When The Darkness Claims Us

~~~ Chapter Three ~~~

A/N: Extra-long chapter! Hope you enjoy!

Dorian Pov:

Dorian swirled the wine in his glass as Chaol's laughter rang across the room. Yrene's chuckle followed and Dorian smiled. Life was so much more peaceful after the war. Adarlan was prospering and the kingdom had done well with repairs. However, Chaol and his workloads had greatly increased and they hardly saw each other, except for their weekly dinners. Yrene had joined them this week and left the care of his niece Josefin to Chaol's mother. 

The little girl was beautiful even at her young age. She had her mother's golden-brown eyes and her father's copper hair. She smiled constantly and would start glowing randomly whenever she accidentally set off her healing powers. Dorian adored her. Even with his duties as the king he constantly made accuses to see her. He even pressured Chaol and Yrene to go out constantly so he could take care of the little girl.

Yrene and Chaol started laughing again and he snapped out of his thoughts. But Dorian didn't join in the conversation, his eyes fell to the wall behind Yrene and Chaol. Certain parts of it had started glowing a faint green in the form of an archway.

"Guys," Dorian whispered. His friends followed his eyesight to the wall behind them. Yrene gasped.

Chaol's eyes widened, "What is that?" The marks glowed brighter and started forming up shapes. They looked like.... they looked like Wyrdmarks. Chaol swore. The marks flashed brightly once and swirling darkness appeared in the archway.

Dorian stood up and walked over to it, Yrene and Chaol doing the same. "Weird," Yrene mumbled as if talking to herself. She held a hand up to the portal and gasped her eyes going wide. 

Chaol put a hand on her shoulder, "What is it?!"

"It- it feels like the souls of the wounded." She responded looking at us now. The portal started swirling and pulling us toward it. The wind picked up, pulling us closer and closer. We all grabbed for the table to keep us grounded. But the wind was relentless.

"Hold on!" Chaol shouted. The wind only got stronger, causing me to grip the table hard enough for my hands to turn white. And then the table started moving. The last thing I heard was Chaol yelling before the world went black.

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Elide Pov:

"I got you some tea," Lorcan said walking into the room.

I smiled, "Thank you." He handed me the tea and took a spot next to me on the couch. I snuggled up next to him, he put his arm around my shoulder.

I blew on my steaming tea as we sat in silence. Enjoying the company and quietness after a long day of work. Perranth was still repairing but was growing beautifully. The family Lorcan and I had here was perfect and I hope it will grow in the future. Now that Lorcan had given up his life span for one of a human, we could live together without worry for the future. The sacrifice was great and I would never forget. 

I sighed happily and smiled. Lorcan brought his head down to mine and said in a huskily soft voice, "What are you thinking about dear?"

I laughed quietly but didn't get to respond. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a vase rattling. "Lorcan...." Sensing my dread he snapped his head up and looked around the room for danger. The wall to our right started glowing faintly in the shape of an archway, forming... symbols. "Wyrdmarks," I breathed.

I got up from the couch and walked to the marks. They were green, but all other portals had been blue, indicating these were special. There was no doubt this involved Aelin. But if she didn't tell us about it, it meant she was doing something dangerous or was in danger. There was no way Aelin would want us to go if it involved danger, which meant it was an accident that the portal appeared here, most likely a smudge in one of the marks she had written. She would have been careful though, which meant she was rushed, either trying to prevent Rowan from coming or to escape an enemy.