It took Sorceress Iva mere minutes to carefully lift up the stones of the entrance hall floor with her magic. They floated in the air now, while Adelia, Ivan, Miriam and Sorceress Iva inscribed the top of ten stones with the final sigil.
They had to inscribe more stones to avoid drawing too much attention and suspicion if only a single stone held marks. Adelia would have loved to avoid inscribing the stone in an obvious and easy to see way, but Alexzander had to touch the spell in some way.
The clerics had touched the page the spell had been on, after all, when they had opened the book.
Getting Alexzander to stand on this particular middle stone, the one connected to the trap, was the hardest part, in her personal opinion.
She would have loved to trap all the marked stones to increase their chances of this trap working, but they didn't have time for that. Though, it was reassuring that the stones that made up the floor were a lot larger than the bricks the walls were made of.
Getting Alexzander to step on the trapped one should be easy enough, if they worked well together.
By the time the blacksmiths were done with creating the pieces and they had been delivered to the keep, they had finished with the stones and hollowing out the space beneath the trap-stone so the clockwork creation could fit.
Adelia knelt on the stone, accepting piece after piece, as she assembled what would connect everything. With both preparing the floor, etching onto the stones and waiting for the blacksmiths to be done, to now building her trap, hours had passed and she felt stiff, her knees and back aching from her hunched position.
"You have to step on this stone to start triggering the trap," Adelia explained to Ivan once she had finished everything, pointing out the weight that needed to be pressed down for the gears to start moving.
"And once Alexzander stands on the trapped stone, it will go off, so be ready with barrier spells," she finished explaining. Getting the trap to react to two weight triggers had been important if they hadn't just wanted the spell to fire off seconds after Ivan activated the first trigger.
For if Alexzander knew what they were planning, it wouldn't work a second time. This was their best chance.
They also didn't want half the keep to be turned into crystal, so they had to contain the spell to the best of their abilities. Redirect it, perhaps, if it couldn't be stopped.
Adelia got to her feet with a bitten-back groan, the sun starting to set outside and before she could figure out how to step out of her place within the contraption, Rowan appeared before her, offering her a hand with a warm, fanged smile.
She took it and he lifted her out of the recess with no effort, an arm wrapping around her middle so she could lean against him as she stretched out her legs. When she reached up with her arms to bring relief to her back, she leaned against his arm, almost bending backwards over it, her spine giving a few satisfying pops.
But on the heels of that brief relief was a bone-deep exhaustion. She hadn't slept in far too long, but she had to see this through.
"How much time is left?" she asked and Miriam lifted her hand, a vision of the sun over the horizon appearing over her palm. "An hour, if he doesn't come early."
"Then we better get something to eat so we're ready to receive him," Ivan said who had been walking from the doors to the trapped stone, stopping before it, counting his steps. "And then we better go and hide and get ready for his arrival."
So they were out of sight. They would all wait to jump in if Alexzander didn't simply step on the stone by himself.
"I already cleared out the keep," Rowan added. "The servants and day-guards are down in Ravenburg to have a nice evening and the night guard are hiding down in their crypt. If all goes well this precaution will be for nothing, but if not, we can at least keep casualties down."
"I, of course, will guard the outside of the keep," Steward Lambrecht's calm and certain voice cut in as he walked down the stairs, his steps downright silent. "I can shapeshift into something big and startling enough to stop him in his tracks if he slips past any of you and desires to escape."
Miriam hummed a low and melodic tone. "If you are certain, Lambrecht."
He bowed his head politely and curtly to her. "I will defend my home and my master and our people and it is an honor to do so, not a sacrifice, I promise you that."
"Thank you, Lam," Rowan said softly and Steward Lambrecht inclined his head anew.
Food was swiftly fetched and they all ate on the stairs of the entrance hall, though Adelia had to admit that it was a bit difficult to muster up any appetite. Mostly she was tired and she leaned against Rowan, who wrapped an arm around her, while he sipped on a bottle of blood with his other hand.
They had just finished and cleared the leftovers away when Sorceress Iva straightened. "He's here."
Adelia took a deep breath, while Rowan pressed a quick kiss to her temple, before he was gone. Miriam and Sorceress Iva similarly slipped out of sight, while Ivan stepped up beside her with a reassuring smile.
"I'm ready," he said with steady trust and they walked into the entrance hall. Ivan remained two steps from the first trigger stone and Adelia crossed the entrance hall to open the door. Icy wind blew in, a handful of snowflakes tumbling against her skirts and there he stood.
Dressed in fine robes like the first time she had met him, a smile on his face that couldn't have been more smugly satisfied, Alexzander stood on the stoop of her home.
"I am so very glad you and I could come to an accord," he said, voice low and she hated it. She hated him. "Is he here, then?"
She stepped aside, pulling the door further open and Alexzander moved to step past her, only to stop at her side and whisper, "Terribly sorry about Rowan. I heard you could not save him in time."
So Queen Nina had truly held her word. She hadn't told him anything.
Adelia's grip on the door tightened slightly and Alexzander stepped further past her to enter the keep and he called out, "Ivan, so glad you came."
Adelia closed the door just as Ivan answered, "I have no idea why, but since you didn't simply send a letter, I suppose it's something important?"
"Oh, absolutely," Alexzander answered as he stepped further forward. Adelia had to resist the urge to stare at him and his feet and the stone on the ground, counting the steps left until he stood on his end. "World changing, in fact."
Ivan took one measured step forward. "Alright, now I'm curious, what is it?"
Alexzander smiled a little wider as Ivan took one more step, stopping on his trigger stone. A dark golden glimmer appeared in his tattoos and he pressed a hand over his heart, the glimmer vanishing a moment later. But Alexzander had noticed and he drew to a slow stop. Two steps away from the marked stone.
He glanced down then and lifted a brow, before he glanced at Adelia without fully leaving Ivan out of his sight. "I see you redecorated?"
"I didn't," Adelia answered, her voice steady and sure, something she had learned to do in order to survive her father. If he had noticed even a hint of tension or lies on her, she would have paid dearly for it.
"Rowan...," she allowed her voice to crack and she made herself swallow before she continued, "had this already paid for. After my arrival he planned to change some things to make me more comfortable."
"I see his tastes remain as strange as ever," Alexzander mused. "For this sigil is utterly useless outside of enchantments."
Adelia kept her face from giving anything away by sheer force of will. Alexzander turned away from her after a moment and looked back towards Ivan, pulling an envelope from his robes.
"I recieved some unsettling news from a shared source," he continued. "It's best if you see for yourself."
Adelia was willing to bet all her possessions that the crystal-trap activated the moment Ivan opened the envelope or pulled the letter out and unfolded it.
Alexzander remained unmoving and so did Ivan. Adelia resisted the urge to glance at him and just before she stepped forward, hoping that an invitation to talk in the dining room would make him move, he spoke up, "Is something wrong? You're usually not this... shy."
Ivan was silent for a moment, before he sighed. He took one step forward, keeping the other foot on the trigger stone beneath him. He held out a hand. "You aren't normally shy, either, Alexzander."
"No," Alexzander mused, still not moving. His eyes darted down to the sigil on the ground, then to the other sigils placed around him. "But I fear I have to insist. Why don't you come to me?"
When Ivan didn't move, a terrible little smile appeared on Alexzander's face as he turned to Adelia. "Truly, I thought you had learned your lesson by now. Are you intending to kill me again?"
He made soft tsk-ing noises, appearing mock-disappointed and he added in a condescending voice, "Must I remind you what is at stake?"
Alexzander thought he could still threaten her with war. He didn't know anything, didn't know that Rowan lived and the king was no longer his ally, so Queen Nina had kept her word. Good.
They could not get too close to Alexzander if they didn't want to get caught in the crystallizing process as well, so she had to find a way to make him move on his own.
Her friends were capable of casting magical shielding to contain the crystal explosion once it took place, but that wouldn't help the person who had to stand in front of Alexzander to shove him where he had to go.
"Killing you is useless," Adelia answered, trying to find a way to get Alexzander to keep walking, trying to find what cog was missing to ensure their plan moved forward and worked. Alexzander just had to take two more steps. That was all. "How do you do it? How do you survive?"
His smirk was so slickly self-satisfied she had to bite down on the urge to make a face. "As if I would tell you. Be thankful that you can stay and look after these lands while I move on to bigger things."
And indeed, why would he care, if she remained in this keep when he planned to control everything? She would be under his thumb just as everyone else.
Alexzander glanced at Ivan and took a very clear step back. "Perhaps we should do this elsewhere. I trust that you don't want to loose even more, Lady Adelia? I'm certain we can arrange another meeting."
How could she get him to stay? He took another step back, moving to leave and Adelia couldn't think of a single thing to say that would make him stay, that would overpower his suspicion. She had to stall for time, had to say something to make him stop, at the very least.
"You are such a coward," Miriam's sudden voice made everyone twitch slightly in surprise and they all looked over to the side of the entrance hall. She leaned against the stone and Adelia had no idea how she had gotten here without anyone noticing, until she saw the shadows slipping off her fingertips and boots, returning to normal around her.
Alexzander looked frozen in place, staring at her with an expression that was so rigid it failed to fully hide the glimmer of fear in him.
"Sneaking, slipping, scuttling and skittering," Miriam continued, staring down Alexzander with eyes that glowed the faintest bit green. "Desperate for more and you never have enough. You are always so afraid of everything being taken from you and of loss and death and failure it makes you stupid. Tell me, what are you not afraid of?"
Miriam took a step forward and all of a sudden the air felt thick as though it had filled with something and there was a strangely muffled quality to the entire room. Ivan's tattoos shimmered golden and Alexzander took a step back, not towards the front door of the keep, but away from Miriam.
"You can't kill me," Alexzander snapped, though his voice had gained a tense quality.
"Maybe not," Miriam said. "But I sure as shit can ensure you don't want to live, either."
Alexzander's gaze darted to the front door. If he made it out, he could teleport away. His gaze then darted to Miriam and Ivan, clearly deciding that he was both outnumbered and overpowered and that he was better off running.
He released such a sudden burst of magic none of them stopped him in time, it was bright and blinding and distracting, like multiple lightning strikes had darted around the room at once and by the time Adelia had blinked the dancing lights away, Alexzander was by the front door, Miriam hot on his heels. Ivan remained standing on his pressure plate, though his tattoos were glowing a dark, shimmering gold.
"Lambrecht!" Miriam shouted just as Alexzander reached out for the door, her voice holding a strange, deep-reaching quality that seemed to fill the entire room.
Alexzander was about to throw the door open, when they were yanked apart before him and Rowan took a step forward onto the threshold and came almost nose to nose with Alexzander. He stood unharmed in the evening light.
A split second later a large copper dragon landed on the courtyard walls outside, wings spreading to the sides as it shifted its large, horned head down to see better. Its wings cast shadows that framed exactly around Rowan, the light falling through the windows growing dim while leaving her beloved standing in the light, the ring Adelia had made for him on his hand.
"Impossible," Alexzander whispered as he quickly took three quick steps back, eyes wide as he stared at Rowan.
And Rowan smiled, a smile Adelia had not seen on her love's face before, dangerous and dark, sharp fangs on display, his eyes glowing a deep, ominous bloody red.
"Do you want to know your greatest mistake, Alexzander?" Rowan asked conversationally as he stepped forward, Alexzander sharply taking another few steps back, his gaze now darting around, hunted and full of disbelief.
"You looked at my darling, brilliant Adelia and saw someone soft and defenseless. Helpless," Rowan continued, his head tipping to the side, his smile turning vicious. "And then you threatened what she loves."
"You can't kill me!" Alexzander threw the words out like a shield, like a warning and protection all at once. "Just try! I'll just come back and then there will be war! Do you think I don't have backup plans? I'll crush you all!"
"You sound scared," Rowan mused as he stepped forward again, the large dragon climbing down the walls to follow in his wake, the shadows of its wings shifting with it. "Why don't you let us test your mortality a bit more, you little fool?"
Alexzander just needed to step onto the other pressure plate. That was all. And then he would be done for.
Miriam shifted, drawing Adelia's attention and she saw her friend gestured subtly for her to step back. Keeping her steps as quiet as she had learned to be in her father's house, Adelia took a wary and careful step to the side – just as a spell whizzed past her, slamming into the wall and leaving a cracked hole that revealed the next room.
Eyes wide, her gaze darted to Alexzander. She saw his hand stretched out towards her, his fingertips glowing a strong fire-red and in his palm a bead of glowing light gathered.
Before she could try to run, she felt a magical force grab her around the waist and yank her back, just as the bead zipped towards her and she felt its heat pass by her face, so searing hot she had to squint her eyes shut and she heard the impact of the spell where she had just stood, an explosion of stone as heat rolled through the room like a wave.
She fell onto the hard stone floor the next moment, her breath getting knocked out of her lungs and she heard a distant, "Apologies!" from Ivan as she gasped for air. Dragging a ragged inhale into her lungs, she rolled to her side to get up, when the room was filled with powerful spells being cast by three powerful magic wielders.
The darkness of the deep ocean containing untold danger, the searing rage of a brightly burning sun, the deadly, acidic roar of something vile and powerful that slammed through the other spells like a boulder carving through a storm.
Rowan appeared beside her between one moment and the next and reached down to help her up, his eyes still glowing a deep, bloody red and he unceremoniously lifted her entirely off her feet, his lower arm beneath her thighs and her hands landing on his shoulder as she found her balance and clung to his clothes.
"Apologies for being brazen," Rowan said and she felt the tension in his body, the shift along his shoulders as though he wished to grow big and sprout wings. "But I am faster and when mages battle, anyone else better runs. Though for now we are offered protection."
Adelia looked to the side to see a shield of shimmering gold before them, dancing with light within itself, as though rays of sunshine were weaving together, only to break apart and weave with another beam of light over and over.
"Ivan's shielding us," Rowan said, "but it also means he can't fully fight Alexzander." He shifted his stance and held her a little closer. "That Alexzander can hold his own is worrying, though, Miriam bested him before, she should do so again."
"Unless he's better prepared," Adelia said and now that she had caught her breath, her mind was starting to race.
What could she do? Without magic, without powers, she could be killed by a stray spell and she couldn't get too close either, for once Alexzander stepped onto his pressure plate, she'd get caught in the blast.
The only safe place in the entire entrance hall at this moment was behind Ivan and she heard stone shatter and crack around them and – and if the trap broke, that was it. She had no idea how to trap Alexzander again if that happened and he got away.
Her gaze darted to the floor and she saw the push and pull of half- real waves, guarding the ground, and now she knew why Alexzander managed to hold his own against Miriam while also having to content with Ivan. Both her friends were guarding something, both had their attention split between protecting and fighting.
All he had to focus on, was destroying and if he had enchantments and sunstones with him, he had the upper hand.
What could she do? There had to be something she could do. Some way to distract Alexzander or make him careless or get him to move closer –
"Where is Sorceress Iva?" she asked and Rowan gestured behind them to the stairs.
"Keeping the keep from getting completely destroyed," he said. "Why?"
"We need something that keeps Alexzander rooted in place," she answered, flinching when a spell howling like a screeching, brutal death tore through the room, only to suddenly get swallowed by a yawning portal-maw of something so ancient and terrifying no words to describe it with existed.
"Then let's hurry, our friends can't keep Alexzander from fleeing for too much longer," Rowan said and his other hand came up to better brace her. Adelia closed her eyes just in time, air rushing past her fast and sharp and it stopped as soon as it had started.
"Iva, we need your help," Rowan said and Adelia opened her eyes to see Sorceress Iva kneeling on the floor, her golden dress, embroidered with red thread creating blooming poppies and red butterflies along the hem and bodice, pooled around her. Her hands were pressed to the ground and the feeling of magic was heavy in the air.
"It takes me everything I have just to keep these lunatics from destroying our home," she said. "I can't leave and I can't spare an ounce of magic for anything else."
"Do you have an enchantment that will root Alexzander in place?" Adelia rushed to ask and Sorceress Iva looked up for a brief second, strain visible on her face.
"Look into my study," she said. "I labeled everything. But you better hurry! Alexzander came well prepared, I felt him use a number of sunstones already to power his spells, his personal reserves are untouched, but our friends are using theirs."
"Understood." Adelia tightened her grip and closed her eyes as Rowan started darting through their home again. She only noticed him turning around corners for the barest of moments and then he rushed up the stairs to the tower.
It felt like it took two breaths at most, before he stopped inside Sorceress Iva's workroom, gently setting her down on her feet.
They broke apart to look through the various shelves and drawers, finding ingredients and items prepared for future enchantments and finally enchanted items themselves. They were, indeed, all neatly labeled.
Protection charms, heating charms, cooling charms, light charms and at last palm-sized clay plates that would cast a spell if broken apart. Sorting through them, Adelia finally found something that might work. A spell that conjured roots which reached for anything around them, dragging them in and entangling whatever that was.
Sorceress Iva had noted it as a potential spell to catch thieves or to try and catch someone running away. It would work. It had to.
But all the enchanted plates lacked a power source, Adelia realized as she grabbed the clay plate and closed the drawer. They were meant to be charged by magic, after all, so they could carry the fully-formed magic until it was released, but Sorceress Iva couldn't do it, she was all that kept their keep standing at the moment.
But then what – oh. She turned to Rowan. "I need the sunstone." It was magic, it could take the place of a mage, otherwise they never would have been able to make her trap.
Rowan stepped into the shadowed part of the room by the door, the sun still sinking outside, and took the ring off without hesitation, holding it out to her. "I can't join you in the fight again," he said with a regretful, grim note to his voice. "Ivan fights with sunlight and I could barely stand to be there with the ring on and once he uses all the power he has, even the ring won't protect me."
"Can you still take me down to the entrance hall?" she asked and found herself swept off her feet. She closed her eyes just in time, her hands curled tightly around the ring and clay plate.
The next breath she was set down onto her feet gently again, Rowan's hands gentle and strong at her sides. "Take him down," he whispered and leaned forward to press their foreheads together for a moment. "And then we can finally rest."
Adelia nodded and Rowan vanished. She hurriedly pried the sunstone out of the ring, the silver moonlight glow of it changing back to golden sunshine and she pressed the stone against the clay plate, on top of the runes and sigils etched finely into the burned clay.
The enchantment lit up like a beacon, making her wince with the sudden flare of light and then she felt fine cracks going through the clay. She hurriedly removed the sunstone and pocketed it.
She rushed down the stairs towards the entrance hall when a heavy rumble shook the entire keep and nearly made her trip, bright light flaring ahead.
She caught herself, hiked her dress a little higher with her free hand and ran the last bit of distance between the stairs and the entrance hall entryway as fast as she could.
Heavy blows of magic were traded inside the hall when she arrived, but she could tell that the howling death of Alexzander's spell had grown more noticeable, that the searing, burning sunfire and deep, drowning ocean was slowly getting beat back. He must have had his pockets full of sunstones to hold his own this well.
Adelia forced herself to stop at the entrance for a moment, to look and observe and find an opening to act. Ivan no longer had a shied up behind him, which had guarded her before, the gold of his goddess now mixing with the dark, sea-green of Miriam's patron across the floor.
They were still protecting the trap. They still believed in her and her plan. Ivan still stood on his pressure plate, too, not having moved an inch away from it.
Swallowing, she took a deep breath and watched the fast trading of spells, the deadly destruction of magic and then she noticed the way her friends tried to herd Alexzander onto his pressure plate, but he was moving too much, always making sure not to step onto the stone they wanted him on, dancing back and forth instead.
He knew it was a trap by now, of that there was no doubt.
Adelia eyed the floor, gripping the clay plate tightly. She couldn't toss the spell right onto the pressure plate itself, she'd risk the conjured plants blocking the stone from moving. But if she tossed it at the stone beside it, the plant would drag Alexzander onto the pressure plate instead.
If all went well. If she did it right.
She watched the flow of battle a moment longer, the dodging and attacking and just as Alexzander was driven towards the plate again, she shouted, "Reveal the ground!" And she threw the clay plate with as much strength and precision as she could.
There couldn't be a second of hesitation, a second for Alexzander to orient himself and react. For him to realize she had done something.
Her friends heard her, her brilliant, clever friends, who dropped their protective warding across her trap a split second before the clay plate hit its mark and shattered apart.
Plants burst forth with such power and such ferocity they made the floor shake and she feared for her trap, realizing that the enchantment had soaked up too much magic from the sunstone. The plant pressed against the ceiling and spread across the floor and Ivan threw up a shield just in time to avoid getting grabbed and yanked off of his stone.
But the plant also wrapped itself around Alexzander and yanked him close, but onto the wrong stone, it was so big the placement was all wrong. It was covering the pressure plate entirely. She had messed it all up.
Alexzander flung a spell to burn half of the plant as he was thrown against it, but there was so much magic, so much power in the spell that had been set free it regenerated immediately, wrapping around him anew and he threw out a massive burst of magic, incinerating the plant on the spot.
It crumbled away and he darted a quick glance down to the floor, seeing he stood right before the trap-stone and he turned to Miriam. Death gnashed its teeth between his hands as he conjured a spell that howled with the afterlife and just before he could take a step away from the trap, a last pulse went through the fading magic on the ground.
A single vine burst forth, wrapped around his calf and yanked.
Alexzander stumbled a step aside, his death-spell going wide and tearing almost the entire wall behind Miriam to shreds. He moved to catch himself and his foot landed right on top of the pressure plate.
Adelia heard the click of it activating a split second before the entire room erupted with such destructive power, it meant to unmade everything within reach and leave only its pure essence behind.
"No!" she heard Alexzander scream as he threw his magic against the very spell he had invented to murder clerics and get his hands on the sun. A spell that swallowed his magic like the sea swallowing rain. "No! Don't you dare! You stupid fucking wench!"
Heart pounding her chest, Adelia ducked against the side of the hallway, peeking into the room to see Ivan straining against a shield he had thrown up in front of him. It flickered then strengthened, only to flicker again, the devouring spell Alexzander had made reaching for everything around it, hungry for anything and everything within reach, just like his other spells had eaten all the people within the temples.
Alexzander screamed as his body began to turn into swirls of color as he dissolved around the edges, the spell unmaking him to re-make him into something else.
"No! No!" His voice grew high-pitched when no more spells could be formed in his hands, all his power getting sucked away from him, true terror turning his face into a grimace of a fear so deep and terrible looking at him made Adelia nauseous. "Please! Stop! Whatever you want I give it all!"
Alexzander's legs and arms vanished, turning into swirls of muddled gold and gray-orange.
His lower body turned to swirls of color next and he screamed as the spell started to eat around his head, new bursts of color adding, dull brown and flat black and burned red and now the spell ate holes through his middle, piercing his chest where his heart would be, adding swirls or lackluster purple and faded pink and washed out green.
Adelia watched as Alexzander gave one more, agonized scream, a scream of someone aware of his undoing in every detail, understanding what was happening to him because he had made this and then his voice was gone as the spell devoured what was left of him.
The spell swirled the colors together into a messy gathering, like a whirlwind pulling leaves and debris and grass and branches into itself. The next moment the colors started to purify and strengthen, the muddled and grayed, the tarnished and dulled and warped turning into clearly shining, strong color that started to turn over and around each other.
Faster and faster they moved, pressing down on each other, on top of each other more and more until the colors joined together at the edges and with a last, powerful eruption of the spell, blinding light filled the room.
For just a moment, sight and hearing and taste and sense of being were gone and then the spell Alexzander had made to, in the end, kill himself, fizzled away.
Adelia blinked when she saw a rough crystal creature standing in his place, vaguely reminding her of Alexzander, crystals jutting out of the ground around him and growing from the walls and down from the ceiling like teeth trying to close in around him and keep him in place.
And in the middle of the creature's chest, enclosed by clear crystal, rested a fist-sized stone, shining bright with all the colors of the world.
Ivan released the shield and fell down to his knees, breathing hard, sweat coating his back and dripping off his face and beyond him Adelia saw Miriam collapsed back against the wall, legs shaking as she gasped for air as well.
Feeling a little unsteady herself, Adelia pushed away from the wall and hurried to her friends, stepping over sharp little crystals jutting out of the ground.
"Are you alright?" she asked as she reached Ivan first, looking between him and Miriam. "Shall I go fetch aid?"
"No," Miriam rasped and her legs gave out, making her sump onto the ground heavily. "Magic exhaustion."
"That was brutal," Ivan wheezed. "Wouldn't have made it without my goddess. I, I think I need to lay down."
Adelia managed to grab his arm in time to keep him from face-planting into the ground. She helped him roll onto his back and he laid there, eyes closed and sweat dripping down his brow. Adelia hurried to Miriam to check on her too.
Miriam's eyes glowed a bright green, the heartbeat-pulse of green in her chest so strong she could see her ribs in detail even through her clothes. She even saw the green heart now, faintly outlined, otherworldly and strange.
"My patron gave me more magic than ever in my life," Miriam murmured when Adelia knelt beside her, unsure how she might help. "Without them, I'd be gone."
A shaky laugh escaped Miriam as she looked down at her trembling hands. "Alexzander was such a coward, he made something that normal mortals would never be able to survive."
Miriam let her head fall back against the wall and she closed her eyes, murmuring, "I think I'll go sleep now."
Miriam fell asleep the next second, her breathing slowing down and the glow in her chest and beneath her eyelids dimming and Adelia hesitated, before she got to her feet, checking on Ivan again, who was deeply asleep himself now.
"Rowan?" she called out and he appeared at the bottom of the stairs a moment later, his gaze glowing a dark red as it quickly darted over her, the glow vanishing and relief noticeable on his face when he saw her unharmed.
His attention snagged on Alexzander's crystal remnants next and his expression shifted to one of dark satisfaction.
Between one blink and the next he suddenly stood before her and reached out, gentle hands taking hold of her and she clung to his arms in return. It was only then that she realized she was shaking and his expression was filled with relief and awe.
"You are alright?" he asked and she nodded.
"Sorceress Iva?" she wanted to know and he quickly nodded reassuringly.
"Iva had to stop protecting the keep to avoid the spell noticing her, I brought her back to her rooms so she can rest," he said and cast a quick glance between Ivan and Miriam. "Looks like we better get them comfortable, too."
He squinted towards the entrance doors to see them half blown off their hinges and partially encrusted in crystal, the windows shattered entirely. "It looks like they managed to contain the damage to this hall." He raised his voice, calling out, "Lam?"
"All is well, Master Rowan," Steward Lambrecht's calm voice answered. "I shall meet you once I am presentable."
Rowan's shoulders relaxed and he turned back to Adelia. "You did it," he whispered and she shook her head.
"Not alone, I could not have done it alone. This was all us." They moved at the same time, clinging to each other tightly and a trembling laugh escaped her, followed by tears.
It felt as though the entire throne room held their breath and Adelia saw people leaning forward, the faintest noise of feet shifting cutting through the silence, her heart sounding lout in her ears as it beat faster, before servants grabbed the curtains.
King Harold's mage, who Adelia hadn't noticed until now and who stood off to the side, waved his hand, the candles on the chandeliers going out all at once.
There was a brief moment of murky darkness, before the servant's bodies strained against the large, heavy swathes of fabric and the curtains got yanked open with a strong jerk.
Morning light streamed through the windows, the sun at the exact spot where it seemed as though the windows were framing it. Pale golden light illuminated everything, made brighter by all the white snow and clear, blue sky.
Adelia's gaze immediately darted to Rowan and she noticed his faint tension, his body slightly leaning away from the light, but nothing happened. He did not start crumbling apart or dying on the spot, the light stealing his life away.
Instead, he remained hale and whole and he stared out the window with a bit of a squint, as though, while the sun didn't harm him, even the pale morning was quite bright to him.
A soft, slightly shaky exhale of relief escaped her and Rowan's gaze darted to her. The way he looked at her stole her breath away, gaze heavy and full of emotion and awed adoration. As though she was everything he could have ever hoped for in life. As though she had done something he had thought was impossible.
There was a beat of heavy silence, people clearly waiting for more to happen, before murmurs broke out and King Harold took a sharp step forward.
"What is the meaning of this?" he downright barked at the monster hunters, who glanced at each other uneasily, bodies tense and their gazes surprised and then uncertain. "You said he was a vampire!"
"Forgive us, your majesty," the oldest of the hunters was quick to answer, the angle of his shoulders no longer confident and battle-ready but startled and even stiffly awkward. "We were certain, he had all the signs." He hesitated then. "But no vampire can escape the sun, even the briefest exposure to it is a death sentence."
"If Rowan is no vampire, then I am not thralled, isn't that correct?" Adelia raised her voice and King Harold's gaze snapped to her, barely controlled rage in his eyes. She looked away from him to the hunters. "Release him, he has done no wrong and the only crime he was accused of was clearly a false one."
The men hesitated, glancing at King Harold and Adelia turned to him, too, speaking before anyone else could, "Will you continue to insult the Wilds or will you admit to your error and release someone you claim is your friend?"
King Harold's gaze was piercing as he stared at her and he snapped out, words sharp and hard, "You have no power here, My Lady, watch your tongue."
Adelia looked back at him, calm and tall in a way she had never dared to be around the king. "Will you keep an innocent man in chains then, my king? Will you demand another trial and if that fails too yet another? Has he not proven his true nature to you?"
"The test has failed," Baron Izna spoke up, his usually kind, elderly face hard and his voice rose to be easily heard. "Will there be war over false claims, your majesty?"
The entire hall was silent and the king's eyes were dark, his expression barely controlled. He was about to answer when Queen Nina turned towards him, murmuring softly. King Harold exhaled and swiftly got himself under control again.
"The trial is on pause," he declared. "It seems I was misled." With these words he gestured at the hunters, who stood silently in the middle of the throne room, bodies tense and expressions grim, though their eyes flickered with quiet alarm.
The king could have them punished severely if he thought they had lied to him and he likely would claim to have been fooled to save face. Adelia did glance at Queen Nina briefly, the queen not meeting her gaze as she stood supportive and quiet beside her husband.
If their plan worked and King Harold was thralled, no one would have to die today. Nor would there be war.
"I will investigate whose lies led to this," King Harold continued. "And in the meantime, Lord Rowan Morrow is a guest of my house." With a gesture from him one of the hunters reluctantly stepped forward, pulling a key from his pocket.
Rowan's wrists were unlocked and he looked at Adelia a moment longer, dark eyes adoring and admiring and grateful, before looking up at King Harold, his gaze going cool. "You have an hour, Harold."
King Harold waved him aside, as though his words were meaningless, but Adelia noticed the tension of his frame and a vein was surfacing on his forehead, revealing his simmering rage.
"I will stay," Adelia said and King Harold glanced at her, a frown appearing on his face.
Before he could say anything, her father's voice cut through the air. "You will do no such thing," he said, sharp and clear. "You have spent too much time already amongst these people, it is time you return home and get ready to marry Lord Emmertal."
He gestured to the side and Adelia realized with quiet surprise that she hadn't even noticed Lord Emmertal. He looked a little paler than usual and leaned onto a cane, but his gaze was as haughty and dark as ever and at the mention of the wedding his lips twitched up into a cold, eager smile.
"No," she said, voice steady and clear as she stepped forward. "I will do no such thing."
Her father's gaze grew icy, a cold rage there that had once cost her what she had loved most. Never again.
"You are a daughter of my house and you will behave like it," he said, his voice a clear warning to not push this topic again. To obey, to not embarrass him in front of everyone. To be the sweet little, pliant doll he had raised instead of a human being.
Adelia wanted to embarrass him so much he wouldn't dare to leave his castle for weeks to come.
She stopped beside Rowan, standing between him and her father and she lifted her chin. "I reject your name, your house, your legacy and your blood," she raised her voice, ensuring the entire, silent once again hall could hear really clearly. "I cast the name Aria from me, you are neither my lord nor my family." And at last, a sharpness seeping into her words she couldn't hold back, "The ties between us are cut."
