The wind tore through Aelin's hair as she leaned into the cool breeze of the open space. It was stunning really, the trees and forests, teeming with life. She supposed that she missed the feel of grass under her foot as she ran through those soft hills, working her body to pure exhaustion, but still laughing about it in the end. She remembered walking here with Rowan, becoming quieter and quieter with each passing moment as she tunneled down into that well of power she'd only just started exploring.
Now that pit was empty, and even the thought of the fae male made her heart ache. His pine and snow scent still encompassed her, causing a throb of pain to wreck her body. She missed him, had become reliant on him. But he was not a crutch, she could handle not having him by her side, at least for a little while.
Connall had escorted her up here an hour ago, and had abandoned her. It was part of the game, she supposed, part of whatever twisted game Maeve had planned to force her to submit. But she would not yield, because she was Aelin Ashryvr Galytinius and she would not be afraid.
There was iron in this room, she could sense it, but at this moment, she felt like she was being weighed down by fatigue and all that all she could do was stand in the clearing, letting her body sway in the breeze. Apparently it was cold, at least that's what her breath told her, as it clustered up Infront of her like a cloud of smoke; but her body was immune and all she felt was a creeping numbness which crawled from the tips of her toes and slowly circulated throughout her body. The only thing she had on was a pair of loose fitting pants and white top, which to her dismay, reminded her of the months spent in Dorenelle, determined to hate the fae prince she had been handed to. It was ironic, the fact that she had so thoroughly dispised Rowan and yet had fallen for him so utterly. Her brain almost said 'if you can do that for Rowan, then you may be able to start liking Maeve' but she laughed, a broken, humourless sound.
"Laughing over your own downfall already Princess?"
She turned, her hands curling into fists
Maeve
"Hello Maeve." She stated, falling into her usual swaggering routine.
"Or should I call you Auntie? You know, I've never been quite clear on what to call you. Maybe I'll just make up a name for you myself. Let's see. How about 'Raging bitch face?' suits you perfectly."
"Yes, yes. Call me whatever. Raging bitch face, fire breathing bitch face. Seems like we're not so different after all." Maeve cawed, sauntering towards Aelin at a leasurly pace.
Aelin's eyes narrowed and she let out a long breath.
"What do you want?" She said, fed up of the games.
"Oh, nothing really. Funny isn't it, how one of my own fell for you, a mortal, human scum bag. And you then become his downfall." She laughed and waved her hand to the man in black who had been lurking behind her since her untimely arrival.
"The only scumbag around here is you." Aelin snapped, glaring daggers into her exposed back.
"You know, I never knew just how much my little experiment with Lyria would play to my advantage. Humans are weak for sob stories, and turns out I caught much bigger fish than I was intending."
"What do you mean?" Aelin said, her heart tightening in her chest, to the point where it became painful to breath.
The cloaked man slipped back in, carrying something covered in a silk cloth, which he handed to Maeve.
"I mean that you were the perfect bate. I just knew dear old Rowan would never leave you alone to die in Dorenelle, and that just made it a whole lot easier to catch my prey."
She whipped off the cloth and Aelin's heart stopped in her chest. It couldn't be, he wouldn't, Maeve couldn't have. It was impossible. The whitetailed hawk inside the cage became increasingly desperate as it spotted Aelin, screaming as it tried to raise its broken wings. There was a small trickle of blood from there the fracture had happened and Aelin felt something die in her chest as she watched this hopeless fight for survival.
Her eyes snapped up to Maeve who was smiling in glee as she watched Aelin's reaction.
"You bitch." She snarled, half sobbing. Maeve just laughed again and Aelin lunged, the killing calm sharpening each sense until all she could see was Maeve and that hawk, all she could envision was Maeve's broken body crumpled on the floor as she snapped the fae queen's neck. She hadn't realised she had taken several steps forward until she felt an unrelenting presence force her to her knees.
"Uh uh uh," Maeve taunted. "Wouldn't do that if I where you."
"You absolute, disgusting peice of Vaulg shit, if you hurt him..."
"You'll do what? Kill me? It may suprise you to know this princess, but I am not scared of a girl. I have been alive for centuries and you will be dead in a few decades, so there is nothing you can do that will delay this inevitable course of events."
Aelin's snarl was not human as she regained her footing and charged for Maeve again, with no intent of mercy. But before she could even take two steps, Maeve laughed; a malicious, violent laugh and said:
"I told you not to do that."
Before the cage and hawk inside burst into an explosion of feathers and blood."
A/N: Hey guys 😍 I know, it's been a while but I promise I will get more chapters out soon. I don't even have. Plan for this story to be honest. I am such a bad author xD
Anyway, I wanted to say thank you so much for the support for this. I did not expect to get so many views 😊
I'm sorry, don't kill me...
-your horrible author
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Realm Of Ashes (Throne of Glass #7)
FanfictionA cold stone settled on her already dying heart. She was going to die here and no one would save her, no one would come offering freedom, just as Chaol and Dorian had, no one would tell her to shut up when she made one of her witty comments, just li...
