Rafe winced at that. “Is that what they are saying about me?” he said as we walked into the palace through the east wing entrance to the gardens. I followed him down a long gallery lined with gold-framed portraits of the kings of old. He still held onto my hand, and I didn’t want to let go.
“Yes,” I said, looking at one particularly large king who appeared too big to fit on the throne. “And what’s more, some think that after the king, you will be too weak to rule this kingdom, and the Blackwaters will take over.”
Rafe laughed out loud at that. “Just let them try,” was all he said with a twinkle in his eyes.
“So why don’t you tell them what you’re doing?” I said.
“And go openly against my father’s wishes?” he said, shaking his head. “People would see that as dissension in the family. My father does not want to break the treaty and send troops into Illiador. Morgana may see it as an act of war. No! It’s better they all think of me as a rich prince with a head full of fluff and no ambition. It will serve me better for now. The Blackwaters will never see me coming.”
He led me to my room and hugged me close. “I will see you tomorrow,” he said gently.
I nodded, and Rafe left.
I sighed, opened the door to my room, and went inside. It was no use thinking about Rafe again and again. There was no hope and no future for us. If I continued like this, I would never be able to wipe him from my mind. But I loved spending time with him, and I just couldn’t seem to stay away. My heart yearned for him, but soon I would leave for Elfi, and maybe it would get easier. Although, from the constant ache in my heart, I wasn’t entirely sure I would ever get over him.
I was so engrossed in my world of Rafe that, at first, I didn’t notice that all the candles except one had gone out. Someone had left the window open, and a chilly wind was blowing the curtains astray. I went over and closed the widows before my last candle blew out. I looked at the woods beyond my window. Twilight was setting in, and dark shadows seemed to have entered my room.
I whirled around as I saw something move from the corner of my eye.
“Who’s there?” I called out.
But there was no answer, only silence and the elevated beat of my heart. My breath caught in my chest as shadows started moving towards me from the corners of the darkened room. I opened my mouth to scream, but nothing came out. I was rooted to the spot, and a cold dread washed over me as I saw what the shadows were. My skin prickled, and a deep, clawing dread ripped my courage to shards. The Shadow Guard! Here in the palace? How did they get in?
I knew powerful magical wards sealed the palace from intruders, so they had to have been let in. But who would put the whole palace at risk? Then a smaller shadow walked out of the darkness, her hair sparkling in the candlelight in golden hues.
Leticia!
“Hello, Princess Aurora.” She said it with so much venom in her voice that I was taken aback.
“You!” I said, my voice cracking. “You are the one who betrayed me.”
“In order to betray you, we would first have to be friends,” said Leticia meanly, “and that was not possible with you having your beady little eyes on my prince. Take her away.” She gestured haughtily, as if she were already queen.
“But how did you remove the magical wards protecting the palace?” I asked, in the midst of my panic. “You have no magic.”
Leticia sneered at me. “I have friends,” she said, her voice dripping acid.
Another shadow dislocated itself from the darkness. Damien!
“You!” I said glaring at him. “You were the one who let them in.”
Damien just grinned evilly at me; he seemed completely healed. “Bind her wrists,” he said to the Shadow Guard. “Don’t let her take her amulet off, it is what is suppressing her powers.”
I gathered my magic and shot a stun strike at a Shadow Guard, but he easily put up a shield to deflect it. Another guard caught me from behind and bound my hands. There was nothing I could do; I was trapped.
“You will not get away with this, Leticia,” I said, sounding more confident than I felt.
“Oh, I think I already did,” said Leticia, cackling, as the Shadow Guard bound and gagged me.
“I told you I would get back at you,” said Damien, finally amassing the courage to come closer to me once my hands were bound. I always knew he was a coward. “My uncle, the archmage, will be so proud of me once he knows I am the one who delivered you to his queen.”
I tried to cry out, but the gag was cutting the sides of my mouth.
