Chapter 47 #2
“Kill her!” The hushed murmurs escalated into shouted demands.
“Lock her up!” Her shoulders quivered, their shouts more piercing than the sudden pain that shot through her head.
As she instinctively raised her hand, Jaakobai yanked down the restraints.
“Murderer!” Another pang, this time against her arm, prompted her to finally survey her surroundings, where she noticed a rock rolling on the ground.
From the vantage points of buildings, through windows, and lining the roads, a sea of people confronted her. Some clutched rocks, hurling them in her direction, while others merely pointed and unleashed guttural screams. “You killed him!” “He was only a boy!” “That was my son!”
Her resolve was crumbling, and she desired to beg Ilkiz to help. These people didn’t understand her pain, they had no idea what she had been through.
“You’ve found restraint,” Jaakobai remarked, stepping beside her. As rocks and filth were flung their way, they bounced off an imperceptible barrier, likely created by his reluctance to be pelted. “Sad for me, but good for these insignificant mortals.”
“You are a monster!” “Monster!” “Witch!” “Succubus, straight from Death herself.” “Enchantress!” “Evil incarnate!” “Fuck you!” “Burn, witch!”
Jaakobai withdrew, and she observed a man walking past, defiantly raising a fist. Her eyes widened as the man abruptly froze, and she felt the rage inside her intensify.
All she desired was to reduce him to ash, and everyone else with him.
This Kingdom and its people would crumble into nothing more than dust by the time she was finished.
Yet, that was precisely what Jaakobai desired. He hoped for her to lose control, making his life that much easier.
As quickly as she had reacted to the approaching man, she stopped and turned her head downward. Instead of lashing out physically, he resigned himself to spitting on her.
“Humiliating.” Jaakobai commented with condemnation. “Such a powerful woman, reduced to this.” The desire to obliterate him, and all of them, surged within her. If she unleashed Ilkiz, no one would survive. They would all discover the true monster they were creating.
Numb and emotionless, she fixed her gaze on the stone floor, deliberately avoiding their accusatory eyes.
Yearning to retreat into a different reality, she closed her eyes and inhaled deeply.
A surge of hatred coursed through every inch of her being, and she relished it.
There would be no saving Jaakobai when this was all done.
Fuck his hands, I’m going straight for his heart.
“How does it feel?”
“Enlightening.” She answered honestly.
“She’s innocent!” She let out a gasp. “Give her a chance!” “She ended the war!” “Our Savior!”
Her head lifted as she scanned the crowd, searching in every direction until she fixed her gaze on those who were hollering for her.
“Give her a fair trial!” “Let her go!” “Don’t silence her!
” “Free her!” Calls in her favor now echoed everywhere, as if they had been stifled before and were finally unleashed.
No longer confined behind a locked door, they reverberated freely.
“She’s a monster!” “You have no room to judge!” “Kill her!” “Save her!”
Her chest rose and fell rapidly as she struggled to catch her breath. Jaakobai, visibly trembling, emitted a frustrated groan.
She didn’t need everyone on her side, but the realization that even some wished to see her find innocence brought a steadying calm to her heart.
Sensing hands on her arm, she turned to Jaakobai, who wore a mask of anger.
“Witch, how did you—” Her eyes narrowed, and though he left his statement unfinished, she deduced that something had occurred.
It came as no surprise when he forcefully tore open another wether right there in the middle of the streets of Naverra and tossed her through it. The impact was strong enough to send her stumbling down to her hands and knees. Beneath her, a polished floor reflected her image.
A serene silence cocooned her, tempting her to linger on the ground and embrace its tranquility. However, the cold reality of the marble floors beneath her hinted at what would unfold next. She was acutely aware of her surroundings.
“Stand.” It was Jayce, his hands firmly gripping her arm, coaxing her back onto her feet.
“Ah, Commander Latimer,” As she raised her eyes to see him, bumps lifted across her arms. “Elder Fae, thank you both for bringing this wanted criminal back for her justice.” The King occupied his throne, flanked by Karver and several Fae soldiers.
She also noticed the Order’s Commander, Olaniyan, and a woman adorned in armor reminiscent of what Kaed had once worn—an elf, like him as well.
“Miss Rothwen,” Theon, the King, crossed his legs and leaned forward, “Welcome home.” Since she last saw him, he had grown a beard, but otherwise, he remained unremarkable with his brown hair and brown eyes.
“Theon,” she said, well aware of the folly in addressing the King by his given name alone. Savoring the moment and reveling in his heightened anger and rosy cheeks to his ivory skin, she felt Jaakobai’s firm grip on her arm as he forcefully pulled her away from Jayce.
“No need to be disrespectful, Princess.” He flung her forward, and to her own surprise, she managed to stay on her feet. “Bring them.”
Her heart pounded, assuming that the “them” he referred to were Illyan, Zhal, and Kaed. The prospect of seeing them after so long was both overwhelming and exhilarating. Once they were present, she could set the plan for escape into motion.
However, much to her shock, another set of restraints was presented. These looked different but familiar, and as they unlocked the ones around her wrists, she regarded them with a discerning expression.
While the King addressed Jayce, her focus remained fixed on the cuffs about to secure her. “Commander Latimer, thank you for your service to me. I understand through Jaakobai that this one is quite the handful.”