"I am your father," he downright snarled at her, his icy anger gaining a sudden, searing hot edge Adelia had never seen before. She had always stopped at his coldness. But not today.
"You are not my father," she answered. She had left his house with these words, a public separation that everyone had been part of. It felt exhilarating, it felt freeing.
He had no right to her anymore.
A muscle at her father's jaw ticked. "You will have neither my money nor my support," he answered, a warning and threat in his voice. "You are cast into the cold alone, banished from my lands for all your life. Is that what you wish?"
He sounded as though he expected her to think better of it. To remember the luxury and comfort provided to her station.
"That is exactly what I wish," Adelia answered and held out her hand, Rowan's sliding into hers immediately, their fingers lacing together. "And neither are you welcome in my lands for all your life."
"Your lands?" her father barked out with an incredulous laugh. "You are married to none, you are allied to none and you better hope your words about your purity are true, or none will want you."
"I beg to differ," Rowan said in that moment. "Adelia is my lady and welcome in my home, she is welcome to govern my lands with me and stand at my side. If she wants, I will propose to her again, properly this time. And if not, she has the rights and power of a lawfully wedded wife, along with my loyalty and regard."
Rowan stared her father down, who actually appeared speechless for a moment. "You cast a treasure beyond compare aside. Your foolishness stands untriumphed and uncontested."
"And if she gets tired of Rowan, she will always be welcome in my lands," Iris spoke up in that moment. "For she is my dear friend and will be provided for, for however long she might desire it."
Her lips quirked into a crooked smile. "And I am not the only one who would welcome her. Your daughter is a powerful, smart woman and you are easily one of the dumbest men I ever met."
Her father looked as though he was frozen in place, rage and confusion on his face and her mother stood stiffly beside him. Adelia met her gaze for a moment and noticed the quietly pleading look her mother sent her.
No, never again would she allow her mother to sway her. She tightened her hold on Rowan's hand, who gave her a gentle squeeze back. She glance at her friends and saw Iris look at Katrina, who took a deep breath and their hands entwined.
"The name Adelia shall be struck from all family trees," her father spoke up in this moment, but Adelia refused to look at him or pay attention to him. She had nothing more to say to him.
"Enough," King Harold cut in. "The girl is no longer noble, let her choose her fate and come to regret it. Now, excuse us."
Murmurs broke out now as the nobility moved to leave the throne room, some voices raised enough for Adelia to hear what was being said. Mostly they called her foolish and shortsighted.
Izabel and Katrina caught her gaze on their way out and Adelia noticed that Katrina was clutching Iris's hand, a determined tilt to her chin. Adelia couldn't help but smile at her friends smiled at her in return, Iris grin all easy confidence and warm care.
Izabel and Katrina would be safe with Iris, so she didn't have to worry about anything.
Then she met Tirn's gaze, his wife at his side and she wondered if fatherhood had made him more responsible. Tirn's gaze was very confused and he glanced between her and Rowan, then down at her hands and Adelia stared back, tall and proud.
Rowan was a far, far superior choice to Tirn and she was very happy with him at her side. Tirn... looking back now, while he wouldn't have been a cruel or mean or terrible partner he would also have been... stagnant. Content to keep going as things were, without seeking change.
Tirn looked away, something uncomfortable on his face and he left with his wife.
Adelia looked at Rowan then, turning towards him as the throne room got empty.
"Are you well?" she asked quietly and he leaned forward to rest his forehead against hers.
"I love you so much," he whispered and she had to kiss him, ignoring the reignited murmurs of the last nobles that saw her display of affection. Something that was rather frowned upon in public.
Fuck them, she couldn't help but think and kissed Rowan once more.
That was the moment someone approached them and she looked up at Lord Emmertal, who stared at her with such acidic displeasure and something dark and ugly it immediately soured her mood.
"I will not take a discarded girl to wife," he said. "I suppose I must return to your friend, then." An unspoken threat was in his voice. Marrying Katrina would both help him save face and punish her for escaping him.
But Katrina was safe and Lord Emmertal had at most two more months left to live. Three, perhaps, if his mage managed to keep him alive a little longer.
"Take your leave, my lord," Adelia told him. "The king will speak with us alone."
There was a twitch across his face, incredulity melting into dark rage. But King Harold approached now with Queen Nina and he had no choice but to step back.
He turned sharply on his heels and left, but Adelia noticed how, despite his tall posture, he leaned a bit more onto the cane than expected. The magical illness was already sinking its claws into him. Good.
Sorceress Iva stepped up on Rowan's other side when King Harold reached them, the hunters gone, too, now. Only the king's court mage remained, lingering nearby, his gaze resting on Sorceress Iva, as though gauging how dangerous she might be to his liege.
King Harold cleared his throat. "Terribly sorry about that business, Rowan, but you understand I have to take such matters seriously," he said, speaking a tad faster than Adelia was used to, as if he wanted to brush everything aside as quickly as possible and move on.
Rowan, beside her, was clearly anything than happy, but she gave his hand a subtle squeeze. He didn't know about the plan she had made with Queen Nina, but her brilliant husband caught on right away.
"Let's speak in your study," he said. "You know I don't like any unneccessary ears listening in. Or have I lost that privilege along with these outlandish accusations?"
King Harold blinked in surprise, before he sighed and inclined his head. "Yes, I suppose. Come. But your sorceress remains here with my mage. Will your... will she join us?" He nodded at Adelia, who bit back a sigh.
A woman was either a daughter or a wife here, especially a noble one. He clearly had no idea what to call her now that wasn't also insulting.
"My darling Adelia will join us," Rowan answered, his voice gaining a warning, slightly chilling edge. "Or have you forgotten her name already?"
King Harold's face was a still mask of barely clung to control, before he stiffly offered her a half nod and turned to leave, adding, "Then my wife will join us, too."
Rowan glanced down at her, giving her hand a squeeze, before he turned to Sorceress Iva. "I'll be back in a minute, Iva. I'll meet you in the courtyard?"
Likely to teleport right back home. Sorceress Iva nodded and the king's mage stepped forward, offering to escort her out. She accepted graciously, while Adelia and Rowan moved to follow King Harold.
Adelia had never seen the king's personal study, but it was as opulent as the rest of the palace. He sat down at his desk, while his queen moved to stand behind him.
Rowan pulled the single plush chair at the side of the room over and he offered one to Adelia first, coming to stand behind her. The king looked puzzled, but clearly decided to let that go, looking up at Rowan instead.
"I do hope you forgive that little mess," he said, all charming, kingly smile on his face. A smile that expected to hear a yes, that always heard a yes where his desires were concerned.
Queen Nina gave Adelia a nod and she lifted a hand over her mouth, acting as though she was hiding a sudden yawn as she whispered, "Are you willing to thrall King Harold? The queen is willing to aid us and ensuring there is no risk of war if you do."
"Though I do wonder," King Harold continued in that moment. "Why are you only ever visiting at night? I have to admit the... hunters..."
His voice trailed off, his expression going slack as he blinked up at Rowan. Rowan leaned forward, a hand on the back of Adelia's chair.
His voice, when he spoke, made the world fade out along the edges even for Adelia, who was not even looking at him, "We are friends, Harold. You will cease questioning me on this, or accusing me of anything. And you will obey your wife's every last word."
King Harold leaned back in his chair, murmuring a blank sort of, "Yes, I will."
"Lovely." Rowan leaned back again and his voice returned to normal, leaving Adelia and Queen Nina to blink as the world faded back in, and King Harold sat still and silent, staring into the distance. "You will have to come up with a way to hide his condition, but he will do as you say."
Queen Nina exhaled softly, a faint easing of her shoulders. "I thank you, Lord Morrow. The court mage is on my side, so we will find an appropriate enchantment and otherwise my husband will be attending less gatherings, sending me in his place."
"Yes," King Harold murmured, head bobbing a bit loosely as his body seemed to try and nod. "I will."
Queen Nina stepped forward then, coming to stand beside her husband. "And we will keep each other's secrets," she continued. "And if you are willing to cooperate with me further, we can be great allies to each other." Queen Nina looked at Adelia then. "The three of us."
Rowan leaned forward to meet Adelia's gaze, his brow raised in a silently questioning manner.
"We shall write later to discuss our alliance," Adelia decided. They first had to deal with Alexzander before they could start thinking about hammering out the details with Queen Nina.
Speaking of which. "If that is all, I fear we must leave," Adelia said and got to her feet. "Do send Baron Izna my kind regards and please tell Alexzander that Rowan has perished in the light."
Queen Nina nodded and rounded the desk to escort them to the door. She told the waiting guards outside to see them safely out and Adelia couldn't help but quicken her steps as they headed down the hallway.
Rowan easily matched her stride and the guards were swift to do so as well. They reached the courtyard minutes later and Sorceress Iva started casting the moment they were at her side.
As soon as the swirl of blurring color settled into solid shapes again, Adelia couldn't help but exhale at the relief of seeing the Grim Keep again. And the next moment Rowan swept her into a hug, breathing a cool breath against her neck before he inhaled deeply.
Adelia hugged him back, clinging to his solid body, though he smelled like wet iron and moldy hay. Like the cell he had been kept in.
"Thank you," Rowan exhaled, one hand rising to lightly cup the back of her head, his touch gentle and carefully not disrupting her hairstyle. His nose brushed beneath her jaw and his lips pressed against her neck. "I thought... after Harold trapped me and I heard of his trial, I feared the worst."
Adelia hugged him tighter. "I would not have let you die," she whispered back. "No matter what, I would have come for you." She felt her shoulders relax, her body sinking against Rowan's. "The ring worked well, I hope?"
He exhaled something that sounded like a breathy little laugh. "I could not bear a direct exposing to the midday sun, but the morning and evening light will not wound me. My fierce lady, my brilliant, beautiful love, thank you from the bottom of my still heart."
He pulled back then to kiss her, emotion spilling over as they held on to each other, touching and reassuring that all was well, that they had made it out, that no one had been lost. Adelia felt a brief nip of Rowan's fangs against her lower lip, sharp but light enough to not wound her and it made a brief, pleasant shiver travel down her spine.
She wished she could have kept kissing him, to hold him, to curl up at his side and sleep, for the day not slept the entire night, but danger had not passed yet.
So she pulled back, their noses briefly brushing each other and she whispered, "We must take down Alexzander, he has orchestrated all of this in the first place."
Rowan pulled back a little further, his eyes glowing a deep red. "I have grown quite hungry, clad in silver as I was for so many hours," he murmured. "I can at the very least drain him dry." He smiled then, his fangs on display and his hands rose to cup her cheeks. "And if you have plans for him, I will gladly aid you."
Adelia was about to answer when the entrance of the keep was thrown open and Ivan and Miriam strode past the threshold.
"Glad to see you back!" Ivan called out, relief easy to detect in his words. "The message that something was wrong reached us only half an hour ago. What exactly happened?"
"We collected further fragments," Miriam said. "I think we have enough to see what exactly Alexzander did to the clerics."
"Why don't we go inside for that conversation," Sorceress Iva cut in swiftly. "And I can take a look at those fragments."
The sorceress ushered them into the keep and as soon as they were within Adelia's workroom, she got Ivan and Miriam caught up on exactly what had happened.
"Alexzander wanted you," she told Ivan at last, Rowan standing attentively at her side. "I don't know why, but it was his demand for either saving Rowan or saving our lands from war."
For perhaps the first time since Adelia had gotten to know Ivan, his face was utterly unreadable. A dark golden glimmer went through his tattoos for a moment and he exhaled slowly.
"Only Cynar knows this," Ivan said, then paused and grimaced. "But if Alexzander paid really good attention, if he read history books, he might have been able to figure it out if he was clever enough. Or paid someone who was clever enough to do the research for him."
Ivan was silent for a moment, before he took a deep breath. "What I tell you know will not leave this room, swear it."
"I swear," Adelia answered, Rowan and Miriam and Sorceress Iva echoing her. His shoulders eased slightly.
"Sometimes, though it's rare, gods fall in love with humans," Ivan began. "As it happened with the sun goddess and me."
Miriam made a curious hum. "That's why you're stronger than the other sun clerics." It was a statement but Ivan nodded all the same. "And if Alexzander was clever, or hired someone clever, he could have cross-referenced powerful clerics through the ages and realized what your relationship with your goddess is."
"Precisely that," Ivan said with a nod. "But even then he must have been looking for a way to get his hands at the gods."
"Can he?" Adelia asked. "If he takes you, does he have the sun goddess?"
"Ordinarily no," Ivan answered. "Gods don't die for us or let themselves get held captive for us. But... Alexzander has created something very tricky with that spell that turns people into crystals. My goddess has promised to take me and Cynar in after our deaths. If my soul gets destroyed, she'll lose me forever. And if she reaches out and tries to save my soul, the spell would take her, too."
Adelia heard sharp inhales, while she stilled. "So Alexzander doesn't plan to control the sun, he plans to steal it." A disbelieving sound escaped her. "And with the sun in the palm of his hand, what force can stand in his way?"
Who could afford to, truly? Would the sun disappear from the sky? Or would he just have all the power for a god at his fingertips while daylight remained? Either way, they could not allow that to happen, no matter what.
"Yes, that," Ivan sighed and reached up to take his sun amulet into his hand, his brows furrowing. "I try to tell her not to reach out if something happens, but I don't know... our connection is special, in all truth I fear even if she doesn't try to save my soul, the spell might still touch her regardless."
"Then we strike first," Rowan said. "We can't kill him, but perhaps there is something else we can do?"
"If we can break into his castle and steal his research, we can start understanding what he did to himself," Miriam said. "But I wouldn't be surprised if he trapped his place and put his research into some sort of magical pocket space." Her lips pressed together for a moment before she added, "I don't know if we have time for all that."
Adelia frowned and turned to Ivan. "Has he tried to give you things or invite you somewhere?"
Ivan paused. "You know what, he started doing so a couple of months ago. I thought it was weird and he cited wanting to smooth any ruffled feathers, but I never trusted him, so I declined both his gifts and his invitations."
Adelia began to mull things over as Rowan and Miriam discussed breaking into Alexzander's place, since the risk was too high for Ivan that one of the potential traps was meant for him, specifically.
Adelia glanced over her shoulder to where Sorceress Iva had used the various fragments to build a complete page, though it was easily visible that it had come from various different pages, there was even a bit of a stain on one corner.
"Would his spell work on him?" Adelia asked and the conversation fell silent as everyone turned to Sorceress Iva.
She smiled. "It works on anyone with a soul. As long as he didn't get rid of his, it will take hold. And the definition of faith is very loosely, if he has faith in himself, in his abilities, in his magic, the spell will consume all of that." She thought about things for a moment, before she added, "Even if he has a fragment of a soul left in his body the spell will take hold."
"It would destroy him," Miriam murmured, before she smiled, too, the green heart-beat-glow of her chest growing a little in intensity. "It doesn't matter that we can't kill him when we take his soul and his magic and whatever immortality he has achieved away with this."
"But how do we get him to touch his own spell-trap?" Ivan asked. "We can't hardly smack him in the face with it, because anyone who touches it gets affected, too."
So no one could hold Alexzander down, either.
Sorceress Iva and Adelia glanced at each other at the same time, a silent conversation taking place and the sorceress smiled at her. "I think we had the same idea just now."
"Yes," Adelia answered and glanced at Ivan. "Are you willing to play bait?"
"Oh, absolutely," Ivan answered without hesitatioin. "If you tell me what your brilliant minds hatched together."
"We do again what we have done ever since he made the mistake of giving me one of his sunstones," Adelia said. "Build a clockwork trap."
"I would suggest putting it into the floor," Sorceress Iva said. "The entrance hall would work best, since he's always just walked in."
"He has to touch the spell though," Rowan cut in. "How will you make him do that?"
"I suppose that is where I come in play," Ivan mused and Sorceress Iva nodded.
"We hide the spell in the stone and you will have to step on the one to trigger the mechanism once Alexzander is in the middle of it," Sorceress Iva said. "I never would have made such a spell-trap myself, but I can adjust it. I can make it reach through the stone to the nearest soul and keep it from exploding outward."
She looked grim for a moment. "Alexzander didn't care for the damage it did, so he never gave the spell any borders. It just extended until it ran out of energy."
"How do we keep him from running?" Miriam asked and Sorceress Iva gave her a sharp little smile that made her pause and then smile back. "Oh, I get to block the exit?"
"He can't teleport out," Sorceress Iva said. "Only once he leaves the keep will my protective wards let him leave." And with a small shrug she added, "I trust that you both can keep him in check if he starts flinging spells."
Miriam snorted. "I killed him once before, I can keep him standing still long enough for the spell to take him."
"Make sure he doesn't leave the circle," Sorceress Iva advised. "Or the spell-trap won't work." She tipped her head slightly to the side and added, "He might not even realize what's going on if we're careful enough."
Adelia turned to the page for a moment, before she asked, "I think I have an idea if you can make it work, Iva."
"Of course," Sorceress Iva said and waved her closer.
Adelia stepped away from Rowan's side, her fingertips brushing his hip in a quiet parting. She paused briefly to glance back. "Would one of you write Alexzander? He'll expect an answer by the evening at the least since he'll believe that we lost Rowan and that I'm desperate to protect our home from war."
"Of course," Rowan said. "I'll tell Lam to write him. What else should he add?"
"That Ivan will arrive two hours before sundown," she answered and smiled up at Rowan, a sharp little smile that saw a dark red glow appear in his eyes. "If you want, you can give him the fright of his life by appearing."
Rowan laughed softly and stepped forward to press a kiss to her lips. "I love you," he murmured. "I can't wait to see this beautiful trap of yours."
He pulled back and his fingertips brushed her cheek before he left, Miriam and Ivan stepping closer to Sorceress Iva and Adelia to get started on the trap.
"So this is what I thought," Adelia said and grabbed a page. "You let me know if we can do this."
Adelia reached her workroom in seemingly no time and she rushed over to the inscribed plates, pulling the sunshine ring from her pocket. She only had hope and suspicions to work off of, but it had to be enough. It had to help her figure out what to do, because she was not losing Rowan nor her new home.
She had just started adjusting the plates when the door was thrown open and both Sorceress Iva and Steward Lambrecht appeared, faces tense.
"Is it true?" Steward Lambrecht asked with a grim sharpness that she had never heard in his voice before, and for just a split second his eyes reflected the light in her workshop strangely. "Has our friend been taken?"
"He'll be forced into a trial by sunrise," Adelia answered, her own voice coming out curt and tense as she kept shifting and adjusting the plates. "But I think, if this works, then I can save him." She looked up. "If we can find him in time."
"I'll contact his sire right away," Steward Lambrecht said. "While she broke the spawn bond to let Master Rowan become a formidable vampire of his own right, they kept the sire-bond between them alive. She can track him down anywhere, just like he can find her."
A soft brush of brief relief eased the tightness around her heart. "Please do," she said, her voice a little softer now, gratitude easing the sharp curtness of her tone. "In the meantime, Sorceress Iva, I am direly in need of your expertise."
"Certainly," the sorceress stepped forward, the embroidered, golden flowers on her warm-yellow dress shimmering in the light. "But why did that worm take our Rowan?"
"He wants Ivan," Adelia answered, stepping aside to let the sorceress join him while Steward Lambrecht lingered in the door a moment, listening. "We learned that the sunstones were made of the faith and souls of sun priests, I suspect he wants to take Ivan's."
The door closed softly just as Sorceress Iva cussed, then she sighed roughly. "Alright, one problem after another. What do you hope to do with the ring? I'll do what I can to help."
Adelia finished moving the last of the plates and the golden glow of the ring's stone changed to a silver-white shine. "Can we do something with this?" she asked. "I was hoping it could somehow help with the sunlight."
Sorceress Iva's brows were raised and she took a step closer, leaning forward, a look of sharp focus settling over her face. Adelia stepped aside to let her examine the cobbled together disk more closely.
A moment later her brows went back up. "This feels like moonlight," she murmured and reached out, gently pressing careful fingertips to ring and the now opalescent-white crystal. After a brief second she suddenly grinned, sharp and fierce. "I can work with this."
"Can you help Rowan?" Adelia asked, taking a step forward. "Does the crystal do anything like this?"
"It doesn't do anything by itself, but I can cast a spell through the crystal, giving it a different property." The sorceress turned to Adelia, fingers still resting on the ring. "I could never protect Rowan or his sire Carmilla from the effects of the sun. But a crystal like this never existed before, either. With it I can morph some of the warding and protective spells I have so Rowan's body treats sunlight like moonlight."
He wouldn't burn, wouldn't suffer when standing in the light of dawn. Adelia inhaled sharply, something like hopeful relief gripping her throat tightly for a moment and she had to blink back a sudden sting of tears. If this worked, she wouldn't lose him, wouldn't lose someone she loved.
"But I'll need your help," Sorceress Iva said the next moment. "Because I can't very well stand beside Rowan and cast the spell, can I?" She slipped her fingers past the ring and tapped them against the disk. "Nor can we give Rowan something enchanted, because then a mage would notice it and take it from him."
She smiled. "But with one of your creations, inscribed with my enchantment, no mage would be either able to stop the spell being cast, for they won't be able to see it happening, nor will they be able to locate the source of such short little bursts of magic among silver chains and monster hunters and the king likely being decked out with plenty of protective wards."
She brushed her fingers over the ring again. "They'll check Rowan before they take him out to face his trial and when they won't find any magic on him, they won't suspect him to be the source of those magical bursts either, even if they start looking. Especially since we'll likely need to have the protective spell cast more than once. The protection will wear off rather swiftly considering just how deadly the sun is to our boy."
Which meant Rowan had to wear the enchanted item along with the changed sunstone somewhere on his body and the enchantment had to get cast perhaps once a minute, or every thirty seconds or so. It also had to lay dormant until Rowan had been checked over for magic.
Sorceress Iva picked up the ring, the moonlight glow fading back to a golden, gentle sunshine shimmer. "Can you make something small enough to fit into a ring?"
Adelia had never worked with something quite that tiny before, but she had plenty of experience with working with small gears and even smaller screws and her hands were steady. "If you help me assemble everything with a bit of magic," she asked. "Then yes, I can."
She glanced to the lenses Rowan had gifted her not too long ago. "We'll use these," she said, stepping away a moment to retrieve them. She picked the thickest lens up, holding it over the ring, which suddenly looked absolutely huge. "This way we can inscribe the metal and get everything working."
Sorceress Iva stepped aside so she could set the lens into the arm mounted at the side of one of the work desks. As soon as that was done, Adelia grabbed a blank page and something to write. "How does your enchantment work?"
Thankfully, it wasn't hard to figure that part out. Sorceress Iva was truly an expert, for she could take the enchantment apart into its individual components and together they figured out what sort of clockwork it would take to get the ring to cast the protective spell as often as needed.
She could see it in her mind, the tiny plates turning around steadily, carrying the energy from the crystal from one plate to the next and to completion over and over again. Like a water wheel keeping the milling stone moving without pause. Like the clocks keeping the hands moving, showing the steady, calm passage of time.
Once that was done, Adelia began to design the dimensions of the ring that everything had to fit into, along with the clockwork design, writing the various sizes of the tiny parts down neatly beside it.
She was more glad than ever that she had so often built small things so they were easy to overlook, easy to hide from her father.
As soon as she was done with the final sketch, Sorceress Iva went down to Ravenburg to wake the black- and silversmiths to get their help to make everything Adelia needed.
Adelia, in the meantime, counted the hours left until sunrise, fiddling with the papers and tools around her, arranging everything they would need neatly.
She was restlessly shuffling about as soon as she nothing more to do, worries eating through her, a slight nausea settling firmly into her gut. She needed to keep busy, she realized, or she'd think herself into a frazzled mess and she needed to be as collected as possible now.
Then an idea found her. She would travel to where Rowan was being kept and she would most certainly attend his trial and since Emmertal was well and truly poisoned at this point, there was no need to uphold the whole charade that she would marry him after ensuring Rowan was safe and sound.
As soon as she had Rowan back at her side, it was time to properly cut ties with her old home, to burn bridges infested with rot.
She rushed up to her rooms with large steps to fetch the emerald and gold dress her father had commissioned for her, one she was supposed to wear at the next ball thrown by King Harold while announcing the date of her and Tirn's wedding. It was a beautiful dress, one meant to see her eyed with envy.
She was glad now that things hadn't gone according to her father's plans and she would make sure he'd never again get his will, at least in regards to her.
She settled into the workroom with the dress and her embroidery kit, a bag of jewelry set to the side to be taken along, and got to work, her hands precise and swift. She knew that adding to the dress wasn't necessary, that threading blood-red into the embroidery of the dress was hardly needed for what she was going to do, but it would be a beautiful middle finger to her father. She could do nothing but wait right now, either, wait and plot and try not to worry too much.
Time passed more swiftly now that she had something that she could focus on, though she still had to bite down on the urge to ask about Sorceress Iva's return more than once, to send one of the night guards down to Ravenburg to see when she'd be done. She trusted that Sorceress Iva knew what she was doing and how much time was left before the sun rose in the kingdom.
She had just wrapped up the last stitch when Sorceress Iva returned with a bag full of the teeny-tiniest screws and gears and bolts and bits and bobs that Adelia had ever seen.
Apparently, with the aid of a mage, the smiths had been able to make all the needed parts far quicker than otherwise and they could work with quality materials that would be reliable and durable.
Sorceress Iva had also brought back a signet-style ring, a small hole on the top of the ring to allow them to fit the crystal into while ensuring the crystal would be slightly in contact with the enchantment.
The ring was otherwise bulky and wide enough to let them fit the tiny clockwork design into the inside of the top of the ring without it looking too oddly large. The top of the signet ring was easily removed, a tiny hinge allowing the tiny gold plate to get flipped open.
Sorceress Iva carefully began carving the sigils and runes along the metal insides of the ring while Adelia began assembling the clockwork innards. The sigils and runes would coalesce on the point of the bottom of the plate where the crystal would be set into the small hole left there.
And once the crystal got slightly pressed down and clicked into place, it would get the inscribed plates moving in a circle around the crystal, like a wave cresting and falling over and over, casting the protective spell at a steady pace.
Sorceress Iva had reassured Adelia that a mage looking for enchantments wouldn't notice the crystal as anything special, if they noticed it at all, especially as long as it wasn't yet connected to the enchantment.
"Rowan still should keep the ring off and hidden on his person while he is being checked for magic, just to be safe. Since the crystal itself isn't enchanted, nor is it filled with the sort of magic a mage would be looking for, it should go unnoticed. Even I can't feel the power of this crystal, not unless I know exactly what I am looking for, which these people won't."
Her smile was sharp and a little hard. "They can work with Alexzander all they like, he can only teach them how to look for sun crystals, they will not know how to find this moonlight one."
That was very reassuring to know. Still, Adelia couldn't help but think of what to do if this failed. If the ring was taken. She would not watch Rowan die. Could not watch him die. She couldn't lose another loved one.
She was done with loss.
With everything ready, they finished assembling the ring and set the crystal into the very middle of the ring's top plate lat last, carefully securing it with a tiny dab of glue.
They could always make a better ring later, this would work well enough for their purpose for now.
As soon as the crystal was carefully set in place, it changed from a golden to the faintest of pale-white glows. If Rowan wore the ring with the crystal facing down. If he curled his fingers into a loose fist, he could hide the glow against his palm.
Adelia had just checked the ring one last time, ensuring the top of the signet would not unlatch easily or quickly and therefore cause the enchantment to fail in the middle of the trial, when the door to the workroom was thrown open and a tall, thin woman strode through, skin pale like bone, hair like frosty snow and with eyes the color of a deep, ominous and dangerous bloody red.
Her long, sweeping dress was blacker than night and of a simple, downright scandalous cut, the woman's shoulders and arms exposed and the dress fell down her frame without any of the underskirts or bone-lined petticoats Adelia had used to make her dresses more sweeping and decadent during balls.
If anything, the woman's dress reminded Adelia of paintings of old, more southern portraits of women from two or three hundred years ago. The woman wore golden jewelry, a delicate, golden belt and a collar-like golden necklace that had golden lines spreading out and down her chest like the rays of a stylized sun. The tips of her fingers were clasped in golden rings that formed metal-claws.
Adelia recognized her from one of the paintings in the entrance hall. This must be Carmilla, Rowan's sire.
The woman's red eyes focused on Adelia immediately and she stepped forward with the lethal grace of a predator who had fought and won countless of battles and knew she would fight and win more.
"I hear my son is in danger," she said, her voice downright deceptively soft. "And unworthy, cruel fools intend to sacrifice him to the sun." Her gaze briefly darted to Sorceress Iva and she offered a curt, but clearly respectful bow. "Precious, powerful Iva, it gladens my heart to see you."
"Carmilla," Sorceress Iva greeted her back, curt but quietly warm. "Thank you for coming, please, meet Adelia Aria, the lady of our lands."
Carmilla's countenance softened slightly, something in her previously dark and dangerous red eyes warming as she turned back to Adelia. "I know you, Rowan sent me plenty of letters over the past months and he spoke often of you," the vampire mused, before offering a smile. "I am glad he has found someone as wonderful as you to love."
Adelia found herself smiling back a little, before she held out the ring she had clasped in her hands. "We want to save Rowan with this," she said. "It will protect him from the sun, but we need to find him first."
Carmilla's eyes widened briefly and the red glow of her eyes now looked like glowing, dark blood. "Oh, you clever, brilliant ladies," she whispered, a breath of downright reverent relief in her voice. "If either of you want anything, immortality, heads on spikes, let me know, I will gladly fulfill your wishes."
"I have no with to be immortal," Sorceress Iva said with a little half grin, gesturing at herself, "I did not cultivate this beautiful face for so many years to stop here, I intend to keep going. But speaking of going, you only have two hours left to find Rowan and I can drop you off somewhere in the kingdom, but you're on your own for the rest."
Carmilla nodded, before casting a glance over Adelia and she frowned slightly, "I could carry you, if you like," she offered and Adelia was about to accept, before she paused.
"I have a nightmare," she said. "If that's acceptable."
The vampire's brows rose briefly. "My, you are full of surprises. I can see why Rowan was taken with you so swiftly. It is certainly a good idea, I can fly more freely without a passanger and a nightmare can keep pace well enough. Very well, fetch your nightmare, Iva and I will wait for you in the courtyard."
They swept out of the room together, though Adelia called for the aid of a night guard, for she needed riding clothes, a thick cloak, gloves and scarf, as well as a hat. Spare clothes were fetched easily enough and she dressed in a storage room off to the side while the night guard waited outside.
Once she was done she was swiftly brought to the tack room of the stable out in the courtyard. She selected a saddle that would fit her nightmare, along with a saddlebag that she carefully put the dress and some jewelry into and at last a bridle.
Adelia chose a bit-less one, trusting that Baron would listen to her as he had before and she also remembered how easily nightmares had bitten through the metal bars while put in front of a carriage. She didn't want to make him uncomfortable if he hated it now.
Baron perked up the moment she entered the stable and rumbled in that sweet, familiar way of his that made her blink back a surge of tears anew. She still wasn't used to his return, her heart aching and grief clogging up her throat for but a moment.
The moment her sweet, undead horse saw the tack in her arms his ears perked and he looked quietly eager, as he had in life. Adelia was so, so deeply glad that he was back, his return a gift she had no idea how to repay, but it hurt all the same. It hurt to see the changes and know that he was this way because her father had ensured her horse got killed all because of her.
"I'm sorry," she whispered again as she opened the stall and he politely stepped aside, making space for her to enter.
He briefly and gently brushed his nose against her arm and then stood still as she put the saddle on his back. He was as well mannered as Adelia remembered, lowering his head for the bridle and when she led him out, he followed with easy grace and calm certainty.
