A Court of shadows and love

Chapter-15

    Xander's head throbbed as he groaned and woke up disoriented. He didn't know where he was. His hands were bound before him. And his mouth was gagged. The deep cut on his arm felt uncomfortable. His left cheek stung. And then everything came back to him like a fucking tsunami. The fight. The blood. The gore. The guards didn't kill him. They captured him.
    At least his sisters would be safe. He hoped that Nesta would have taken Elain to Greyson's and alerted Gavin and the eagles. He hoped that his sisters were safely tucked inside the tall walls of Greyson's manor.
    Muffled sobs were heard throughout the otherwise silent room. He squinted to get a better view. His skull throbbed as he tried hard to see past the blurriness in his vision. A flash of pink night gown caught his eye.

No.
No.
No.
No.

    It can't be he sent them away. He told them to run. He fought the guards off. They should have made it out of there. No. No. No. No.
    He crawled across the dirty cell to the crying woman. The brown hair confirmed his suspicions that it was his sisters indeed. He removed the bag over the first ones head. His screams were muffled by the gag in his mouth. Elain wailed when she saw her brother. Her doe eyes were letting down tears like a falls. He hugged her closer to his chest as much as he can with his bound hands. He lifted the hood off of Nesta. Her grey eyes were filled with tears. She shook her head at Xander's gaze. Xander hugged Elain closer to him and cradled her head.
    Five guards entered the cell. Two of them took hold of Xander and each one took his sister. The fifth one was holding the cell for open for them move out. Xander kicked and screamed as the guards hauled them out of the cell. Nesta and Elain fought as much as him. But it is of no use. The guards easily dragged them outside. Them kept pushing them forward and forward until they reached a grand wicked white double doors where screaming voices were heard from inside. Four women were standing outside the double doors. Four women. The remaining four queens. Did they brought them to the continent to punish for speaking against them?
    As looked he closer to the guards standing near the closed doors he noticed the sharpened tip of their ears. He was certain that there was no fae guards in the continent. Which means they were not in the continent. They were in Hybren. The crone was standing at the front. She sneered when she saw the siblings. Xander's rage bellowed as he took in her stance. She was looking at him like he was the plague that needs to destroyed. When the guards pushed him forward he staggered in his steps.
    He looked the crone straight in the eyes. He spat at her face despite the gag in his mouth. The queen's face contorted in disgust. She slapped him right across his face. His cheek stung from the cut. New blood trickled down his face. The queen turned away from him as the guard behind him took hold of him.
    The doors before them opened. "Because you will find Feyre Archeron that it is in your best interest to behave," a cruel voice said from a throne. Xander turned his eyes to see his sister with all of his new friends.
    But what caught his attention was Azriel. There were two arrows protruding out of his chest. Xander inhaled sharply. This was it. This was the pain he felt earlier. He felt Azriel's pain.
    The queens parted to let the guards through. The guards dragged the siblings along with them.
    Fear rattled Xander's bones as he looked around the throne room. As he took in the king. As he took in the cauldron that his sister was supposed to nullify. He felt his gut roll up as he examined the room for any form of escape. The room was full proof.
    Feyre's throat constricted as she saw her siblings state. Elain's and Nesta's nightgown were torn and dirty. Elain was quitely sobbing. Nesta was panting as she took everything in. Her brother. Mother save her. Her brother was half naked. His naked torso was coated in blood. She didn't see any cuts. It wasn't his blood. She couldn't even feel the small relief.
    Julian's cunning plan has assured their failure. He made sure that they lost the game even before they started playing. The king twisted Feyre's own words against her. Xander didn't know what he was feeling. It was agony. Pure molten rage.
    "Brace your selves" the king said. A blinding light flooded the room. Nesta and Elain shrieked. But Elain's cry they were a warning. Xander looked around. He saw a golden haired male rushing to Feyre's side. Xander screamed. Feyre headed their call. She shoved a knife in his direction. He dodged and stepped aside.
    The high priestess of spring court has sold them out to Hybren. He didn't know anything about her. Feyre hasn't told him anything about a priestess. Aren't priestess supposed to be good? Mor surged towards the king with a knife in her hands. The king threatened to kill Azriel. Mor froze in her spot.
    Xander's eyes locked with Azriel's. There was no beautiful shadows surrounding him. He looked naked without them. He looked dull without the dark shadows swirling around him. Azriel's eyes were filled with rage. Xander didn't know what to do. The king was destroying his whole family. He is going to destroy his sisters. He already destroyed the man he loves.