Suddenly, a dark shadow descended onto the room. I turned towards the window to see a monstrous shape with obsidian black wings and razor-sharp claws perched on the windowsill. A Gorgoth. I had heard of them but had never seen one before. My eyes widened in fright. Were they going to feed me to that thing? Its face was a contorted mix of man and bat, and its red eyes glowed like hot coals.
“Queen Morgana is waiting for you, Princess,” rasped the guard who was holding me. “She wants to deal with you personally this time.”
Two guards clasped my arms and pulled me towards the window. I kicked and screamed but to no avail. The Gorgoth caught me in its razor-sharp claws and lifted me up like a leaf. Its great leathery wings beat the air as it pounced off the window ledge, holding me roughly in its talons. It flew me swiftly up into the darkening sky, towards Morgana and my impending doom.
27
Morgana
I lay on the cold stone floor of the dungeons at the ruins of Tinerea Castle. I had heard the guards talking and discovered that we were up in the hills, far away from the city of Neris. The Gorgoth was gone. It had dropped me in the ruins, and the Shadow Guard were there to capture me again.
I sat up and looked around me. It was a dark and horrific place with chains and manacles fastened to the walls. Dust and cobwebs hadn’t been disturbed for years, and, above all else, there was an eerie silence. I had an inkling that I was the only prisoner here.
I had learned in my ancient history class that, according to legend, this castle was haunted, so no one ever came here. It had been destroyed, along with a mage who had turned to dark magic.
I couldn’t believe I had come full circle—back in the dungeons, tied, trapped, and waiting to be taken to Morgana.
I was so angry with Leticia and her sly attempt to get me out of the way. I should have known she would do something like this; she’d made it very clear she hated me. It was clever of her to go to Damien for help; she must have known how much he hated me too.
I heard a click at the door. I panicked. Had they come to get me? Had Morgana arrived? The guards opened the door, and another prisoner was roughly shoved inside. The door banged shut, and I could only roughly make out the figure that was standing before me. But then, in the darkness, I heard a familiar voice.
“Sorry I took so long, Princess.”
“Kalen!” I whispered. “How did you get caught? Why did you come here?”
“I followed you, and I was looking around when the Shadow Guard caught me,” said Kalen, smiling and looking very pleased with himself. “They brought me straight to you.”
Was Kalen mad, risking his life like this?
“Morgana is on her way here. She will kill you if she finds you here. You must go, please,” I said fervently.
“I’m not leaving without you,” he said plainly.
“How did you get here so fast?” I asked, trying to think of a way to get him out of here. I had resigned myself to the fact that, this time, there was no hope of escape. The Shadow Guard were everywhere, and they had said that Morgana was on her way herself.
“Snow,” he said. “I was in the stables, and Snow suddenly started going mad, banging her stall, and trying to get out. I got onto her somehow; she was so distressed that she didn’t seem to mind. I freed her, and she flew me here.”
“Snow is here?” I said, hope rising in my heart.
Kalen nodded. “I also alerted your granduncle, and hopeful
ly he is on his way. I flew on ahead. I need to get you out of these ruins before Morgana arrives.”
“How?” I said pessimistically. “There is no way out. The Shadow Guard are everywhere.” I hoped Uncle Gabriel would find me in time. I couldn’t live with myself if I got Kalen killed because he was dragged into my mess. “Where is Snow?”
“She is circling the castle,” said Kalen. “I don’t think the guards saw her. If we can just get to her, maybe we can escape.”
The door to the dungeon opened suddenly, and four black-robed Shadow Guard came in.
“Make sure her hands are secure,” one guard with a raspy voice said. “Do not let her remove the amulet.”
Two Shadow Guard grabbed me, and the other two grabbed Kalen. We both struggled, but they were strong, and I could feel evil magic radiating from them. They checked my hands to see if they were still tied. Even with my hands bound behind my back, the Shadow Guard had their magical shields up, as if I might suddenly break loose and kill all of them.
