All I needed to do was make it out alive. If I even deserved to be alive. Perhaps if the king knew, he would be granting the world a blessing by slaughtering me. It seemed deserving.
You pity yourself like a beggar. Stop it.A shadowed talon clawed down the walls of my mind. I dug my fingers into the skin of my palm.
Time went by, the food was already being served. Still no king. Fish—smoked with carrots that looked fried. The first course. I didn't touch it even though my stomach rumbled dangerously. If I touched it, I believed I would empty whatever was in my stomach onto the table. The main course came. It was a perfectly roasted chicken with steamed hearts and livers. It was aromatic, appealing and yet the sight made my stomach churn without even tasting it.
"It is rude not to eat. It makes the host assume you think we have poisoned it." The prince smirked, as he forked a piece ofchicken into his mouth. I never knew it would be possible for him to look perfect even doing something as simple as eating.
"No appetite, unfortunately." Was my numb response. The fork the prince held softly clattered into his plate. It brought up the eyes from the table we were seated upon.
"What will it take to get you to eat, warrior? You haven't eaten since we made camp close to the border." The prince sounded like he cared, but he must have been referring to my failed attempt at killing the witch.
"I will give you valuable information if you eat. I am sure you will much prefer that than me commanding you to eat." His voice was quiet yet held some mirth to it. I looked up at him. "Do we have a deal?" His subject for the conversation was enough to draw my mind away from my anxiety. I picked up the medium sized golden fork and meat cutting knife, slicing swiftly into the breast of the chicken. "I will take this as a yes." It was a shock to see his bright teeth make an appearance when he gave his legendary charming smile. If I hadn't known any better, I would think that he was also trying to distract himself before he was confronted by his father.
"I once destroyed this whole dining hall." The chicken that touched my lips was put back onto the plate.
"And how would that be information of value?" I frowned immediately.
He chuckled. "I said it was valuable, not useful."
"When I had first discovered that I had some inkling of power. I used it to release all the pent-up anger from being called powerless and second to my sibling in every way. And once I acknowledged that my power drained even quicker than expected, proving that my power was little to none, I physically started to destroy everything."
I put the food into my mouth and chewed silently. "I’m sorry, that must have been hard," I spoke softly.
The prince let out a snort that he made annoyingly sound good. "Why would you be? It gave my mother a reason to re-decorate."
"No—I meant. It must have been hard for you to adapt to being called all those horrible things. Being an heir to a kingdom puts high expectations and when you don't meet them... All I’m saying is that it must have been hard." I was rambling but I genuinely could imagine it. Being royalty, having fae blood and not having the kind of power your kingdom may need. The prince studied me and then nodded. He looked satisfied when I took another bite of the meal in front of me.
"My whole life wasn't an entire misery. My mother was... perfect. She would never stand for it when my sister would make it her mission to prove what a disgrace I was to the fae lineage. My father would always comfort my sister when she would go running to him after my mother gave her a mouthful. They'd light things on fire as bonding." The prince scoffed then took a sip of his wine. Hearing him express this made him look so... human. It made me wonder what had changed between him treating me like his warrior and nothing more compared to now confiding in me. Was he doing this just to distract me?
"Your mother sounds lovely," I whispered. He remained silent and I nearly pitied him. The Queen of Apollo was known for her kindness and spirituality. She had died of a broken heart and had also taken whatever remaining kindness existed in the Kingdom of Light. "Will your sister be joining the dinner?" I asked, genuinely curious and wondering who the second last seat was meant for.
The prince was about to answer when Izlana's voice cut in. "As the prince's bodyguard, shouldn't you at least know the current affairs of Apollo? Everyone knows that Princess Aideena is trying to conquer and rule over Duvessa."
Seething anger sparked in me from the news. I couldn't help but retort. "Apologies, my lady, during our travels there was not enough time for tea parties to discuss current affairs, I had been too busy protecting the prince." The shadow beasts inside me bucked and growled, not for her questioning my knowledge. No... for an entirely different reason.
Inanov laughed into his cup and caught himself before Izlana could throw him a glare. Adrion smiled to himself, fortunately not taking offence to my harsh response to his betrothed. Izlana looked at me, anger and challenge pouring from her eyes. Before she could open her mouth to throw whatever perfect snide remark was owed to me—I felt it.
No.
The entire dining hall had felt it.
The ground shuddered in power. So much power that it had a scent. A scent that had me reeling back in my mind and had my shadows becoming quiet. The glass of water on the table swished with force of the power nearing. The room vibrated and I had hoped it looked as if my body moved with the vibration because I was trembling. My very soul was cowered and shrinking into itself. Everyone had quietened and rose from their seats. Looking up the dais to a shining bright light that wasn't just light—it washim. With power so strong, that it made him look like pure sunlight. There he was. The King of Apollo. Solaire Gideon. Descendant of Brander Apollo Gideon. His sleek shoulder length blonde hair and perfect skin glistened. His glorious golden spiked crown looked like a mere accessory to his aura that dripped off him like rainwater. His eyes glowed crimson red, almost darker than his son’s. He looked like the god of war. Bred for battle and killing. To provide no mercy to those who have wronged him. He assessed his court. The noble folk got to their knees, and we followed with them. I dared a closer look, but it was a mistake. He was already looking at me.
I flinched on the inside yet on the outside, I was frozen. He stared at me. Taking me in, sizing me as his opponent. Apprehensive, calculating and... nonchalant. I was a mere ant in his presence. Nothing compared to the likes of him. His face was cruel and beautiful and horrifying. An incredibly long magnificent sword was at his side. A cracked sapphire embedded into its hilt. The little girl in my mind stirred awake and I did my best to numb her thoughts away. "Rise." The voice echoed in power and touched everyone in the room. Being in the same room as the king was like reliving every horrible experience I had ever lived come back to haunt my very soul.
And I truly wondered if I was simply a fool to think I could ever come out of this alive.
Chapter 46
Greed is Golden
"The cauldron of Apollo was a gift from the God himself. There to grant blessings and boons to his kin who possess fae blood."
The following text has been transcribed by Nebula Earthglow of the Earthglow Witch Coven.
Being in the presence of so many vipers meant my defences were to be raised mentally, but luckily my shadows washed down the panic in my senses to calm me. For once, they were helping instead of being a nuisance. The king's eyes did not leave me, even as he settled into the Korovian chair and the others took their seats. He raised an eyebrow at the prince, who was noticeably closer to me than before.
"I see you are well acquainted with your bodyguard." His voice rumbled with power—had I been a wolf, my ear might have twitched. But I was a rabbit in a den of foxes snapping their sharp teeth.
