Slim fingers with red, long polished nails moved over the exposed arm of another. Frost formed over the place of contact. A struggle.A muffled groan, because that was all the one being put through this torture, could let out. Nadia's mouth had been stuffed with a piece of clothing, gagged. Her hands and legs were chained to the table she was laid against. Her eyes were wide open with the pain the cold brought her, it went deeper than the skin, she could feel it. Kestra pulled away abruptly. "It's beautiful, isn't it?" She turned in the direction where Collin was standing. She had said she needed a fresh and new soul, had even specified who exactly she wanted and he had brought her to him as quickly as he could. This man, what will he not do for his family?A castle that was built on the clouds, was what his hope was. She prayed that he would keep staying in his delusion. How else was she supposed to use him if he wasn't stupid and blindly hopeful?"It is beautiful." He said,

It was death to go back the way they came. Skeletons pushed out from the cave walls and poured from that direction room towards them, racing as their inhuman growls filled the air.An army of the dead. It was a horror Belladonna had never witnessed in her entire life. Maybe the necklace was indeed a trap after all.The fun of leaving unsolved mysteries as mysteries was staying alive. Moria was wrong and the people of Aniktaki were right to have decided not to concern themselves with this cave. Well, it was too late for Belladonna now. Wasn't it?Her running steps fell into sync behind Alaris and he raced away in another direction, with his hand tight around hers in a firm grip.She followed blindly, her steps unbalanced and uneven sometimes, her body juggling everywhere from the desperation of her run until she was side by side with him. Every turn he took, she did too.He lead and she followed. Simple.No questions asked. "What is that?" His breath sounded a little too even

The news of what had happened in Aniktaki flew to the Castle faster than Belladonna had expected.It was late in the afternoon, the next day, and Eli was freaking out about how he couldn't get this information any faster. "I think I should put some people in every village to report back to me as soon as things like this happen." He said as he paced around his study. "I feel like there are so many things that I do not know that I should know.""Calm down. I believe it was nothing much just as the report said," Belladonna said from where she was leaning against the wall."It said their Badura's cave was broken into.""And that they handled it and nothing was missing," Belladonna flashed him a small assuring smile. Eli shrugged, going back to his table and reading the letter for the umpteenth time. "I think it is the One with the White Aura---" he stopped abruptly his gaze slowly moving to her as he caught a glimpse of her move awkwardly. That was something she didn't want him to see

Belladonna almost lost her mind when Alaris had told her that the place he had taken them to wasn't where they would get the sunflower but the Village of Nakunriver, the land of water. It was the sixth village of Ignas, with more water than land, so much that houses had to be built on it with strong wooden foundations to keep them afloat. Their transport, their source of livelihood, their customs, and many things were all centered around the water that surrounded them."Take me where I can get the Thanatos' sunflower immediately," Belladonna demanded, her anger toward him almost consuming, as she stood on the wooden deck of the bridge and stared at the boats and ships on the sea, the lights from the lanterns attached to them, illuminating the dark waters as goosebumps pebbled on her skin from the cold.By Ignas, she should have worn something with long sleeves. How dare the Bride Thief mess with her plans? This just wasn't the time for anything that wasn't going to get her that Than

The order of the King?The words sent Belladonna heart's skipping so many beats, her mind trying to come up with different things to make her not worry about this but failing miserably at it.From the corner of her eyes, she could see a trace of flames move around Alaris' hand as he pulled her behind her, his gaze fixed on the approaching soldiers. That made her feel tense, the last thing they needed right now was trouble. Yet it made her feel at ease that there was someone here that wouldn't let anything happen to her. Of course, it was because she was his way out of here. That was something she wouldn't forget.Finally, the guards got to them and stopped. When they stated their business, it made things even worse in a kind of way. Eli didn't directly make an order against them, but he had sent out an order to every village to search vigorously for anyone that appeared to be a stranger, so that they could catch the witches which they had only recently known about their existence.