I hadn’t forgotten about the amulet, but how to take it off? All this time it had been round my neck, and now it seemed it would be the thing that got me killed. I had no idea what would happen if I did ever get to remove the amulet again. I remembered the rush of power and the overwhelming fear of helplessness when I couldn’t control my magic. But now I didn’t even have the option to choose; my hands were tied, and so were Kalen’s.
We were dragged up an old, crumbling stone stairwell covered in vines and wild, gnarled creepers that invaded the stone walls and clung to them like parasites, and into the moss-covered ruins of the old castle. Parts of the castle had completely caved in, and moonlight streamed into the rooms, lighting up the usually dark stone corridors.
We were led into an open courtyard, surrounded on three sides by the crumbling ruins of the castle and leading to a sheer drop down the side of a mountain crag upon which the castle had been built.
I looked over to the end of the courtyard, amongst the dilapidated ruins and fallen stones. There, at the edge of the cliff, the wind whipping at her dark, glossy hair that flowed about her shoulders and bled into the blackness of her robes, stood the usurper, my aunt and archnemesis, Morgana.
I was pulled forward, stumbling across the moss-and-weed-covered floor of the crumbling castle.
One of the Shadow Guard hit Kalen on his shoulders and pushed him to the ground “Kneel before the High Queen of Avalonia, you worthless fae,” he sneered.
Kalen fell to his knees.
The Shadow Guard behind me did the same thing, and pain shot through my shoulders and knees as I was roughly shoved to the ground at Morgana’s feet.
“So!” said Morgana, her green eyes flashing and staring at me as if I was a little bug. “Azaren’s little whelp. Did you think you could run from me forever?”
I pushed myself off the ground and got to my feet, but Morgana backhanded me, and two Shadow Guard pushed me down again. I felt something wet on my chin; my lip was bleeding, and I tried to wipe it on my sleeve, but it was difficult with my hands tied behind me.
“You will kneel before your queen, you insolent wench,” said the Shadow Guard behind me.
“And so will your little fae friend,” Morgana said, looking over at Kalen and then back at me. “Did he think he would, what, help you escape again? I know the fae were involved in the escape at Oblek’s castle. Well, this time you will not be so lucky. I will make you watch as we kill your little friend slowly.”
“Let him go,” I said, sounding much braver than I felt. “He has no part in this. You wanted me, and now you have me. Kalen has nothing to do with it.”
“No,” said Kalen, struggling with his jailers. “You won’t get away with this, Morgana, the Duke of Silverthorne is on his way here as we speak. He will destroy you if you hurt her.”
Morgana laughed. “Silverthorne is a doddering old fool,” she said. “His powers are no match for me. I look forward to his arrival. But, as long as my brother’s heir lives, my claim to the throne will always be weak. The girl must die, for there can only be one Queen of Illiador.”
As she said that, she raised her right hand and hit me with a push strike so forceful that I flew a few feet. I hit my head on the wall and scraped my back. I could feel blood trickling down my neck from the gash on my head. My head was throbbing, and I could barely see straight. Kalen cried out and tried to get to me, but the Shadow Guard swarmed around him and held him back. One guard held a knife to his throat.
My head was swimming, and I was dazed. I instinctively put up a hasty shield around myself. Then I went about healing myself from the inside. I knew my mage powers were not enough, so I pulled magic from the earth, mending the gash on my head, as I had done before in my healing test.
I looked over to the other side of the courtyard. Four Shadow Guards were pulling a struggling Snow. She was tied with coarse ropes, and even her wings were bound so she couldn’t fly off. She was covered in terrible, red cuts all over her beautiful, white wings. I was horrified. What had they done to her?
“Snow,” I whispered faintly in my mind. “What have they done?”
“I am all right, little one,” said Snow, “do not be afraid. I am much stronger than you think. Concentrate on Morgana. Never take your eyes off her.”
My hands were still tied, so I couldn’t even get up properly. I managed to maneuver myself off the ground and tried to stand up on my now very shaky feet.
“Very impressive,” said Morgana, her hands on her hips. “I can see your power is strong, little princess, even with the amulet on. But you are no match for me.”
