CHAPTER 29
Staggered gasps sounded like crashing waves from around the crowd. Everyone in the room was staring at me, waiting patiently for my reaction. Of course, I wanted to react, but I didn’t know what to say. I couldn’t move, completely frozen in a cold mixture of fear and surprise.
“Please, sweet Naria.” The prince drew closer before dropping to his knees. Desperation ravaged his sharp features. “Ever since we shared our first kiss, I have been consumed by thoughts of you,” he continued. “You have invaded my very soul! Anything you want, I will provide for you. If you want a kingdom, I will build it for you. Together, we can restore what your parents lost.”
A knot formed in my throat. This was what I’d always wanted. I should’ve jumped in excitement and screamed immediately ‘yes’! Corlixir had the chance to rise again, and I had someone who cared about me, even if he had an overly bold way of showing it. But standing there, in the middle of Luminessia, even as a handsome prince knelt before me offering the very thing I needed, for some strange reason, everything within me was screaming ‘no’.
In a dramatic sweeping motion, he extended his pale hand up to me. “Dear Naria, please take my hand. Accept my proposal, and together we can rule both the fae and Corlixir. To say no would be to deny your people a kingdom and to break my heart into a thousand pieces. So please, I beg you, Naria, take my hand.”
Did I even have a choice? As Princess, I needed to do what was best for my people, and surely, this was it. My parents trusted the fae, so I should too.
I should say yes. I needed to say yes. I…
“Yes.”
Time stopped. What have I done?
The moment my hand slipped into his, blinding light flooded the room and I yelped. Searing pain burned down my arm like a raging fire. I tried desperately to pull away, but the prince’s grip held me firmly in place.
“Accept the bond, Naria!” I heard Arenn hiss through the chaos. “It will sting for a moment, but then I’ll be forever yours, and you, forever mine.”
Whatever twisted magic this was, there was no escaping it now. I writhed in pain until, after a few more dreadful seconds, the intense light faded, and slowly, I blinked my eyes open. Embedded into the skin of my forearm, as if they’d always been there, were two glowing crystals, each one smaller than a penny. A quick glance at Arenn’s wrist showed he had a matching pair burnt into his arm, just like mine.
“A faery tradition,” he noted with a wink, “to mark the proposal.”
Then, snatching up my hand, he raised our markings high to the wide circle of fae that had gathered around us. “To my new bride!” he announced, beaming wider than I’d ever seen before. The ballroom erupted into cheers and cries.
“To the happy couple!” a familiar male voice boomed from the balcony. Up above, the Faery King smiled and tipped his goblet in our direction.
“To a successful Luminessia!” Queen Amabel called out from beside him, tipping her goblet too. Just like her husband, she was dressed lavishly and practically dripping with jewels. “And to our dear Naria, may this union bring you the peace that your kingdom deserves.”
After lowering our arms, Arenn squeezed me so tightly against his side that it almost hurt. For a moment, I wanted to push him away, and I almost did, but then I stopped myself. What would my parents say if they knew I was being so ridiculously ungrateful? This man, this prince, holding me so closely was not only terribly handsome, but he was also young and perfectly willing to help my people. This was everything I should have wanted – everything any princess who grew up in a tiny forest village could ever wish for.
So why was there such an awful sinking feeling in my chest?
“And now,” Arenn continued, addressing the crowd with a wild grin, “it is time for me to present a gift to my new bride!” He tossed me a quick glance. “I think you’ll like this one, human.”
Judging by the sinister glint in his eyes, I doubted that very much.
“Guards!” he barked, making me flinch. Nearby, I heard the sounds of armour clinking as a few well-dressed soldiers straightened to attention. “Please deliver my betrothed’s gift, as we discussed.”
The surrounding fae cleared a path for the marching guards, and a new dark excitement buzzed through the ballroom. The excitement spread to Arenn’s lips as he grinned gleefully.
It wasn’t long before the two guards returned, each dragging the limp arms of a thin, green-skinned faery. His face was hidden by a scruffy brown sack, but I could still hear his pained moans as he was hauled across the floor. Once they were less than a few metres away, they tossed the prisoner roughly to the ground and snatched the bag away from his head. My mouth fell open the moment his terrified emerald irises met mine.
