Moon Raven Rising (The Moon Raven Trilogy #3)

14. Raelle

Chapter fourteen

Voices carry through the stone walls. At first, they seem far away, but then the shouting echoes closer through the barren halls. When the thunderous voice is right outside my bed chamber, it wrenches me up, right out of my tear-laden sleep. My face is puffy and swollen. My eyes have no more moisture to spare, and every blink claws at my raw eyes as I try to wrangle myself out of bed. Before I am able, though, the door slams open, ricocheting off the opposite wall with a loud bang. Soren has never set foot in the tower, but here he is like a demon who has crawled from the depths of the underworld— my monster to slay.

“Let’s go. You have had it too easy since you have been here. It’s time for your remaking. If you don’t want to work with me, I will make you into someone who will work for me; that was the plan all along anyway.” Soren’s face reddens with the full force of his fury as he threatens me. I look around at the guards who stand at his sides and back. None of which will make eye contact with me. They stand frozen, like statues, waiting for their next command—mindless. I don’t know why I expect anything different, especially after what happened to the guard who merely called me queen. Nonetheless, I look around quickly. It isn’t until the familiar shadow darkens the doorway that a feeling almost akin to relief floods my veins. Then, the relief is washed away as Thames steps in next.

“Take her to my study,” Thames announces, her eyes flashing with intent before she raises a hand to brush away an invisible piece of lint from her shoulder. Soren stands tall, eyes narrowed as he watches me. Letting the blanket fall from my body, still in the same awful dress from yesterday, I walk forward on bare feet. The only thing I was able to muster up the energy to remove were the gods awful shoes he wanted me in.

Stopping just as I reach Violet, I stand tall like the tower I’ve been kept in. My eyes track up her body before landing on hers, and I allow my mouth to twist into a slow, menacing smile. “How does it feel?” I ask her, a twitch rising in my eyebrow. Confusion puckers her features momentarily before the guards close in. I’m not done taunting the wench, but she quickly snarls at the guards to take me away. I take a quick step forward, my chest only inches from hers, and I whisper so only she can hear, “To be a stand-in queen for a man who thinks himself king?” I keep my chin low, still smiling as I step back, malice filling my gaze as I stare at her. “How does it feel to know it will never be him ?” I growl through clenched teeth just as the guards hook their arms under mine.

In a flash, pain blooms across my face as her hand swings out and slaps me, but I keep my grin. My tongue rolls out to catch the blood from my split lip. “That’s what I thought,” I say as I bore my gaze into her, and the men she commands drag me away. The whole exchange takes only moments, and when I’m pushed past Osiris with Soren and Thames on my heels, he nearly breaks a tooth with the clenching of his jaw. I glare at him too as I pass. His silence highlights our argument from last night, and I know my face says just as much. Even though I want to know what he meant about me not jumping to conclusions and that we are more the same than I think… His silence gives no room for thinking he is anything other than a monster, just as they are.

Osiris and Soren’s long strides carry them ahead of me, and I can feel Violet's presence at my back, but I keep a steady speed with my head held high as they lead the group through the castle. Taking the main stairs to the bottom level, we exit the main hall onto an outdoor breezeway. The arched glass-free windows allow a cool breeze to blow my hair away from my face, and I take a deep breath and relish the fresh air as I continue trailing my captors.

The hall is long, and as we reach the end, I notice this wing of the castle to be much more lived in than the tower I am kept. Fae who I’ve not seen before, seem to steal glances at our group before scurrying away. Hushed voices quickly fade as they rush away. No doubt, scared of the man in front of me. Maybe both men and the woman at my back. Or perhaps it’s me they are afraid of. The lost heir with moon magic that has not been seen in many years.

When we reach a room with a black door, the guards pry it open. Soren and Osiris step inside, and then I am pushed from behind so hard that the guards grip on me is ripped free and I fall. I slide across the rough granite ground, shredding my knees and causing a hiss to come from me. I hop up to face what it was that pushed me, only to be greeted with a puff of putrid smoke.

“Get back on your knees.” I spin to face her voice, which is now directly behind me.

“Fuck you.” I bite the words out through a snarl. Shadows snake from her hand, green and dark, not quite as black as I thought but rather an ill gray. It smells strongly of sulfur. They wrap around my neck, lifting me so that only the tips of my toes drag across the floor.