She led him to where Sorceress Iva and Carmilla were waiting and while he slightly lifted his nose to scent the air, staring at Carmilla for a moment, a faint glow to his black eyes now, he didn't so much as tug the reins from her grip nor did he get impatient and bump into her.
"Alright, let's send you to the kingdom," Sorceress Iva said the moment Adelia and Baron joined them. "Keep your nightmare calm, he won't like this much at all."
Adelia shifted her hold on the reins and as soon as the world started to swirl around them and Baron tensed, she placed a settling hand on his neck, murmuring softly. He remained tense, but he also remained at her side, that prey-response of flight gone entirely from him and he seemed ready to attack at a moment's notice.
But the swirling colors that blurred everything around them faded a moment later and they stood beside a broad road, the snow trampled down by feet and horses and sleds to create a harder, firmer surface to travel along. This was the king's road, if Adelia had to venture a guess.
"I brought you to the most advantageous point I know," Sorceress Iva said, a grim seriousness settling over her. "Do you need anything else from me?"
"We'll be fine, leave this part to us," Carmilla reassured. "Thank you, Iva, your magic is as wondrous and irreplaceable as ever."
Sorceress Iva smiled briefly, before she stepped back and Adelia hurried to speak up, "Ivan needs to be located and we need to prepare for Alexzander to likely show up again."
Sorceress Iva nodded, her expression growing determined. "I will reach out to my mage friends to help track Ivan down and I will set up extra wards to keep Alexzander out, but I can't uphold them forever."
Adelia nodded. "We will return as soon as Rowan is safe and then we will deal with him."
Sorceress Iva's smile now looked sharp and pleased, a spark of magic almost making her entire being look even more vibrant. "I will look forward to it. And keep Rowan safe, none of us want to lose him." She then handed Adelia a golden round seashell. "Speak in this if you have need of me and I will hear you, the shell also helps me track you down, so don't worry about anything."
With those words she vanished in a swirl of color and Adelia turned to Carmilla, who gestured for her to come along. As soon as Adelia mounted Baron, she politely averted her gaze as Carmilla reached for the ties of her dress, letting it fall into the snow, her jewelry dropping on top of it the next second.
A moment later the vampire's body shifted and Adelia glanced over when she heard a bit of shuffling to see a massive, white bat crouched beside her, holding out the dress wrapped around jewelry that dangled from the claw-thumb atop the wing.
She shifted her seat, Baron easily stepping forward so she could accept the dress bundle to stow it in her saddlebags. Carmilla looked a little different from Rowan's bat form and not just because her fur was snow-white. She appeared larger, the claw-thumbs along her wings hardier and longer, her nose looked more like a snout and her ears were shorter but rounder.
And just like with Rowan, once Adelia got over the uneasy feeling that instinctively spread through her chest, she couldn't help but think that Carmilla looked formidable. And when Carmilla chittered at her, the sound was just as cute-creepy as Rowan's had been.
"Lead the way," Adelia answered and shifted her seat, along with her hand holding the reins and Baron stepped back, giving Carmilla the space she needed to take a running leap.
Adelia gently and lightly urged Baron forward, only to nearly get thrown out of his saddle when he galloped forward with a force and speed she hadn't been prepared for. But he was still her sweet horse at heart, immediately adjusting his pace, slowing until she was used to it and only picking up speed again when she urged him forward.
It was impossible to focus on the immediate surroundings, but looking ahead was a little easier and Adelia had to rely a lot on Baron to avoid running into things. She might be able to stay seated on his back at this pace, but her reactions of suddenly appearing obstacles was not up to par yet.
They followed Carmilla, who flew ahead, low enough that Adelia could keep her massive, white form in her sight. Baron caught on quickly and followed without her steering, ears perked and he wasn't even slightly out of breath as he thundered across the snowy landscape of Adelia's old home.
It felt like mere minutes had passed before Adelia started to recognize bits and pieces that thundered past her almost too quickly for her to notice them. They were heading towards her childhood home.
Of course, she couldn't help but think with a bitter twist of her mouth. How very much like her father to offer to house Rowan in his castle as revenge for Rowan taking his daughter. For ruining what advantages her hand promised to another should have brought him.
What a petty, ugly man her father was.
Carmilla slowed moments later and Adelia didn't even have to tug on the reins, merely had to shift her seat and Baron slowed as well. Carmilla landed ahead of them and Baron trotted up at her side and Adelia got to look down the road at the town surrounding her father's castle, covered in snow, quiet and asleep, tendrils of smoke rising from chimneys.
She took a deep breath, the familiar scents of her home finding her, the woodsmoke of the burnt wood, the cold stone of the houses before her.
"My old home," she told Carmilla after a moment, Carmilla glancing at her and making a low hissing noise. Adelia took a deep breath, "Please leave this to me, I know what to do best here."
Carmilla shifted back and Adelia averted her gaze just in time, resolutely looking forward as the woman stepped up to Baron to remove her dress and jewelry from the saddlebags.
"You are a polite one," Carmilla mused. "And I entrust my son to you. Shout if something goes wrong, I will hear you and come to your aid."
Adelia nodded and Carmilla vanished, snow dispersing where she had moved through. Taking a deep breath, Adelia nudged Baron forward.
It didn't take long at all, a mere blink it felt like, before she stopped him in front of Julie's home. Getting out of the saddle, she stepped forward and knocked as firm and loud as she dared without fearing that it would wake her neighbors.
To her relief, she heard scraping beyond the door a few moments later and the door was opened by a young man in a haphazardly thrown-on night shirt and, peeking over his shoulder, Adelia spotted Julie, hair sleep-mussed and face concerned.
Julie's eyes widened and she swiftly pushed past the young man, though she did it gently and he remained close, glancing at her and then Adelia in silent curiosity.
"My Lady," Julie gasped out, reaching out to usher Adelia in. "What brings you here in the middle of the night? Is everything alright?"
Adelia stepped inside and reached out, taking hold of Julie's hands. "I need your help," she said, quiet but clearly. "Do you still work for my father?"
"Of course," Julie answered, concerned still and she took a step closer. "What can I do for you?" She then quickly gestured at the young man who had taken a step to the side to light a candle. "Please, meet Aryn, the squire I mentioned to you, we married last month." Her smile was quick and a little sharp. "His parents threw quite the fit, but they caved at last."
"I would not let them stand between me and the love of my life," Aryn said firmly then turned towards Julie, whispering, "Shall I stay?"
"Let us talk in private, pleas," Julie murmured back. "But I will sure to call for you if I need you."
Aryn nodded, his gaze soft on Julie, before he bowed to Adelia, murmuring, "My Lady." He stepped away then, vanishing through a door at the side of the living room and kitchen.
"I'm happy for you." Adelia turned to Julie with a warm smile on her face, giving her hands a squeeze. "I truly am." She grew serious the next moment. "Did you hear about my father imprisoning my husband?"
Julie faltered. "They said he is a monster." She watched Adelia closely for a moment. "Is he?"
"He is the best man I ever met," Adelia answered, firm and a thread of something unyielding in her voice. "And my father is a terrible, resentful man. They will not take him from me, but for that I need your help."
She let go with one hand and pulled the ring from her pocket. "Can you bring this to him before he is brought to the trial?"
Julie looked down at the ring, at the faint silver-white glow of the crystal. A moment later her expression firmed with determination and she took the ring. "You have been nothing but good to me and the others, My Lady," she said steady and faintly unyielding herself now. "I will aid you, but I must ask for a boon in return."
"Everything I can give you, you shall have," Adelia answered without hesitation.
"Your father will seek someone to punish when your husband escapes him and as the last one to see him, it will likely be me." She looked up at Adelia. "My darling Aryn and I will get a place in your household in the Wilds, you will pay us well and treat as well as you always have."
Adelia found herself smiling. Julie was so very clever and she couldn't help but adore that about her. "You have my word," she said. "Bring this ring to Rowan, tell him it is from me and to keep it hidden. To put it on and press the crystal down until he hears a click before he faces the sun."
She grew more serious the next moment. "I fear it is best if you and Aryn pack as soon as you return. I will see that you are fetched before the trial ends."
She pulled out the seashell and spoke into it, telling Sorceress Iva of Rowan's location and the plan and asking for her aid to see Julie and Aryn safely brought to the Wilds.
A moment later she heard a soft, melodic answer from the shell, "It will be done."
Julie took a deep breath and straightened. "I will get ready, will you stay here, My Lady?"
Adelia shook her head. "I will attend the trial, it's best that my father will not see me before then."
"It will take place in the king's palace," Julie told her. "I overheard your father speak with the king's mage. They will fetch your husband half an hour before dawn and they will bring him out in front of the gathered nobility to face the rising sun."
What an ugly trial, meant to humiliate and make King Harold feel all the more superior.
"Thank you, and might I ask that I get changed in your room?" she requested and Julie was quick to nod. Her former maid waited in the entrance door while Adelia fetched her dress and jewelry.
Aryn was only too accomodating, waiting outside the door while Adelia got dressed, folding her riding clothes up.
While Adelia put the riding clothes away in the saddlebags, Julie and Aryn got dressed themselves. When she returned inside, Julie was ready to leave. She gave Adelia a quick, slightly nervous smile, before she grabbed her woolen shawl and stepped outside.
"Julie told me we'll leave," Aryn said as he stepped into the living room himself. He was dressed properly now, pale hair combed back by his fingers. "I... thank you, for this chance, My Lady. We were planning to save up before we left. Julie mentioned sending to you in the Wilds, asking if you would take her back as a maid."
Adelia paused slightly in surprise. "She wanted to come to the Wilds? And forgive me, we never asked if you wanted to come."
He gave her a crooked little smile. "Don't worry, Julie and I have talked at length about where to go long before you arrived tonight. I always lived in the shadow of my family and as the youngest of eight brothers I never held much importance in their eyes." He gave a small shrug. "I come from a rich family, but even a family like mine doesn't really know what to do with a ninth son."
He straightened then, smile sliding away to make way for a more serious expression. "I was knighted two months ago and if you will have me, I will serve you faithfully."
He didn't make vows, which Adelia found made him more truthful than if he had dropped to a knee and promised her things. She was a stranger and Julie was clearly the most important person in his life. As long as he was loyal to her, that was all that mattered, she had no need for grand words that rang hollow in the end.
"I will be glad to have you," Adelia answered and found herself smiling a little. "Julie spoke quite fondly of you even before I left."
His soft smile was back and it made him look like a charming young man, full of quiet love and happiness.
He told her about meeting Julie and their conversation flowed easy and light, though they also stuck to harmless topics, the bit of lingering awkwardness in the air dissipating slowly. Adelia tended to her appearance while they talked, braiding and pinning her hair, before donning her jewelry.
Julie returned before long, slightly out of breath, but there was a gleam in her eyes. "He has the ring," she told Adelia while Aryn stepped towards her, taking her shawl and putting it back on the hook beside the door. "I'm supposed to tell you that he loves you and he looks forward to seeing the dawn with you."
Adelia took a deep breath and nodded, glad that Rowan was well enough to speak. And that he likely wasn't too injured, at least outwardly, if Julie wasn't more alarmed. Her gaze was thoughtful, though.
"I will let Sorceress Iva know," Adelia said and pulled out the seashell. A moment after she finished speaking, there was a knock on the door.
Julie opened it and Sorceress Iva gave her a brief smile, before she focused on Adelia.
"It worked, then?" she asked and Adelia nodded.
"So far," she took a step forward. "Might I ask you to take me to King Harold's palace? I wish to attend the trial."
Sorceress Iva gave her a slightly sharp, crooked half smile. "Gladly. Shall I go with you?"
"That might be for the best," Adelia admitted. She would prefer to not be stranded with people who would enjoy seeing Rowan dead.
Sorceress Iva nodded, before she turned to Julie and Aryn. "I will come fetch you after the trial, get everything you want to take along in a pile, I will teleport it to the keep ahead of us."
"Thank you," Julie said and Sorceress Iva inclined her head, before she turned to Adelia.
"Shall we?" she asked and Adelia nodded, briefly turning to Julie and Aryn to say her goodbyes before she stepped outside.
Baron was where she had left him, waiting in front of the door. He stepped forward and a moment later Carmilla appeared beside them.
"I shadowed the lass," Carmilla said. "She did give Rowan the ring, though he sounded tired. If I had to venture I guess, they have him shackled in silver." Her lips flattened for a moment, the bloody glow of her eyes growing darker and more ominous. "He will be fine for days more before the silver kills him, but it will keep weakening him. If either of you have a way of speeding that trial along, then I suggest you do so."
"The protective spell the ring will cast will be strong enough to protect him from the sun, no matter how weak he is," Sorceress Iva reassured. "But I agree. At one point everyone will see that the silver is poisoning him."
"I wish I could stay with you," Carmilla said with a grim face. "But I can't do anything once the sun rises. Send me back to Rowan's keep, I will ensure he has fresh blood waiting for his return."
"Thank you," Adelia said quickly, before Sorceress Iva could whisk Rowan's sire away. "For everything."
Carmilla softened. "I would do anything for my son. I hope to speak more with you later, Adelia, especially once we have him back with us."
Adelia nodded and Sorceress Iva glanced at Baron. "I shall send him away, too. It's too dangerous for him to come with us, especially with the sun confining him to a hidden, dark place and monster hunters at the capital."
Adelia was quick to agree. She would never endanger Baron and if she lost him again... she had already lost a part of herself when he had been killed before. If he died again because of her, she had no idea how to recover from that.
Baron was less than willing to go, but in the end he obeyed Adelia and Sorceress Iva teleported both her horse and Carmilla away.
"Well then," the sorceress said and waved Adelia closer. "Let's go."
Their surroundings vanished in a blur, dark and white swirling together and then fading again, seeing them standing in front of the gates of the king's palace, the capital city spreading all around them.
The guards had startled, hands tightening on their weapons and Adelia straightened and stepped forward.
"My name is Adelia Aria, I heard there will be a trial in regards to my husband," she said, voice clear and steady, her hands folded politely in front of herself as she ensured she looked every inch the noble lady she had been born as. "I request entry."
One of the guards left to deliver her message and a couple of minutes later she was let in, Sorceress Iva at her side.
The king's steward awaited her by the large, ostentatious entrance doors, the wood carved and painted to look like it was covered in climbing, red and white roses.
It wasn't Adelia's first time in the palace, though it was her first return since she had gotten married to Rowan. She glanced at the various artworks around, the paintings and vases and gleaming, polished sculptures made of copper and some of silver, encrusted with gems. There was even a goblet on display in the entrance hall, which had cost King Harold as much as a barony, for it was made of pure rose-gold and was covered in diamonds of various shades, forming a swirl of color that glittered and shone.
They were brought to a guest room and servants brought a platter of fine foods along with fine wine and a carafe of juice.
Adelia touched none of it, not even after Sorceress Iva checked it for poison. She was too nervous. The trial would take place soon and all they could do now was wait.
She ended up checking her appearance again, ensuring she looked like a daughter of her father's house at first glance. But she had embroidered bloody drops onto the flowers and thorny stems, small splashes of color that was all the more easy to see for it was a dark, deep red on top of a paler green and gold.
Sorceress Iva was better at keeping busy than she was, but Adelia had experience with silently enduring unpleasantness and she had to trust everyone. She had to trust herself, too, that the ring was made right, that the enchantment would work.
That she would get to take Rowan back home without causing a war. He would not die either way, she would not allow it to happen, but she still wished to protect her new home at the same time.
A knock at the door made her straighten, but when she bid the person to enter, to her surprise it wasn't a servant sent to fetch them, but Queen Nina.
Queen Nina wore a fine dress, a deep, rich red with white leaves climbing up the arm and bodice, roses blooming along the neckline of the queen's dress, white-gold jewelry glittering with diamonds around her throat and dangling from her ears.
Adelia offered the bow she had been taught, though her thoughts were racing. Queen Nina and she had spoken a few times, but the conversations had always been polite and mostly for the sake of appearances.
The queen inclined her head back. "I was informed you are here for your husband," Queen Nina said. "Though your divorce has been allowed just last night, my husband has put quite a bit of pressure on the people in question to see you free to marry another."
Without someone speaking with her, ensuring she was as untouched as she claimed to be? Her surprise must have been visible on her face, for Queen Nina smiled. It wasn't a happy smile, but a humorless and almost grim.
"Will you join us as a witness to Lord Morrow's nature or as his defense?" Queen Nina asked and while Adelia straightened.
"His defense," she answered firmly, lifting her chin. "He has done no wrong and I will see him returned home before the morning is over."
Queen Nina watched her a moment longer, before something along her face shifted, not quite relaxing, but she appeared more open now.
"Then I have a proposal," Queen Nina offered. "If you desire to see this situation resolved without further trouble."
Adelia watched the queen a moment. "I know King Harold is working with Alexzander, what deal could you now offer me?"
"One with me," Queen Nina answered, a subtle glint in her eyes as though she appreciated Adelia's candour. "For I did not make a deal with Alexzander of the Wilds."
"Why?" Adelia couldn't help but ask. Everyone knew that Queen Nina was loyal to King Harold, that she shared secrets with him and stood at his side at all times.
The queen exhaled softly and Adelia got a glimpse beyond the calm and quiet watchfulness Queen Nina always displayed in public and around her husband. There was something dark there.
"My husband crossed me when he did not care about my daughter's fate. He promised her hand to Alexzander and I am not fool enough to ignore what this means. Once your Wilds fall, so will we."
Her voice dropped to something cold. "My children are everything to me. He already disregards his sons, but they at least get to stay at my side and I can steer them to a kind future. But he intends to take my daughter's away from her."
The queen lifted her chin. "So I intend to take his."
"What is this deal you offer us?" Sorceress Iva asked, her gaze sharp. "We can't be the only ones you can ask for aid."
"You are not, but you are the last link I need for my chain of events," the queen answered. "There are other nobles who pledged their allegiance to me. Besides, I will not see my husband murdered." She glanced at Adelia. "I merely wish him thralled."
Which she needed Rowan for.
Adelia blinked, realizing just how clever that plan was. If the king died, the throne would be vacant for at least two more years, for the queen's children hadn't finished their education yet. They were not ready to rule and while Queen Nina would be Queen Regent in their stead, it was a risky position.
Everyone would seek to topple her, to get rid of her and her children to see their own succeed the throne instead.
But if King Harold was under her control she had all the time in the world to steer him, to steer the kingdom, to steer her children's future.
"I will agree under one extra condition," Adelia said and Queen Nina's perfect brow rose slightly and she gestured for her to go ahead. "I want a guarantee that Alexzander will be told nothing and that the Wilds will not be attacked after King Harold is thralled, nor will you later make a deal with Alexzander yourself."
"An easy enough promise, war at this time is a foolish idea," the queen answered and she brushed her hands down her dress. "Please excuse me, I have a few more preparations to make."
With those words the queen left and Sorceress Iva stepped forward. "Do you believe her?" she asked.
Adelia was silent for a moment. "I do," she answered. "And even if she lies Rowan himself will be safe." Queen Nine didn't know about the ring, after all. "But if she says the truth, we'll be able to avoid war without tipping Alexzander off."
It would buy them a few extra precious hours in which they could start figuring out what to do. And even if they couldn't find a solution, war would be avoided, at least for now.
Still, it would be foolish to believe Alexzander didn't have more tricks up his sleeve, so the sooner they dealt with him, the better.
Exhaling, Adelia nervously wrung her hands. "We'll do our best to deal with things," she said. "It's all we can do right now, unless you have a better idea?"
"None that will let us avoid war," Sorceress Iva admitted with a sigh. "But I trust your judgement, let's see if that queen is as good as her word."
And all they could do, now, was wait.
Adelia sat down beside Sorceress Iva after a moment and they began to talk. Outside, the sky brightened, dawn approaching until, at last, the sun itself began to peek over the horizon.
"They'll want direct sunlight as much as possible," Sorceress Iva murmured. "The trial will begin any moment now."
Which was the moment a servant knocked at the door, bowing and gesturing to the side, "Lady Aria, please follow me to the trial of one Lord Rowan Morrow."
Adelia followed, Sorceress Iva at her side and she slipped effortlessly into the posture of a noble lady. Straight back, hands folded in front of her, chin slightly dipped down, her steps measured and quiet, her shoulders soft.
They arrived in the throne room of King Harold, the windows covered in thick curtains, chandeliers spreading light and at a glance it looked as though everyone of rank and name was in attendance, even if a number of people looked bleary at the early hour, others yawning.
And then she blinked in surprise when she saw Izabel hugging Katrina, Iris standing beside her with a small smile. All three noticed her the next moment and Izabel and Katrina rushed towards her to hug her, too, Iris trailing after them and greeting her and Sorceress Iva.
"You came," Adelia whispered and Izabel and Katrina, squished side by side to get to hug her both stepped back.
"I would not let you deal alone with this," Izabel whispered reassuringly.
"I want you to be happy," Katrina murmured, before she bit her lip, glancing at Iris, then she took a deep breath. "And when I read your letter, I decided to join you in cutting ties with my home."
Adelia's eyes widened slightly. "Are you certain?"
"I was offered a new home," Katrina answered and Iris smiled at her, all glad warmth. "And if my parents are willing to apologize I am willing to speak with them again."
"And I'm not going to just let my best friend die," Iris added. "Rowan would do the same for me without hesitation." That he would.
A sharp knock on marble caused chatter to cease and Adelia and her friends were quick to split up. Adelia stepped forward, accompanied by Sorceress Iva and Iris stepped forward.
As they walked towards the podium of the defender, she caught her father's eye, her mother standing silently beside him. He stared down at her with an expression of silent, haughty victory.
Not today, she thought. Today you will lose everything you want to gain.
She reached the podium just as the great double doors of the throne room were pulled open and King Harold strode in, accompanied by Queen Nina. And behind them, chained in silver and pulled along by burly monster hunters, was Rowan.
"Let the trial begin!" King Harold proclaimed as he marched forward, hands thrown up as he gestured at everyone around him. "Behold, Rowan Morrow of the Wilds, accused of vampirism and of enthralling us and his former wife."
He turned to Adelia and his smile was the coldest one she had ever seen on the king's face. "As it stands, neither Adelia Aria nor anyone else can speak in defense of Rowan Morrow for fear of an addled mind."
Her fingers tightened around each other and she fought to keep her expression calm her posture steady.
King Harold reached his throne and turned around, Queen Nina quiet and unassuming at his side. Adelia fought not to glance at her, instead keeping her eyes on King Harold, who had Rowan brought into the middle of the throne room.
Adelia found herself looking at Rowan, who looked back at her. He shifted his hands, as though trying to adjust the way the shackles sat on his wrists and she bit down on a heavy exhale of relief as she saw the glint of a gold band on his finger.
He was such a clever man, turning the top of the ring down to hide the crystal's glow against his palm. Dear gods did she love him, she wanted nothing more than to stride towards him, to throw the chains to the ground and hold him. To take him home and kiss him and know that everything would be alright.
Everyone was utterly silent and there wasn't even a rustle as people shifted around uneasily.
"This trial is one by sunlight," King Harold raised his voice anew, clearly basking in the undivided attention on him. "To prove Rowan Morrow guilty of the charges brought before him. The sun has risen and with it, so shall the uncontested truth!"
He waved a hand to the side, almost shouting, "Open the curtains!"
Taking a sharp, deep breath, Adelia remembered the night guard and she straightened, roughly wiping her hands over her face and she quickly gave her horse, her... nightmare, a once-over.
She reached out hesitantly and her darling companion only stood still, face as sweet and trusting as she remembered even if it had changed a little, too. The features were a little sharper, the eyes glowing a dark, ominous red and she remembered those sharp teeth she had seen on other nightmares all too well.
He wasn't warm anymore, but strangely enough, neither did he feel cold, just a little cool. Much like Rowan. And he had healed up just fine indeed, the fur healthy and the flesh and muscle strong beneath.
"Baron," she whispered and watched his ears perk, attention zeroing in on her. She almost asked him how he was alive, but even changed as he was, he was still an animal and would not be able to answer her.
Taking a deep breath she gave his neck a gentle pat and glanced past him to the rather mangled looking corpse of Alexzander, before she turned away and began to search for the night guard vampire.
Her heart gave a sharp lurch when she found what was left of the night guard scattered across the snow around the corner. A piece of a leg and their hands was all that remained and even those remains slowly crumbled away into gray flakes, as though they had turned to nothing but ash. Not even bone was left behind.
She could only stare, numbness creeping in along the edges of her senses. She hadn't even known their name.
Baron, who had followed behind Adelia, all calm sweetness, lifted his nose and scented the air, snorting like he had smelled something unpleasant and Adelia set a careful, soothing hand to his neck. His attention returned to her, as trusting in her and her guidance as he had been all his life.
And for a moment she couldn't help but wonder if he had been this trusting around others, too. If he had followed guiding hands, all sweetness and calm steadiness, when they had led him out of her father's castle to bring him to his death.
She briefly wondered why his passing had been so terrible that he had returned a monster, but that thought made her gut churn and she carefully set that aside for now.
She stood a silent vigil as the last pieces of the night guard got scattered by a frosty breeze and all that was left was the brooch they had had pinned to their chest. A raven and bat circling each other, the back engraved with a little circle of runes. She stepped forward to pick it up, a sudden surge of grief gripping her, tightly followed by anger.
Pocketing the brooch she turned on her heels and marched back around the ruined temple, intend on taking hold of Alexzander's body and dragging him back to the Grim Keep. To find out what they possibly could about why he could not be killed, but when she laid eyes on him, she stopped short with a sharp little inhale.
His chest was a cracked open, mangled mess of crystal and glass jutting out, his once soft, decadent robes turned into hard spikes of dark blue with shimmering silver, while his head reminded her of the inside of a geode, all glittering, tiny shards and spikes.
He looked like the inside of the sun temple, only more colorful, though, that feeling of corruption that rose from the temple's crystals also rose from him now.
Even the parts of him that hadn't turned a miniature crater shimmered like hard, smooth surfaces. Like stained glass and polished gems. There was no soft flesh or fabric left, there wasn't even the weeping wetness of an open wound. Just hard and cold surfaces.
Hissing out a curse, feeling overwhelmed and enraged and helpless all at once, Adelia hurriedly stomped forward to lean over his corpse.
The inside of his chest and head were lined with glowing runes and sigils across his remains and slowly, bit by bit, they began to fade. Adelia had nothing to properly draw on, but she hurriedly sketched what she could into the snow.
The moment the last glowing light was gone the body began to crack and fall apart until it had crumbled away to nothing like the night guard had.
Inhaling in a deep, harsh breath, Adelia bit down on the helpless, downright grieving rage that boiled up in her, hot enough to chase away the chill of winter. Then she noticed the dull glow deep in the snow and remembered the large sunstone.
She made sure not to disturb her sketches as she got a handkerchief from her pocket and reached into the snow to retrieve the sunstone. It was warm in her palm and she wrapped the cloth around it as much as possible before she pulled it free and quickly secured the handkerchief properly.
There was still a dull glow that got past the cloth and Baron pulled his ears pack and bared his teeth, all sharp and predatory and none of the flight left that would have been present in his past self. Though, even back then he had been willing to be brave for her whenever she had asked him to.
She hurriedly pocketed the stone, its weight heavy in her pocket but its glow no longer a threat.
When she glanced at Baron, her heart ached, grief and relief mingling together and at last tangling with a bit of a hesitancy. It was clear that death had done something to him and she was not yet sure what exactly these changes meant.
Then she met his gaze and his ears perked anew. He looked at her exactly the same way he had done when he had been alive and she decided that... it didn't matter.
He was hers, her dearest companion and it was a gift beyond measure that he had chosen to come back. That he had fought the clutches of death, had torn the mortality from his bones and had darkened his soul just to walk this earth again.
They had found each other again and this time Adelia would not let him die a second time. She would guard him from those who would wish him ill and that began with Alexzander and ended with her father.
"I'll keep you safe this time, I promise," she whispered, before her hand fell to the sunstone in her pocket, her fingertips brushing over the large, hard lump. Baron had survived being exposed to its warm glow, while the night guard hadn't.
Rowan had mentioned before that the vampire spawn were not as powerful, but if one died this fast when exposed to a sunstone of this size, then Adelia didn't doubt that Rowan would find a similar fate if there was an even larger stone. The question was if Alexzander had a stone of that size in his possession, though it wouldn't surprise her if he did.
Why had he come here? Why show himself like this, why risk whatever he was planning in order to go after her?
She stared at the crushed snow where Alexzander had fallen and a terrible feeling began to coil through her gut. Whatever he was planning he must be close enough to succeeding for him to make a move like this. Or...
She stilled and looked over her shoulder to the crushed temple. Or she had been about to discover something he really didn't want her to, something that could risk everything he had worked for. Perhaps even both.
Taking a calming and centering breath, she glanced towards where the carriage had been, only to see an empty spot, the nightmares and the carriage long gone. She did spot a few broken splinters of wood in the snow, likely remnants of when Baron had broken free to come to her aid.
She had no idea how long it took for Alexzander to reassemble himself and to rise from whatever semi-death being trampled by her horse had put him into. How much time she might have before he'd come for her again, this time with enough sunlight to kill her horse anew.
She briefly entertained the idea of seeing if Baron would let her ride him again, before discarding that idea, as well.
While she was a good rider, he had no saddle and was, also, no longer a mortal creature. She highly doubted she'd be able to stay on his back without aid if he ran as fast as the nightmares always pulled the carriage. She had nothing to write on either, or she might have tried to send him back to the Grim Keep with a message tied up in his mane.
All she could do right now was wait and hope that her friends came here before Alexzander did.
She pulled her cloak tighter around herself, grimness and anger still clouding her heart and her mind raced while her horse stood patiently at her side, as he had done while alive.
After a moment she turned towards the temple, considering the gaps between the crystal and the stone walls. If she was careful she might be able to squeeze in there. It would, at the very least, keep her shielded from the icy winds.
A glance down showed what she already suspected, namely that the lantern light was extinguished and the only way for her to see something still was to unwrap the sunstone in her pocket.
She gave Baron's neck a pat to get his attention and a little gesture that had always been his signal to walk with her. And he hadn't forgotten anything, it seemed, for he remained at her side. She took him to the front of the temple and gave him the signal to wait.
For a moment it looked like he wouldn't listen, but in the end he stayed where he was, allowing Adelia to walk to the back of the temple by herself again. Now she could take out the sunstone without harming him and she held the glowing, warm crystal out in front of herself as she approached the shattered windows.
Peering inside, she had to admit that while there was space to wriggle in, she doubted she'd be able to do so without touching any of the crystals. Shielding her free hand with her cloak, she braced herself against the windowsill and leaned forward a little more, carefully moving the sunstone around to try and see more inside.
She saw no human remains anywhere, but there were crushed artifacts and relics, the crystals speared through a plain chandelier, pinning it against the ceiling. She paused then, squinting up and she held the light higher, angling it until the reflections off the stone revealed something she hadn't noticed before.
The stone towards the ceiling looked a little cracked and splintered. As though someone had broken them open. Or carved through them.
Settling back on her heels she exhaled with soft relief to no longer be so close to the sickly crystals, but her mind was still focused on what looked like a hole someone had made in the ceiling. But why? And for what reason?
Her hold on the sunstone tightened and she glanced down at it, things connecting and she was rather certain she knew now what had happened here. And if Alexzander had tried to spell her into becoming his puppet now of all times, then there were remnants of his misdeeds still left behind.
She wrapped the sunstone up, pocketing it, before she whistled for Baron. He came right away, nickering softly at her in greeting and she smiled at him, blinking away tears that rose anew.
"You sweet boy," she told him quietly and she reached for the half destroyed tack that still hung from his head.
She had everything removed, leaving the snapped and broken leather with its metal bits lying in the snow, when a sudden sunshine glow appeared at the side of the temple, a shower of sparks swirling through the air and a moment later, Ivan and Lady Miriam appeared.