I knew I was going to die; there was no way out. My palms were sweating, and I was shaking. I had to pull myself together. If I could create some diversion, maybe Kalen could escape. I knew there was no hope for me.
“Looks like you have your father’s foolish courage, Niece,” Morgana said scathingly. “But that will not help you now.”
With the amulet on and my hands bound, I was no match for her, and she knew it. It was then I realized that Morgana was a coward, and she was afraid of me, afraid of my powers. I quickly put up a stronger shield. I would die fighting, not quivering in the corner like a weakling. At least I didn’t need my hands to shield myself.
Morgana laughed and hit me with fire strikes that bounced off my shield, but they were strong. Her strikes kept pushing me back, and she was advancing upon me slowly. I knew she was toying with me, and I reinforced my shield. My power was waning, and Morgana was hitting me with alternate lightning and fire strikes.
I concentrated all my power on keeping my shield intact. I kept telling myself that I would not let her kill me with magic; I would not let her beat me. But all that was useless. She just kept coming at me. Beads of sweat had started forming on my forehead, my heart was racing, my palms were clammy, and I could feel raw terror welling up inside me. I didn’t have enough power to stop her. Morgana was going to kill me, and there was nothing I could do about it.
“You are brave, little princess,” Morgana said as she hit me with another lightning strike. It broke my shield and hit my left leg.
I fell to the ground on my knees in pain.
“Yes,” said Morgana, “kneel before your queen.” She cackled.
A wind had picked up, and Morgana’s hair whipped around her face as she held up her hands, palms facing outwards, to deliver another blow. She struck me with a fire strike that burst through my shield and burned my arm and leg, but it was not a killing strike. She was still toying with me. I screamed in agony and fell face forward onto the hard, moss-covered floor. My nose was bleeding, and shooting pain ripped through my left arm and leg.
“It is unfortunate that you got away from me the first time, Aurora,” said my aunt with a sneer. This was the first time she had called me by my name. “Your mother used up the last of her powers to stop me from getting to you.”
She hit me with another burning fire strike while I was on the ground, and fresh pain sh
ot through my body again.
“It was she who made the portal and sent you away to the other world,” Morgana went on. “If you were not wearing that cursed amulet, I would have found you much sooner.”
I barely had any strength left. I tried to heal myself, but only a flicker of magic now remained in me.
I maneuvered myself to my knees, blood streaming from my nose and leg. My arm was burning, and I pulled at the magic around me to try and create some semblance of a shield. I could feel the magic surrounding me, but however much I tried to pull it into me, it wasn’t enough.
“I stabbed your mother through the heart myself,” cackled Morgana. “And it took nearly ten Drakaar assassins to kill your father. But he was finally cut down as he tried desperately to save you both. If your mother’s power weren’t concentrated on trying to save you, she could have saved herself and him.”
Morgana hit me with a crushing strike. I screamed in agony and would have clutched my chest if I could, but my hands were still bound behind my back.
This was too much. I couldn’t bear it anymore. I could picture my mother giving her life to save her only child, and my father, who must have tried to save his family only to be cut down by dark magic. My dream flashed in my mind. I could see my mother standing still, eyes flashing silver, protecting me with her magic as Morgana came at her with the curved dagger.
Morgana was the one who had destroyed my life. She was the cause of all my pain, and she was the one who took my parents from me and destroyed my family. She was a monster, evil to the core, and she had to be stopped.
This thought gave me strength to fight on. I faintly heard Kalen’s voice calling my name. I tried to get up, but I was hit with another lightning strike that shattered my shield and left me writhing on the floor in excruciating pain.
Morgana was laughing at me. “Yes, get up, Fae-Mage,” she goaded, “show me what you’ve got.”
The Shadow Guard were also laughing, while Snow called my name in my head. I barely heard them. I had had enough. I shut out the voices, the fear, and the terror that were invading my mind and looked inside myself, to the safe place where the source of my power lay. A faint light was still flickering and struggling to stay alight.
The Last of the Firedrakes Page 31
