Page 191 of The Chains You Defy

“Yes, Laiga is special. Oh, wait. If you like that, you’ll love what I have here.”

He handed me a delicate vial containing a deep purple liquid inside. Cautiously, I uncorked the stopper and inhaled. Sugary notes assaulted me in the best way, and my mouth watered. “What is this?”

“Drink and you’ll see. That’s nothing I can explain. You have to experience the phenomenon for yourself.”

“Is the mixture dangerous?”

“Oh, sweet Nayana. Nothing here is dangerous to you. Especially not Seadan. But you have to drink the whole vial at once. Can you do that for me?”

A small voice screamed inside my mind, warning me of an uncertain danger, but the sound was weak and quickly drowned out by a wave of euphoria. “I’ll try.”

“I’ll help you if necessary.”

Nodding thankfully, I brought the vial to my lips and, without further hesitation, drank. At first, the taste was even more intense than the one of Laiga, but as more liquid flooded my mouth, something felt very, very wrong.

Suddenly, my gums and tongue burned, the fluid thickened, and morphed into a viscous mass growing in size. I barely noticed that Cantarlann had hauled me close to him and poured the rest of the vial into me. I wanted to scream as the burning sludge filled my entire mouth, but the male held me tight and prevented me from spitting out anything.

“Don’t worry, precious. I’m here to support you. Just swallow. All will be good.”

I whimpered through closed lips, deadly afraid that the flaming sensation would continue spreading should I do as Cantarlann insinuated, but the pain in my mouth increased to an unbearable intensity.

And as I wasn’t able to spit the goo out, I swallowed.

An inferno created a fiery trail searing through my insides as the Seadan traveled deeper into my system, and I coughed before a scream erupted from my scorching throat.

“Shhh, you’re doing great, Nayana. So well. Just a little while longer.”

I barely perceived that Cantarlann pressed a goblet to my lips and coaxed a cool, soothing fluid into me. This tasted more like Laiga, but the foul taste and the burn of the Seadan overpowered everything else.

But then the pain ceased, and exhaustion attacked me with such ferocity as if I’d been running half the day. My knees buckled, and my eyes drooped before warmth and euphoria returned with a vengeance.

“I’m so proud of you, Nayana. Everyone is.”

How we’d ended up in the dead center of the room slipped past me, but Cantarlann supported me when weakness threatened to overwhelm me, and everyone else was encircling us.

On a raised dais, I spotted a couple of fae with an eerie glow to their skin. They were taller than the tallest person in the room, and for a moment, I forgot about the drowsiness as I stared at them.

“The Graigh,” I whispered, and I couldn’t recognize my own voice.

Something was off.

Wrong.

Gods, what was happening?

My whole body was shaking and shivering, and my consciousness expanded.

Colors—they tasted strange. And was it normal to hear smells?

Hands. Did I still have them? My eyes told me yes, but—numb. So numb.

“Yes. They’re here for today’s ceremony.”

“The moon—”

“Yes, the moon ceremony. But they also asked me to evaluate if you’re ready for the next step on your journey to become a Vessel of Love.”

Suddenly, a deep yearning gripped my soul, and a fever was rushing through my deepest, darkest desires.