All at once Adelia felt her knees grow a little shaky, a rushing sweep of relief filling her chest and a trembling exhale escaped her. To no longer be alone out here, fearing the return of Alexzander or that the cold would seep into her to a dangerous degree if no one came to her in time.
Baron's ears pinned back and he snorted sharply, head lowering and lips parting to reveal sharp teeth in warning. She placed a hand on his neck and he paused, just as Ivan and Lady Miriam glanced towards them, both of them looking briefly surprised.
"Would you look at that," Lady Miriam said. "It seems the night is truly fond of you, my dear."
A little half laugh escaped her, her sight blurring and Adelia had to press a palm over her mouth, looking away as she tried to reign herself back in. There were so many messy emotions and she needed to get a hold of herself when so much was on the line.
"What happened?" Lady Miriam asked, that gently joking tone from before gone from her voice and she sounded far more serious, a darkness edged into her words. "May we approach?"
Adelia nodded, taking a deep breath and with a little gesture on her end Baron stepped back, settling down again, her hand lingering on his neck. Cool but not warm, alive and yet still dead. But at least he had returned. That was worth everything and she was not going to let him get killed again.
"Alexzander came here," Adelia began to explain as the two warlords approached her, Ivan keeping a bit more distance to Baron, likely due to the powers granted to him by his goddess. "He tried to spell me, I believe. Said I would make a good puppet."
She was quick to recount the tale and her voice wobbled only slightly twice, but neither Ivan nor Lady Miriam made fun of her for it. If anything, they looked rather angry on her behalf.
"Baron killed him," she said, giving her horse's neck a pat and took a fortifying breath. "I left to try and find the night guard but it... it was too late for them. When I returned he had turned into crystal and his chest and head looked like something had exploded outward."
She gestured to where she had drawn into the snow. "I tried to copy what I saw before the sigils vanished."
Both Ivan and Lady Miriam stepped forward to eye her drawings, his expression a puzzled frown, but Lady Miriam closed her eyes, the green, pulsing glow beneath her skin growing brighter.
When she opened her eyes, they glowed an unsettling, unnatural green, a depth to them that reminded Adelia of the endless deep of the ocean, of a being that lurked within, older and more powerful than she could fathom.
"Looks like a teleportation spell," Lady Miriam mused after a moment. "I've seen something similar to this in a spellbook once and this arrangement of sigils is rarely used for something else."
"He had that inside of him?" Adelia couldn't quite hide her surprise. "I had no idea that was possible."
"It wasn't, at least not to my knowledge. It seems Alexzander has been destroying a lot of impossibilities lately," Ivan mused darkly, his gaze falling to the ruined sun temple. "We need to stop him."
"Obviously," Lady Miriam murmured, the deep green glow fading from her eyes again and she glanced at Adelia. "Why did you ask us to come here? Did you find out anything new?"
"It's just a hunch," Adelia admitted. "But since Alexzander tried to stop me, I think I'm on to something." She turned towards the building. "I think the sunstones come from clerics of the sun goddess." She gestured towards the roof. "And it looks like someone dug into the crystals from above."
She then motioned at the wilderness around them. "And if all other attacked sun temples are this remote, it certainly explains how he was able to move unnoticed for so long."
Away from prying eyes, all he had to do was place whatever spell had turned these people into crystal and no one would be around to notice what had happened for at least a couple of hours, giving him enough time to retrieve any created sunstones.
"Would you like to check out the roof, then?" Lady Miriam asked and Adelia hesitated.
The roof and the hole up there were likely covered in snow and even then they could hardly climb down without touching the crystal. Alexzander had likely either used magic to retrieve any created sunstone or he was immune to their effects. After what she had seen his ruined body turn into, it would not surprise her if that was the case.
Could they create their own opening at the side of the temple and carve away at the crystal? Only, to what end? There would be no sunstones left in here, but... no, something had to be here. If Alexzander had shown his hand to this degree then he still had something to hide. Something he hadn't been able to destroy yet.
It must be the spell he had used to kill everyone within the temple and turn the cleric's faith and soul into a piece of the sun itself. And if he was worried that she would find it, the traces left behind were enough to pose a problem.
But where would one best lay a trap like this? No one had been able to find any purchased devices that would have stored a spell, so it was something else.
He must have placed it and somewhere the clerics were certain to use, no matter what they did. Something that was part of every prayer, every sermon, every gathering.
She turned to Ivan. "You had a codex at your altar, is that the case for every cleric?"
"Yes," he answered, a furrow appearing between his brows. "The codex is part of everything we do, it holds all the teachings and advice our goddess gave us."
"Alexzander must have hidden his trap within the codex," Adelia mused, her mind piecing things together more and more. "And he only targeted remote places because no one would see him and no one would guard these temples." Not like the large one in the city Ivan had taken her to, where there had also been numerous clerics and clerics in training. "And unless I'm mistaken, if we're careful, we'll find leftover bits of his spell in there."
Both Ivan and Lady Miriam paused, before they glanced at each other, then at her.
"If Rowan ever makes the mistake of devaluing you, let me know, I'll ask Cynar if he's willing to add another person to our relationship," Ivan said. "I didn't even think of that."
"The severity of these tragedies and the corruption of the crystals certainly distracted from all this," Lady Miriam mused darkly. "Alright, allow me to be of service."
Adelia took a few steps back as Lady Miriam began to carefully break away the remaining walls at the back of the temple, along with part of the roof to keep it from falling down on their heads. Her magic heavy in the air and a taste of salt and brine lingered on Adelia's tongue.
All that was left now were jagged and uneven, thick masses of crystal, radiating the same sickly feeling as always. Just like the piece Adelia had securely put away in a small container back home.
"Can we get through the crystal?" Adelia asked and a moment later part of the crystal cracked and chipped beneath Lady Miriam's magic.
"Ugh, it's far tougher than I thought," she grumbled. "That's going to be tiring eventually. What are we looking for, Adelia?"
"Remnants of a trap, most likely," Adelia answered. "I know too little about enchantments to be able to tell you what it will look like, but it should be at the starting point of the explosion of crystal."
"We can work with that," Ivan said and stepped forward to join Lady Miriam. The crystal splintered like dry wood beneath their combined might and they got to work, carving through the it.
Adelia noticed that they very carefully didn't touch even the smallest piece, Lady Miriam conjuring sweeping waves of water to wash the broken pieces to messy piles to the left and right. Everything froze into uneven banks in no time, creating quite the slick surface at the sides of the temple.
Ivan was illuminating the place with some dancing globules of golden light when they finally got through the sickly crystal enough to make out the remnants of people. People that had completely turned to crystal, as well, just like the ones that had escaped outside the temple, though they hadn't managed to escape the spell entirely.
It told Adelia that they had had enough time to see what was happening, but not enough to get away. They shimmered the littlest bit golden, as though tiny, glittering flecks of their souls and faith had scattered through them. There wasn't enough to create a sunstone, but they still made the sickly crystal glimmer all the same.
No words were exchanged, but both Ivan and Lady Miriam carefully tried to avoid damaging the people, though the sickly crystal broke and cracked and shattered as it liked, at times causing damage where they didn't intend to.
And then they came upon a sudden hole in the middle of the crystals, one that descended from the roof down to the altar, where the leftover outline of a crystallized person was visible, melded into the surrounding crystal. The cleric, most likely.
The chest was cracked open and she could see the small, fingernail-sized, smooth indent where a sunstone had been. Alexzander had known exactly what he had been looking for when he came here.
"You were right," Ivan whispered, voice heavy with something dark and aching and he reached up to clutch the amulet around his throat, clinging to it as though drawing strength from his goddess. "Does that mean every ruined temple produced one of those stones?"
"I don't know," Adelia murmured and inched forward a little more, glancing away from the cracked-open chest of the crystalline figure, glancing over its surroundings more, trying to find – there. "Look where the hands are."
The codex was largely destroyed, where hands had touched it it had turned partially into crystal as well, but Adelia spotted some faintly glimmering remnants of a black piece of paper, white, glowing scrawling visible on it. Those remains held a strange, lightless darkness, ominous in a way that mere pieces of shredded paper shouldn't have been.
"Can you retrieve them?" she asked and Lady Miriam stepped forward, the green heartbeat within her chest growing deeper and darker, as though it was sucking in and absorbing light, rather than shedding it.
"Let me try," she murmured and her voice came out strange, as though Adelia was suddenly submerged and heard things only from afar, muffled and waterlogged.
The crystal began to erode away, as though large waves were washing it down, sanding the edges to dust and then carving further within. Adelia found herself carefully not moving, Ivan beside her doing the same, until at last, what felt like an hour later, the four leftover bits of paper floated free.
Lady Miriam reached out, allowing them to hover over her palm as she examined them, before taking hold of them. As soon as she did, the downright oppressive pressure and presence of the ocean vanished, leaving Adelia blinking and reeling as her ears almost seemed to pop, sound and sensation rushing back in.
"They are no longer dangerous," Lady Miriam said, holding the pieces out to her, before she sighed. "But I hate to be the bearer of bad news, not even the most brilliant enchanter on the entire world would be able to work with this much."
"Then we'll find more," Ivan said, a dark determination lacing through his words. "There are more temples, after all. We'll recover as much as we can from the others. Alexzander should have used the same spell for all of them, after all."
"In theory, yes," Lady Miriam mused before she added, "I'll reach out to my people. We have three of those ruined temples and I can get any leftover remnants from them by the end of the night."
"Five are in my lands and two in Cynar's," Ivan murmured and they both glanced at her. "Would you take them? If you don't mind dedicating part of your workshop to this project for now."
"Not at all, this concerns me too, after all" Adelia answered and accepted the pieces of paper. Even through her gloves they gave off a foreboding feeling that made her shiver instinctively. "Thank you, for your trust."
A hint of a genuine smile graced Ivan's face. "You are well deserving of it. I'll do my best to recover more pieces as quickly as possible." He glanced at Lady Miriam. "If we work together it will be faster."
"Good idea," the warlord agreed and turned back to Adelia. "We'll work as fast as we can and we'll send any fragments your way as soon as we have them. I'll also inform Iris so she'll send us the locations of her temples. I'm also on reasonably good terms with June, she'll hear me out."
"I'll speak with Cynar and Kazuki, the latter I'll visit personally or we can wait until next week for his response at the earliest. He spends his winters inventing and rarely takes the time to chat with others." Ivan stared at the fragments and then at the temple. "But why the sun goddess? There are many other gods, after all, and plenty of them have clerics that believe in them just as much as my lot do."
"The Deep is an exception, it's incredibly hard to get into one of the old temples, if you can find their locations in the first place," Lady Miriam mused. "But the moon goddess would make a similarly easy goal, as would others, you are right about that."
Adelia closed her fingers around the pieces of paper. "How many people could be harmed with sunlight, compared to moonlight?"
"Night creatures," Lady Miriam answered easily enough. "But that's kind of it. If you look at us warlords, for example, out of all eight of us, only Rowan would die if exposed to daylight and I certainly pissed Alexzander off more than he did, so I don't think he was targeting vampires specifically."
There must be a bigger picture, then. She looked down at the paper pieces, carefully keeping hold of them.
"Maybe we'll find some answers once we have enough pieces collected to figure out what magicks he used," she mused and then huddled a little further into her cloak when a cold wind whistled around the corner. Her mood grew grimmer. "I need to go back and let the night guard know I lost one of their own."
"Do not take the blame for another's actions," Lady Miriam said firmly, reaching out to place a calming hand on Adelia's shoulder. "Don't make light of his sentence by making it yours."
"I still feel responsible," Adelia answered after a moment. "We were only here because of me."
"It was Alexzander who came with the means to kill," Lady Miriam said, voice gentling a little but there was still something steady and solid about her. "And we will have him answer for his crimes."
That she very much agreed with. "We shall."
"Let's bring you back home," Ivan volunteered. "And then Miriam and I will start on retrieving more fragments."
"Be careful, Alexzander might have more tricks up his sleeve," Adelia warned them. "And we don't know how long he will stay dead."
"We'll stay together," Lady Miriam promised and gave her shoulder a reassuring squeeze. "And I killed him once before, I shall do so again if he is foolish enough to come after us."
She was likely right, Adelia hoped. Still, it was good to know that they would be careful. Ivan took a step closer, a golden glow already appearing around him, when Adelia's free hand shot out to grab his arm. "Wait, my horse."
"The nightmare?" Ivan asked and at her hurried nod, his lips pressed together for a moment. "I fear my magic is harmful to night creatures. I would hate to burn him with my light."
"He'll find you," Lady Miriam told her with a small, calming smile. "Nightmares that recognize their people always find their way back to them."
Adelia looked past them to see Baron near the woods, a dead hare clenched between his teeth. Oh. It seemed he had been hungry. His ears perked when he noticed her and he approached at a trot.
Adelia stepped away from her friends for a moment to reach out to him. He dropped the hare at her feet with all the proud aplomb of a successful cat having brought home mice and pressed his bloody nose to her palm.
"I'm heading back," she told him gently. "Home. I will see you there, yes?" If not she would ask for another carriage to be made ready and for him to be retrieved.
He exhaled softly, his breath as cool as his skin. That he wasn't even a little bit warm would take some getting used to, she had to admit. In her memory he had been nothing but warm, from his fur to his kind soul. But he was back and that was all that mattered, even if she had to adjust her expectations.
She gave his nose one more pat and stepped away. Ivan and Miriam had waited patiently for her and as soon as she was within reach, her world turned into a swirl of golden and amber sparks, like all the shades of sunshine, before the light scattered away and she found herself standing in the courtyard of the Grim Keep.
"We'll return as soon as we can," Miriam promised and Adelia found herself hesitant to let them go. As though she could keep them safe, somehow, so long as they remained within sight.
But they were powerful people in their own right and this was too important. So she gave them a nod and stepped back, watching as they were enveloped in glowing sparks, which collapsed a moment later, leaving nothing behind.
Swallowing, she took a deep breath and ensured her posture was impeccable as she turned towards her home, grimness in her heart.
"Captain Ever?" she asked as soon as she slipped inside, welcoming warmth greeting her after the icy coldness of winter.
There was a beat, before she heard a knock against one of the entrances of the great hall and the captain appeared before her a moment later.
"I come bearing grim news," Adelia said, her mouth dry and her heart heavy. She reached into her pocket to pull out the brooch of the night guard. It was all that was left of them. "Warlord Alexzander ambushed us and this member of the night guard gave their life in defense of mine. I... I am sorry."
Captain Ever took the brooch from her with careful fingertips, staring down at it silently before closing their fingers around it, clutching it close. "What now, my lady?" they asked, their voice sounding heavier and darker than before.
"Alexzander will answer for what he did," she answered and was almost surprised by how firm and downright fierce her voice came out. Captain Ever glanced up to meet her gaze, their eyes a gleaming, bloody red. "I will have him pay."
"Good." Captain Ever's voice was a low growl that seemed to rumble deep in their chest. They pressed the fist with the brooch over their undead heart. "My lady, if that is all, please excuse me, I will have to tell the others. But please, don't hesitate to call upon us if you have need of us. We will gladly aid you in seeing to Alexzander's downfall."
"Thank you," Adelia answered, her voice softening a little. "And please, take as much time as you need to grieve. If any of you would like to take time off, please let me know and I'll see to it."
Captain Ever gave her a curt nod before vanishing, a bit of displaced air, brushing across Adelia and she exhaled long and slow. Grimness still filled her heart when she headed into her workroom and grabbed two planes of glass, putting the page fragments between them for both safekeeping and easy examination. The large sunstone she put into a box at the side, ensuring that its glow was properly sealed away for the moment.
Afterwards she asked that both Sorceress Iva and Steward Lambrecht be brought to her and as soon as they appeared, both looking rather like they had been settling down for the day, she got the caught up on the newest findings. She also realized then that it had gotten rather late.
Sorceress Iva was bent over the fragments with a frown, while Steward Lambrecht had left to see if any living family or lovers of the night guard needed to be informed of their passing, promising Adelia that he would take care of any necessary payments and arrangements.
"I'll need more pieces before I can say anything for certain," Sorceress Iva admitted with a sigh and she straightened, turning towards Adelia. "But if he figured out how to combine magicks with alchemy then we might have an unusual situation at our hands. Just like we did when we combined our magic with your clockwork art."
Something that hadn't been done before. "We'll deal with it," Adelia said and Sorceress Iva gave her a crooked little grin.
"Of course we will and once we have Alexzander either imprisoned or dead on the ground I will call dibs on raiding his personal library." Sorceress Iva stepped back from the table. "I'll reach out to some friends in the meantime, I would like their insight on some of the theories I have."
Adelia accompanied Sorceress Iva to the door and said her goodbyes, for now. Then she was left with nothing but silence and her thoughts. Returning to her workroom, she stared down at the fragments that still gave off an ominous feeling. Looking at them felt like staring at a bad premonition, as though misfortune waited just around the corner.
After a moment she stepped away and decided to check up on the nightmares. A night guard arrived when she asked for aid and the man told her that the carriage with the nightmares had returned long ago and that, just moments prior, a lone nightmare had arrived, as well.
When she was brought to the stable where the creatures were kept, each stall heavily reinforced and with plenty of space to each other, Baron neighed in greeting. He had made it back.
Adelia found herself unwilling to leave again and instead did what she had dreamed about doing again for months after he had been taken from her. She brushed him down, checked his hooves, combed out his mane and tail and after a bit she noticed that he was half asleep, as he had been when alive. Just enjoying being pampered.
It made her smile, even as her eyes filled with tears again, which she was quick to blink away. Even if not all of him had survived the trip to the afterlife, enough of him had returned that she knew he was still her sweet darling horse. He was just a little more bloodthirsty now.
She had just put everything away when someone knocked on the door to the stable, one of the servants stepping in, but her face was tense and worried.
"Warlord Alexzander has just arrived," she said and Adelia felt a jolt of something icy go through her, before she forced herself to remain calm. "He says he has some urgent matters to discuss."
"I will see him," Adelia decided after a moment. "Please tell the night guard to keep their distance and for everyone else to be careful and see to it that Sorceress Iva and Steward Lambrecht are immediately informed."
She would prefer to have the assistance of a mage at her side when confronted with the vile warlord.
"He's in the entrance hall," the servant was quick to add and stepped aside with a quick bow. "I will let everyone know."
The woman hurried into the keep through a servant's entrance at the side and Adelia took a deep, bracing breath before she made her way to the entrance doors of the Grim Keep.
Her heart was beating faster when she pushed one half of the doors open far enough to let her enter and she saw Alexzander right away. Dressed in robes of black and gold, he leisurely turned to her, a smile on his face that was as ominous as the page fragments Adelia and her friends had found.
"I did not expect you to return so soon," Adelia said as she stepped away from the entrance, letting the door fall shut behind her again. She politely folded her hands in front of herself and took steady, measured steps to the side, not approaching the man but circling him until she stood between him and the rest of the keep. "You are not welcome here, please leave."
"I think you'll want to hear what I have to say," Alexzander answered, entirely ignoring what she had to say, his smile a haughty thing that she found she loathed. "And we both know that trying to kill me is a futile thing at best."
She didn't doubt that he had more sunstones on him and she would not sacrifice more night guards to him and she worried what other magic he had up his sleeves. Until Sorceress Iva appeared, it was best to placate him, unless he attacked first.
She was about to answer when he cut her off, "Rowan hasn't returned yet, has he." It wasn't a question, but rather a statement.
Adelia carefully kept her composure, not allowing her face or her body to give away any hints. Rowan had indeed not returned yet, but then again King Harold could be a rather chatty man and it would not surprise her if he had invited Rowan along to a glass of wine.
But Alexzander made it sound like something had happened.
"There is no need to try and deny it or spout any other pretty nonsense," Alexzander continued, gesturing flippantly at her. "I know he's not coming back." A terrible feeling gripped her gut when his smile took on a truly ugly edge, like victorious and arrogant and self-congratulatory. "Harold might have heard from one of his lords that your dear husband isn't quite... human."
Her mind jumped to Emmertal and she clung to her composure with her fingertips. But years of keeping secrets from her father and placating him and never letting anything slip allowed her to keep hold of her calm facade. On the inside, however, she was caught between fear and a growing, seething rage.
This worm of a person truly only destroyed whatever he touched and now he wanted to destroy her beloved and even more beyond that, she didn't doubt that for a second. He would start with Rowan and stop nowhere.
"I suppose you spoke to that lord sometime recently," Adelia answered. "Emmertal did sport a truly interesting ring."
"I just gave him a friendly nudge and gave him a little gift to foster good relations," Alexzander answered with such fake innocence that it set her teeth on edge. "Your vampire isn't the only one who can make friends with kingdom folk, you know."
If Harold heard and, even worse, believed that Rowan wasn't human, then what would he do? Things clicked together rapidly in Adelia's mind. Harold had always coveted the Wilds, he had made no secret of that and if Rowan could be proven to be non-human, he could either keep him captive and force Rowan's lands to become his, too, and Adelia would have no choice but to comply – at first.
But she knew what Harold thought of noble ladies and their loyalties. He would surely expect her to bend the knee even without Rowan, that he would spin a tale of liberating the Wilds from a monstrous warlord, would dig up tales of people being thralled – of Adelia being thralled.
He would have the lords and ladies on his side and if Adelia didn't agree to let him take what he wanted, he would declare war and would be supported by his nobility. Especially when other nobles thought they had something to gain.
"I recommended a trial by sunlight," Alexzander continued and Adelia felt herself still. His smile gained an edge now that he had gotten a reaction out of her and he took a step forward. "When does the sun rise in the kingdom again? Oh, yes, in seven to eight hours, something like that."
Adelia resisted the urge to swallow. "If you are speaking to me about this matter, then I suppose you want something."
If all he had wanted was to see Rowan dead, all he had to do was sit back and watch chaos unfold. There was no reason to seek her out before dawn and give her time to at least try and figure out a solution.
Alexzander's smile told her that she was right. "I can stop this, you see," he mused. "But Rowan has been a bit of a thorn in my side for some time and after I was building such lovely connections with your old home, I fear my help has a price."
What could he possibly want from her? Adelia had nothing to give that he couldn't easily get himself. Aside from clockwork creations, but she had kept her skills such a secret that she doubted he knew anything about it.
"My means are limited," she began to talk and he cut her off with a sharp gesture.
"Please, spare me your simpering platitutes," he downright sneered as he stared her down, all his pretenses at genial smiling gone and it left his true self behind. An ugly mind and heart, vile and contemptuous of everyone around him. "I know you forged some friendships recently. Bring me Ivan and I will ensure your dear little husband survives."
Until when? Alexzander was exactly the type of person to keep Rowan alive just long enough to get what he wanted and then her beloved would perish regardless. Unless she figured out a solution first and got him out.
She didn't even have to wonder why he wanted Ivan after he had targeted so many sun temples and their clerics, though she still wondered, why the sun goddess and not one of the others? There had to be an answer somewhere that she didn't see yet.
"I can't bring him here tonight," Adelia answered after a second, her hands still folded in front of herself but now her body was tense. "He left with Miriam and I don't know where they went."
It wasn't a lie either. She knew they went to one of the other ruined sun temples, but who knew which one or in whose lands.
Alexzander stared her down, his head tipping to the side. "A shame," he said, downright tonelessly now. "At least your dear Rowan will see the sun again after, what, four hundred years? I'm sure I can arrange for his ashes to be brought to you, if any remain at all."
Adelia thought of the night guard and how nothing was left of them, aside from the enchanted brooch. Her heart was beating fast and heavy in her chest now and she realized that Alexzander was not going to negotiate.
"But," Alexzander continued. "If you are willing to sacrifice Rowan, are you willing to sacrifice your lands, as well? If you are lucky you will be accepted as the new warlord and then what will you do when war comes to you? Will you fight?"
His tone told her that he didn't think she'd succeed. Adelia wasn't trained in warfare, she would have to rely on others to give her counsel and help her defend her home. But so many people would die, all because of the greed of a select few.
"The other warlords won't stand for this," she said and he laughed, a brief bark of amusement.
"And what will they do? Kill me?" he asked mockingly and sharply, spreading his arms as though to present himself. "Let them try. Again and again and again. As many times as it takes to get it through their stubborn skulls. It will do them no good in the end and I have plenty of ways to deal with them one after another."
His arms sank to his sides and he stared her down. "Make no mistake, my lady, I am inevitable. All I offer you, now, for myself more than you, is to speed things along. Make it a clean cut than a big, shattering break."
For perhaps the first time since she had first met the man, Alexzander was nothing but sincere. Darkly so, but he was speaking the honest truth all the same.
"They can't kill me," he added, voice almost soft now. "I made sure of that and so it is up to you, now, because you are not as prideful and foolish as the others. Because you know how to listen when your betters speak. So, will you bring me Ivan to save everyone else? A single man sacrificed is hardly a big price to pay."
He meant it, he meant every word and for just a moment her mind felt blank, heartbeat pulsing strongly in her throat. Time, she needed to buy time, to think, to figure something out.
She allowed her mask to slip, then, for some of the fear to bleed through, no matter how much it galled her. "I can try to call for Ivan, but I truly mean it, I have no idea where he is right now or where he will go next. I don't know how long it will take me to track him down."
An edge of desperation to her voice, her hands clenching, her eyes widening and her breathing growing shorter, she allowed herself to look every inch the frightened noble woman confronted with a terrible, unavoidable future.
"Please," she forced herself to whisper and Alexzander's lips curled into a mean little smile.
"Well, who can say no to someone begging so nicely?" he said, tone sweetly mocking. "Very well, I will help you protect your home and the other warlords, but I can only give you until sunset." He turned to leave and called over his shoulder, "If you reach Ivan soon enough, perhaps you can even save your dear little Rowan in time."
"Why do you want Ivan?" Adelia asked, her hands now in clenched fists at her sides. "Why go after the sun goddess at all?"
But Alexzander didn't answer, he merely waved at her without turning around and sauntered out of the Grim Keep, the entrance doors falling shut with a heavy noise behind him.
As soon as he was gone, a heavy, trembling exhale escaped her.
"My lady?" Captain Ever's voice came from behind her and she jumped in startled surprise. "You cannot allow this to happen. Please, my lady."
For the first time Captain Ever didn't sound composed and calm and steady. There was worry in their town and perhaps even something akin to a flicker of fear.
"I won't," Adelia answered, taking a deep, settling breath, her heart still beating too fast and too noticeable in her chest. "I'll think of something."
But what? What could she do? Attack the palace to try and rescue Rowan? She might as well declare war right on the spot and who knew where they were keeping her beloved? If King Harold was careful, if he was smart, he kept Rowan at a secluded place and had him brought in for his trial with the aid of his mage.
She had no string to pull back home and even offering to marry Emmertal on the spot wouldn't change anything. Not when the Wilds were a far bigger price than she could ever hope to be. King Harold wouldn't let a chance at grabbing the lands that had eluded being conquered for generations go so easily.
No, the best way to save Rowan and protect her home was to rescue him from his trial, but she had no idea how. Or how to find him. And if they managed to capture him in the first place, then the king was prepared for monsters and magic.
He had likely brought monster hunters to the table, had taken all the steps and measures necessary to trap a vampire. To keep him contained and chained up.
With chains that were likely made of silver.
She couldn't help but remember the night she had met Rowan, a cloaked, massive creature that had bled like no tomorrow, silver sticking out of his flesh. Was he hurt, right now? Was he merely held by silver or pierced by it?
Rowan bled red if cut, she knew that, and while silver poisoned him over time, there was no immediate reaction that would be visible. Sunlight was indeed the best trial and it would see him dead within moments.
Her fingers curled into the fabric of her dress, a helpless, ugly, scared feeling clawing through her gut, similar to the way she had felt when Baron had vanished from his stable and her father had told her he was gone.
Her fingers curled around something small and hard in her left pocket. Emmertal's ring. Wait.
She inhaled sharply and turned to Captain Ever, "Please tell Sorceress Iva to meet me in my workroom right away."
Captain Ever vanished with a quick nod and Adelia rushed out of the entrance hall, a desperate, grim sort of hope taking hold of hear heart.
If her hunch was right, if she was on to something here, then she might be able to do something. She hoped so, because the only other way to, hopefully, postpone Rowan's death was to hand Ivan over to Alexzander – if the man intended to keep his word at all.
That was no option. Her grip on her skirts tightened and she quickened her pace. She had lost what she held most dear once before, she would not allow the same to happen again. This time she would do something. This time she would not be too late.
Adelia hadn't expected her morning to start with a thud and horrible, snarling screech loud enough that she was awake and moving between one moment and the next, throwing herself out of bed in startled fright. Dizzy nausea from waking in a flash and getting up so quickly swept over her for a second, her heart pounding hard and fast.
Peering past her bed, thick, down-stuffed blankets in disarray and spilled half onto the floor, she saw a dark shape slumped on her balcony. A shape far too large and bulky to belong to a mere human.
A monster had crash-landed on her balcony, and she saw massive, leathery wings arch against the early dawn sky as the monster shifted from its sideways sprawl onto its front. One of those wings was easily twice her size and its huge body was hidden beneath a big, formless cloth so thoroughly she couldn't even guess at what kind of creature it might be.
It tried to move, only to collapse. She heard it wheezing even through her closed balcony doors and saw blood spilling forth between folds of the cloth as it used its wings to push itself up, leaning onto them much like a bat would. The blood poured onto the ground so thickly and quickly it looked as though someone was upending a wine bottle.
She caught the glint of silver between the folds of blood-soaked cloth and knew this monster must have escaped a hunting party by the skin of its teeth. It was unable to get up, she realized as she watched it writhe, trying to rise only for its wings to buckle again. It just barely kept from falling onto the silver thing protruding from its chest.
Adelia had to admit that she wasn’t as well-versed when it came to the monsters of this world as she would have liked to be. Her father considered such interests beneath the concern of nobility since they had hunters for such things and he especially thought that no womenfolk should get involved, either.
What little bits of knowledge she had, she had scraped together through eavesdropped conversations and from people she spoke with on market day. The latter, as much as she loved the people of their town, weren’t entirely reliable either, for their information revolved heavily around rumors and the retellings of stories no one knew the origin of anymore.
There was one creature in particular, however, that the people in her hometown knew a bit more about: werewolves. Their town had had a problem with those when she had been a babe and people still spoke about it to this day, especially since monsters hadn’t really been an issue before or since then. At least, she could rule out werewolves, because no one had mentioned them having wings in any of the stories she had heard.
Monsters were the most frightening, unnatural things that people had to face outside of war, so any happenstance burned itself quite firmly into the memories of the townsfolk.
There were, of course, plenty of fairytales, as well, though Adelia had to admit that she didn't know how much truth there was to them. To golden geese and strange little men fulfilling wishes and shapeshifters luring young maidens to their doom.
There were, most likely, plenty of big, winged creatures in the world, so without further information and seeing more of the monster unveiled, it would be impossible for her to even start guessing what kind was currently bleeding out on her balcony.
A raven suddenly tumbled down atop the creature, looking half dead on its feet, one wing limp as it tried to stumble-hop across the beasts back, which had stilled at the raven’s arrival.
The raven cawed and weakly plucked at a fold of cloth with its beak, only for the monster to hiss. It slowly sank down onto the stone floor of the balcony, wings shivering strangely as it tried to use the claw-hook at the top wing joint to get at the silver deeply imbedded in its flesh. It was still losing a lot of blood at a startlingly fast rate.
Adelia knew she should run. She ought to go and get the guards so they could finish the job. With how hurt the monster was, there was a good chance that they'd succeed. A normal duke’s daughter might have promptly fainted or at the very least screamed properly, scrabbling around helplessly while waiting for aid to arrive.