“Valen,” I snarled, rage curling at the back of my throat. Visions of Raena’s terrified face flooded my mind.
Arenn chuckled. “A joyous reunion!” He then leaned in close until his lips tickled my ear – the feeling sending a surprisingly warm shiver down my spine. “Remember when you asked to see more of my magic? Enjoy the show, little human.” He pulled away with a smirk.
I barely had a chance to process what he’d said before he lifted his arms and a deafeningly loud crack echoed over the ballroom. Instantly, my hands flew to my ears, and I stumbled back. Several colossal black vines burst from the floor, shooting high up to the ceiling – the sheer sight of them sending our audience into an excited frenzy.
Gasping, I watched in horror as one of the vines coiled tightly around Valen’s leg and whipped him fifty feet into the air. With a painful crunch, he crashed against the shimmering ceiling before plunging back to the ground in a blur of screaming green. Just as he was inches away from colliding with the floor, another vine gripped his foot and tossed him back up into the air, only for him to crash painfully against the ceiling once again.
On and on, this tortuous game continued, his screams turning less faery and more animalistic with every throw. A painful crunch, then an awful scream followed by another, and then another. The noise sent my heart plummeting into my chest. I knew I had said I wanted for the guard to be punished, but this wasn’t punishment. This was torture – evil, humiliating torture. And it terrified me to see Arenn’s eyes glistening hungrily with every horrifying crunch of Valen’s broken bones.
“Stop,” I whimpered, my chest heaving in fear. “This isn’t right!”
“Such compassion,” Arenn murmured. “But what kind of prince would I be if I stole the show away from my adoring fans now?” He swept his hand over the buzzing crowd. To my dismay, there were no fearful looks from any of the fae. All their attention was fixed hungrily on the flailing faery as if he was just another part of the night’s entertainment. The sight made my stomach churn. Suddenly, I felt a lot less like a princess in a glittering faery ball and more like a tiny mouse surrounded by hundreds of cats – horrible, sharp-toothed faery cats who hadn’t eaten in days.
“What do you think, Princess?” Arenn tossed me an excited grin, clearly oblivious to the intense pounding fear in my chest. “Shall I kill him now?” With a flick of his wrist, each vine sprouted an uncountable number of dagger-sized thorns. I winced as one of the deadly vines caught Valen mid-fall, piercing his skin as a blood curdling scream filled the ballroom. “His death is at your command, sweet human. Say the word, and I will end his pathetic life.”
I whimpered again just as another thorny vine coiled round his arm, slicing his skin. His blood fell like crimson rain onto the sparkling floor below.
I screwed my eyes shut, desperate to clear my head of the tortuous scene before me.
“Please,” I begged, “punish him, but not like this.”
A cruel laugh sounded from the prince’s lips. “Sweet, innocent, Naria,” he mused. “Your merciful nature is charming. Unfortunately, I must give my people what they want. I’m sure, as a princess, you understand.”
No…
Then there was a nightmarish crunch, followed by an awful squelch and raucous cheers. Around us, the faeries erupted into an endless wild applause.
My breath stilled as my eyes refused to open. Everything was moving far too fast. I tried desperately to clear my mind, to steady my breathing, but all I could hear were his screams and that same squelch over and over again, as if my mind were caught in a whirlwind.
When I felt Arenn’s hand rest on my shoulder, dread slowly crept in with the fear. If Arenn and I were to marry, not only would Corlixir rise again, but he would be King.
And I would be unleashing a monster on my people.
I’d seen just how violent his power could be and how he relished every second of pain he inflicted on that faery. Of course, Valen was not exactly innocent, but that didn’t change how Arenn toyed with him so cruelly and without a moment’s hesitation. Seraphina was wrong. Faeries were monsters, and like a fool, I’d just agreed to marry one. It was one thing to refuse a proposal arranged by the very human King Ikelos, but could I break a proposal bound by the magic crystals now embedded into my arm? If the pain was intense from the bond being forged, what would it be like if it were broken?
My breath was racing faster than my thoughts when suddenly everything felt incredibly heavy. My eyelids dropped. Then my knees buckled. Arenn only just about managed to catch me before everything faded to night.