The room is dark. Only a dais lit by a kaleidoscope of color coming from a single stained glass window is highlighted in the center of the enormous space. At the center of the dais is a stone altar, laid out with objects and ingredients that have my senses on high alert.

Though it’s no use, I begin thrashing, trying to get out of her grip. I’m going to kill her. I know I could do it if I needed to, but as I fight, I think of Dax, Trent, Ambriel, Alaric… every other Fae who I am meant to protect, and as I do, my body falls limp. I cannot fight this; I can’t kill her. Not when I don’t have information about how to get Dax free.

The shadows continue to drag me towards the dais.. Violet’s clicking heels follow me, and Osiris and Soren watch from the side. My chest begins to burn with the need for air as she holds my supply hostage with the dark magic banded around my neck and torso. My muscles begin to twitch on their own, and before I know it, my fight for survival kicks in. My skin burns cold, like the coldest winter’s frost claiming a flower before it’s ready, and a scream rips from my throat. The flash is so bright that everyone in the room shields their eyes.

When darkness claims the room once more, I am again on my knees. I struggle to catch my breath, and I hear guards mumbling questions before being silenced by Soren.

“Stand up, Moon Bitch! Today—You begin your remaking. Since you can’t seem to hold your tongue and you don’t understand the gravity of the situation you are in. You will be leashed. Your magic sacrificed and your light snuffed!”

“You don’t mean—” Osiris steps forward too as he interjects, only to be stopped as Soren’s hand comes up demanding him.

“I do. She will become reliant on the same shadow magic as I once was—the same magic my son miserably wielded—the same shadows that Thames controls.”

“You can’t! You don’t know how she will respond. You don’t know how her magic will respond! It’s asinine!” Osiris shifts his gaze to me; clear disbelief is written across it, and I don’t know whether my relief that he might actually be genuine or the worry of the situation is what grows within me… but the anticipation of what is to come leaves me shivering, my power responding through whatever magic they have tried to dilute it with.

“You have promised the kingdom of Valeska a queen for me to rule with! My father will have your head if these shadows break her.” Osiris clenches his fists at his side in an attempt to hide the anger that is pulsing through his limbs.

“SILENCE! I will hear no more of your complaints. Thames proceed.” With those words, Thames begins whispering a dialect I have not heard. Osiris moves to come toward me, but four guards cut him off. Each displays blades as barriers, but their blades do nothing to prevent how my magic nearly rips his emotions from him.

Suddenly I’m filled with his anger, filled with a desperate sort of energy that I know all too well. That of love and longing; the need for something that is just out of reach. My mouth falls slack, a gasping breath pulled into my lungs as I feel the dark shadows that Violet manipulates coming out, licking at the exposed skin on my hands, my arms, chest, and neck. An almost seductive growl comes from my throat as the shadows caress me and wrap around my body and soul.

“You will come to regret this decision—for it has been told before. You may not know the prophecy in Aldramani, but Valeska? We are aware, and we are subjects who fear the gods as we should. Make no mistake: you attempt to darken the daughter of the moon, the gods will seek vengeance. They gift us our power—what you are doing removes all balance. The moon does not lose its shine; it’s either clouds in the sky or the dark side as it turns its back on the realm that darkens the night.”

As though his words awaken the gods to the situation at hand, thunder booms in the distance as a flash of lightning brightens the colors lighting the dais. The kaleidoscope of color blanching for a moment before the shadows dive deep into my body. I careen backwards as Violet expels a torrent of shadows from her hands, her eyes wide, and she looks terrified as she loses control.

All sense of this room, the castle, the kingdom, or the realm loses meaning as the darkness invades my mind. Everything goes black, and only the lingering foul scent of dark magic, sulfur, and smoke fills my senses before there is nothing but me, darkness, and the glow of the moon.

The wind seems to move through me as though my body is made of smoke. Nothing but vapor floating in the nothingness around me. An eerie glow of blue illuminates the darkness like the brightest night sky. My footsteps make no noise, no ripples form in the water beneath my feet, and my hair does not blow about in the underground wind. Even so, the warmth floods me as I sense him.

