Page 19 of Eluvonia
“Then make me a prisoner!” My voice rises, edged with panic. “Why do I need to be chained to that sack of uselessness?”I snap, jabbing a finger in Kaida’s direction. From the corner of my eye, I catch his nostrils flare, his jaw tightening.
The male’s smirk deepens, a cruel glint flashing in his eyes as he flicks his finger under my chin. The force is enough to make me stumble back a step, humiliation and fury roaring through me.
“I need eyes on you all day, every day,” he says smoothly, his tone sharp. “I’ll study you, Fae. Even if it means cutting you open to see what makes you tick.” He leans in closer, his voice dropping lower, each word laced with menace. “You belong to us now.”
Chapter 7
AERIS
My throat works to swallow, the weight of his words settling like a boulder in my stomach.
From the corner of my eye, I catch Kaida landing on his feet as his shadows cut the root at the base of his feet. He brushes himself off with sharp, irritated movements before shooting me a pointed glare and walking towards me.
Out of the corner of my eyes, I see Kaida’s father turn back towards the throne, his heavy boots echoing against the stone floor. My mind races, my pulse pounding so hard I can hear it in my ears.No. No, no, no—this can’t be happening.
I steal a glance at Kaida, who remains rigid, his eyes narrowed with barely restrained fury. Smoke curls from his nostrils, his hands clenched so tight at his sides that his claws dig into his palms.
Varek doesn’t spare either of us another glance as he lowers himself onto his massive, jewel-encrusted throne.
Beside him, resting on a small pedestal, is a red satin pillow.Upon it sits a delicate bell—gold, polished, and gleaming under the flickering torchlight.
Then, he lifts the bell and rings it.
The chime cuts through the tension like a blade. It’s soft, almost gentle, but it vibrates deep in my bones, rattling something in my very core. A rush of golden light floods the room, so bright I have to shield my eyes. The air itself hums, charged with something ancient, something powerful. My stomach twists in a way that has nothing to do with fear and everything to do with knowing—knowing that whatever happens next, there’s no turning back.
When the light fades, a figure stands in its place.
A woman.
She is radiant in a way that seems otherworldly, her golden skin glowing like polished sunlight, her long, shimmering hair cascading down her back like strands of molten metal. Even her clothes seem woven from the light itself, flowing around her in weightless folds. She looks around the room with eyes that gleam like molten amber, unreadable and knowing all at once.
“I have been summoned,” she says, her voice as smooth as flowing honey yet carrying the weight of something far beyond mortal comprehension.
Varek, the fearsome commander who had just spoken so casually about carving me open,bows.
“Ymiral of Light,” he addresses her with reverence, his tone starkly different from the commanding one he’d used on us. “My son has found his Líðr. Please, join them.”
My stomach plummets. My eyes flick to Kaida, who stiffens like a taut wire ready to snap. The shadows at his feet curl and writhe, stirring restlessly as if responding to his anger.
The Ymiral of Light turns to me first, her gaze sweeping over me with quiet consideration. There’s something unsettling about the way she looks at me, like she can see straight through me—beyond my skin, past my fears, right to the very core of who I am. Her eyes soften slightly, but there’s something resigned in them, something that makes my stomach knot tighter.
Then, she turns to Kaida.
His face is a mask of defiance, his entire body is coiled like a predator about to strike, but he says nothing.
The Ymiral’s expression remains unreadable as she turns back to me. “I can see your fate, young Fae,” she says softly, her voice gentle. “And while this may seem unfair, it is your best hope.”
Hope?Hope?!I choke back a bitter laugh.This isn’t hope. This is a trap, a cage with gilded bars.
She turns back to Varek. “I will join them.”
She moves toward us with an eerie sort of grace, gliding across the floor like she’s weightless. Her hands begin to glow, the light radiating from her palms as she raises them between me and Kaida. The air thickens, crackling with unseen energy.
That’s when panic snaps me out of my stupor.
No.
It grips me, cold and suffocating, clawing up my throat like a living thing. My entire body locks up, then jolts into motion. My feet stumble backward, my hands shaking as I throw them up in a weak attempt to ward off the inevitable.