Adelia felt frozen in place, heart thundering in her chest like a herd of horses, her eyes wide. She should do something. Monsters were scourges on humankind, an evil left over from times when the world had been wild and chaos had reigned. Before magic had been tamed and humanity grew past the confines of small villages and little hovels.
She finally forced herself to move, opening her mouth to shout for the guards while cautiously inching towards the door, when she saw the monster catch the raven as it overbalanced and fell, its massive, leathery wing cushioning the bird gently.
The monster let the raven slide down to the ground with the utmost care and seemed to inspect the limb wing, the softest of noises rumbling forth from the creature's big chest, barely audible through the balcony doors.
The raven made a low noise as the clawed wing joint touched its feathered head very, very gently. Almost... mournfully.
They both appeared utterly exhausted, the monster breathing hard and still losing blood like an upended bottle. The raven was standing in the ever growing puddle of blood, little black feet painted crimson now, an air of helpless desperation surrounding it.
Adelia took a deep breath and shakily gathered her courage as much as she was able. She straightened to her full height, which still made her feel far too small. It drew the attention of first the monster and then the raven. The head of the monster was covered by a part of the cloth, as well, like a makeshift hood, but something shifted beneath that made her think it may have ears like a dog or a horse. Just a whole lot bigger.
The monster, despite its clear pain and injury, shifted protectively to lean over the raven, who squawked in a warning way, the same way crows in town cawed down at cats lying in wait at the bottoms of their trees.
This was foolish, this was not what she was meant to do, but Adelia found herself inching forward anyway. Her heart was still racing, hard and fast, and her hands were cold and trembling a little.
But she had vowed to herself three years ago, as she had watched her father condemn a begging, starving man to having his dominant hand chopped off for having hunted a hare in his forest, that she would not ignore someone in need.
She would be better than the entitled royalty who smiled benignly at their subjects and did nothing to improve lives that weren’t their own. Who would sooner punish the desperate than ease their burdens.
She had no idea if monsters counted as people, but a creature that cared so obviously for something so much smaller and weaker, something it could crush without further thought, couldn’t be entirely evil. At least, she hoped so.
The monster was growl-hissing, low and dark and sharp, when she opened one half of the large balcony wing doors. It was a truly fearsome sound, but Adelia forced herself to slide forward another careful step.
"I want to help," she said, proud when her voice didn’t shake as she stepped out onto the balcony.
This close to the monster, she couldn't help the small, downright instinctive shiver that raced down her spine. A distant part of her wondered if this was what it felt like to come face to face with a bear or a mountain lion or a pack of wolves in the wild.
This feeling that reached deep into her being, into the very weave of her heart and soul, and made her aware of just how mortal she was. How easy to kill. How very weak and helpless she was should the monster decide to attack.
Thick, dark blood was smeared all across the stone like a spilled paint bucket and the monster stilled, the raven falling quiet. She couldn’t see the creature's face, it was hidden far too well beneath the cloth, but the warning tensing of its bulk had stopped.
Wetting her lips nervously, she added, ignoring the faint tremor in her hands and just how painfully hard her heart was still beating, "If you will let me."
There was a small scrabbling sound, and the raven emerged from behind the wing, warbling at her and jerking its head at where the silver was visible. Not just a simple bird then, but something that must've been touched by magic.
Adelia warily glanced at the monster, which looked like a massive, misshapen creature of cloth and wings, and carefully stepped closer. It did nothing to stop her, nor did it lunge at her.
If anything, the moment she was close enough to touch, it lowered itself with a strained groan so she had an easy time reaching its chest. There was fine fur, matted down with blood and the scent was so heavy in the air she could ever so faintly taste it on her tongue.
Three silver bolts were buried deep in the monster's flesh, one right by the joint necessary for flying, which explained why it had crashed on her balcony in the first place. She swallowed, finding her mouth suddenly dry, and took hold of the first bolt.
Getting it out was unexpectedly hard, and while Adelia didn’t shy from lending a hand to help the servants where her parents wouldn’t se and had gone on horseback rides whenever she was allowed until recently, she still wasn’t as strong as the baker or the scullery maids.
If anything, her mother scolded her for any bit of muscle she built, for the current trend was for women to be properly dainty and to at least act faint should anything horrible ever befall them.
After long moments of grunting and straining and the monster enduring her ministrations, she finally got the bolts out one after another, letting each drop onto blood-wet stone with a metallic clang.
She thought her task done when the monster shifted, tipping its head back with great reluctance to reveal an even worse wound, hidden near its head beneath a swath of torn cloth. A large, silver coated blade, broken off at the hilt, was stuck at an angle below its clavicle. As if someone had tried to take its head off.
Adelia had to use her entire weight and all her strength to yank the broken blade out without losing any fingers in the process and she would have fallen backwards onto bloody stone if a large wing hadn’t caught her, carefully righting her.
Looking at the monster, she noticed that the strained, wheezing breaths had slowed down to something more normal. The pouring blood flow had slowed to nothing as well. The creature exhaled softly with something that sounded like relief.
The raven made chirping, warbling noises and seemed glad as well. The monster appeared exhausted, but it turned its head towards the sky, clearly gauging if it could still fly.
Adelia glanced up as well and noticed that the sun had risen far enough to start peeking over the horizon, deepening the shadows across the balcony. There were a few minutes left, at most, before even the balcony would be bathed in pale light.
The monster stared until one long sigh escaped it. It sounded unexpectedly grim, the raven shifting on its bloody feet and warbling in a distinctively distressed and worried manner, staring pointedly between the monster and the rising sun.
The monster made a low noise at the bird before it shuffled a bit to the side to squeeze into the most protected corner of the balcony, tucking to hide beneath its gigantic cloth until it was nothing but a big, misshapen thing. Even the wings weren't visible anymore.
There was no way for the monster to just fly off without being seen, not with how large it was. Looking at its injured state, she doubted it could fly well, anyway. If the monster hunters were still nearby, it would most likely die.
It was clear neither the monster nor the raven were able to leave, but staying out on the balcony wasn’t an option either. Someone would spot them once the sun rose far enough to illuminate everything.
Adelia eyed them, then the balcony doors. The monster could fit through if she opened both doors wide, but then what? She could hardly squeeze it partially into her closet and request that her maid ignore the black cloth mass hanging out like it was merely a misplaced, ugly cloak.
She could ask that everyone stay out of her rooms, she had built a good enough rapport with the servants that they were quietly loyal to her, they would respect such a request. So long as her father never found anything out, never suspected anything and never gave opposing orders, no one would tell on her.
Even then, the closet was hardly the right place for the creature.
The monster couldn’t fit beneath her bed, either, like some sort of storybook specter, but she could squeeze it into her bathing chamber. It was honestly the best place for it, quiet and dark. It was also the best hiding spot she had, on the off chance that someone did peek into her bedroom.
The window in the bathing chamber was barely big enough to toss bathing water out of and could be covered entirely so the creature could rest in complete darkness to recover its strength.
"Can you move?" she asked, the cloth around its head shifting in her direction, and the raven, who had nestled close, stared at her as well. She gestured at the balcony doors. "You may hide in there until you can leave unseen, so long as you hurt no one in this castle or the surrounding town."
The monster seemed to stare at her for a long moment, since Adelia certainly felt a piercing gaze on her, then dipped its head in unexpectedly graceful acceptance.
Thankfully, she didn’t have to help the monster move, since she was sure she’d sooner buckle beneath its sheer bulk than ever manage to move it a single inch. The monster dragged itself into her bedroom after the raven clambered up to sit securely on its hunched back.
The monster just barely managed to squeeze through the door to her bathing chamber, smearing the doorframe with more of its blood.
Adelia covered the slim window of her bathing room with a wooden slat, something she had requested made after realizing that people could peer through the window from the tower across the small courtyard. Not that she had noticed anyone staring so far, but the thought was discomfiting regardless.
The moment all sources of light aside from the open door were cut off, the monster slumped with a long, heavy sigh and stayed still and unmoving. Adelia had no idea what else to do and stepped back outside, quietly closing the door.
Then she stared at the blood that pooled on the balcony and had gotten smeared onto the floor all the way to the door of her bathing chamber. Her nightgown was as good as ruined, sleeves soaked in blood and the hem and bodice splattered. Her feet were nearly entirely covered in red.
She took a deep breath and began to figure out how to deal with this. She dipped back into the bathing chamber to grab a bucket and filled it with water from the jug by the washbasin.
Father had wanted to get a plumbing system installed by a mage, but he hadn’t been able to afford the fees any of the independent ones who took contracts from anyone with enough coin. So their family made do by keeping some water in their chambers, and otherwise had servants carry water up for bathing.
Snatching one of the rags she usually used for her monthly bleeding, she started mopping up the mess. She threw the bloody water onto the balcony once she was done, washing some of the pooled blood away.
She hid the silver weaponry and her bloody nightgown and rag beneath her bed. A glance at the rising sun told her she only had a handful of minutes left before a maid would appear to help her prepare for the day.
Adelia quickly cleaned up with the small washbasin in the corner of her bedroom, an extra bit of luxury Mother had insisted on, and she was glad for it now. She got dressed in one of her favorite dresses that she could lace up herself and stepped out just in time to meet Julie, the maid tasked with looking after her, with a smile and a polite incline of her head.
"My Lady," Julie dipped into a curtsey, and the smile she offered was honest and friendly. Julie was one of the youngest maids in the castle and one Adelia's mother had let her interview herself so she could practice handling her own household.
Her parents had insisted on this in preparation for her upcoming marriage to ensure she wouldn't shame the family by hiring incompetent servants. They hadn't let her hire a maid of her own yet, her father citing that she was not going to spend any of his money needlessly. She could do that once she had a husband and someone else would be responsible for her finances.
While Father gave her an allowance, it wasn't enough to pay people for their services, and so Adelia had used most of it for personal projects. In the future, her money would come from Tirn, her fiancé and Baron Warren’s firstborn son.
Adelia had been engaged to Tirn since they had been five years old, and over the years they had worked out a satisfying agreement for their future marriage together. Nobles very rarely married for love, and they both wanted to make the best of the fate their parents had handed to them.
Besides, there were far, far worse people to marry than Tirn, who was kind, if forgetful, and despite his bouts of laziness, he did largely care about the people around him.
She and Tirn had decided one evening, should either of them want to take lovers once they were married, they were welcome to as long as they wouldn’t cause a scandal. Adelia doubted she would look for someone to warm her bed, but Tirn had offered her the option anyway.
He had done so a little awkwardly, after admitting that he enjoyed a woman’s touch too much to deny himself the pleasure, and he was a good enough person to not force his attentions on her should she not want it.
As long as they produced an heir or two to appease their parents, their necessary bedroom duties to each other would be fulfilled.
They had grown thick as thieves over the years, helping each other get out of trouble and covering for each other. Adelia had helped him sneak off with a chamber-maid who had been enamored with him and in return, Tirn had snuck books into gifts he had sent her so her father didn't notice. Which had been one of two things that had allowed Adelia to further learn the art of clockwork inventions.
Adelia, therefore, could have had far less luck with her future husband. Tirn would never actively, willingly mistreat or ignore her or otherwise belittle her; if anything, he'd be a great friend and ally.
There were some horrible men out there, walking freely among the gentry, like Lord Emmertal, and she was very glad he had never been considered as an option for her.
Lord Emmertal had been married thrice already and each wife had ended up dead some time after the wedding. He was still treated like a respected member of society, for he was rich and powerful and knew how to make allies, and last Adelia had heard, another girl had been offered to him as a potential wife.
She hoped the poor girl managed to convince her parents to not marry her off after all. She hoped the girl was not to Lord Emmertal's taste and he’d decline.
"You’re up early, My Lady," Julie said. "I hope you slept well?"
Adelia had, until a monster had decided it could fly no further and had crashed so violently and loudly it had startled her straight out of bed.
"Of course, will you accompany me to the kitchen?" Adelia asked, and Julie was quick to join her. "And if you could tell the others to spare my rooms their attention today, I would be grateful."
Julie blinked in confusion and nodded, though she seemingly couldn’t resist whispering, "May I ask why, My Lady?"
This was thankfully something she could lie convincingly about. "I dedicated some time to my hobby before going to sleep and I haven’t managed to hide everything away yet," Adelia whispered back.
She liked to make things no proper young lady was supposed to, especially with her father's very narrow-minded views. Adelia loved to build clockwork designs; she loved the intricate details and fine little tools she worked with.
How she could make something out of a pile of metal and gears and little screws. The first time she had successfully made something move, she had pressed her hands over her mouth to muffle her glad, joyful laughter.
Her passion had begun when King Harold had bragged about getting a clock tower built in his crown city when she had been a child, showing it off to everyone upon completion.
She had been utterly fascinated with how the gears worked and had wondered if it was possible to create something like this at a far, far smaller scale as well. What wonders one might create with a bit of ingenuity and skill.
Father had never realized what the clock tower visit had sparked within her or that Tirn had secretly gifted her what few texts existed on the topic. She had found herself caught in a sea of ideas since then.
If he ever saw the sketches of her ideas or found her inventions, most of them little toys, he would have everything destroyed and would ensure she’d never so much as draw anything unseemly ever again.
When Julie nodded with understanding, Adelia changed the subject, "Tell me, how is everyone today?"
Julie distracted her with gossip as they headed down into the kitchen. Adelia was seated and served breakfast as soon as she arrived, listening to the chatter around her, the playful ribbing and joking among the staff.
Adelia honestly enjoyed being here more than she ever enjoyed sitting at the dining table with her parents. She was smiling as she sipped the watered-down wine the scullery maid Sabina had given her with a little wink. In all honesty, after the shock and scramble of this morning's events, she certainly appreciated something to calm her nerves.
All seemed to be well and once she finished eating, Adelia spent some time teaching the people around her their letters and numbers. She had never believed in keeping the common folk ignorant, and everyone kept her lessons quiet from her parents.
Neither Father nor Mother would ever allow this to continue if they found out about it, and they would become quite furious with her. Adelia would find herself grounded, and the kitchen staff would lose their jobs, possibly also getting severely punished beforehand. No one wanted any of that to happen, so it was a dear secret they all shared.
After she wrapped up her little lesson, she went about her day, and in the end, it was surprisingly easy to focus on her duties and activities despite the early morning scare.
Adelia knew she would only grow busier the moment her parents announced the wedding date to Tirn at the next gathering of nobility and was doing her best to prepare accordingly.
She was determined to avoid becoming some doll on a shelf, sitting around prettily while exchanging petty gossip and cutting words with other noble ladies. To avoid having to act as though, outside of running her household and spying on others for her husband, only the latest fashion trends and whose child had been born ugly was important.
Tirn knew a bit about her hopes of living a good, meaningful life, enough that she was sure he’d not stand in her way. It was honestly more than she could have hoped for from other noble sons, considering some of the conversations she had been unfortunate enough to be part of over the years.
She did not look forward to the consummation of said marriage, however, no matter how much she may like Tirn as a friend. It would be a duty she’d bear with as much dignity as she could and hope that once or twice would be enough to produce the necessary heirs.
Though, if she was being honest, she didn't look forward to being a mother either. It was a necessity of her station and demanded by society, her parents, and certainly her noble-born husband-to-be, but personally? She could do without. Children were cute enough when she interacted with them, but she was always glad to hand them back to their parents at the end of the day.
By the time evening rolled around, she had almost forgotten about the monster and its raven she had hidden in her bathing chamber. Almost.
She entered her bedroom as the sun set outside, the sky cast in deep gold and dark pink-orange, a beautiful play of intense colors. When she opened the door to the bathing chamber just enough to peer through the crack, she noticed that the monster was still there, unmoving and silent.
The raven was sleeping on the creature's back, and it didn’t stir, either. Closing the door again, she wondered about what to do.
The creature couldn’t stay here, and there was no way she’d be able to hide it elsewhere in the castle. She’d have to ask it if it could leave once it woke again. If it had nowhere else to go, she knew of a few ruins where it could hunker down for a while. She’d have to figure out what to do with the bloodied nightgown and silver bolts as well.
In the end, she burned the bloodied clothing in the fireplace, since it had dried enough for such an endeavor. Since the approaching night was certainly warm enough to not need the additional heat of the crackling flames, she opened the balcony doors wide to compensate for the stuffy air.
Adelia lit a candle to take care of her personal correspondence while the sun set, answering the letters of her friends, smiling at their stories and responding with tales of her own.
She didn’t have many friends, not true ones at least, and Katrina and Izabel were near and dear to her heart. She sketched flowers onto the corners of the papers, secret little messages they had come up with back when their letters had been proof-read by their parents during their teenage years.
Their parents had wanted to ensure nothing foolish or rebellious would be written, and while they had stopped controlling the letters a while ago, Adelia and her friends had kept doodling flowers, just in case their letters would be read by a third party again one day.
When the time came to retire, she found she was unable to. She had donned another nightgown, braided her hair for bed, and paced, thinking about waking the monster to speak with it.
She was about to go knock when the door opened on its own and the creature squeezed through. It moved as though it had never been harmed in the first place, walking forward on its wings and the raven no longer nursed a limp wing. In fact, the bird seemed very content with its spot nestled into the monster’s cloth-covered neck.
The monster paused, keeping as much distance between them as her room allowed, and dipped its head in what was an unexpected sign of gratitude.
"Safe travels," Adelia found herself saying, and the monster made a low humming noise. It didn't sound threatening, so she offered it a small smile in parting.
It climbed out onto the balcony and paused, glancing back for a moment. Its wings started to unfurl, though the tattered, thick cloth continued hiding the rest of it entirely from view. Adelia had no idea what she had harbored beside her bathing chamber during the day, but the monster was a kind one, at least to her and the raven, and that was what mattered.
It flew away on huge, leathery wings and disappeared with astonishing speed, the raven ducking down to avoid being blown off. Adelia stared after the creature and wondered what had happened for the monster to get attacked by hunters, considering how gentle and quiet it had been. Or maybe it had killed people before and had only spared her because she had saved its life. That was entirely possible.
Now, she had to figure out how to get rid of the weaponry beneath her bed once she had cleaned up any leftover blood in the bathroom. As she scrubbed at the dried stains she wondered if she could melt the silver down into tiny gears and springs and little, decorative plating.
While she usually had her ways to get her hands on things to tinker with, hunter weaponry would draw unwanted attention, for there were no other people who used silver bolts. It was probably unwise to just hand them over to someone else.
For a moment, Adelia wished she could operate a forge herself, before she gave up on that dream with a sigh and a pang of guilt and hurt. Her father would never let her do such a thing, and the blacksmith he had previously employed, who had been so kind as to teach Adelia a few things, had been tossed out and banished from her father's lands for that very transgression.
Adelia had been punished herself: her precious, beloved horse send to slaughter because her father had wanted to make sure she would never do something so unseemly and forbidden ever again. Mostly, though, he had been enraged that she had broken his rules, that she had rebelled against him in his eyes. That she had done something without permission.
She had tried to beg forgiveness, had sunk down to her knees even, but her father had remained hard and unforgiving. Something like genuine hatred had gripped her heart for the first time that day. The hatred hadn't been enough to eclipse the despair and grief over the loss of both her beloved horse and a good friend and mentor, but it... lingered.
She was lucky enough that one of the goldsmiths in town felt indebted to her after she had paid a doctor for his wife’s treatment and was willing to supply her in secret every couple of months in exchange for money. It was the only way she could keep experimenting around with clockwork creations.
Adelia had made sure to keep his involvement secret and leave delivery and payment arrangements to Julie, so Adelia herself never received any packages. Her maid brought her the deliveries hidden among washed clothing and bed sheets. A clever little trick that kept anyone from suspecting anything.
It was probably for the best to hand the silver over to Julie as well and request she dump it somewhere where no one would see her, as much as it pained Adelia to discard valuable material. But this would save Julie from being asked any questions she did not wish to answer and Adelia from subsequently explaining just why she had monster hunter arrows in her possession.
If that happened, her father was sure to have her rooms searched and then all her carefully and meticulously hidden secrets would be uncovered.
She didn't dare to think about what he'd do if that ever happened.
"I was thinking about what you said earlier," Adelia said, reaching up to press her hands over her cheeks, subtly shying back half a step so his hand sank back down, while she pretended to feel abashed.
Swallowing down the disgust she felt with practiced ease she looked up at him from beneath her lashes, "My husband, I... I fear he has no interest in me. It shames me to admit as much."
He made a low noise, as though he felt sorry for her, but it lacked any genuine concern or sympathy. She doubted he was even capable of such emotions. "Poor thing," he murmured, but there was an undertone of ugly delight that ruined his already shoddy pretense at empathy. "A pretty lady should not suffer such indignity."
Because a pretty lady was meant to lie back and think of the heirs she was expected to produce and defer to her husband in all regards. If she was lucky she was married to someone who valued her opinion, but if she wasn't then no one cared to change anything. Lord Emmertal's continued welcome at court was proof enough of that.
She was so glad to be gone from her home, to be here instead, married to Rowan who saw her as an equal, who treated her like one, who was good to her. Who was kind and caring and she would always and forever prefer the monster he was to the one Lord Emmertal embodied.
"There is nothing to be done about it, however, I'm afraid," she whispered, lowering her gaze as though saddened by her life without letting Lord Emmertal out of her sight. "Even untouched as I am, there is no escape for me from these cold, barbaric lands."
It was a little more forward than she would have been otherwise and especially with anyone but her best friends, but she needed Lord Emmertal to take the bait. She needed his attention to shift entirely to her, for him to forget about Katrina. She needed him to lap his death from her fingertips.
And there it was, that flash of dark, ugly hunger in his eyes, just like she had wanted. She wondered if all men were this easy to convince, so long as one dangled what they desired before them.
"You don't sound very happy, my lady," Lord Emmertal said with the sort of slightly off-sounding softness, as though he tried to sound compassionate and coaxing, but didn't manage to hit those tones correctly.
"Tell me true, little lady," he continued before she could say anything else. "Has your husband truly not touched you?" This, at least, Adelia did not have to lie about, though she also didn't like saying the truth.
She wanted to guard this part of her, the kindness Rowan had shown her during their wedding night, the respect and consideration he had shown her then and every day since. Lord Emmertal could not measure up to Rowan if he tried for the rest of his measly little life.
"No," she whispered and added, carefully cautious, hoping to lure him in like a fly into a trap, "My husband, he is not a very... warm, person."
Lord Emmertal smiled like he had just gotten something confirmed and Adelia truly did not like that he suspected the true nature of her husband. She felt that flush of protectiveness take hold of her again and it was a fight to stay demure and soft and quietly beseeching. To look like an unhappy young noble lady, one who should live in a grand castle in warmer and more civilized climate.
"We could request an annulment of your marriage," Lord Emmertal mused. "Once I get a healer to check if you indeed are still pure and I would happily wed you instead."
Adelia let her eyes widen, while a feeling like vicious triumph hooked into her heart like the claws of an eagle, as though it was going to take her soaring any moment now. "Oh, but what of Katrina? I would so hate to take something from my dear friend."
He waved her off. "There are other noble sons," he said easily and Adelia knew at once that his choice to marry Katrina had been a way to try to get at her. To cause at least a bit of pain, to have at least a bit of control over her after she managed to escape him, like a hare vanishing into the underbrush, the hound's snapping teeth missing her by millimeters.
But she was no hare, had never been one and neither was he a hound.
"Then... may she stay the night?" she asked and when his expression firmed slightly, she gave him her most innocent, sweet look. The one that had made even her controlled mother soften the faintest bit. "I, um, I missed her so terribly, I already reached out to her parents to ask she stay a bit longer. It is so terribly lonely here, my lord."
She put just enough breathiness into her words so she sounded pained and yearning for connection.
She did not wish to fight him outright on this, it would ruin her sweet pretense, but she would. He would not take Katrina with him. When she saw the flash of darkness in his eyes, sharper and uglier, a desire for control, her mind raced.
"It will give you an excuse," she said, making herself take half a step closer, her voice dropping to a whisper as though she was entrusting him with some secret. "You could come here in... in a week, by then I will have what we need to annul my marriage."
His brows ticked up slightly, and just like she hoped, he was swiftly distracted. "And how might you achieve something like this, my lady?" There was a more considering glint to his eyes, something almost wary and Adelia knew she had to be cautious. If she pressed too much, if she appeared too intelligent, he would grow wary.
So far he knew nothing of her intellect, for Rowan had been the one to snatch her away from him and a lady saying pretty words to defend her home in public was hardly something new at court.
"The steward," Adelia was quick to say. "He has his lord's ear and is trusted and he wishes to leave this place as dearly as I do. If... if there is a chance he'll find employ back home, then he can sneak divorce papers into a pile that need signing. He once mentioned to me he can get anything signed, for Lord Morrow does not pay attention."
Lord Emmertal smiled a little wider at those words. "Interesting. I believe I will find great use for a man of his intellect," he mused, but he did not sound kind at all. More as though he would enjoy interrogating Steward Lambrecht thoroughly.
Not that Adelia would let him lay a single hand on anyone in this keep. As lady it was her duty to defend them and she would.
"Then... I will see you again next week?" she whispered and the smile spreading on his face was a thirsty, terrible thing.
He reached out, gripping her chin and she made herself pliant in his hold, looking up at him as though she was hopeful, silently pleading him to say yes. He needed to fall for her lies.
"You will," he said, releasing her chin and watching her fall back a step, looking like it itched at him to put his hands on her more and it made her skin crawl. "Good night, Lady Adelia. I will take my leave now and I shall come fetch Katrina in a week's time. If you wish to talk then, be sure to greet me without your husband's presence and the appropriate papers."
She allowed her exhale to be audible, to let him hear her relief. He bowed to her then, never breaking eye-contact.
"Be ready to get whisked away, my little lady," he said, before he turned to sweep out the doors.
Adelia waited with baited breath, watching as his mage, who had to wait outside the entrance doors, bowed to him and then they were gone in the blink of an eye, with a little pop and a flurry of displaced snow.
She stepped forward to push the doors closed and a sudden, dizzying rush of emotions gripped her, her knees feeling a little shaky and her hands trembled slightly.
The sound of boots scuffing stone made her flinch upright, her polite mask snapping into place in a heartbeat, only for her to ease when she spotted Captain Ever.
"My Lady." They bowed to her in greeting. "I have been informed of your plans regarding your guests and did not interfere when this lord put his hand on you. I wish to know if I acted correctly or if I should cleave it from his arm the next time he visits."
Adelia wished she could say yes. It would be a rather satisfying thing, to have Lord Emmertal afraid and at the mercy of those around him, to watch him bleed. But she took a deep breath and gave Captain Ever a reassuring smile, pulling herself back together. She had no time for emotional outbursts, not when her friend's life was still in danger.
She had bought time, nothing more.
"You did everything right, Captain Ever," Adelia reassured them. "Though I thank you for your concern and for checking in with me." She made sure her smile was warmer and realer, not like the forced, sweet thing of before. "Please, go and enjoy the festivities if you like, you and the night guard are part of our staff as well, after all, though I also understand if the party might feel rather ruined now."
Captain Ever bowed to her once more. "It does not. While the wolves have left already to run wild, the night guard will enjoy partaking. I will let them know. Don't hesitate to call for any of us, should you need anything. We will hear you easily."
"Of course, thank you," Adelia answered, the stiffness of lies and her careful acting slowly easing away from her again, letting her sound as genuine as she felt. "And thank you for your hard work. Now go, I believe the dancing is still in full swing."
Captain Ever inclined their head and between one moment and the next they were gone, leaving her standing alone. But even that only lasted a second, before Rowan entered the entrance hall, though he was not alone.
Katrina and Izabel were right behind them, followed by Lady Iris and Lady Miriam, along with Lord Ivan and Sorceress Iva. There was a golden gleam to Lady Iris's eyes and a predator grace to her gait that hadn't been there before to this extend.
Katrina rushed forward, eyes big and filling swiftly with tears. Rowan stepped smoothly aside, his gaze lingering on Adelia a moment longer, something along his shoulders relaxing when he saw her unharmed.
"Stop," her friend whispered as soon as she reached Adelia, grabbing her hands even as tears started to fall down her cheeks, her voice trembling but fierce as she almost growled, "Don't you dare die for me."
"No one will die," Adelia answered just as fiercely, freeing her hands to pull her friend into a hug. Against Katrina's temple she whispered, "None but Lord Emmertal."
All at once, as soon as the words and their meaning settled in, Katrina's shoulders trembled and she started to weep in earnest, soft and muffled and helpless. Izabel was quick to join them, wrapping them both up in her arms and Adelia glanced at her other friends and at Rowan, who kept themselves busy off to the side, speaking softly with each other and giving them a moment to themselves.
"He will come for me in a week, Lady Iris told me as much," Katrina whispered, pulling back to quickly dab at her eyes, though there was no hiding their redness. "What then?"
"You will go with Lady Iris," Adelia said softly. No matter what would happen, Katrina would be save in Lady Iris's den of wolves. "I trust her and she will keep you safe. Leave the rest to me."
She was glad that her friends trusted her, that they nodded without demanding more of an explanation, asking her for a detailed plan with backup plans – mostly since she didn't have one, not yet.
Lady Iris stepped forward, a gleam of gold still in her eyes but her smile warm, "Well met, Lady Katrina, I am Iris, it will be an honor to host you."
Katrina swiftly curtseyed her smile warm and it only trembled faintly around the edges, relief and lingering worry, along with lingering fear, lurking in her gaze. "It is my honor," she answered. "If there is any way I can repay you for your aid, don't hesitate to let me know."
"There is no debt to be repaid," Lady Iris waved her off. "However, I fear I will have to whisk you away now, the full moon is tickling at the edges of my senses."
Katrina paused ever so briefly, slightly taken aback and befuddled, but she still nodded. "Far be it from me to hold you up," she answered. "Though, allow me to at least thank you for hosting me, that is very kind of you."
"Aren't you a sweet one," Lady Iris softly, her smile warm and charmed, before she grew more serious. "No harm will befall you among me and mine, nor will this wretch of a foreign lord get his hands on you again, I promise you that."
The front doors got pulled open in that moment and Alb peeked inside, mage robes billowing slightly in the evening wind, snowflakes never once landing on them. They raised a questioning brow and Lady Iris nodded.
"Shall we?" she asked, turning back to Katrina and offering her an arm like a gallant lord might have. Katrina thanked her softly, taking her arm and glancing at Adelia and Izabel once more.
Adelia made sure to give her a reassuring smile, to stand tall and certain and unafraid and she watched her friend's shoulders lose a bit more of rigid tension. Katrina looked exhausted, in that moment and Adelia wondered just how long her friend had silently suffered under the knowledge of her future marriage.
How much sleep she had lost, how alone and terrified she must have felt. She watched as Lady Iris led Katrina to Alb and they vanished in a little stormy flurry of snow.
Turning to Izabel then, Adelia reached out to take her friend's hand, "Would you like to stay as well? We have room for you, if you'd like. I know the mood for dancing and partying is likely gone, but you don't have to leave."
Izabel's smile was a soft, worn thing, like her friend had gotten all her energy sapped in just the past hour. "My parents would have a fit, you know that," she said softly, giving her hands a squeeze. "But maybe I can visit again?"
"Whenever you like," Adelia vowed with clear sincerity. "You and Katrina will always be welcome, even if you decide to show up out of the blue."
Izabel's expression softened, some of the remaining, lingering tension easing out of her. "You're truly a good friend," Izabel said quietly and her smile was a little more real, a little less burdened. "And I am glad to see you so well. I shall come back as soon as I can convince my parents to let me."
She looked more rueful a moment later, "I'm sorry, I wish I could stay and celebrate with you, but..."
"I fully understand," Adelia answered. "I fear I won't join the party again, either, there is too much to do." Plans to run through and people to talk with. She had one week, after all, to figure out how to get rid of Lord Emmertal without risking war.
