Page 37 of Royal Lies

Yet, what was I if not a man of risks? Besides I hadn't survived countless lives living behind the gold of my throne. And if he was after my throne then I could just as easily kill him after I get his help. That was if he was useful. But, it was better to be safe than sorry when making a fae bargain.

"If I were to take this risk would I be the sole heir of my court? Would I be able to triumph over my lands once the crown sits atop my head? Would my head fall to the ground in purple poison or bleed excessively from my backbone when I do obtain my crown once more?" I questioned the disembodied voice. How this fae replies would determine my answer.

My eyes tried their best to uncover the invisible threat of magic. To find where his words were coming from. Gritting my teeth I couldn't sense a trace of anything but the cool frosts from the Winter Court. No distinct smell lingered in the air. No dusting of magic coated the breeze. Silence was all I heard. Scoffing, I rolled my eyes. Of course, nothing but my imagination. That had to be it. I was just hallucinating all of this, right? Did I drink too much wine?

I waited for a reply. To prove I was in my right mind. I've never gotten this drunk from just one bottle of fairy wine. It took at least five whole jugs. And then a small "Yes" whispered into the cavernous room. Then nothing but the howling winds of the Winter Court banging against the giant windows entertained me, that and fairy wine. Just because I might be drunk didn't mean I wasn't going to chug more. Besides, I'll need shadows ofa lot more if I was going to convince myself the conversation I had was real and might be a better deal.

Chapter 13

Subconscious Everetta

Wincing against the stinging rays of the sun I sighed. Once again I found myself stuck in this state of conscious and unconsciousness. Staring out at the empty white room that somehow had a sun.

Ya, I'm not even going to touch that logic.

Let's just chalk it up to this all being like a dream.

"Everetta." The same male voice echoed through the space.

I closed my eyes hoping for all the magic in the world I could escape this dream. Scratch that this was more like a nightmare-inducing headache.

Ever since that fateful day, I encountered, no, saved that bloody bastard, I'd been stuck here. I doubt that idiot even knew what he was doing. I'm sure he thought he was simply erasing my memories. Perhaps he might have even succeeded if he was stronger than me in magic. I bet he didn't think I would be split into two halves. What's worse, how in the realms did he learn that spell? It was forbidden for a reason…

Unless...

Don't tell me they're actually working together. I thought Eli hated him.

Hold on, Everetta, you're getting ahead of yourself. Let’s just focus on one thing at a time.

First I'll have to find a way to join my two halves back together.

What do I mean by that you may ask? Well for one my current self with my memories is here in this limbo of a torture chamber. It may not look like it what with the sun smiling down on you and a nice tea party set before you. But trust me having to speakto that traitor day in and day out was more than enough to make me lose my sanity. Just the sound of his voice reminds me of my losses.

Idon'tlose.

Sure I fail sometimes but I always get back at my enemies or comrades. Depends on who crosses me really. In the end, I am the victor, the champion, the fucking winner.

I. DON'T. LOSE.

Anyway, where was I?

Right, I guess you could say I'm like the embodiment of my memories. I am the subconscious half that still pertains all the events of my past life. Wait, why am I referring to myself in third person, or first person, second? Well, whatever it is it's just easier to say.

Ugh! When I get my hands on him he is so dead!

Eli, do you hear me?! You're fucking dead!

This is so not how you repay someone for freeing you from slavery! The only thing I don't get is why did he use it? I mean that spell was forbidden for a reason. It could scramble one's brains but that's not even the worst of the side effects. The worst-case scenario is death, cause duh. The brain is so scrambled you cease to function. Your heart stops pumping because there is no message from the brain to keep going. Even if by some magic your heart maintains its rhythm your body wouldn't be able to move. In a sense, you'd be an aging living statue. In this case, death would be a blessing. Fae can live for a very long time but we're not unkillable. A stab to the heart or poisoning would do away with any fae. With the poison, you just need to make sure it's strong enough for a certain fae you want to kill. For me, with my high tolerance, it would take quite a load to do me off.

Of course, even Eli can't stop the flow of memories from coming back completely. It's coming back slowly. I can feel it.Though with the way things are now...

I scowled at the thought. Sighing inwardly I couldn't be more disappointed by Eli and his actions.

With the way things are now my subconscious and conscious sides are essentially two different beings due to our separate experiences. Nature vs nurture and all that.

One being is a dutiful puppet for Eli's and another is a prisoner of her own mind. It's also not like once I'm back to being whole again it would be smooth sailing. With how much time has passed my two forms are too different from one another. If I did combine back there would be an internal war and the whole brain scramble thing. It wouldn't be an issue if I wasn't stuck here and was able to combine myself earlier. Alas, this is my situation. But not to worry I have a solution for this too. I wouldn't be me if I didn't. I don't savor this option very much but it's the only way if I want to maintain my body.

Oh and let me give you a hint as to what that solution I thought of might be. One if I didn't do what I would be doing then I would slowly be ripping my mind apart trying to figure out which one of me was me.

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