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Chapter Twenty-One

A elia

Pressing my fingers to my temples, I attempted to will away the pounding headache as I rolled over in bed. Gods, one would think after a month of sleeping in a dungeon, resting on a true bed would be an improvement. Instead, every morning I woke up more weary than the last.

Perhaps, it was all the damned training with Kaelith.

I was so exhausted I barely had time to consider my escape. I needed to get home, to get to… to the Conservatory. My thoughts grew hazy as I pictured the brilliant luminescence of the Court of Ethereal Light. I must return to… to whom?

Aidan.

Yes, my adoptive father, Aidan.

He would never believe what I’d endured at the hands of the Night King. Did he know about my mother? And why in all the realms had I ended up with a Light Fae protector if, according to my grandsire, I had no Light blood coursing through my veins. There was still so much of this story that simply did not make sense.

An odd pulse vibrated my chest, an incessant pull tugging on my heart. Ruhl ! For the love of Noxus, how could I have forgotten him? My cuoré, my twin flame. Gods, I couldn’t wait to be in his arms once more.

Two sharp knocks at the door sent my head spinning over my shoulder. Dragging myself to the edge of the bed, and away from thoughts of my cuoré, I pulled back the onyx curtains and reached for my robe before wrapping it tightly around my body. An odd chill had settled in my bones overnight. It was as if all the warmth had been leeched from my blood.

“Who is it?” I called out.

“I’ve come to clean your room, princess.” The frail female voice seeped through the hinges of the door.

From dungeons to servants? Clearly, the re-emergence of my powers had changed the dynamic between my grandsire and me. Lacing the tie around my waist more tightly, I strode toward the door. Opening it a pinch, I glanced through the sliver.

A female stood in the dimly lit corridor, her warm cocoa skin standing in sharp contrast to the stark white hair pulled into a severe bun at the top of her head. Like most Fae, she held an ageless beauty, despite the faint crinkling at the corners of her eyes. There was wisdom there, the kind that came with decades of experience.

“Pardon me, princess, but Kaelith has sent me to tidy up your chamber.”

I glanced around the immaculate room lit by the twisted iron chandeliers; the only thing out of place were my training leathers haphazardly thrown on a chair. I’d only occupied the room for a few nights now, and with my grueling training schedule, I’d barely spent any time in the dark chamber.

The female attempted to squirm by me, so I opened the door all the way, granting her entrance. “It’s not dirty,” I murmured.

“Oh, of course not, princess.” She offered a tight smile. “It’s only my duty to do as the king commands.”

“Right.” I motioned toward the vast, mostly vacant chamber. “Do as you will.” I watched her for a long moment as she flitted around the room. I had never seen a Fae do menial chores in the Light Court. That was what the Kin were for. Was this a punishment of some sort? Or did so few Night Court Fae remain that they were forced to do this sort of humble labor. This female was only the third Fae I had yet to encounter across the immense Keep. “What’s your name?” I finally asked after several minutes had passed in a somewhat uncomfortable silence.

She whirled toward me in surprise, dipping her head. “Vaelora, princess.”

“Please, call me Aelia.”

She nodded again. “As you wish. But it is unlikely I will address you personally unless requested.”

“Oh, I do request it.” This was the first Night Fae I’d met besides my big brute of a jailer and the king. I had about a thousand questions for this female. “How long have you been living in this underground fortress?”

She chewed on her bottom lip for a long minute before finally answering. “Since before the war ended.”

Good gods, it had been decades.

“And what of the other Night Fae? I have yet to see another soul within the confines of the castle?”

“I’m afraid I cannot say.” Her lips pressed into a hard line. “But there are others…” Her words fell away, fear permeating her expression.

“Are you permitted to leave?”

She slowly shook her head, wary eyes darting toward the door.

“Does Helroth keep you here as a prisoner, too?”

“In a matter of sorts.” Her lips pressed into a grim line.

I nearly confessed my plan to escape—or, what little I’d managed to come up with at that point—but Ruhl would blame my weak Kin sensibilities for so willingly wanting to trust a stranger. His characteristic smirk filled my vision, and an odd ache speared me in the chest. Well, that was strange. Massaging the spot until the pain vanished, I turned my thoughts back to the Keep’s servant. I had no idea if I could confide in this female. For all I knew, the king could have sent her as a spy.