She knew, of course, that there was technically more time than this week, that it was highly unlikely Lord Emmertal was going to marry Katrina in the heart of winter and that Katrina's parents would keep her at their castle until the wedding day.
But why let her friend suffer for that long? Adelia knew that biting fright, that awful feeling of knowing her life was as good as forfeit and she had only suffered that fear for a mere handful of hours before Rowan had swept in.
Besides, even if the wedding wouldn't take place for months yet, there was always the risk that Lord Emmertal caught on to Adelia's schemes and then he would very likely drag Katrina in front of an altar as quickly as possible.
The second he noticed that something was up, and he would if given enough time, he'd sink his teeth in rather than risk letting another lady escape. Considering who he was, Lord Emmertal likely preferred a quick, fleeting victory over not having one at all.
Adelia would have to bury her friend if that happened, broken and bruised and murdered and none of the other nobles would do anything, just as always. They would just sound and look sad and she'd have to keep swallowing her rage to avoid going for their throats.
No, Lord Emmertal had to be dealt with swiftly and quickly, as quickly as possible so Katrina regained her peace of mind. So she could sleep well once more.
"Be sure to keep writing me letters until you can visit again," Adelia said to Izabel and glanced over to the waiting group, catching Sorceress Iva's gaze and waving her closer. "My friend wishes to depart, would it be possible for you to take her back home?"
"It's no trouble," the older woman said, wrinkles deepening a little as she smiled at Adelia. It was a smile edged in a subtle, magic-laced danger, as though she would have liked killing Lord Emmertal herself. "If there is anything I can do to be of help to get rid of your enemies, don't hesitate to let me know."
"I will, thank you," Adelia answered with a grateful smile. She gave Izabel one more hug before her friend was swept away and she startled slightly when the large entrance doors fell shut behind them seemingly on their own.
Turning around she saw Lady Miriam wriggling her fingers at her, the glow beneath her skin and bones, pulsing like a heartbeat, dimming a little again.
"So, what is the plan?" Lord Ivan asked as they now approached her. Rowan reached her first and she leaned into his gentle touch as he placed his hand on her shoulder. "What flavor of murder would you prefer?"
"One not connected to us," Adelia answered. "And thank you, for stealing his ring."
Lord Ivan smiled, a faint golden shimmer briefly going through his tattoos. "An easy thing for a cleric of the sun and a former street rat who was once quite the adept pickpocket."
That was a little surprising, she had to admit. Back home, priests were meant to be paragons of justice and virtue – not that that was always true, or even just half of the time. But it didn't matter, Adelia decided, so long as Lord Ivan was happy and healthy today. She was glad he no longer had to go hungry.
"If you want, I'll hand the ring over as soon as Rowan is safely away," Lord Ivan offered, wriggling his fingers a little again. "The little stone seems to be of the same make as the bigger one you allowed me to borrow."
Adelia nodded, the last thing she wanted was to hurt Rowan or to poison him – she stilled, something sparking in her mind that she hadn't even thought to consider. Rowan must've noticed, for he leaned slightly forward to look at her, waiting quietly.
"That piece of crystal from the attacked temple," she began, looking at Lord Ivan. "You said it would make people sick?" At his nod, she asked, "Enough to kill them?"
Lord Ivan paused, thoughtful, while Lady Miriam straightened, an eager, bloodthirsty little grin curling across her face and Lord Ivan joined her a moment later, his smile bright in a sharp, burning way.
"Clever girl," Lady Miriam murmured with quiet admiration, the power that surrounded her swelling briefly and washing all around them, like the Deep was quite pleased. Planks creaked beneath Adelia's feet for a moment, a saltwater breeze brushing past her, a powerful entity drifting beneath the surface, seemingly endless and unfathomable.
"I think we can make it deadly," he answered, that golden glimmer going through his tattoos anew. He tipped his head slightly to the side, gaze unerringly fixed on Adelia. "How would you accomplish it? A mage would detect the magic in food or drinks upon inspection and they would notice the crystal."
Adelia turned things over and over in her mind, her friends waiting patiently, Rowan with that dark-red glow in his eyes, his attention so fully focused on her, until, one by one, an idea slotted into place. It felt the same way as when she had made her horse and the bumblebee and the rose and many other things.
The same way she was going to poison Lord Emmertal and get away with it.
"I need my workshop," she said and Rowan gave her shoulder an encouraging squeeze, his smile adoring and bloodthirsty all at once.
They followed her down to her work room and Adelia pulled out a piece of parchment, detailing her idea and Lord Ivan threw his head back, laughing gleefully.
"Oh I love this," he said and he downright purred as he asked, "I can help, can't I?"
"I need your help," Adelia confirmed right away and he cackled, clapping his hands together in dark joy. "And Sorceress Iva's, once she's back. I know my craft, but I don't know hers or yours well enough to do this alone."
To create something that would slip past a mage's detection they needed something that wasn't enchanted. Magical stones she could explain away, some people liked showing off, after all, and mages for all that they were desired, weren't usually welcome in political conversations.
Lord Emmertal would want to speak with her in private, which meant his mage would check any liquids and cups and bottles and surroundings beforehand and upon detecting nothing to worry about, they would leave.
Once they left, then the magic had to happen and for that Adelia needed to figure out how to make a clockwork creation that, upon two halves slotting together, would allow an enchantment to come to life.
Lord Ivan's eyes looked bluer than ever as he leaned forward and whispered, "If you manage to do what I think you intent to, nothing will remain the same afterwards."
"Indeed," Rowan murmured and Adelia glanced at him, her breath slightly catching at the way he looked at her. As though she was brilliant, as though he wanted nothing more than to give her anything and everything, as though he would never tire from watching her create.
"We got a little into it earlier," Lord Ivan said, gesturing at the sketches around and his grin grew wider. "I can't wait to see what we'll have at the end of a week."
The door to her work room opened in that moment and Sorceress Iva stepped inside. "Ever told me you were talking about something that might require me?"
Lord Ivan giggled gleefully. "Oh, Iva, come here and be brilliant with us."
Sorceress Iva stepped forward with quiet curiosity and Adelia and Lord Ivan told her what they had planned and she laughed, her eyes gleaming a little brighter with magic.
"You mean to tell me you want to tear enchantments apart to fit them back together like puzzlie pieces at will and find a way to feed them power without a mage to do it for you?" she asked and at their nods, she grinned, magic curling heavily through the air, tasting of thunderstorms and possibility. "That sounds fun."
Sorceress Iva stepped forward to join them and Adelia paused to look back at Rowan, who looked so very pleased to see them to excited and energized. Adelia stepped towards him for a moment and when she reached out, his hands easily held hers.
His touch didn't make her feel crawling disgust like Lord Emmertal's did. Quite the opposite in fact, she realized. She... enjoyed it. She enjoyed his presence, his thoughtfulness, his bloodlust and monstrousness that never once came close to being detrimental to her.
She couldn't help but think that he was the right kind of husband for her and as she looked up at him, at that bloody glimmer in his dark eyes, she felt an unexpected but also not unwelcome swell of affection towards him.
"Thank you, Rowan, for all your help tonight," she whispered and he smiled at her, wide enough to reveal a hint of his fangs. He raised one hand to his lips, pressing a downright reverent kiss to her knuckles.
"No thanks necessary, my dearest Adelia," he murmured. "You can always count on me."
That she did. It wasn't even a question anymore at this point, she hadn't even thought about asking for his aid. She hadn't doubted for a second that she would receive it, either.
Lady Miriam, who had peeked over Lord Ivan's shoulder until now, chose that moment to step forward.
"While I have undoubtedly many talents, this is not one of them," Lady Miriam said with a regretful twist to her smile as she gestured at the strewn about pages, scrawled handwriting across it, Lord Ivan listening intently as Sorceress Iva explained how mages created enchantments. "Though, do let me know if you require any aid I can provide."
Her smile was a downright villainous thing as she added, "I have no doubt in my mind that you will succeed." She pulled Adelia into her arms, whispering, "The way your eyes gleam has the Deep interested. Should you ever be in need of a patron, it will welcome you with open arms."
With those words and a last squeeze, her friend departed and Rowan huffed softly in wry amusement. "Oh dear, everyone seems intent on stealing my wife these days," he murmured. "It seems I better step up my game so she'll want to stay."
The only way Adelia would leave was if he asked her to. "No need for competition," she answered, reaching out to brush her fingertips against his wrist, her voice softening as she added, "You being yourself is more than enough."
His smile was so lovely in that moment, charmed and warm and quietly adoring and she... oh, she rather wanted to kiss him, didn't she?
"Adelia," Lord Ivan called out, waving her closer. "Leave him to his lovesick sighing and come look at this. I mean, Iva's always been brilliant, but none of us have any idea how clockwork works."
Setting those suddenly realized, warm emotions to the side for the moment, Adelia stepped forward, Lord Ivan making space for her and Sorceress Iva pushing a detailed and yet messy scribble towards her.
With a deeper breath she focused on the goal ahead of her. She'd speak with Rowan later, perhaps, once she had designed Lord Emmertal's end with the aid of these two gifted people.
They had a week, after all, to make this work. To make something that would poison Lord Emmertal just enough that he would leave the keep alive, only to die in his own home. To die from an illness no one could explain and no one could trace back to them.
If they succeeded, there would be no war and Katrina would be safe. And then she would worry about sunshine-stones and crystal-infused temples again and whether or not Rowan might be willing to kiss her back if she asked him to.
"I'm going to kill Alexzander," Lord Ivan growled, a tension to his body that Adelia had never seen before, his tattoos glowing a dark, deep, swirling gold and she swore his eyes downright gleamed a darker blue now.
Lord Ivan turned to leave and Adelia found herself reaching out, fingertips brushing his arm and to her quiet surprise, he stilled in his tracks, his intense, too wide-eyed gaze falling to her. The expression on his face was caught between destructive rage and howling grief.
"Lady Miriam already tried," she said. "It didn't stick."
Lord Ivan rumbled a low noise that was tinged in something otherworldly, the light within the room flickering, though rainbows light no longer danced, instead there was something ominous about it, the way sudden, dark storm clouds clouded the sky, lightning flashing through them and Adelia swore she could taste something divine in the room, the air growing thick.
Then Lord Ivan took a deep breath and exhaled long and slow and bit by bit he seemed to settle, the pulsing light falling through the window calming, though it retained its dark, stormy quality.
"I suppose we should speak with Miriam, in that case," he said, the rage and grief not gone, but held still and tightly beneath a band of iron control. He blinked and seemed to come back to himself a little more. "If you wish to come with me, that is. I know this doesn't concern you, but if you are not opposed, I would love to have your brilliant mind on board."
"Of course," Adelia answered right away. "I hate for innocent people to get hurt. And don't forget that Alexzander went after my husband, as well, and gave a true monster a sunlight ring. If there is a way to stop him, I will gladly be part of it."
Lord Ivan reached into his pocket then, withdrawing the ring he had stolen from Emmertal's finger and stared at it, something desolate and intensely furious making his jaw clench.
"Here," he said, holding it out to her without looking at her. "I want you to hold on to this for now."
"Are you certain?" she asked, quietly startled and he took a sharp, deep breath.
"As much as it... pains me to not set this destroyed soul and stolen faith to rest I don't know if this won't be useful for something later." He did look at her now, grim but certain and added, "I trust you to give it back to me once we are done. But if I hold on to it I won't be able to ignore it for long."
Adelia swallowed, a heavy sense of responsibility settling over her, but at the same time, it was made bearable by how touched and honored she felt to be given this much trust. She accepted the ring, quickly slipping it into a pocket and touching it as little as possible in the process.
"Let's speak with Lady Miriam," she said and Lord Ivan – no, just Ivan if he had this much faith in her and after everything he had done to aid her, he was a true friend – closed his fingers around her wrist.
The world turned into a wild swirl of glittering, golden sparks and then she found herself suddenly adjusting her stance, blinking as she found herself on a ship in the middle of a storm.
Rain immediately soaked through her dress, icy and fierce and she flinched and then nearly got thrown to the side as a mighty wave swelled beneath the ship, lifting it up the way a child might lift a toy to play with it, throwing it forward as it cleaved through the water, racing back down the swell of the wave.
Ivan cursed, his hold on her shifting to guide her along and keeping her from an unfortunate fate like falling over board, thunder cracking through the sky with such force as though it wished to split the very earth itself open like a god cleaving down a mighty axe.
The crew, rushing about and expertly handling the ship, tension but surprisingly no concern on their faces, took note of them and two tall, broad sailors, a man and woman with muscular arms and thick legs, guided them along the deck and through a door, shouting after them to head down and then left and find something to hold on to until the captain had a moment.
"I will never understand Miriam and her crew," Ivan muttered, dripping wet himself, hair plastered down against his head as he braced himself against the walls of the staircase, half walking and half stumbling down. "Their love for storms is utterly bizarre."
Adelia followed after him, half stumbling as well, the ship's rocking throwing her left and right, but they managed to reach the end of the stairs and to the right awaited the kitchen, two cooks keeping things rather orderly and they looked rather unconcerned. A bit annoyed at best.
"Take a seat," one of them called out and gestured vaguely towards the various, nailed down seating areas and tables. "And hold on, this will take another hour or so."
And Ivan, who had been so tightly controlled and mindful of Adelia, seemed to snap.
"No, it won't," he downright growled and a sudden, fierce swell of magic rolled through the air like a second sea unfolded with him as the center, his tattoos glowing a bright, pure, molten gold, the blue of his eyes bleeding gold through his iris, his hair and clothing and skin drying in the blink of an eye.
Adelia felt it when the presence of something enraged and divine poured out of him, forcing itself atop the ocean to demand it calm and flat, only for something powerful from deep below to swell up against it, two divine forces clashing with a rage strong enough Adelia swore she could taste it on her tongue, could feel it rattling in her very bones, polluting her breaths.
All at once every single hair on her body stood up, a cold shiver gripping her that had nothing to do with the freezing rain and all at once she felt mortal in a way she had never experienced before. Small and insignificant, an afterthought at best, if that. Like she was an ant caught between two giants.
A moment later the door got thrown open and Lady Miriam entered, dripping rain and ocean water, her eyes eyes a deep, dark green, the glow within her chest strong and pulsing, revealing the outline of bones beneath her skin as the Deep reared up against the essence of the sun.
"We need to talk," Ivan said, curt and firm. "Because I believe that Alexander is gutting the souls of my fellow clerics to make sunstones out of them."
Lady Miriam paused briefly, her expression grim and she said, "Then calm your goddess, the Deep won't listen otherwise and you are guests here." There was a strange growl accompanying her words and Adelia saw the green glow reach tendrils up into her throat. It looked like unnatural veins spreading through her body.
For a moment that felt suspended in time the two warlords stared at each other, the goddess of the sun and the Deep clashing like they intended to grind the world to pieces between them if that was what it took to gain the upper hand.
Then Ivan sank back onto his heels and exhaled long and slow, a soft hum filling his chest as his gaze grew distant, as though he was reaching out to something that laid beyond the world itself.
A moment later the sun goddess eased up and Adelia watched as the glow beating beneath Lady Miriam's skin slowly lost its intensity, until both Ivan and Lady Miriam looked mortal again at last, eyes returning to their natural color.
Well, mostly mortal. Adelia had always been able to tell that there was something more to them and it was impossible to forget how they had turned, if only for a moment, into conduits for divinity and something ancient and powerful respectively.
"I see the Deep is as temperamental as ever," Ivan remarked dryly and Lady Miriam snorted, a wry smile tugging on the corners of her mouth.
"You'd think it would calm down considering it's older than fucking dust." She rolled her shoulders as though she was shaking some tension. When she took them both in her gaze was focused and intense, something predatory to it that reminded Adelia of hunting jungle cats.
The ship got rocked by another massive wave and while Adelia and Ivan were quick to reach out to hold on to something, Lady Miriam merely adjusted her weight a little, standing as securely as though she was on solid ground.
"So," she said and her smile now looked as deadly as a sharp blade. "What was that about Alexander?"
Ivan gave her a quick run-down of his most recent discovery, Lady Miriam's smile falling away to a serious expression. "And now our sweetest Adelia here told me you have killed the bastard once before," Ivan ended his story.
Lady Miriam exhaled heavily, mouth twisting unhappily. "I did. I drowned him on dry land and left him to be claimed by nature." A hint of dark anger crept into her features. "Imagine my surprise when I see him waltzing through the door at our annual meeting."
"Do you know where?" Adelia asked, taking a small step forward, only to stumble back when the ship rocked sharply again. "Did you check if his body was still there?"
"I did," Lady Miriam answered. "And it wasn't."
There was a beat of silence and then Ivan cursed, turning away, his shoulders and back tense, long golden-haired braid swishing with the sharpness of his movement.
"I tried to find answers, of course," Lady Miriam continued, thunder crashing outside the ship with a fierceness that made Adelia feel the rumble in her very bones. "But none of my spies come back and no matter who I bribe, they either vanish, too, or can't tell me anything of value."
"He guards his home like a jealous broodmother," Ivan hissed, turning back around to face them, a complicated expression on his face. "He never invites anyone in."
"Then we need to get him out," Adelia said, their gazes falling to her. "If he's not at home, would that make it easier to break in?"
Lady Miriam gave the grimmest shrug Adelia had ever seen. "I don't know. I don't know anything about his home aside from where it's located and by now I'm not even sure if that isn't a decoy castle."
So they needed a way to track him first. Her hand fell to the ring in her pocket and she remembered the things Alexzander had told her, his viciousness and that he had given her one of the sunstones.
"He's done hiding," she murmured and the temperature in the room seemed to drop, a sudden chill in the air that made her glance at Lady Miriam instinctively, that glow within her chest having grown deeper and stronger.
"Whatever he's up to, he either needs us to figure something out or he's just about to reveal his hand," she continued. "He must be close to something big."
"He's a braggart who likes to show off his superiority," Ivan muttered with an unimpressed pull to his mouth. "I think he wants us to know that he's doing something and he wants us to scramble."
Alexzander had given a stone to her and a ring to Emmertal, but why her first? She had been new to the Wilds, hadn't really known anyone back then – unless he had truly believed that she would risk exposing Rowan to the stone just to uncover his secret.
However, it wasn't like Alexzander knew her, either, after all. But he likely knew the nobility back in the kingdom, their opinions and behavior and preferred comforts. He must have thought her miserable and lonely and cold and then he had given her something harmful while telling her just enough to make her curious. Just enough to make her feel small and stupid and unsettled.
Still, he must have full faith in the fact that he couldn't be stopped now. That he had done too much to be foiled. Her eyes widened slightly as a sudden thought found her.
"I doubt whatever he is up to, he did it all by himself," she said. "So someone else has to know things we dont." And most of all, people like Alexzander took care of such dangerous loose ends. "Have people died recently? Mages, alchemists, anyone of note?"
They fell silent, visibly thinking, before both their eyes widened.
"Yes, actually," Lady Miriam whispered. "A well known alchemist who was experimenting around with magic died last year. I was told he died in his sleep." She made a vague gesture. "Since he was already over a hundred years old, none of us thought much about it at the time."
"Indeed," Ivan whispered. "He wasn't allied to anyone, though he always got invited to our shindigs. He had some revolutionary discoveries about alchemy and medicine in his time, but as he got old, he started hunting for a way to live eternally."
"It's not like there weren't options," Lady Miriam muttered. "Just look at Rowan, for example. I think he was looking for more than that." The next moment she closed her eyes and hissed out a sharp curse. "I just remembered that his research never got recovered."
Ivan looked as though he had bitten into something rotten. "And I remember Alexzander being on a collection spree, buying all sorts of... ah, fuck, all sorts of tomes and scrolls about magic and legends and alchemy. I just thought he just wanted to be a dick to people who could have made the world better with those texts."
"And I doubt there are any copies, right?" Adelia asked and they nodded. Lovely, so Alexzander was working on something and they could only make some educated guesses.
The ship rocked again, starting to list and Lady Miriam glanced to the side, a glimmer of green in her eyes. "I need to take care of this," she murmured. "One of the ocean's beasts got loose and the Deep is working on containing it again. I'll seek you out once this storm settles?"
Ivan gave her a quick nod and added, "I'll do some research in the meantime. If there is any evidence left that Alexzander murdered someone, we would be allowed to confiscate the research material from him." A grim, downright harsh smile appeared on his face. "I would love to ruin everything he has right now."
"I'll help you once I'm done here," Lady Miriam said and they both glanced at Adelia. "Will you join us?"
"Most certainly," she answered, carefully shifting her balance to try and avoid stumbling around like a drunk fawn. "But, uh, for now I would appreciate leaving."
Lady Miriam gave her a small smile. "I promise sailing is far more fun than this, but I understand. I will drop by Ivan's temple later to meet up with you two." With those words and a last, polite incline of her head, she swept outside, moving along with the rocking ship like it was nothing.
Ivan offered his hand and Adelia took it, the world dissolving into a glittering shower of golden sparks. They appeared outside of the Grim Keep, sunshine making the snow around them glitter, and Ivan left swiftly after that, though not without letting her know that she was welcome to join him and Lady Miriam whenever she liked.
Adelia was quick to enter the keep and escape the cold, though her mind kept circling around things over and over. She ended up in her workshop, staring at the big disk they had made when experimenting with the corrupted crystal.
She hesitated for a moment, before she pulled the ring from her pocket, glancing down at it. It was made of a destroyed soul and torn-away faith, did she have a right to experiment with it?
... then again, they needed answers and this shouldn't harm or destroy it and Ivan had entrusted her with it.
Taking a deep breath, she placed the ring into the hollow center, with the sunstone pressed up against the metal. Once it was properly situated she started to carefully shift the various rinks and individual plates the disk was made of around, shuffling and shuffling and replacing various plates with others, since there was an incredible amount of elements and sigils and runes. The way they could be combined seemed downright endless.
Sorceress Iva and Ivan had originally narrowed things down to drawing something from the corrupted crystal, after all, so there were far more uses for their various magics.
Nothing happened over and over until, right before she was about to stop and head up to her office to take care of her correspondence and duties, she tried a combination on a whim that looked interesting more than that she knew what the alignment of elements meant and suddenly the gentle, light sunshine glow of the stone grew cool and pale. Like moonlight.
How fascinating. How strange. She also had no idea what was happening and she really needed to reach out to her two lab partners to ask them about this. To show them this.
She didn't dare touch the disk while the stone looked like it was carved out of pure moonshine and instead she grabbed a blank page to copy what the disk currently looked like, before she pressed some buttons to reverse the effect and the glow vanished, the ring starting to release that sunshine shimmer again.
As much as she wished to keep going, to find out more, there was nothing she could do on her own. Pocketing the ring again, she took a moment to jot down her questions, just in case she forgot anything later, before she headed into her office.
It had grown quite late, she realized as she glanced out a window in passing. Rowan would rise soon and she felt her heart lighten at that. She wished to hug him and perhaps kiss him and steal away a moment of... of goodness, of sweetness, amidst these grim discoveries.
She had started working on her correspondence, a mage light lit to combat the vanishing light, when she happened upon a polite but still firmly worded letter from her mother.
Her mother told her to listen to her father and return home before she got defiled, for no lord would want her then. Before she could make a mistake she couldn't take back and live in squalor and disgrace, since her father would banish her from his house.
Staring down at the letter, Adelia couldn't help but feel... abandoned by her mother all over again. There was also a cold, hard curl of disgust at the way she got reduced to what laid between her legs and the empty womb many lord wanted to fill with their heirs. As if her worth was tied to how much men could claim of her, how much of her they could own and keep for themselves like jealous thieves.
Not that she had expected anything different, not with the values of the nobility back home and her father's cruel ruthlessness. And yet, deep down, the part of her that had once been a child, desperate to try and do right by her parents, to be good, that part of her ached. Her mother had had her kind moments, after all, but those had also always ended the moment her father had entered the room or they had come across one of his boundaries.
Because of course only one of them was allowed boundaries.
A knock at the door made her pause and glancing up she noticed how dark the room had become. When she bid the person to enter, she felt herself relax a little upon seeing Rowan.
"Good morning," she said with a small smile. "I hope you rested well?"
"As dreamless as ever," he answered as he closed the door behind him, steps silent as he approached and she reached out a hand to him. Rowan rounded her desk to lace their fingers together and when she tipped up her head and gave his hand a small tug, he smiled, warm and charming and glad and leaned down to give her a sweet kiss.
"You seem a bit tense," he murmured as he pulled back a little, brushing a cool, gentle kiss to her forehead. "Did something happen?"
"Quite a bit," Adelia sighed and sank back into her chair, nodding down at the letter. "This is just the newest thing."
He shifted her hand into his other one so he could reach for the letter, picking it up and swiftly skimming over it, his brows rising and his expression turning supremely unimpressed.
"How quaint," he said with a dark undertone. "They truly don't think highly of you, do they?" There was a bit of a bite to his words, his lips pulling up slightly to reveal a hint of his fangs as he spoke. "They don't think you capable to build a life of your own, to make allies and friends of your own or anything of the sort. Pathetic."
His hard words soothed the ache in her chest a little, allowing the lingering, stiff tension in her spine to unwind. She gave his hand a gentle squeeze.
"You are so much more than they see," he murmured as he set the letter down and turned towards her, leaning down to press a kiss to her hair. "Brilliant and brave, clever and kind, I'm lucky to have you, to be chosen by you."
It softened her heart and she leaned into him, taking a moment to just breathe before she pulled back and told him about the sunstone. His expression was grim and thoughtful.
"If there is anything I can do to help, let me know," he said. "While I never set foot into any sun temples due to my nature, I still care greatly about the people in my lands. The attacks on our temples cannot stand."
Something about his words gave her pause and Adelia couldn't help but think of the things Ivan and Lady Miriam had said. The things they had found out about the sunstones and Alexzander.
Alchemy and medicine and magic, and sunstones that were made of the gutted remains of a soul and of distilled-down faith.
It felt as though Adelia was looking at a finished clockwork creation someone else had created, taking it apart in her mind to figure out what it was made of, how it worked, how it was put together in the first place.
It felt as though she was missing something – wait.
"The sun temples," she said, things clicking together like gears slotting into place, teeth interlocking as they started to turn and move. "I need to see one of the ruined sun temples."
There was a red gleam in Rowan's eyes and he smiled at her, delighted and adoring and smitten. "I love that mind of yours," he said and stepped back, pulling her up as she moved to rise. "I think Iva is busy at the moment, but we can take the nightmares."
"Then I will get my coat and shoes," Adelia said. "I'll meet you down in the hall in a minute?"
He gave her a smile and leaned in to brush a kiss against her cheek. "I'll be waiting for you."
The next moment he was by the door, opening it and then he was gone. Adelia swiftly tidied her letters aside and she threw her mother's letter into the fire crackling merrily in the fireplace.
She reached her rooms within a couple of moments and grabbed her fur-lined coat, her gloves and she switched her indoor slippers for thick boots. Snagging a scarf on the way out, she wound it around her neck as she hurried down the hallway.
When she reached the entrance hall, Rowan was already waiting and she saw a black carriage outside, six equally black horses stomping impatiently, their breaths misting thickly in the icy air.
Rowan was about to open the door for her, when they heard Steward Lambrecht's voice call out, "Master Rowan, a moment please!"
They glanced back to the stairs and Adelia felt her brows furrow slightly, concern seeping into her at the expression on the steward's face. He looked tense and rather displeased.
"Did something happen?" Rowan asked, stepping forward to stand side by side with her.
"Sadly, yes, that king who insists on calling you a friend sent a letter," Steward Lambrecht said, holding out a neatly folded piece of paper as he reached them. "He insists on speaking with you tonight, even went so far as to send his mage to deliver this latter. The man is currently waiting to bring you along."
Rowan frowned as his expression turned hard and cold. "Harold can wait," he said, voice firm and unyielding. "My wife takes precedence."
"Only, you're no longer married," a voice called out and Steward Lambrecht's face became unreadable as he turned around, all of them looking up the stairs to see the king's court mage descent.
The man was dressed in flowing, midnight blue robes that glittered faintly in the light, his fingers bejeweled and a gem-encrusted amulet around his neck. He looked as pretty as always, moving with grace and purpose. His smile was bland and empty as he stopped in front of them.
"Allow me to bring you along, my lord," the mage said. "My king has some urgent questions pertaining your desire to divorce your wife."
Rowan's expression was calm and collected and she realized he always looked like this whenever he had been seen at court back in her old home. Even around the king, where his smiles had been mild and his laughter as rare as snow in summer.
"I will see him later," Rowan said and the mage offered another bland, empty smile.
"I'm afraid he was rather distraught," he said. "I was quite insistent I come fetch you for a conversation."
Emmertal must be trying to move the process along as quickly as possible and her father had likely joined in that effort. They wanted her away from Rowan and back where she was "meant to be" in their eyes. A proper little lady married to a proper powerful lord, and why should they care if it would be her death, too.
Still, it was rather unexpected that Emmertal had gotten an audience with the king so quickly. Harold usually had few lords and ladies staying at his palace during the winter months, which was a personal preference of his and Emmertal had always preferred to stay in his own lands outside of attending parties and other shindigs.
Something about it felt a little strange, though she couldn't help but wonder if all the secrets and discoveries around here were making her paranoid.
She glanced at Rowan, who was frowning faintly again, before he sighed and turned to her, murmuring, "Would you mind going without me? Harold will likely want an answer as to why I'm spurning a lady of his lands. I'll smooth any of his ruffled feathers and I should be back in two or so hours."
She gave him a small smile. "Go and take care of things." It would be a bad idea to make an enemy of a powerful king, after all, especially with how things currently stood. It would be easy enough for Emmertal and her father to cause trouble, after all, should he refuse to speak with the king and she remain in his lands all the while.
Even if something about all this felt... odd. Maybe she was just imagining it.
"I'll be back soon," he promised as he stepped away and towards the mage, whose bland smile had gained a satisfied little edge. They vanished together as soon as Rowan was close enough and Steward Lambrecht exhaled in a little huff.
"I will never get used to the audacity some kings have," he grumbled, straightening his sleeves. "Might I be of help to you, my lady? Or shall I return to my tasks?"
"Would you mind getting a message sent to Ivan and Lady Miriam?" Adelia asked. "Preferably by Sorceress Iva, I'd like them to receive it as soon as possible. I'll be at the ruined temple we visited together a little while back."
"Understood, I'll be sure to reach out to them on your behalf. Depending on what Iva is currently busy with it might take half an hour or an hour for her to send anything."
"That is perfectly fine. Thank you." She gave him a grateful little smile and his expression softened.
He gave her a brief smile back, then politely inclined his head and left. Adelia tugged her cloak better into place, starting to feel rather warm beneath it, before she left the keep, icy winds immediately enveloping her.
One of the night guard was up on the coach of the carriage and another vampire spawn stood by the carriage, clearly waiting for her to appear. As she stepped forward, one of the nightmares snapped at the other, only to get bitten back viciously, sharp teeth sinking into black fur and nearly black blood spilled, before they jerked apart as far as the tack allowed, snorting and blood dripping into the snow.
Adelia was about to ask if the nightmare was alright when the bite mark already healed over, flesh seamlessly stitching itself shut and fur regrowing healthy and winter-thick.
She was about to move on with a soft, relieved sigh, when another nightmare caught her attention. It watched her, calm and quiet and she recognized it as the one who had watched her in the past. She wondered what it was about her that drew its attention, or if it was the mere fact that she was human. Rowan had mentioned that nightmares partook in the blood he ordered, that it kept them fed.
And yet... why was there something familiar about this creature that went beyond her recognizing it from past encounters? It niggled at the back of her mind and this time the niggling felt even stronger than before.
An icy wind blew against her back, swirling some flakes away from her and towards the carriage and she shivered slightly, stepping forward to move on and the nightmare lifted its head, nostrils flaring and suddenly its dark red eyes gleamed like glowing blood as it exhaled in a loud, fierce snort.