    "Put the prettier one in" the king addressed the guards. Before the guard could take a step forward, Xander head butted the one standing behind him. He rushed forward towards the guard holding his sister and wrapped the iron chains around his neck. He kneed him in the middle of his back and the cracking of his neck heard throughout the throne room. The guard slumped down. His broken neck lolling to one side. The whole throne room became silent. Elain's sob and Nesta's panting would haunt him throughout his life. He tucked Elain to his side and dared any of the guards to come near him.
    "Quite a fighter aren't you?" The king asked him. "You should be proud of your brother curse breaker. He killed most of the gaurds" the king told his sister. He waved his hand in Xander's direction. Xander slumped down like a thousand ton of weight was placed over his shoulders.
    The guards dragged Elain's forward. Feyre sobbed as she saw Xander screaming through his gag. She never understood the twin bond between both of them. She only knew that they can say what the other is feeling. Xander's gag became unbound.
    "No" he screamed. Those sound will haunt her dreams forever. "Please .... please take me. Leave them. Please not them. Take me" he sobbed. A cruel smile formed on the kings lips. "Don't worry boy your turn will come" the king told and motioned for the guards to push Elain in.
    Xander screamed so loud as Elain's head went underwater. Whatever Elain was feeling Xander was feeling it too. Feyre didn't know what's happening inside the cauldron. He knew. Xander knew. She saw as the fight leave Xander and he quitely sobbed.
    "Behold" the king addressed the queens. As if it had be tipped by invisible hands the cauldron turned on its side. Black smoke coated water flowed from the cauldron. Elain washed out into the stone floor face down. She sucked in a sharp breath as Xander let out a loud sob. Nesta roared in rage as she looked between her two siblings.
    "Now the hell cat" the king said. Nesta fought each and every step to the cauldron. Xander lost everything he had. He lost one sister to pyrithian, he just lost two of his sister to the cauldron. This was torture. More painful than plunging a white hot iron down his throat. He lost everything. Everything. He wanted to die.
If I go down I will take everyone down with me.
    Azriel's words echoed in his head. He inhaled sharply as Nesta fell out of the cauldron. He will take everyone down with him when he goes down. He will make Hybren feel every single thing he felt. He will make him beg, he will make him bleed, he will kill him.
    "Now the boy" the king's word echoed around the room. Azriel's head whipped to Xander. He moaned in pain as he tried to move forward. The guards took a step forward to take hold of Xander. Xander's grey eyes snapped to the guards. Azriel saw as the guards cowered under his gaze. Xander stood up on his own.
    Every single step he took echoed around the room. Each and every step filled with pain, rage, agony and anger. He reached the cauldron. He looked the king dead in his eyes. He was shoved into the cauldron. Azriel watched as his grey eyes burned with anger. Xander addressed the king. "Pray to the gods that I should die in there, if I didn't, I promise now. I will kill you. All of you" he turned his head to the queens and back to the king. The king gulped loudly. The queens hand shook as they clutched each other. Azriel has never heard Xander's voice so cold. His nerve rattles at the promise. His head was shoved inside. Azriel and Elain screamed in pain that wasn't theirs. Azriel crawled forward as the cauldron tipped forward again. Blood was pouring out of his chest as he hauled himself near the cauldron.
    Xander slumped forward. His head in Azriel's blood coated hands. When Xander opened his eyes they weren't grey. They were shining golden. Like a raging sun filled with fury.
    Xander was blind to the pain he was feeling, he was blind to the pain around him. First time in his life he ignored the cries of his own twin. All he could think about was a knife through the kings throat. He was blinded by rage, his rage was the cauldron's rage. The cauldron felt his rage. He felt the cauldron's rage. Both were deadly.
    "Tamlin" Feyre's soft voice broke his blinding rage. His head whipped between Feyre, Rhysand and Tamlin. He didn't know what was happening. Azriel didn't let him get away. He didn't take his hand away from his face as examined his now grey eyes.
    "Break the bond" Feyre told the king. Xander's swirled his head so fast. He pleaded Feyre to not do this. Feyre gave him a well known look. The look she gives when they go for hunting. The look she gives when she was going to fire her shot. The look she gave him to strike the wolf that started all this. But this time the only difference was that she was the wolf who was going to strike. She was playing a game. The game of queens gambit. She was going to send them home and get herself out of here.
    A blinding light shined and Rhysand howled in pain. "You are free to go Rhysand. Your friend's poison is gone but the other's wing is useless I am afraid" the king told them. Azriel's grip tightened around. Fresh blood gushed out of his wounds and soaked Xander's torso.
    Morrigan as Swift as a wind winnowed to his sisters she slammed Lucien away and grabbed her sisters. Rhys took hold of Xander, Azriel and Cassian. Darkness swallowed him as his eyes clouded. The last thing he saw was Feyre's breath of relief. His world was surrounded by darkness as Rhys winnowed them away.