A Court of Shadows and Darkness
Chapter 1.
Azriel arrived near the Weaver's cottage, carefully surveying the area for any signs of movement. He remained concealed in the shadows while getting closer to the hut.
The foul stench of death and decay permeated the air as he moved, but if Feyre was correct, the book might provide crucial insights into Kochei's abilities and powers. It was, after all, the book of the gods.
Azriel truly hoped that the Stryga had perished during the last war, as they were unable to recover her body. If she was still alive, it would be a grave misfortune.
He was really not in the mood to meet with her. Cassian stayed a safe distance away, it was enough for one of them to come near this thing, and he would rather go himself than let his brother do it.
He halted at the verge of the woodland, his shadows coiling around his ear, his footsteps slowing down until he arrived at the columns beneath the wooden stairs. From within, he could hear the sound of someone stirring, and the scent was distinctly different; he couldn't quite place it, but it wasn't the Weaver. For a moment, his queasiness subsided as his lungs filled with the scent of vetiver and lavender. He took another deep breath, and there was another aroma present, but he couldn't tell with the door still closed. Footsteps were coming his way, and the scent grew stronger; whoever was inside was approaching, and the stench of decay was fading away.
The door opened, revealing a female and his shadows swayed around his jaw. She wasn't a Fae; her pale skin shimmered, as if dusted with gold, her ears showed some Fae heritage, but she wasn't high Fae. He could now scent her; vetiver, lavender, and honey filled the air. Large gold hoops dangled from her ears, and her onyx hair was swept back, with some curls still falling over her shoulders. She was dangerously beautiful. “Who are you ?” Azriel asked, his voice remained flat as he started scanning her for any weapons, but she wasn’t wearing any, only a small coin purse on her hips. He spotted her eyes sparkle and a mischievous grin formed on her face.
“Shadowsinger.” She breathed more to herself than him. “I'm just leaving, it's all yours” She uttered softly . Her voice sounded like silk as she descended the stairs towards him.She halted as his siphons flared blocking the way from both sides. Her head tilted to the side and grinned wickedly, scanning him as if she was planning her next meal.
“Love, Is this how you treat lone females? I’m open for a bargain if you must, but I assure you there is nothing on me that doesn’t belong to me and if you don’t mind I have places to be.”
Azriel eyes scanned her, when he noticed a lump under her jacket, but the female shifted her eyes to the woods, her nose flaring “We have company” she began retreating back to the door, he could not sense anything approaching,his shadows swirling around him in response to her words,the female unleashed a green lightning towards him.
His eyes followed the moment, but she was not attacking him, she stopped an arrow shooting towards him from the woods.
Azriel moved faster than the female was expecting it, it was clear from the expression on her face, when a second later he was by the door. “ You have something I need.” he whispered.
“Quiet” she hissed as three witches appeared from the woods. Leading the way was the eldest witch, her hunched figure draped in a tattered cloak that seemed to blend seamlessly with the mist. Her gnarled hands clutched a twisted staff, adorned with symbols. Her long, white hair cascaded down her back, contrasting starkly against her wrinkled skin.The two younger witches trailed behind, their movements synchronised as if they were mere extensions of the elder's will. They stopped some distance away, their faces sunken as their lifeless grey eyes scanning them.
The female moved from him, strolling down the steps, leaning over the rail “ I thought I scented filth” she mused, but the old witch crackled, the laugh sent shivers down Azriel's spine.
“ I guess I shouldn't be surprised to find you here, worms seem to survive anything“ those grey eyes shifted to him “ staying with Fae folk I see, have they broken you as they promised? ”
The female laughed, and stepped down from the last step, shifting her weight on her hip. “ I don't break that easily,but you know that ,and have you seen him? “ She jerked her head back without taking her eyes off the witches” he is certainly much better took look at than the lot of you“
Azriel remained motionless, his expression unchanged, yet his thoughts raced, this female was pretending to know him and he could not decide if that would benefit or doom him, but he couldn't deny that she had intervened just in time to prevent the arrow from reaching him. He considered it for a minute, just to winnow away,he should not be in the middle of this, whatever this was, but she still had something under her jacket, and he could not shake the feeling that it was the same thing he came to retreat.
Their faces contorted, but it was clear they were hesitating, whoever this female was she made the witches stall in their attack.