As they were fastened around her, something felt amiss. Her knees grew weak, and the ground approached rapidly. As if her body were being drained of life itself, she struggled to breathe, her forearms resting on her legs to prevent her from collapsing outright.
Please… not again…
“She was your grace. After Itotaki, I had to step back, as she was becoming suspicious. It is why it took so long for an update.” His voice was firm as he continued, “However, I was able to convince her after she wasn’t able to locate what she was looking for in Ilkiz, to come forward and proclaim her innocence. ”
Theon merely chuckled.
“Seduced the seducer, hmm?” Jaakobai spoke, his tone tinged with an unsettling uncertainty, as if he harbored doubt about something.
Jayce stepped forward, positioning himself beside her. As she glanced up, her gaze locked onto Karver, who stood unaffected by the unfolding scene before him.
Her body ached, and now she comprehended the nature of these restraints. Even in the twilight, she would recognize these cuffs — gold-plated and pulsating with his power. As she looked up at Jayce, his eyes never strayed down to meet hers.
“Please…” she uttered, a feigned plea that she wasn’t entirely convinced was insincere. Did he recognize these restraints as much as she did? Could he no longer sense her window? Was he aware that these were the same chains Goddrick had once used on her?
“Look at me, girl, not him. He cannot help you.” Her widened eyes trailed back to Theon, his smile wide.
“The people want to see you on trial, but there is no need for that, let’s be honest.” A laugh echoed, not only from him but from his surrounding subordinates, including Jaakobai and the two Commanders.
Karver and Jayce, however, refrained from indulging in the laughter.
“I want to see them,” she said with fervor, “allow them freedom, and you can do with me as you see fit.”
Ilkiz, she watched Theon deliberate her words. Are you there?
“Yes, little one. These restraints do not work on my Power.”
It was all she needed to know and did not communicate further with her. The last thing she wanted was for something to slip, and Jaakobai catch on to whatever she was doing.
“You are going to die here today, Miss Rothwen, why does it matter what happens to your friends?”
“It is your choice,” she said, settling back onto her legs, her restrained hands resting in her lap. “I can fight, or I can concede. You choose.” Despite the strength in her words, her body betrayed her with unmistakable tremors.
“Your grace,” Karver intervened, “Let us heed the words of the Goddess.”
“I do not believe that she is unkillable, do you see her? She is smaller than most of the whores that aid my desires, and the way she shakes out of fear. With those restraints—”
“Please,” she cut him off, “at least, let me see them. Allow me this one thing.“ Her body tilted downward, her forehead pressing against the cold marble, a chilling sensation coursing through her entire being.
A little more suffering, just a little.
Theon let out a disrespectful laugh and snapped his fingers, “They can watch her die then, if that is what she desires.”
Mother, if you can hear me now, I pray to you that you keep them safe.
Allow for those that I love to live a long, happy life.
They deserve peace, and love, and joy. They do not deserve this evil wretched life that I’ve put them through.
Take my strength as your own to allow for them to be protected if I fail, as I have done so many times before.
They are the reason I breathe; the reason that I fight; the reason I want to live.
Please do not allow for them to be taken from me.
Or this world you hold dearest, will be gone. That is a promise.
Footsteps interrupted her prayer, and as she glanced up, Illyan emerged from around a group of Fae soldiers, accompanied by Zhal.
Both were gagged and had their arms bound.
Zhal had several chains around her, nearly sending Azahara into a frenzy upon the sight.
When their eyes met, they started screaming through the folds in their mouths.
Seeing them after so long, her body vibrated with pain and rage.
The tears streaming down her cheeks were real.
“Illy—Zhal—” Calling for them, and knowing they both could hear her voice, it had her choking on her words.
Every part of her itched to get to them, hold them both close and to never allow them to be further than arm’s reach.
“I’m so sorry…” Her words carried the weight of truth and ache.
Despite anticipating this moment, she found herself unprepared for the overwhelming onslaught of emotions.
Especially when she heard his voice call out, “Azahara?”
It was as though her heart ceased to beat, all the air left her lungs, her brain ceased to function, and the blood in her veins drained away, never to return.
As her gaze followed the sound, she found him.
His honey-gold hair framed his face, and those emerald eyes, which had captured her from the first moment, once again stole her breath away.
He stared at her, as if she were unreal, and it was the first time he had ever laid eyes on her in the flesh.
The look on his face resembled shock, and though confusion should have taken over, her own shock overwhelmed all other emotions.
He was alive.
“Kaed—” His name escaping her lips opened the floodgates of her emotions, and she knew that if she had been standing, she would have crumbled instantly. Her body collapsed as her stomach churned and tightened with pure, unfiltered happiness, a sensation so overwhelming that it made her feel sick.
As happiness has always been, it was too fragile to stand against the all-too powerful thing called life.
Don’t do this to me… Why…
Just as Kaed had seized all of her attention, now, standing in front of her, was the one person who brought her the most pain.
The one who, despite all her fighting and strengthening, always dragged her down to the lowest point.
The one who consistently tore away hope and choice from her.
He would always be there, and that had been the only constant in her life for the past five hundred years.
“Goddrick…” The name sounded frail on her tongue.
“Hello, manipulator.”