Page 86 of Court of Aether and Shadows

When it spoke, its voice was a chorus of discordant whispers.

The lost queen stirs. The old bargains must be honored.

Fenris moved with surprising speed for his size, positioning himself between the Weaver and Sparrow's protected form. His growl resonated with power, making the shadows themselves vibrate in response.

"You have no claim here, creature of the Void,"I declared, my power rising to match the ancient horror before us."This is my court, MY domain."

“All domains were ours before time had meaning.”

Listening to its deep and eerie voice would send goosebumps across anyone’s flesh.Mundane or Fae.I was trying not to be affected by its efforts to embed fear into me.

A weakness they enjoy preying upon.

Its legs began to move, weaving patterns in the air that made reality itself start to unravel.

The girl's power belongs to the old contracts. She must be returned.

Kaelon's voice cut through the tension, urgent but controlled.

"My Lord, we need to move. The cottage cannot withstand this level of power much longer."

He was right.

The building's structure was already beginning to warp, wood twisting and stone crumbling as ancient magics pressed against mortal construction.

More importantly, every moment we remained here put Sparrow at greater risk.

"The girl goes nowhere,"Fenris growled, his voice carrying the weight of mountains despite its bestial form. He had to be using magic to project his thoughts into speech, forcing the Weaver to acknowledge his presence.

The Weaver's reaction was immediate and violent.

Strands of void-black webbing shot from its spinnerets, each thread capable of cutting through reality itself. My shadows rose to meet them, while Fenris lunged forward, his massive jaws snapping at the creature's legs.

The Void Weaver's threads sliced through the air like blades of pure darkness.

My shadows met them mid-strike; the collision sending shockwaves of power upon impact that shattered every remaining window in the cottage. The building's frame groaned in protest, timbers splitting and stone cracking under the pressure of our clashing magics.

Fenris moved like living mercury, his massive form displaying an impossible grace as he wove between the deadly strands.

His jaws snapped at the Weaver's legs, teeth wreathed in silver fire that could tear through even the ancient creature's armored carapace —but the Weaver was faster than its size suggested, skittering across the walls and ceiling with horrifying speed.

"Val'nor sith'eth ka'sul!"I commanded, sending tendrils of pure shadow to ensnare the creature's legs.

The old tongue gave the magic extra potency, but the Weaver's ancient power was able to grasp my intentions. It shed my shadows like water, its eight eyes pulsing with malevolent amusement.

“Your court magics are young.”

It chittered, mandibles clicking in what might have been laughter.

“We wove the very fabric of reality before your kind learned to crawl from the darkness.”

As if to demonstrate its point, the Weaver began an intricate pattern of movement, its legs weaving complex sigils in the air.

The space around us began to distort, the laws of physics bending under the weight of ancient magic. Gravity shifted erratically — one moment crushing us down, the next threatening to tear us from the ground entirely.

My shadows reacted protectively, fighting against the pressure that dared to destroy us before we had a fighting chance of countering. Kaelon struggled to maintain the protective barrier around Sparrow, his face tight with concentration.

"My Lord, the spatial distortions...”

---