It nickered at her then and something about the sound tore at the not-yet-healed wound of loss across her heart, of losing her precious, sweet horse. The one being who had been a source of warmth and love in her life and it ached to the point where her throat hurt with the tears she forced herself not to shed.
Taking a deep, shaky breath she briskly stepped forward, the nightmare nickering at her again, a downright rumbling quality to the sound that was a little deeper than what her horse had managed to achieve while alive. It still sounded... just like her dear companion.
Entering the carriage with a soft thank you directed at the night guard, she settled down and a moment later the carriage jerked into motion, swiftly pulling out of the courtyard before she got thrown back into the seat as the nightmares thundered along the road with a speed that still sent her reeling a little.
Taking deep breaths until the shakiness of emotion vanished and the grief settled again, until the loss became that quiet, constant weight she was used to, she closed her eyes for a moment. The carriage creaked and rattled, snow crunching and snowbanks getting torn through as though they were merely made of drifting mist and the horses snorted and ran even faster.
It felt like mere minutes before the carriage slowed and pulled to a stop and she opened the door, the driver remaining on the coach and keeping the nightmares in check. For now.
The monstrous horses had stopped a good distance away from the ruined temple, as unwilling to get close as they had been in the past. Adelia firmly didn't look at them this time as she stepped down and into snow that reached up to her calves.
The driver removed one of the lanterns at the side of the coach and leaned down, stretching as much as possible to hand it to her and she inclined her head gratefully as she shuffled closer to accept it.
As she stepped towards the temple, she soon found herself with a dress and cloak-hem that grew heavy with clinging clumps of snow and not even they could fully protect her from getting some into her boots. It was a bit of a miserable trek to the temple, her breath misting in front of her face strongly as she panted with exertion, but she was finally there.
The sunflowers were dead and covered in snow, none of the warmth from other sun temples remaining. This place was a cold grave, snow and snow-covered crystals shimmering in her lantern light. It looked unexpectedly eerie, she had to admit, a sickly feeling curling through the air. It was likely the crystals' doing.
There were no footprints around, so no one had been by recently. It also meant that Adelia was making her own way to the back of the temple as she tried to find a spot to get a better look inside, for the entrance Steward Lambrecht had used last time was filled with partially broken crystals. It was quite likely that people had come here against all advice to try and find remains of their loved ones. To find answers themselves, even.
It must not have been good to wait for answers, not knowing what was going on or who had done this to their friends and family. Adelia could admit that she, too, would have done something inadvisable had someone murdered Katrina or Izabel, or gods forbid, both this way.
She reached the back of the temple then and the stained glass windows were shattered to unrecognizable pieces, sickly, corrupted crystals jutting out like pointy fists had punched through. But there was also a bit of wriggle room at one spot. Stepping forward and lifting the lantern, she illuminated the space as much as possible, warily keeping an eye on how close she was getting to the crystals.
A strange wind blew against her back in that moment, causing her to shiver and look back and she stilled, breath catching briefly in her throat when she saw Alexzander standing there.
He was dressed in dark blue robes with shimmering, silver embroidery, his smile a sharp thing edged in condescending meanness. What was he doing here? She was quick to turn around to face him, snow crunching beneath her boots and he prowled forward, somehow not sinking into the snow himself, nor was he leaving any footprints behind.
He had one hand in his pocket and she trusted nothing about him or what he was doing.
"I have to say, you are defying expectations," he said, but it didn't sound like a compliment at all.
A blur of movement in the corner of her eye drew her attention and he pulled his hand free whip-fast, holding a fist-sized sunstone up and Adelia heard a pained hiss and the night guard vampire skidded to a stop before vanishing from sight, leaving behind the scent of scorched skin and meat.
"They really should do something about that weakness," Alexzander mused, still with that condescension to him, his ugly little smirk gaining a darkly superior edge. "It is so easy to exploit, after all."
Adelia's mind was racing, her heart pounding in her chest. She knew she stood no chance against a mage, but at the same time, she couldn't help but feel like she was close to something. There must be a reason why he had appeared now of all times.
Not that it would help her if she got killed first.
Alexzander's smile was made of nothing but malice now as he murmured, "You would look so pretty, lying dead in snow soaked with your blood. I wonder, should I make it look like someone sucked you dry? It would be rather poetic, wouldn't it?"
A bad, panicked feeling downright slammed into her gut, like a heavy stone breaking through ice to hit cold water beneath.
His smile grew as though he could read her reactions plain as day and he was still prowling closer, slowly as though he was savoring this.
"And while I was hoping you'd be of more use until now, I am rather glad to still have one more task for you before you are no longer a problem."
He lifted his free hand, a sinister mist appearing out of thin air to coil around his fingers like an immaterial snake of strange gray-purple darkness. "King Harold did say he wanted a reason to imprison your husband, you know. According to him, it will give him all the leverage he needs to get his hands on the Wilds."
While it didn't surprise her at all that Harold wanted the Wilds, how he was going about it was... brutal. Unexpected. He had always appeared like a man of glittering showmanship, but then again, none of the lords had really dared to set a foot out of line unless they were in his favor. There was always a wariness where the king was concerned.
It made a grim sort of sense as well. If Rowan could be accused of something – or... or exposed for his true nature – then King Harold could spin things in his favor and with her now having ties to the Wilds, it would be easy enough to marry her off to someone else and install one of his lords in Rowan's stead.
If done well, even the risk of war would be far lower than in other circumstances. There might still be battles, but he would already have a foot in the door and the support of all his lords.
Swallowing heavily, she found herself taking a step back and Alexzander smirked down at her, a dark glee shimmering in his eyes.
"I've always wanted to remove Rowan," he murmured. "And right now you're the last little piece left that I need to get everything I want."
Her mind felt fractured, taking in what he said, wondering what it meant, what his plans were, what Harold was planning, and at the same time, she desperately tried to find a way out of this. The night guard couldn't help, she had no weapon on her, no way to get help.
She was all alone with a monster.
"Do hold still," he said as he took another step towards her, his smile of cold, ugly malice growing and he reached out to her. "Or fight, either way I will enjoy making you my puppet either way."
Adelia's breaths were coming in faster, shorter bursts, misting in front of her face, a far too visible tell and she saw Alexzander's eyes gleam as he stepped after her when she backed up, her heavy snow-ladden steps clumsy compared to his light, graceful ones.
She could try to run but it would be useless.
"The night guard will tell on you," she said and he scoffed.
"That vampire scum is hiding behind the temple right now, half dead. It won't go anywhere and I'll make sure to leave no traces. Spawn are quite easy to kill, you know?" he took a large step forward and Adelia suddenly found herself cornered against the back of the temple, stuck between two jutting-out pieces of crystal.
"Clever girl," he mocked. "Not even trying to run from the inevitable."
Running would be useless, she could do nothing to escape, to fight him off and she felt fear claw deeply into her, a strange hum appearing in her mind as Alexzander stretched his mist-encircled fingers towards her.
"Stop –" she found herself hissing, hating the fear in her voice, hating her helplessness, how mortal and small and human she felt –
She heard wood break and metal snap and the next moment the large, black nightmare leapt out of the dark, eyes a dark, bloody, ominous red. Immediately its fur and skin started to peel and burn at the exposure of the sunstone's glow, but it didn't stop, didn't hesitate.
Her breath caught in her chest and Alexzander looked dumbfound and surprised, when the nightmare ran straight into him, he flailed his hands to try and conjure magic, but having to drop the sinister spell first robbed him of that split second he needed and he got trampled into the ground. The sunstone got dropped and its bright, golden light turned into a dim, muffled glow as it sank somewhere into the thick snow.
Adelia stared, wide-eyed as the wounded, now heavily bleeding nightmare reared up and came down hard on Alexzander's side, hooves crushing ribs and tearing into skin and she watched with something close to startled horror as Alexzander's ribcage turned into a mangled mess, his wide eyes turning dull and lifeless.
A shaky breath escaped her and her knees felt shaky all of a sudden and the nightmare's head swung around to look at her and its entire expression changed in a way she had only seen once before.
Ears perking from where they had been pressed back against its neck, mouth relaxing and eyes growing warm, a gentle, welcoming friendliness to it that she remembered so clearly it hurt.
And then the nightmare rumbled softly at her, a sound to welcome her, to greet her, to call her its friend, head stretching out towards her as it stepped forward and a moment later its soft nose brushed her cheek as it exhaled against her ear and her vision blurred as tears spilled in no time.
"How?" she gasped out and her horse only rumbled warmly at her again, a calm, relaxed contentedness to her and she reached out with trembling hands, sinking her fingers into soft, thick fur that was a lightless, unnatural black and no warm brown anymore, but there was no doubt about it.
There couldn't be, not when this nightmare, this undead creature, behaved exactly like her dear, murdered companion.
She clung to it before she knew it, trembling a little after what had just happened, her breaths hitching in her chest, love and grief and fear and relief mingled together into a heady, dizzying mix.
She closed her eyes and pressed her face against her horse's neck and breathed in deep and then she truly began to cry helplessly, for this nightmare truly, without doubt was her beloved horse, for it smelled exactly like it. Like fresh hay and warm fur and comfort.
"How?" she whispered wetly again. "Oh, I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry."
Her horse only nuzzled closer in the way it had, a gentle, soft brush of its nose against her shoulder and despite the mess of emotions, a trembling, unsteady smile tugged at the corners of her mouth and she whispered, "Thank you. Thank you."
Everything was just a little too much, the corpse of a man who couldn't die behind her horse who was still wounded, though the injuries were slowly stitching closed again. Her mind was a mess and she just... needed a moment.
Thank you for saving me, she didn't say, a sob breaking past her lips.
Thank you for living, she didn't say but her very heart and soul seemed to shout and scream it to the heavens anyway. Thank you. I'm sorry.
In the wake of the discovery of Rowan's true nature, a subtle tension within the keep released and vanished and Adelia realized just how cautiously the topic of monsters had been handled around her before.
How it had been avoided entirely unless she had mentioned something first and even then they had tried to tell her as little revealing information as possible.
As she joined the kitchen staff for breakfast, they answered her questions readily and gushed about how much they looked forward to the next full moon. She now also got to see the blood dishes that were getting prepared for Rowan and the night guard, carefully timed so everything was ready for them once they rose.
From blood pudding to blood soup, there were a whole lot more dishes than she thought possible.
"It doesn't replace their need for fresh human blood," Ada explained. "But it is a nice treat and it soothes the parts of them that have been mortal once."
After breakfast Adelia sought out Sorceress Iva, who had come back from tasks that had taken her away from the keep and the sorceress was still up and about when she knocked. Today the older woman was dressed in flowing lavender embroidered with purple and blue flowers and gleaming, gem-studded butterflies, and a beautiful, flower-embroidered lavender headband pushed her curly hair back a bit.
"I was given this by Alexzander," Adelia said as she pulled the cloth-wrapped stone from her pocket. "I was meant to show it to Rowan and likely cause him harm with it." Or, at the very least, force him to reveal his true nature, whatever that would have looked like.
Mayhaps he would have transformed into the large, winged creature that had crashed onto her balcony so many moons ago, giving her quite the fright in the process.
She would have been a lot more unsettled after such a display, though she thought she would have calmed again regardless. There was something about monsters that was not terrifying to her, but rather fascinating.
The sorceress's face immediately turned from friendly if a bit tired after her long night to one of disgusted annoyance. "That little worm really remains nothing but a headache," she muttered, waving Adelia in. "Let's see what you got."
They headed up into her workroom and Adelia set the cloth-wrapped stone down on one of Sorceress Iva's tables at her guidance and with an elegant wave of her fingers the cloth unwrapped itself to reveal the same golden, sunrise-and-sunset stone from before.
The sorceress's brows rose before she frowned and she performed a couple of quick spells, the sigils and runes on that particular table glowing before fading to dark wood again.
"Fascinating," Sorceress Iva murmured and she coated her hand in a fine layer of magic before she reached out to touch the stone itself, its golden glow warm on her face. "If I didn't know better, I'd say you managed to carve a piece off of the sun itself."
No one could touch the sun, Adelia knew that very well. At least not physically. Not that people hadn't tried throughout history, but they weren't even able to touch upon clouds without the aid of great magic and the sun was even farther beyond that.
"I wanted to reach out to Lord Ivan, in case you thought his input might be helpful," Adelia added and Sorceress Iva hummed.
"It might be worth a try," the sorceress answered with a decisive nod. "Clerics and sorcerers don't share the same strand of magic, but considering how sun-like this gem feels he should take a look." She glanced at Adelia. "Would you mind me holding onto this until he comes around? I'd like to run some experiments."
"Of course, please," Adelia answered right away. "I trust your knowledge and experience explicitly."
Sorceress Iva smiled, the crows feet around her eyes crinkling deeper and giving her a look of years-long enduring joy. "That makes me glad to hear." She lightly clapped her hands together. "Now, unless there is anything else, please allow me to be rude and throw you out. I've been on my feet for an entire day and I need to get some rest."
"There is nothing rude about it," Adelia answered with a smile of her own and stepped back towards the stairs winding down to the entrance room of Sorceress Iva's domain. "Thank you for your time."
The sorceress waved her off with a little chuckle and Adelia left with sweeping skirts, pattering down the winding staircase of the tower to return to her duties. She made sure to pen a letter to Lord Ivan, asking him if he was willing to visit to discuss some unexpected discoveries.
She had that letter sealed and sent off with a servant after proofreading it, before she turned to her awaiting tasks.
"We should set up an office of your own," Steward Lambrecht said once she was done. "Not that I mind sharing mine, but we will run out of shelf space sooner or later."
"That would be lovely," she said and he gave her a curt nod and a small hint of a smile.
"I'll have one made ready by tomorrow," Steward Lambrecht promised. "You are welcome to decorate the room as you like."
Her own office sounded pretty nice. She got up with a grateful smile and they said their goodbyes. With her tasks done for now, she headed up into her rooms to write her friends back home.
Looking at the letters once she was done, she realized just how much happier her letters sounded. Her gladness for secrets revealed, to be trusted and welcome and taken seriously translating itself easily onto paper. She drew larkspur paired with begonias, followed by apple blossoms paired with zinnia.
She loved her friends so dearly, adored them for all the care they had shown her over the years and their concern and willingness to be there for her, to aid her as much as their positions allowed, no matter what. Even to their detriment at times, risking getting a scolding and light punishment from her parents to save her from hers.
"I love you," she whispered over the letters before sending them off.
The next moment, an idea found her and she rose to her feet and she grabbed her tools and materials, bringing everything down into the workshop in one trip when some passing servants saw her with two baskets of things and immediately insisted to help.
Once she had everything put away, she could sit down and work on her inventions. Out in the open, with her own dedicated work space. No longer did she have to hide or fear anyone's reactions or come up with new and creative hiding spaces.
For Katrina she designed a budding little rose that opened into a blooming one if the stem got twisted and for Izabel she designed a bumblebee brooch that flapped its wings if the small chain at its belly was pulled.
Her sketches started out a little messy at first but soon solidified, all the pieces coming together in her mind before they were put on paper.
They were going to be fiddly little creations and it was a joy to design them and once she was done, she got so lost in carefully selecting and assembling the pieces that she forgot the time, right up until someone knocked at her door.
"Dinner service," Rowan's voice called out and she bid him to enter, surprise lacing her voice. How had time slipped by her in this manner? She had never dared to lose track of time back home. It startled her, for just a moment, before she slowly relaxed again. This was a good thing, she decided. She preferred this to the constant fear of her old home.
Rowan entered, effortlessly carrying a platter of food and two crystal chalices as though it was nothing. "I thought I could find you down here. Would you mind some company or should I let you be?"
He meant it, she knew that. If she told him to go, he would and he wouldn't be upset with her for having her own space. He would understand, would smile at her and care for her just like before.
She had never worked with anyone at her side, had only ever stolen away a bit of time here and there before sunrise and after sunsets, and between lessons and whenever her parents had been occupied for a couple of hours for sure while they attended to their own business.
She had never been able to show anyone her process, the trial and error phase, her gleeful successes and frustrating failures.
The only one who had ever seen her work with metal was the blacksmith and she still deeply regretted getting him involved, just like she carried the pain over her lost horse locked in her heart.
No, not lost, murdered. Murdered for the crime that she had dared to try and build something for herself. Murdered for the crime of being loved by her, her horse's existence boiled down to how much pain its loss would bring her.
There was hatred in her heart as a result, cradling the pain, and while it didn't ease the hurt of loss and grief, it kept the determination alive to never again let her father hurt her like this again.
To keep her heart safely away from others until they had proven themselves. Which Rowan very much had. He also couldn't get hurt by her father, not only because he was a warlord, but also because he was a vampire. She could make all the mistakes she wanted and still know he'd be at her side.
"Take a seat," she said, daring coursing through her blood as she took all her fears and pain and held it beneath her fluttering heart, willing to teach her most wounded parts that there was goodness and safety, still. That there was room for her in the world, for her joy and her desire to create things that hadn't existed before.
Rowan pulled a backless chair from one of the neighboring tables closer, setting the tray down at the edge of the table.
"What are you working on, if you don't mind me asking?" he asked as he sat down beside her without crowding her or being in the way and she reached for her sketches, handing them over.
"A rose and bumblebee," she said and his gaze seemed to light up, a red glimmer going through the darkness of is eyes.
"They look beautiful," he said. "You have quite the artistic talent." He smiled wide enough to reveal a hint of fang. "If you ever want to draw together, don't hesitate to ask me."
Adelia thought of the paintings in his rooms and then of the paintings hanging in the halls of the keep. "Did you do any of the paintings in these halls?"
"Certainly," Rowan answered, returning her sketches and he started to plate a bit of the food, ensuring it stayed away from her work. "The first portraits that I hung up were of my mother and sire, they're right in the entrance hall."
Adelia remembered the two beautiful women well and she could guess which one was his mother. The dark haired woman with kind eyes and a loving, hopeful smile. That meant that the other one, pale as a winter morning, was the vampire who had turned him.
"I was starting to forget what my mother looked like," Rowan confessed, waiting until Adelia scooted back a bit from the table before handing her the plate. "I had a few sketches of her but they were fading, as well. I didn't want to let her memory vanish into obscurity, she deserved to be remembered."
He leaned forward to tap the table with his fingertips, a smile on his face. "I think we're alike in that sense. If someone or something is worth remembering, we try and make it last as long as we can. To last longer than we do, if possible."
Adelia thought of her clockwork horse, her desperate attempt to honor her companion, to hold onto the memories she had left and try and make something of the love that had gotten left behind, with no choice but to become grief.
She looked at the rose and bumblebee, her attempts to turn her love for her friends into something tangible so she could give it to them and let them hold on to it. To let them know how much they mattered to her even when she wasn't beside them to remind them herself.
"We are," she agreed and looked back at him. "Do you fear it sometimes, living longer than most?"
Rowan was quiet for a long moment, running his fingertips along the edge of the table. "I am ready to grieve," he settled on saying at last, voice soft in a way it hadn't been before.
Soft like he could already see graves of his loved ones, could watch snow settling onto cold earth as yet another winter passed, the world turning, unheeding of anyone's pleas and wishes and ideas.
Soft like he knew how fleeting joy was and how important it was to cherish people while he could, hoping for one more tomorrow with everyone at his side.
"I don't know how long this life of mine will last and I have lived a long time already." His smile was a little wry, a little melancholic. "I've learned to appreciate the high notes and to survive the lowest points. And who knows, maybe one day I will tie my life to a mortal's and die alongside them. A far more peaceful end than the touch of silver blades or sunlight would be."
His smile was warm now as he looked at her, soft in a different way. Not like someone who knew the touch of death and the long, silent presence of grief and pain that didn't fade as life continued to grow around them, but soft like a hopeful morning, like the sun just rising and flowers blooming open. Soft like a breath of fresh air and a feeling of possibility dancing at questing fingertips.
He tapped the table again. "Now please eat a bite and then I would love to see how you're going to turn these amazing sketches into clockwork creations."
She took a couple of big bites, ensuring she leaned away from the table to avoid getting crumbs on anything. He grinned at her like she was delightful and it made her feel flush with warmth and a downright preening sort of emotion. Like she might just be a little bit invincible.
Polishing off the plate in no time, she wiped her face and fingers on a napkin, before she started to explain the process to him.
It was a fun, long evening, with Rowan watching closely and with admiring curiosity, while he sipped on a chalice of wine. When Adelia suddenly remembered their waiting correspondence, Rowan waved her off.
"I've been having a lot more time to myself ever since you came here," he said with a smile, something captivating in his gaze as he looked at her. "Enjoy yourself, this night is yours as long as you want it to be."
She could only smile back and return to her work. By the time she was about to fall asleep sitting upright she had finished both gifts, carefully testing them a few times to see if they worked reliably. They did, the flower bloomed and the bumblebee's wings buzzed.
"Beautiful," Rowan said with a shine in his eyes. Something young and almost innocent, full of downright childlike joy and admiring awe. "May I?"
She handed both items over, not doubting that he'd be gentle with what she had made. Trusting him and his hands. He ever so careful twisted the rose into blooming and lightly tugged on the fine little chain at the belly of the bumblebee, his expression lighting up.
It was then that Adelia decided she would make something for him, as well, even as she yawned so hard she teared up.
"I fear I'll have to retire for tonight," she said and Rowan laughed softly, warmly, as he handed the gifts back to her.
"My dear Adelia, it far past midnight, I think it should be around two or three in the morning." He rose to his feet, gathering the used plates and chalices onto the tray before offering his free hand to her. "Allow me to accompany you to your rooms?"
"Certainly." She took his hand and a little laugh slipped out as he hoisted her up with enough strength that she found herself bouncing a little on the balls of her feet, her skirts swishing.
With a downright impish grin, Rowan took one step back, still holding onto her hand and he raised it above her. Adelia found herself grinning as she went with the movement, twirling once, her skirts billowing out a little.
"We should hold a celebration in the keep," Rowan said as he bowed gallantly over her hand, like a knight in a story who had gotten to dance with his favored lady, before letting go. "Just for fun."
It sounded like a great idea. "I would love that," she answered, still grinning and he sketched a playful bow. "And this time I will invite my friends as well."
"As my lady wishes," he said, dark eyes twinkling. "Well then, shall we?"
She picked up the gifts and left her workshop together. The keep was silent around them, but she caught a glimpse of a night guard for the first time, the dark skinned, hooded vampire pausing long enough to offer her a polite bow before they were gone again, silent and swift.
The exhaustion of the late hour caught up with her on the way to her rooms, though they detoured briefly to the kitchen to drop off the tray and she was more than eager to head to bed when she reached her door.
"Sleep well, my lady," Rowan said, his voice warm as he smiled at her. "I shall see you again when you rise."
"Have a good night," she answered, sleepily smiling back at him. "Until tomorrow."
For once it felt like a good thing that the winter months had only a handful of daylight hours as she stepped into her rooms, glad to know that it would take a while for the sun to rise once more. It meant she could spend more time with Rowan.
Writing a quick little note on two strips of paper, she placed them and the gifts in the box and closed the lid one after another, swapping the gem as she went, her heart glad and her body halfway asleep already.
As soon as her head touched the pillow she was out like a light.
*.*.*
She woke to answering letters from her friends waiting for her, though Adelia could admit that she felt tired still, her body heavier and her mind a bit sluggish. She wasn't really used to such long nights. It was dark still outside, however, snow gently drifting down and her rooms were warmed by a merrily crackling fire.
Once she had freshened up and gotten dressed for the day, she sat down to eagerly read the letters. Her friends had been overjoyed at the gifts and they had clearly picked up on her good mood.
They were very happy for her and ever since she had been able to convince them that Rowan was good to her, they had been nothing but relieved and glad.
Katrina had mentioned once, just a few days ago, that it gave her hope for her own marriage. Her parents were intently searching for a husband for her, one of higher station preferably, and she had to sit through polite conversations over tea as some of the other noble families accepted her parents' invitations.
Katrina hadn't mentioned anyone catching her eye so far and Adelia couldn't remember any of the young bachelors ever drawing her friend's attention in the past. While her friend had enjoyed conversing with the young men that were fun and kind, while carefully avoiding those that weren't, she had never spoken about them in a way that implied she might fancy them.
Then again, Katrina had always been of the opinion that she would never risk falling in love when her parents were going to choose whoever was the most fortuitous match regardless of who she liked.
Love was not necessary for a good marriage, Katrina's parents had always said that since she had been young. So long as their daughter got married to an appropriate gentleman, they were of the opinion that she ought to love her status in life enough that it would make up for the lack of love in other areas.
Today, however, Katrina's letter felt lackluster despite her gladness for Adelia's joy and compared to her complaining and exasperated love for her parents that had previously colored her flowery writing.
In fact, she didn't speak of herself at all, only asked Adelia if she could openly build clockwork creations now after thanking her for the beautiful rose and telling her that it was getting a place of honor in her room.
No flowers were sketched either and while, granted, they didn't always draw onto every single letter, somehow the naked corners of the paper felt like they carried a downright tangible silence. Adelia knew, just like her friends, that an absence of something spoke just as loudly as the presence of poisonous plants.
Maybe Katrina was exhausted by the constant tea and cake afternoons with varying degrees of pleasant noble company. Still, Adelia tried not to worry as she penned an answering letter to her friend.
She was asking through sketched flowers more than words if anything was wrong, carefully inking her worry and her promises of aid and support in delicate strokes along the edges and sides of the paper.
That was all she could do, though she wished she could whisk her friend away from whatever troubled her. Maybe she was coming down with something, Katrina had always gone quiet whenever she had gotten a cold, preferring to retreat and sleep off whatever ailed her, which usually took her a week or two.
There was, objectively, no reason to worry about a single flowerless, lackluster letter.
It was a gut feeling more than anything else that made Adelia's worry for her friend hook into her heart. Izabel must have felt the same way, for she asked Adelia in her letter if Katrina had spoken to her in private, if she knew of anything that was going on.
Adelia decided to wait a bit to see if Katrina would perk back up again before she started her worried prodding in earnest and as soon as she had sent her last letter she got up to attend to her duties. The little hook of worry remained, however, quiet and steadfast.
Rowan was still awake when she asked for him and they ate breakfast together, the kitchen staff joking and laughing around them, involving them easily in conversation or letting them be, the atmosphere light and easy and comfortable.
It was a far cry compared to the deferential quiet and hasty bows and careful words that surrounded her parents whenever they showed up in the kitchen. They usually only stayed as long as it took to give the staff orders and there was always an audible breath of relief when they were gone again.
Rowan brought up the topic of throwing a party, one that the staff could attend this time and Adelia could see everyone perk up.
"We would all welcome a night off," Ada said with a grin. "Plan it right before the full moon if possible, we wolves would love to greet our lady goddess on a full stomach."
Rowan laughed. "Very well, I shall get everything organized."
Steward Lambrecht showed up a moment later and before Adelia knew it, the party was planned right there in the kitchen, at one of the big tables, the staff crowding close to give their opinions and before long, the day of the next full moon was decided as the day of the party. Everyone was welcome to gather in the afternoon after they were finished with their tasks for the day and party until late at night.
"If you still want to invite your friends, they are more than welcome," Rowan told her as they headed up to his office. He had about two hours left before the sun would rise, though if the clouds in the sky were thick enough to choke out the light for longer, he sometimes cut it a little close.
"I shall do so" she decided, hoping that Katrina and Izabel would accept. She would love to show them her new home and to give them a night where they didn't have to worry about who watched them and listened to them. A night to just be themselves. "I would need Sorceress Iva's help to bring them here in time for the party, however."
If her friends had to travel here by horse it would take them at least six months.
Rowan nodded with a small, warm smile. "Of course, I'm sure Iva will be happy to help. As I said, bring anyone you want."
She glanced up at him and found a small, teasing smile appearing on her face. "Even Lady Miriam?"
He made a bit of a sour face, then sighed. "Yes, of course. If having the little nightmare here makes you happy, then I will welcome her." His smile turned wry. "With both you and Iris being her friends, maybe the two of us will even learn to get along one day."
She couldn't help but giggle, a little pep in her steps and Rowan smiled like he was glad for her joy. They spent the next two hours working side by side in companionable silence, before Rowan had to retire for the night.
For perhaps the first time Adelia found herself gripped by the desire to give him a hug as she offered to accompany him to his rooms for the first time.
"Marvelous, our positions seem to have reversed," Rowan remarked with a happy little smile. "How could I say no to such a lovely escort?"
Adelia, gripped by a moment of mischievousness, offered her arm and Rowan swept into an unexpectedly elegant curtsey that made her laugh before he took her arm, tucking his hand into the crook of her elbow.
They walked together, an easy, comfortable feeling in the air and when they reached his door, Adelia stepped back, bowing like Rowan usually did. "My lord, your residence."
He laughed, dipping into another curtsey, pretending to take hold of skirts he wasn't wearing as though to make them flare elegantly. "My thanks, noble lady. I couldn't have asked for better company."
They stood grinning at each other and, emboldened and encouraged by the entire morning, Adelia found herself asking, "May I hug you?"
Rowan readily opened his arms, answering near immediately, "Of course."
She stepped forward with a relieved, glad smile. His arms closed around her, seeming to gather her into a gentle embrace and she pressed her cheek to his chest as she held him close. He wasn't warm and he had no heartbeat, but he smelled of warm fires and ink and parchment and he was one of the safest people she knew.
It was one of the best hugs she had ever gotten.
"Sleep well," she said quietly when she pulled back a moment later, his hands on her shoulders, she found her fingertips lingering at his sides, before she let go. "I will see you later?"
"Most certainly, have a good day," he answered and reached for his door without looking away from her.
They smiled at each other one more time before he entered his rooms, closing the door softly. Turning on her tiptoes, her skirts slightly flaring around her ankles, Adelia left with a bright, happy smile on her face.
Instead of returning to her work right away, however, she went to visit Sorceress Iva both to ask her if she was willing to teleport her friends over for the party at the end of the month and to ask if the crystal Alexzander had given her had revealed anything more to her yet.
"Of course I don't mind fetching your friends," the sorceress said. She was wearing clothes of gleaming, glittering gold and shimmering azure today, like the sun and ocean had decided to wrap around her and bring out the beauty of the older woman, her dark skin dusted with a few golden freckles that glittered on her cheeks.
Her expression turned a bit miffed the next moment. "I don't understand this stone, not yet, at least. There is something unnatural about it and yet it is not enchanted nor is it a piece that got removed from an ancient relic. Though I am currently wondering if he managed to get his hands on a piece of a warlock."
Adelia thought of the green heartbeat-glow in Lady Miriam's chest and found herself frowning. "What do you mean?"
"Warlocks trade a piece of themselves for power. Some give their eyes, others their souls, others again years of their life, it depends on the creature they're making a pact with." Sorceress Iva frowned. "Though I have never heard of a sunlight warlock, usually they are found by dark and dangerous beings that either are gods themselves or manage to skirt past the notice of the gods to live at the borders between their realms."
That was pretty fascinating, Adelia hadn't known that. Perhaps she should indeed make use of Lady Miriam's offer of friendship and conversation to ask her more questions about the Deep and her connection to it.
Sorceress Iva sighed, sounding both intrigued and a little frustrated. "But if he did manage to tear out a warlock's point of power I doubt he would give it away willy nilly. It's not malicious, I tested it too extensively for that, but I also can't figure it out beyond that."
The older woman glanced at her. "Have you heard from Ivan yet?"
"Not yet," Adelia answered. "But he also took some time to answer the last time we reached out to him."
Sorceress Iva snorted. "Believe it or not, but that boy loves company and while he governs his lands well and leads his temples, he also uses every chance he gets to escape his paperwork for an hour or two. No, if he's not answered yet he's dealing with something more important."
