[DISCONTINUED] TOG and ACOTAR Crossover

10

Aelin, Dorian, Lorcan and Fenrys surrounded the thing that crashed through the window in an instant. The guests of the ball muttered amongst each other, stepping back to the farthest walls as they watched. The Night Court and other High Lords, of course, stood ready.

"How did you get here?" Aelin hissed "I thought we killed you all."

The monster - the Valg - tilted its head. It was in a fae body, but the stench and the sound of its voice was horrendous.

"You didn't kill us all, Heir of Mala," it replied "You didn't kill Orcus."

Aelin stopped in her tracks, horror splashing across her face. Rhysand knew something was wrong, very wrong.

"Who is Orcus?" Fenrys asked, herding the valg towards Lorcan. It was Dorian that answered, his voice somber and face pale.

"He's Erawan's brother. A Valg king."

The Inner Circle were all confused, their faces portraying nothing but that. They understood that this was bad, but they obviously didn't have the full story. Aelim would explain it to them later. First, she had to dispatch of this creature.

"Don't look, Dorian." she said. The king stepped out of the way and turned around, much to the confusion of the others.

Aelin rushed forward, unsheathed Goldryn at her back and swiped it down in an arc. The valg's head tumbled to the floor with a thud. Everyone other than her own court wouldn't understand why Dorian had turned away whilst aelin cut its head off; they wouldn't understand his trauma. It was something he could explain in his own time, if he wished.

Black blood poured all over the marble floor, forming a puddle around the body. Aelin stepped around it and embraced Fenrys in a hug.

"He's back," she whispered, voice small "he's really back."

-

The High Lords and Aelin (and her court) were all gathered in one of the sitting rooms. She had perched herself in Dorian's lap with an arm thrown over the back of the sofa.

"What was that?"

"A Valg;" Aelin replied "they are demon like creatures that feast on fear and your worst memories."

Rhysand continued, "and who was Orcus? Is it something we should be concerned about?"

"Yes, it's something you should definitely be concerned about." Lorcan muttered matter of factly. Aelin felt like laughing at the taunting in the male's voice, but she just couldn't bring herself to feel any joy in that moment.

"We had a war not long ago," Aelin told the story "there was a valg king - Erawan. He created an army and in ten years, took control of most of Erelia. He marched into Terrasen one day, and during a bloody war, we killed him. There was also a valg queen called Maeve, but she's dead now too."

"So they're easy to kill then?" Cassian asked "I mean, no offence, but you're a human and you managed to do it..."

"It was a horrible battle, Cassian," Aelin snapped "It was nowhere near easy. It lasted ten years and a lot of people I cared about died because of it."

The Illyrian general mumbled an apology and looked down at his feet.

"The only way you can kill them is a lot of fire, or strong healers can destroy the demon inside of them, as if they are a disease."

The High Lords hummed, and Aelin still had the feeling that they weren't taking it all too seriously.

"You wanted to know what the rest of my scars are from?" she asked. She stood up and pulled her shirt over her head. She had her bra on of course (she wasn't going to get naked in front of a group of strangers) but the full expanse of her torso was on display. The High Lord gasped, obviously not having seen the ragged scars before.

They were thick and thin, long and fat and each and every one of them were slightly raised above the rest of her skin. There was not one inch that was covered in marks. And when she turned around, it was even worse. The scars got bigger, all of them winding around the huge whip marks from endovier. They even traveled over her arms.

"You see all of these scars?" Aelin asked. they nodded, looking a little sick, "These were from Maeve - the Valg queen."

"What did she do to you?" Feyre whispered.

Aelin pulled her shirt back over her head and nestled down next to Fenrys. His arm wrapped around her comfortingly, and even Lorcan shifted a bit closer as if he was apologising for having any part in what occurred.

"She tortured me for two months because I had information that she wanted. I didn't give it to her and my husband, Rowan, as well as Lorcan and Gavriel found me."

"What about you?" Tamlin asked to Fenrys, his nose crinkling. Despite everything she had just revealed, he was still trying to pick a fight.

"Fenrys was with me the whole time I was tortured."

"And he didn't do anything to stop it?" Tamlin growled. Feyre almost scoffed; it was rich coming from him, considering he sat back and watched whilst Amarantha killed her. But Aelin seemed to take huge offence to that. She launched forward and pushed Tamlin against the wall, holding a knife to his throat.

"Fenrys was blood sworn to Maeve. He physically could not help me. But when it mattered the most, he broke the oath and helped me escape, knowing that he would die because of it."

She dug the knife in further, and the other High Lorss stepped closer with caution. They didn't like Tamlin, but she could not kill him - there was no one to take his throne.

"Do not question Fenrys' actions. Do not put him down and make him seem like he did nothing. Fenrys helped me in ways you cannot imagine."

She stepped away from him, leaving Tamlin gasping for breath. A faint trickle of blood ran down his neck and stained the green collar of his shirt.

"I am the Queen of Terrasen, but remember that before that, I was an assassin."

She walked back down to the seat and reclined comfortably, as if nothing had just happened.

Rhysand coughed, breaking the silence. "So, you say that fire can kill them. Your little group keeping making references about you and fire. What is that all about?"

Aelin crossed her arms over her chest. maybe it was time to show them who she truly was.