ANEW ||

Tower of Falls

Flames licked the floor as April had entered the Tower of Falls first. She was lit from head to toe, glowing red and grinning like mad. Something in the corner of the room moved, Clair with her body growing from beneath a crack in the tile. Gold glittered in her eyes. A thud sounded in the room as Rayne dropped Lexi in from above. She landed in a crouch and then stood, short black hair blowing around her face from the wind created by the wings above. Rayne wasn't far behind, landing on the pad that ran along the side of the tower so her great wings would not knock into other things.

The Tower of Falls was built a century ago, a gift from the island for Mari for all that she had sacrificed. It was in the center, created specifically with all four elements in mind. Lava rock, a personal entrance to the Gold City, the height fit for the best flyer and undeniably fertile. Vines of various green plants ran in between the lava rocks, water streams lining the hallways and beautiful crystal windows to see every possible corner of the island. The tallest room in the building was the councils bay, windows all around with black lava rocks polished into tiles on the floor.

Rayne walked in from the wrap around landing outside of the tower, wings tucked under her skin now.

A man stood across the room, raven black hair and gun-metal grey eyes pinned on the floor. His broads arms were crossed over his chest, the shirt he wore straining against his muscles. His nose twitched, knowing what scent had entered the room without looking.

And then his eyes were only for her. Gold meeting silver storm clouds, and crashing into pieces.

His mate.

Her feet were soundless as she moved toward him. The intensity in her gaze lancing his heart, mangling his mind. He adored every miserable second.

Alaric's arm came up, draping around her shoulders like a cloak. Her eyes moved away from him, meeting the hazel ones from across the room. But April wasn't watching them, no, her gaze was turned to the other side of the room.

Another male stood off to the side, taller and a more threatening look in his eyes. They all knew it meant nothing for them; it was just the way he worked. He wasn't just one man, but two. And you never could quite tell which side of him was the more terrifying. The copper hair on his head looked as if someone had just run fingers through it; disheveled and happy about it. His front was angled away with another body, back turned, pressing into his chest.

Elijah's head turned, spring green eyes narrowing to encompass them all. They were light on the surface, but underneath was a bottomless shell of black. He watched them, looking over them from beside her, king assessing his people.

His eyes flicked back to the female tucked against his chest.

Ice blond hair fell to her shoulders, so unlike her siblings and their chocolate tresses. She was lean, tall, not the tallest out of the females but close behind her younger sister.

And then she turned, eyes finding Alaric first. Sapphires narrowed, watching him as he turned his gaze away from his mate to her; his sister in more ways than one.

There was no angle at which you could not see the marks on her face. Claw marks down her cheeks, running off her chin and down her neck disappearing into the collar of her shirt. They were healed over now at least, not reopened recently.

They had been horrible in the beginning. Deep and dark, dark red and impossible to miss. She wore them like a crown, a badge for all the shit she had taken.

Many in the beginning had thought they were scars from the war, that perhaps they were the remains of Hades' fingers on her skin. Some even thought they were put there by the demon she kept in her bed, that maybe Elijah and his aggressive streak had finally snapped on the wildfire on a woman. How horrible...