Adelia couldn't help but frown. "I will extend an offer of aid, just in case," she decided after a moment. She did like Lord Ivan and his sun-goddess brightness and his easy cheer and casual, powerful fierceness, but beyond that it also would be good to foster positive relations with the other warlords.
"Let me know if I can help in any way," Sorceress Iva answered. "And let me know once Ivan answers, I'll make sure to set aside my other experiments when he visits so we can look at this mystery together."
A sensible request and Adelia was only too happy to agree. She returned to her rooms to write Lord Ivan another letter, before she penned invitations to her friends for the upcoming party. She let them know that Sorceress Iva was willing to pick them up, in case they worried about the long journey to the Wilds.
She was reasonably certain that her friends' parents wouldn't forbid them from attending, if only to avoid angering the very warlord King Harold was so deeply fond of.
Adelia hoped to lift Katrina's spirits, as well, and offer her a night of distractions.
Afterwards, she looked at Lady Miriam's stone for a long moment. She had only been half joking about inviting the pirate warlord, for she would like to see the other woman again, and she would also like to extend an invitation to Lady Iris, as well, even if Rowan was likely going to do the same.
Adelia decided on reaching out to Lady Miriam first. She penned another invitation before she fetched the stone Lady Miriam had given her and approached her washbasin. She filled it with water and gently placed the stone within, carefully disturbing the water as little as possible.
As soon as she withdrew her hand, a drop falling from her fingertips to ripple across the surface, she watched as the water seemed to fill with a deep, green darkness, as though a piece of the endless ocean had gotten carved out and placed before her, the stone giving off an impossible, black glow.
"Hello?" Adelia called out carefully after a moment. She flinched back in surprise when she heard a sudden crack and a loud, metallic twang.
"Oh shite, my bad!" a boyish voice that was decidedly not Lady Miriam called out. "You that fancy lady from the main land? Just a sec, I'll get the capt'n!"
She heard light steps rush away and she peered into the bowl, but it seemed too small to allow her to see what was going on on the other side. She should probably invest in a bigger bowl. A minute later she heard the confident, steady stride of Lady Miriam, followed by her voice.
"Adelia, how lovely to hear from you so soon!" the woman called out, a smile audible as she spoke. "What can I help you with my dear?"
"We're planning to host a party in the keep the day of the next full moon," Adelia answered. "I would like to extend an invitation to you, if you'd like to attend?"
"Of course I'll be there," Lady Miriam answered, sounding delighted. "Is there a set time at which I should arrive?"
"I have a written invitation here," Adelia answered. "I could send it to you if you'd like?"
"Put it into the water and hold on to it until you feel a tug," Lady Miriam said. "It will arrive safe and sound on the other side."
Blinking in surprise, Adelia decided to do as the other woman had suggested, even if a part of her balked at the idea of drenching the invitation. She carefully putting it into the water and to her surprise the invitation didn't get wet at all, remaining crisp and dry and a moment later it was tugged from between her fingers, vanishing entirely.
"My, your handwriting is rather gorgeous," Lady Miriam mused as Adelia heard the rustling crinkle of paper being unfolded. "My crew could learn a thing or two from you. They're always writing like they're in the middle of a storm, it's barely legible."
Adelia couldn't help but laugh and after a moment it sounded like Lady Miriam was folding the invitation up again as she answered, "I shall be there. Is there anything else you wanted to talk about?"
Adelia hesitated for just a moment before she forged on, "I know that Rowan is a vampire."
Lady Miriam hummed, sounded darkly and sharply delighted. "I knew you would figure it out. My apologies for not telling you directly. It was not my secret to spill, especially since Rowan isn't one of those horrid blood suckers that deserve to get staked by silver or roasted by the sun. I was of the opinion that he ought to tell you himself."
The warlord paused briefly, before she added, her voice more solemn, "Though I would understand if me keeping quiet made me less trustworthy in your eyes."
Adelia was quiet for a moment, taking the time to properly think things over and Lady Miriam waited patiently and quietly. Ever so faintly Adelia could hear the creaking of wood from beyond the bowl and the steady, downright muffled crash of waves. The sound of a ship at sea.
"I will decide that going forward," Adelia answered after a moment, daring to be honest in a way she usually only was around Katrina and Izabel. An honesty she was starting to share with Rowan as well.
"That is perfectly acceptable," Lady Miriam agreed. "Now, if there is nothing else, please excuse me, I have to go back to my crew and I want to show them what proper penmanship looks like."
"Is your handwriting not up to par?" Adelia found herself asking and Lady Miriam laughed, the sound raspy and of pure mirth.
"My dear, my writing is worse than theirs. I will see you soon, don't hesitate to reach out if you need anything and I will do my best to be of aid."
"Have a good day," Adelia answered and a moment later the water in the bowl cleared, the stone ceasing to glow. She reached in to remove it and she carefully dried it off, though it still felt wet anyway. Magic really was a strange thing.
Putting the stone back in its spot, she sat down at her desk to write an invitation to Lady Iris.
With the letter written to her satisfaction, Adelia handed it and the one for Lord Ivan to a servant to be given to Sorceress Iva to be sent out at her earliest convenience. With those things taken care of, Adelia returned to her duties, answering letters and giving advice to a visiting mayor who was struggling with two feuding guilds.
Lunch was eaten with Steward Lambrecht and afterwards, he waved her with him, showing her to the new office he had prepared for her. It was as large as Rowan's, with her work already transferred, something the servants had likely taken care of while she had been busy with her meal.
Ledgers were neatly shelved in the large bookshelf and more empty ones were waiting for her use, neat stacks of paper filled her drawers and everything she could possibly need was in place.
A thick, warm rug covered the floor and the large windows behind the desk showed a beautiful view of the snow covered landscape.
"It is wonderful, thank you," she said with a smile and Steward Lambrecht looked quite satisfied, a calm contentedness to him.
Steward Lambrecht left and she wrapped up the rest of their work and by then, Adelia received an answering letter from Lord Ivan, accompanied with a little wooden instant-teleportation disk she could place on a shelf, so she could send her responses to him directly from now on, without having to bother Sorceress Iva about it.
In his letter Lord Ivan sounded rather grim. He told her about more sun goddess temples shattering into crystal, this time in Lord Cynar's domain. He had examined some of the crystal pieces, but had been unable to make any headway.
He was currently organizing a bit celebration at his temple, for his goddess had called on him to spread light in her name after all the tragedy and darkness and he would be regretfully busy for a couple of days. He would have dropped those preparations if she hadn't asked him to soothe the wounded and grieving and for all that he wanted to really take a look at the crystal he needed to care for his people and his goddess first.
He would be able to properly get away from his lands for an in-depth examination of the crystal in ten days, he said and asked her when she could meet him.
When she spoke with Steward Lambrecht about the timetable in around two weeks, he suggested sending Lord Ivan an invite to the party, as well.
"He can arrive in the morning," Steward Lambrecht suggested. "That should give the two of you and Iva plenty of time to poke at the stone before you're expected to show up."
He gave her a small smile. "If anything unforseen happens while you are busy that day, I can deal with it myself easily enough." His smile got a slightly proud edge. "I have been organizing all of Master Rowan's parties in the past, after all. Do leave it to me."
She couldn't help but chuckle softly, a bit of subtle tension about the planning and the sun-crystal easing out of her. "Then I will gladly count on you. Thank you, truly."
"Of course," Steward Lambrecht said, looking like he was sitting up a little taller in his seat. "Now, if that is all, I believe it is time for me to usher you out of my office so I can go and plan our shopping so we have everything delivered in time for the party. We will see to it that everyone is well fed."
Taking Lord Ivan's letter with her, Adelia excused herself to return to her new office, penning a swift answer to the warlord, along with a formal invitation. She carefully placed both on the wooden disk, only to gasp softly as the letters vanished into a shower of golden sparks that themselves faded to nothing. Well, that was quite pretty.
It made her wonder if magic could be replicated with clockwork art in some way. Or perhaps, if her inventions could be enchanted like the boxes that allowed her to speak freely with her friends. It made her wonder what else she could create if magic was involved.
She'd have to speak with Sorceress Iva about it when she had a free moment to see if any of her budding ideas had any merit.
With last of her duties now attended to, Adelia found herself back in her new workshop, sketches spread out on one table as she carefully assembled the smallest clock she could make on another.
Now that she could be herself, now that she could do what she loved most without fear or reproach, she couldn't stay away from it even if she had tried. She wanted to sink into this and create and create until her mind no longer could come up with anything more.
She imagined that this must be what flying felt like.
*.*.*
Adelia found herself so wrapped up things and the now freely pursued joys of her life, that she nearly forgot about the opera invitation Lady Iris had extended to her. Nearly.
Thankfully, she had arranged her schedule ahead of time and she found herself selecting a dress that she hoped was neither too overdressed nor would leave her looking like she didn't care. Because she cared quite a bit.
The lessons her parents had instilled within her, about her public image, were louder than ever as she picked a necklace next, matching the little sapphires to the blue and silver dress she was wearing.
She hadn't touched any of her green and gold gowns or dresses since her arrival, though by now she was certain that Rowan wouldn't care if she were to wear the colors of her father's house.
Married ladies were supposed to show their loyalty to their husbands, after all, to adhere to their ideals and desires. To wear their colors and represent their ideas and opinions.
Rowan never demanded anything of her, never expected her to be clad in red and gold. He didn't tell her to do anything for him, really. She was the one who had no desire to wear green and gold, not at this point in time at least.
Maybe she could adjust the dresses, add a bit of colorful embroidery to reclaim what she associated with her parents. A little pink to fill out the golden outline of flowers, some dark red along the bodice that would resemble rubies. Or blood. She couldn't help but like that image, a little hint of red along half hidden thorns embroidered up the bodice.
As if she could make herself a little dangerous that way, could show that she had survived her father's cruel demands and her mother's silent compliance. As if she could make herself more than a golden flower ripe for the picking, to be plucked from green leaves, helpless to do anything but hope that the hands that held her wouldn't deem fit to crush her.
She'd rather sting the hands that reached for her without her leave, to prick fingers and spill blood if anyone dared to be careless with her.
As she got ready for a night out with Lady Iris, she couldn't help but glance at the letter boxes. Izabel and she remained worried about Katrina and how quiet their friend had gotten. Furthermore, Adelia had noticed the way the the letters had gotten folded, as though someone had read them before sealing them shut. Someone who didn't fold the papers as carefully as her friend.
Katrina's parents hadn't read her letters in years, saying that they trusted their daughter to be sensible. Had something happened?
It worried Adelia and she couldn't wait for the party to arrive, for her friends had both agreed to come. Izabel had mentioned that her parents had been anything but happy about that, but they didn't wish to insult King Harold's best friend by snubbing his wife's invitation.
That Izabel, Katrina and Adelia had been dear friends for years, that they might wish to continue being friends and to occasionally see each other, seemed to be a mere afterthought in that conversation. It made the coal of anger that still lingered in her chest flare and burn a little deeper into her flesh.
Still, Adelia was glad that her friends would come visit, that she could hug them and see their faces once more. That she could hold their hands and show them around and usher them into her rooms to giggle together over this and that, relaxed and flush with comforting peace and a calm, quiet sort of contentedness.
She glanced at the mirror one last time, ensuring she looked presentable, before she stepped out of her rooms. Murky daylight fell through the windows as evening settled across the land and a grey cover of clouds leeched more sunlight even before the sun was gone.
By the time she reached the entrance hall, Lady Iris had just arrived.
The warlord looked quite dashing, with elegant, black, knee-high boots and black pants that held the faintest shimmer, like a raven's feathers. Lady Iris wore a black shirt with an ivory vest overtop, which was embroidered with white-gold thread. Her long, tight curls were braided today and decorated in silver clasps and beads, a dusting of silver-white across her cheeks.
She looked like she had gotten kissed by winter, reminding her of snow glittering in a beam of moonlight, surrounded by a night-black, frosty forest.
"You look wondrous," she found herself saying and Lady Iris grinned, lifting her arms to show off shimmering jewelry on her fingers and wrists, turning once as though to display the grandeur of her clothing.
"Why, thank you ever so much," Lady Iris said and then smiled at her. "You look beautiful as well, Adelia. Well then, shall we? I fear if we linger too long Lambrecht or even Rowan might show up and then we'll start chatting and if that happens I will forget the time."
While there was such a thing as being fashionably late back home – never later than the king, of course – it was frowned upon to show up to performances after they had already begun. No one wanted to have a play or music piece interrupted because of another's tardiness.
Lady Iris offered her arm with a grin and Adelia took it with an answering smile. They left the keep together, a gentle bit of snowfall drifting down from the sky and the air was frosty and cold. Lady Iris's mage waited for them, poking at one of the lights with a thoughtful expression.
"Alb," Lady Iris called out, her mage startling and turning around. "To the opera, please."
"Certainly." They swept into a greeting bow, shimmering, embroidered robes billowing out for a moment with a little more flair than the movement should have allowed and Adelia was willing to bet that a minor enchantment was at play.
Sorcerer Alb clapped their hands together and the snow around them rose suddenly in a massive wave, Adelia clutching Lady Iris's arm subconsciously, startled, and then the waves of snow fell over her and she instinctively squeezed her eyes shut, only to feel warmth envelop her.
Laughter and faint music greeting her ears and she blinked her eyes open to see that they were standing in the entrance hall of a grand opera.
"I'll be back in four hours," Sorcerer Alb said, clapped once more and looked like they vanished into themself, before they were gone.
"Apologies, Alb's teleportation always feels a bit like getting swallowed by your surroundings," Lady Iris said. "It differs from mage to mage. Personally, I think that Iva's teleporting is far more gentle, but don't tell Alb that, it will hurt their feelings."
She said it with a joking quality, but Adelia nodded still. She had no desire to compare mages, when she was incapable of wielding so much as a speck of magic herself. Mages and sorcerers were all very powerful and skilled across various areas.
Adelia glanced around curiously, at the floors and pillars of the entrance hall made of polished marble, thick, dark-red carpets bordered in gold muffling countless steps as visitors streamed inside.
Portraits hung on the walls, depicting fantastical scenes and various performers. In between the paintings enchanted lanterns were mounted on the walls to spread a fireless glow and flowers and small statues were placed on thin podiums all around the walls of the entrance hall.
Three grand chandeliers hung above, illuminating everything along with the mage lanterns in a soft, gentle, buttery-golden glow.
Numerous well clad people were arriving and walking through the front entrance, the cold somehow staying out even though the three big wing doors were kept wide open to reveal a snow covered walkway, carriages waiting in a neat line to drop off whoever they had brought.
A handful of other people appeared in the space near Adelia and Lady Iris, the spot marked for teleportation and Lady Iris gently led her away so they wouldn't risk having someone bump into them when they appeared out of thin air.
Adelia was glad to see that she had dressed just fine for the opera. Everyone else looked to have arrived in finery, wearing glittering dresses and waistcoats, jewelry glinting on necks and wrists and hanging from ears.
"I got us great seats," Lady Iris said as she led Adelia through the entrance hall, past politely conversing groups and smiling couples that were on their way to their own seats.
Everything here looked to be for the gentry, for the well bred folk of polite society, and Adelia couldn't help and be quietly surprised. She would have thought that an opera in the Wilds would carry the same rough charm as the keep and Ravenburg did, but this place was easily on par with the opera in the capital back home.
It made her aware of the fact that she hadn't really seen much of the Wilds outside of her new home. Mayhaps, if the nightmares could be harnessed for such a task, she and Rowan could go on trips through their lands and her husband could show her more sights and more places.
"Where is this place?" Adelia asked and Lady Iris grinned at her, all sharp fangs and joyful pride.
"In my lands. We're in my second-largest city right now," she answered. "Oh, remind me to show you to other places around here the next time you visit, I have two art galleries and an ancient castle that I believe you would like."
"That sounds like a great idea," Adelia answered and felt herself perk up a little at the idea.
The seats Lady Iris led them to were on a private little balcony, overlooking the entire stage from a near perfect vantage point. Adelia watched as the orchestra finished fiddling with some things as they waited for the performance to start, while the other visitors slowly sought out their own seats, a low, downright gentle rumble of murmurs and shuffling steps filling the large room.
The walls were decorated here, as well, gold gently glimmering along white marble and red satin curtains surrounded all the little balconies to grand further comfort by ensuring no one had to see the person on the balconies beside them. Only the stage was perfectly visible.
"You seemed a bit pensive earlier," Lady Iris spoke up as Adelia sat down beside her after having peered around. "Is everything alright?"
Adelia hadn't spoken much about her worries for her friend. Rowan knew, she had aired out her troubled heart over dinner one evening and he had been quite the kind listener. Though, not even he had been able to offer a solution to the problem, since the questions she hid in her letters to Katrina went unanswered.
All Adelia could do at this point was wait until she could finally see Katrina again and ask her directly, away from prying eyes and ears.
"One of my friends seems unwell," she answered, her brows furrowing slightly. "Her letters have been... quiet. Subdued."
"Has she been struggling with something recently?" Lady Iris asked, growing more solemn and focused and Adelia found herself spilling everything she knew. Lady Iris was frowning as she listened and once Adelia was done, she asked, "Would her parents force her into marriage?"
"She does not have a choice," Adelia said, quieter and softer. "Much like I didn't, even if I am glad for my husband now. A lady's place is in a man's household, after all." Her voice was faintly bitter as she said it.
Lady Iris's eyebrows rose. "That sounds like you're considered possessions." When Adelia merely inclined her head, she leaned forward a little. In the gentle light of the lantern above them, the silver-white make-up glittered like kisses of frost. "I could have her kidnapped."
Adelia stared at her new friend, startled, and Lady Iris was quick to reassure her, "With her consent, of course. Alb could smuggle a message to her, they are very good at not leaving any traces behind. The next time your friend leaves her home, I can have some of my friends waiting for her. She could be snagged right up."
"You would get into terrible trouble," Adelia said, though at the same time, there was a strange kind of feeling rising within her. What would Katrina do if she didn't have to bow to her family's wishes? However, stealing a lady away was not so easily done. "King Harold would retaliate as soon as he heard your name."
Lady Iris gave her a reassuring smile. "I am not taking your friend as a warlord of the Wilds," she said. "A group of unaffiliated bandits will do it, or so eyewitnesses will say. And once they have her, they will vanish off of the face of the earth."
Adelia felt that kindling kernel of hope die out again. "She would not agree to leading a life where she'll have to hide, to never be seen again." And if word got out where she was, it would spell trouble for everyone involved.
It would see people punished, Katrina's parents first of all. Even if her parents would be innocent, King Harold wouldn't care as long as he got his pound of flesh for being deceived and his kingdom stolen from.
Because the gentry allowed a man to murder his wives, but it would not allow said wives to run from him. She hated it, but she couldn't force her friend into a lifetime of hiding, either. At least not without speaking with her first and talking at length about what Katrina wanted to do.
She wouldn't be another person who took Katrina's choice from her, who treated her like a doll to drag around and put in places her friend looked prettiest in.
"There are other countries she could go," Lady Iris said, then she leaned back into her seat with a soft sigh. "But I understand if she would say no. I grew up here in the Wilds, I've never known another place and I wouldn't want to leave, either."
Lady Iris was quiet for a moment and the light dimmed, heralding the beginning of the performance. She nudged Adelia's knee with her own and whispered, "If she wants a safe place to hide, though, don't hesitate to let me know. My keep is warded against magic, much like Rowan's, so no one would be able to track her down while she's in it. It may not be a forever hiding place, but I would offer her sanctuary for however long she needs."
"Thank you," Adelia whispered back, feeling genuinely touched at Lady Iris's offer. An offer without the unspoken expectation that she be owed a favor in return.
Talking with Lady Iris hadn't solved the problem, but Adelia still felt a little more settled. She felt better to know she had plans in place should Katrina need them and she was glad to know she could count on more people than her husband and their staff if trouble arose.
As the curtains pulled open, revealing a gorgeous sight straight out of a fairy tale book, she found that her worries had quieted enough for this moment to let her immerse herself fully into a story about a human lady and a fae prince.
A wondrous, if slightly strange, a little darker and sharper love story than the ones she was used to from back home but one she appreciated all the more for it. It was a story of trust and love and deep friendship and fantastical, clever foes.
There was a half an hour long break in the performance that Lady Iris and she used to sample various drinks and foods on offer and Adelia found herself delighted by the smallest, cutest little cakes she had ever seen, that had the most delicate sugar butterflies perched on top.
When the performance resumed, she was all too eager to return to her seat, Lady Iris grinning happily, glad that she now had a friend to share this passion of hers with.
The story ended with a softness and a hopefulness Adelia hadn't expected and she found herself tearing up as the couple embraced, their friends dancing around them before drawing to a stop and throwing petals in the air.
The moment the curtains fell and the lights returned to full brightness once more, she clapped as enthusiastically as everyone else, loud cheers and whistles rising from the audience, a far more unrestrained display of joy compared to the measured clapping and delighted murmuring she would have heard back home.
Then again, the gentry had to remain perfectly poised and elegant at all times and freely expressed joy was reserved for private moments among friends, or when the young men snuck out to visit taverns and theaters, sometimes bringing lady friends or siblings along if the parents were particularly lenient.
"So," Lady Iris said as they headed back towards the entrance hall. "I take it you'll come here again with me?"
"Gladly," Adelia answered, a happy grin on her face. "Any time, ask and I will agree."
Lady Iris laughed, joyful and happy and wrapped an arm around Adelia's shoulders to pull her closer for a moment. Sorcerer Alb was already waiting for them when they reached the entrance hall and whisked them away, the carpet rising to fold over them and this time it was not so startling and strange now that Adelia knew what to expect.
A flurry of snow greeted them and Lady Iris bid her goodnight at the steps of the keep.
"I will see you at the party," she said and Adelia nodded with a smile, before Lady Iris and Sorcerer Alb vanished, a few disturbed snowflakes spinning through the air in their wake.
She rushed back inside to escape the cold and she headed straight for Rowan's office, finding him working diligently. He looked up at her entrance and she must've looked as flush with joy as she felt, for his smile was warm and glad grin and it was the most beautiful one she had ever seen.
"I take it you had a great evening?" he asked and she sat down on the chair beside his, now permanently a part of his office so she could join him at his desk.
"The best," she answered and his smile widened, revealing his fangs and his dark gaze glittered with happiness for her.
"Good," he said softly. "Tell me about it?"
She found herself recounting the entire story, gesturing to try and describe the actors, the singing, the music and the various designs of the stage across the play.
He listened, his gaze warm and his smile softly happy and Adelia basked in the afterglow of the evening and of the most beautiful and touching performance she had ever seen.
She felt deeply and truly happy and when she fell asleep she dreamed of dancing through a cove of trees, the air shimmering with magic, Rowan's hands gently holding hers and his steps silent, his eyes red and his smile fanged.
*.*.*
Lord Ivan arrived on the morning of the party with glimmering sparks of golden light, no shirt in sight yet again and he was about as cheerful and bright as the last time Adelia had seen him despite the tragedy the other warlord had been dealing with.
It would have been the height of scandal and strangeness for her to be alone with a half clad man as she led the way to her workshop, but here it was hardly anything to bat an eye at.
Sorceress Iva had handed over the sunshine crystal in the past days after she had run exhaustive and extensive experiments and had gotten no results. Adelia had kept the stone in her workshop since in a wooden chest, making sure it remained securely wrapped.
Lord Ivan looked very curious as she opened the door to her workshop and then he brightened once he realized what she was working with.
"You do clockwork art," he breathed out, gaze bright and downright glimmering with hints of golden, glowing magic. "Please tell me you'll be willing to work with me from time to time? I've been so very eager to see how far magic and clockwork creations can be combined or one even replacing the other."
Adelia felt herself brighten a little in return. She had been wondering that herself, though with how busy things had been, she hadn't been able to sit down and discuss things with Sorceress Iva so far. "I do believe I am open to discussions."
He laughed, bright and toothy and clapped his hands together. "Marvelous, oh Cynar will be so glad to get me out of his hair. My beloved is wonderfully patient but also holds no interest in playing with magic whatsoever, having me talk his ear off must be terribly dull at this point."
"I am certain he would disagree with you on that," Adelia answered and he grinned at her like she had hit the nail on the head.
She picked up the cloth wrapped crystal from its chest then and unwrapped it. Lord Ivan's brows immediately rose sharply, his gaze sharpening and all jovial lightness vanished.
"Now, what has Alexzander done here," he mused to himself as he stepped forward, all sinuous grace now, reminding her of a prowling mountain lion. "May I?"
She held out her hand and he plucked the stone from the cloth that covered her fingers and turned it between his, his focus a downright palpable thing in the air. A moment later, the crystal glowed brighter and warmth spilled into the space between them.
Lord Ivan inhaled sharply and then exhaled slowly in a rather controlled manner. His expression was a complicated thing, something between wonderment and something dark that almost looked like vicious anger.
"This feels like my goddess," he whispered, his free hand rising to press over his amulet. "But all I sense from this is grief and pain."
That was something. "Can you tell what it's made from?" she asked and his frown returned. "Alexzander believed it would be harmful to Rowan."
"It would have burned him like real sunlight," Lord Ivan murmured, making Adelia's spine stiffen. She had feared as much, but hearing it confirmed awoke the coal of anger in her chest and she was almost startled at the vicious protectiveness that rose within her.
Lord Ivan's frown deepened. "What was Alexzander planning, handing this over?"
"Nothing good," Adelia found herself saying, voice coming out a little sharper than intended and Lord Ivan barked out a brief, humorless laugh.
"He reeks of vileness," he agreed. "My goddess stirs in his presence, which does not happen often, let me tell you." He turned the crystal between his fingertips once more and all at once his expression lost its darkness and turned into something calmer and more thoughtful.
"Say, how much of your time may I steal before the party?" he asked. "I'm having some ideas regarding this stone, if you're up for it."
"Certainly," Adelia answered. "I have some time." She stepped aside to retrieve paper and quills, setting down pots of ink and Lord Ivan immediately plopped down on the seat beside her, pulling a piece of paper close.
He was running through possible ways the stone could have come into existence when Sorceress Iva showed up and the three of them sat together for two hours, only to come to one conclusion: this stone shouldn't exist.
It wasn't an enchantment, Sorceress Iva could rule that out. Lord Ivan confirmed that it wasn't a piece from a warlock, because ripping out that kind of magic from another person required a deal with the being they were getting said power from.
None of the powerful forces in this world gave up what belonged to them without being promised a bigger reward and even then most of them would refuse anyway.
There was no creature in all the books of the world that was made of sunshine, either, so it wasn't some sort of strange eye or scale or claw.
"I will commune with my goddess," Lord Ivan said when they had to stop, all of them looking frustrated. "Might I take the stone with me to my temple? I will be sure to return it right afterwards."
"Certainly," Adelia agreed easily enough and Sorceress Iva got up, excusing herself with a thoughtful expression.
Adelia and Lord Ivan said in silence for a moment, before he turned to her and suddenly his expression turned into something brighter, his usual liveliness alighting again. "So," he said. "If you aren't terribly busy right now, would you mind discussing your work with me?"
Adelia found herself smiling and they set their theories of the stone aside to grab new papers and as she started to show how her creations were put together, Lord Ivan showed her how he enchanted things.
His way was different from Sorceress Iva's and less enduring, he mentioned, but Adelia couldn't help the way her mind sparked and soon they were both scribbling on the same papers, scrawling notes on top of each other as they theorized how enchantments and clockwork creations could be joined.
It wasn't like mages and sorcerers hadn't already tried, Lord Ivan mentioned, but the movements of the clockwork creation ruined enchantments every time, for magic was soaked up by something stagnant, something that didn't change form and end up tearing apart what the enchantment was meant to do.
Considering the size of the scrawling sigils and runes something as simple as a sliding panel already made enchantments fizz out because the alignment got shifted into a nonsense pattern.
Before she knew it, she got fully absorbed by ideas and sketches, by diagrams and teaching and learning.
Lord Ivan was as eager to understand what she was doing as she was to understand what he was doing and she only realized how much time had passed when someone knocked at the door.
Rowan poked his head in after she called out and he blinked, taking them in, before he laughed.
"Oh my, you are two peas in a pod," he chuckled as he entered. "Ivan, must I worry that you will steal my wife away?"
"She is brilliant," Lord Ivan answered in a bright grin, gesturing at the table covered in notes and ideas and something that resembled a distant possibility of a working mechanism. He turned back to Adelia, something sun-bright in his blue eyes. "I must demand that we be friends."
Adelia couldn't help but laugh as Rowan came to a stop behind her, his hands settling onto her shoulders, gentle and big and while they lacked warmth, his touch was welcome and pleasant all the same as she leaned back against him, comfortable and relaxed.
"Agreed," she answered and Rowan leaned forward.
"Then I demand that you bring Cynar around when you steal more of my wife's precious time. Your partner has been making new paints, I heard?" he said and Lord Ivan's expression filled with pride and love at once.
"He is brilliant," he sighed. "You should see what he made. His carvings now glimmer and shimmer as though I enchanted them." Upon seeing the spark of eagerness in Rowan's eyes he grinned. "Looks like the four of us are quite the fitting pair. I'll let him know to bring a little gift basket."
"Lovely," Rowan said, all satisfaction and eager anticipation, before he ducked his head to meet Adelia's gaze. "I've come to let you know that your guests will arrive at any moment and the staff is ready to let loose."
Adelia raised a hand to cover one of his. "Thank you," she said and he gave her shoulders the gentlest squeeze before letting go so she could get up. She turned to Lord Ivan, who rose as well, gesturing at the notes and sketches. "Shall I tidy these away until your next visit?"
"Yes, please," he answered. "Though, I will make copies once we have something more substantial. Well then, I'll go and find Iva, she's always such a delight and I've been so curious how her latest experiment turned out."
With those words and a flourish-y little wave he left, humming as he closed the door behind him. Rowan helped Adelia gather everything despite her reassurances that he didn't have to, cleaning quills and putting everything away properly once more.
"Shall we?" he asked, offering his arm and she accepted it with a glad smile, stepping up to his side.
They walked out of her workshop and down the hallway towards the stairs that would lead them to the entrance hall when he spoke up, "You're happy, aren't you? I've noticed that you've been smiling a lot more recently."
"Yes," she answered easily, smiling up at him. "I am happy. More than that I am... I feel peacefully content a lot of days now." She was quiet for a moment, carefully selecting her words. "You are part of that happiness, Rowan," she said, her voice a little softer as they ascended the stairs. "I don't think I could have asked for a better husband."
His smile was honey sweet. "I'm glad," he answered, his voice just as soft as hers. "I do have a request, though." At her curious glance, he said, "May I paint you? I have wished to do so for quite some time, if I'm being honest."
"Of course," she answered, feeling touched. "I'd be honored." Which was when she remembered something she had forgotten all this time, "How is your violin practice coming along?"
He grinned, looking rather proud of himself, "Better and better. I will play for you soon, if you'd like?"
She nodded just as they reached the top of the stairs and they stepped into the entrance hall, just in time for the front doors to get pulled open, to admit their first guests.
Her heart felt like it skipped a painful beat before it began to race, fear creeping through her bones like a flash of frost, all the more terrible after it had been absent from her life for a time now as she stared at Lord Emmertal.
When she registered Katrina at his side, pale and wan and with a terrible, lurking fear in her eyes despite the perfectly sweet and soft smile on her face, her hand tucked into the crook of Lord Emmertal's elbow, Adelia's fear grew teeth.
With a sharp snap it became a ravenous thing as it hungrily went for her heart and burrowed into her stomach. Lord Emmertal smiled at her over Katrina's head, cold and terrible and he lifted his free hand to cover Katrina's on his arm.
All at once, Adelia knew why her friend had grown so quiet, so distant in her letters. All at once, she knew what husband Katrina's parents had chosen for her.