I feel him nearing with each passing breath. My skin seems to glow with warmth, but I’m frozen where I stand. The tunnel I was in was no longer carrying me, but the magic in the air still lets my essence float like dust particles in the sun.

Movement catches my eye, and my breath catches when I see what drew my attention. Dax sits just feet away. His head cradled in his hands, he rocks back and forth, muttering under his breath. I take a step forward, and his mumbling stops entirely. When I move closer, I say his name.

“Dax?” His head lifts, his eyes searching the darkness around us, but they do not land on me. Sadness clouds his features as he looks around into the darkness. My heart breaks as I take in the sight of him. There has to be something I can do. The gods had to have brought me here for a reason. Looking around with a newfound determination, I start searching. Searching for anything that could help him get free.

Then it dawns on me. I turn back to face him slack-jawed. Closing my eyes for only a moment, I silently pray to the gods. Whichever would listen. Please bring us to where we need to be. Bring us back to ourselves and to the purpose we have in this life. I speak the words in my mind that feel right to me. As I let out my breath, my eyes open. And as if my magic is guiding me, I get an idea so strong that I have to believe it came from the gods.

“I’ve got it! Dax. Please,” I beg, pulling every ounce of love into my heart for the man at my feet. I continue, “If you can hear me, follow me.” I crouch down in front of him, kissing him softly on his cheek. “Follow me,” I repeat with a hopeful heart. Turning from him, I close my eyes once again. Urging my magic to flood me. Asking the moon for her help, to guide me, to show me where to go. Show me where Dax needs to go.

I hear Dax curse and scramble to his feet. When I look back over my shoulder, I can’t help but smile. He stands tall, willing strength into his body even if his face shows he no longer has it. Without another moment’s hesitation, he follows me.

I don’t know where I’m going, only that I trust I’m being led. My magic beckons me like a thread pulled taut. That’s when I see it. The pulsing glow in the crystal wall. One section glowed brighter than the others like a beacon—asking me to see it. I come to stand face to face with the wall, placing my hand over the brightest glow. The moment I do, a gleeful laugh bubbles from my throat. This is it! Come on, Dax.

He approaches where I stand; still, I don’t think he actually sees me, but I am guiding him nonetheless. He notices the crack in the stone and begins pulling at it. When debris falls and the crack widens, so does his eyes.

He rears back, the heel of his foot coming down sharply on the crack, splitting both his skin and the stone further. The small fissure now gaping; he crawls through, and I follow suit. As soon as we are both on the other side, I see the tunnels. Thanking the gods, I push my will out into the space. Begging that Dax will continue to follow, I start through the caves…turning this way, and that. Never slowing, I let my magic guide me.

If I ever knew where I was before, there is no way I know where I am now. Then I see it. The gleaming orange glow of the sunset fading over the ocean. The fiery light fills the cave, and though it’s still cool, I warm further when I step into its shine. My heart thundering, I turn back just as Dax stops short. His lips parting, and he begins shaking his head.

When I follow his gaze, I see what he is looking at.

Himself.

“No,” he says, fumbling a step back. “I failed; I didn’t get what was needed from the caves.” He whispers. “I didn’t get what was needed!” He yells after a moment of silence. It’s when we both hear a noise coming from the entrance of the cave, our heads snap in that direction. A cream wolf with blue eyes stares in. Her fur is matted and bloody; she limps forward but stays just on the other side.

“Kait,” I whisper her name. Then Dax surges past me, moving to exit the cave in his shadow form, but he is stopped abruptly as though he’s run into the wall. Kait brings her head up and howls at the setting sun. The sound is filled with sorrow and heartache and eaten up by the sound of the crashing waves. She looks back one more time before running away. Hopping over a burned fallen log and into what’s left of the brush on the cliffside, she disappears into the distance.

Dax slides down the dirt wall. His head falls to the side as he looks at his body. Alone in the cave and failure in his heart. I eventually do the same on the opposite wall. Watching him, waiting with him.

I don’t know how long we sit there, but night devours the day. We are thrust into darkness again, and my eyes flutter open. A gasp ripping from my throat, I wrench upright. Only to come face-to-face with Soren.

Wickedness in his narrowed eyes and a smile on his face.