Another swirl of energy erupted in my chest, and I immediately recognized the warm light of rais . My fingertips glowed, the soothing light of Raysa coating my flesh.

“That’s incredible…” The female skulked closer, her navy eyes alight in wonder from the ethereal glow.

The warm rais filled the chasm beneath my ribcage, happily floating along until a second invasive energy bloated my chest. Zar tore through my insides, the insidious power scorching an angry trail in its path. My chamber grew dark, full night once again falling across the room.

“Princess?” Vaelora’s anxious gaze swung toward me. “Are you all right? There’s something happening…”

I wrapped my arms around my torso to keep my ribs from cracking from the onslaught. The cool nox came next, weaving between the light and dark, creating shadows which danced along the walls of my entrails.

“Come look!” A strong hand curled around my arm, and I could feel my body moving, but with the overwhelming assault of power, I had little control to spare. A moment later, I found myself in front of a looking glass, my entire silhouette blanketed in light and shadow. They twisted and twirled around my body, a furious tempest of energy in physical form.

I barely noticed it, so entranced by the play of light and dark. I crept closer to the mirror, curiosity getting the best of me, and swept a tangle of ebony hair behind my ear.

My sharply pointed ear.

A gasp pealed out, despite my hand clapping over my mouth. “My ears!” I ran my finger over the pointed tip, a strange giddiness bubbling up alongside the torrent of power. When had this happened? It must have been that dark Spellbinder… When was the last time I’d glanced at my own reflection?

“Are you sure you’re quite all right, princess?” Vaelora peered over my shoulder, her concerned eyes meeting mine through the looking glass.

A raging tempest of energy twisted in my gut, and I held my breath to contain it. I was afraid to utter a word and open the floodgates. Instead, I nodded quickly and motioned toward the bathing chamber. Without waiting for a response, I sprinted toward the attached room and slammed the door behind me.

The influx of energy was explosive, light streaming from my fingertips and shadows curling around my arms. The bathing chamber was eclipsed in darkness, followed by streams of blessed light infiltrating every corner. I braced myself in the doorway as sparks of energy danced along my skin, pleasant at first, then becoming painfully uncomfortable. Scorching heat blazed from my core, running from the tips of my newly sharpened ears all the way down to my toes. I called on the cool night of nox ’s shadows, and I could finally draw in a breath as it extinguished the searing heat.

Then the poisonous zar infiltrated my thoughts, weaving in and out of my memories until nothing but darkness and fury remained. My temples throbbed, the pain excruciating. Blinding agony surged from my skull to my torso, winding through every inch of my being. Oh, gods. I couldn’t escape the pain, try as I might. A name tugged at my subconscious, but like tiny filaments I couldn’t quite grasp, it faded away on a breeze.

First, a whimper, then a cry broke free as my nails dug into the dark timber of the door. Everything else faded away, and I knew only one thing: endless pain.

The door of the bathing chamber whipped open, and I fell forward, landing on the dark stone floor on my hands and knees. Another stream of pain raced through, but this one was physical, this one I could handle.

“Oh, princess, I’m sorry!” Vaelora crouched beside me, her eyes wide with fear. “Should I call the healer?”

My head bobbed feebly. I despised the thought of showing Helroth my weakness, but the alternative was impossible. Why had I ever agreed to have my powers unbound? I wasn’t strong enough. I would never survive this…

Not without him .

A face coalesced from the dark corners of my mind. Sharp, midnight eyes, strong cheekbones, a firm jaw lined with a day’s scruff, and that mouth, the perfect bow of lips. Those intense orbs peered down at me from beneath a tumble of wild, dark hair and my heart staggered.

The cuorem pulsed, the tether around my heart momentarily awakening. The onslaught of power suddenly quieted, and all I could feel was that incessant pulsating of the bond.

I needed him. He was the answer to my untamable power.

I needed R—Ruhl.

And just like that, the cuorem went silent once more.