Panicked, men and women scramble around, and I hear Will shout, "Ror— we have bigger issues than just your wife and her pet trying to roast all of us."
"Wha—" My head whips around, confused, and my stomach sinks at the sight of at least three dozen pairs of crimson eyes."Fucking hell, Nightmare… if you'd wanted out of this marriage, you could've ended it a little more face-to-face."
"Quiet— I'm in the middle of something."
I give one last glance at her before tearing my sword from its sheath, Felix and Matthis following suit. The sound of metalgrabs the attention of our guests, and they all look accusingly at me.
"What is this?" Eloden hisses, drawing out his own blade.
"I wish I had the answer for you."
He looks at me, horrified, but I already know what he's going to say even before he utters the words — "you're the King Consort."
"Unfortunately, that earns me no favor." The thought weighs heavily as I try to understand her point here. I'd known that she's been tampering with her Wield's development, what I didn't know was that she was drawing them in closer. As in at our back door — closer.
She’s caged us in on all sides, our guests growing increasingly more unsettled and restless.
"Don't move."
"You're not serious."
"Put your sword away and watch. Or do you not trust me?"
I growl in reply, but heed her demand, shoving my blade back into its place at my hip. "Your Majesty?" Felix tries, and I shake my head, sending a silent plea out that I won't regret this choice.
She commands the magic around our feet, making it impossible for us to move. The Orik Chief growls loudly, his face twisting in rage as he tries to break free of her Wield. That anger switches over to me, and I motion frustratedly at my own boots.
Do they not see me equally as trapped?
"She likes her theatrics." I huff, my grumbling met with a chorus of dissatisfied grunts. I'd argue further, but I can't, not with the pressure of my own Wield building the longer I stare past the crowd and at the unmoving, unblinking, inhuman red orbs.
"Is that all you've reduced my power to?" Eveera calls out, her voice sending chills down my spine.
I don’t know how she managed it, but I dropped my stare down to find her standing right beside me. From the corners of my eyes, I watch as most of our guests attempt to lunge at her. A wicked grin spreads across her face as each of them fails in their efforts.
Damn woman.
"King Eloden — your lands have been plagued with a threat for what? Several months? A year at best?”
The king's jaw feathers, "your point, Queen Eveera?"
“Mine have been plagued with horrid, grotesque monsters for over a decade, and recently I learned a horrifying little fact."
"And what, pray tell, could that be?" Will grits out next.
She rolls her eyes over at him, her eyes switching from their brilliant gold to black, “I’ll show you.” A tendril Wields out from her palm, the magic splitting our group and cracking sharp as a whip against the stone. "Advance."
I'm speechless, all of my nerves shot as I watch the wall of monsters move forward at her command.
"Necromancy…" King Eloden gasps out at the same time I overhear the General murmur to his companion, Caz, "do you think we were invited here just for the queen to kill us?" While fear passes through the latter's face, there's no fear to be seen on the General's as he ignores the creatures and fixates on Vada.
Her focus is locked in as she manipulates them, the brand on my wrist growing hot with each mangled step the beasts take. "Eveera." I try, concerned that she might lose control, but she doesn’t shake.
She's too far gone into the trance of her magic.
"Rorin—" Bennett whines, "now would be a great time for theshowto be over."
"I'm on it, Bennett, let me just break out of her hold." I hiss, sarcasm dripping off my tongue.