“ Little one, we have no business with you, but we do need something from the Weaver, so the question is will you be in the way or shall we pretend that we haven't seen you?”
“Pretend?” her hand lifted and that emerald flame crackled around her hand “Empusa, you won't get a chance to pretend”
The old witch laughed, summoning her own dark powers in the staff in her hand, the scent emanating from her caused Azriel to cringe, prompting him to move closer to the female standing at the foot of the staircase. Although her gaze briefly shifted towards him, her attention quickly returned to the witches, clearly deeming them a greater threat than himself. Her right hand was now coated in her emerald power and she tilted her head the same way she looked at him not long ago.
“ Time hasn't been kind to you Empusa, finally your exterior matches your rotten heart”
As the old witch lunged towards them, her face filled with rage. Fueled by her dark powers, black magic crashed against the emerald shield with a force that shook the very ground beneath them. In that split second, Azriel glimpsed a tiny glimmer escaping before a resounding thud echoed through the air as the young witch on the left lost her head.
For a brief moment, the female locked eyes with him, her voice barely audible as she whispered, "Run, you fool.”
The other two realised what happened and charged towards them as their powers seemed to merge attacking her shield;he did not know what had taken over him, but he grabbed the female and winnowed them away.
She fell to the ground dragging him with her, he was half kneeling above her when her eyes scanned their surroundings, they were just by the woods behind the cottage.
Her eyes snapped to him, fire seemed to burn in her amber eyes as rage filled her face. Azriel could not help but think that she was even more beautiful, until she punched him in the chest. “ What have you done?” she snarled, charging towards the cottage. He was right behind her when two black smoke shot across the sky and disappeared. “ Are you always this grateful when someone saves you?”
She turned around so swiftly Azriel nearly collided with her. “ Save me?” she scoffed “You saved them, they are fleeing.”
Her hand waved towards the sky and turned on her heels once more running right back where they started, she looked at the blood stained grass, the witch's body was gone together with the other two.
Azriel scanned the woods before turning back to her “Witches are dangerous “
She whipped her head towards him, a small smile tugging at her lips. “The first smart thing you said, Shadowsinger .” Azriel reminded himself that she still had something under that jacket. “ You still have something that I need.” his eyes shifted towards her chest.
The anger in her eyes began to fade, replaced by the feeling that he is indeed a threat and she stepped back, but Azriel stepped closer.
Her wicked smile returned. “You just let them go, I owe you nothing”
Her nose flared once more, he knew that Cassian was approaching, but so did she.
Azriel gazed at her briefly, then charged towards her. The air changed around them. Wind howled and roared, growing stronger with each passing second. It whipped at his clothes, tugged at his hair, and finally, it struck him with a force that felt like a sudden blow to the face. Azriel stumbled, his vision momentarily obscured by the gusts of wind that surrounded him. When he opened his eyes again, the female had disappeared from his line of sight. She was now standing between the cottage and the woods, quite some distance away from him. With a big smile on her face, she winked at him "I'll see you soon, Shadowsinger!"
He moved to her direction, shadows floating towards her, but she just faded away, like she was a dream. He chased after her, searching through the trees, but the scent of decay filled his lungs once more.
Cassian landed next to him.
“Who was that?”
He glanced back towards the woods “ A thief”.
They walked back to the cottage, their footsteps muffled by the creaking wooden floorboards. The foul smell of decay hung heavy in the air, permeating every nook and cranny of the small space. It was as if the stench had seeped into the very walls, refusing to be ignored. However, amidst the overwhelming odour, he managed to catch a subtle scent of lavender, a scent so delicate and soothing that it momentarily made him lose focus.
She was undeniably present, her essence lingering in the air like a ghostly whisper,he tried to make sense of everything that just happened.
The room was dark, they used their siphons to see better. There were few books, lots of jewellery, and old armour, the shelves were in a disarray, clearly rummaged through, but no sign of the leather bound book they came to retrieve.
Upon their arrival at the Riverside House, he shared the recollection with Rhys and Feyre.
"You have a crush on Lavender," Cassian has been teasing him relentlessly since he told him about what happened between them.“This is no joke, how did she do that ? I have never seen something like this” Azriel ran his hand through his hair, feeling the grime stuck in there , immediately regretting it. He could use a shower, but Rhys nodded in agreement. "Go speak to Amren, ask her if she has any ideas. Let's meet up tomorrow."
