am doing can no longer save me. I’m fighting a lost war, Nightshade and you can see it.”He turned to her, to find her shaking her head. “Don't lie to me.”“I’m not.”“Alaris—”“Don't try to inspire me, it won't work.” “I wasn't trying to inspire you, I just want to tell you how disap