Chapter 4 Fourth

CHAPTER FOUR

*Most of this chapter is a memory. Remember the spaces tell you when*

The safehouse was already occupied by three times more fae than there were in the dome and more were coming. You could clearly make out nobility in the crowd with their regal stances, the way they held themselves and of course the clothes. All gem embroidered.

For an hour fae kept pouring from the portal before the three remaining guards jumped in closing the portals after them. At seeing the crowd already here, the guards that came through were agasp. Which told her something was definitely wrong. This many fae were not supposed to be here already.

From her place near the wall, she could grasp a little of what they were saying above the chatter around.

"How many domes are compromised? One asked. He managed to have all his armour intact.

"That dome made five." One said, his eyes clearly wide. The eyes of the guard who asked widened. His head turned. One of the royals was approaching.

She was pushed away from the wall and the conversation was cut off. Just then the walls at the other side of the safe house exploded, sending chunks of rock and ice flying, sending fae flying, scattering and screaming.

The wall behind her also exploded, sending herself and other fae flying. She was thrown to another wall where her back took out a light, pain bit into her as the sharp pieces of ice bit into her flesh and fell in a heap on the floor. She could feel her blood oozing from the wound.

From where she was she saw furry creatures, monsters really, come through the gaping holes in the walls surrounding the fae, most of which were royals, members of the winter court.

The closed portals reopened, a huge white wolf stuck its head in, one of the guards struck it. It growled menacingly and grabbed the guards arm, biting in, he screamed as his comrades tried to release him.

More wolves followed as the first one stepped out, wrenching the guard's arm clean off. His screams was followed by others as other fae were separated. Herded differently.

One of the monsters came close to her. It was different. It had a more fae like structure. The skin was paler than hers. She gasped.

It or she should say he, was breathtaking.

He had an incredibly handsome face, with eyebrows elegantly arched over grey eyes flecked with silver. A sharp nose, pale pink lips and a squared jaw.

Black hair graced his head, looking like someone had ruffled it up but like it was meant to be that way. It kissed the nape of his neck lightly.

He picked her up by her wrists, as if she was the lightest of dolls. Moving the muscles where the ice shards were stuck in her body. She screamed. The pain biting in more. He smiled and threw her half way across the room seconds later.

Being part elf, she flipped and tried landing on her feet but she didn't get a footing.

She slipped and landed with her side, rolling several times, making the things in her back dig in deeper, making her scream as they did, before coming to a stop. She ended up in a darker place than she was before. Through the pain she heard more screams, swords and flesh tearing.

Someone said something and there were more noises but she couldn't hear it. All she saw when she opened her eyes was an elf with a bloody sword, white hair that kissed his shoulders and silver and blue tri coloured eyes. He wasn't looking at her.

Her heart lurched. Not in fear though. Her heart felt happy inspite of the pain she was experiencing.

She felt the connection. The feeling was beautiful like a sweet tingling. A euphoric feeling. She wanted to hold him in her arms and never let go.

But euphoria only lasted so long. All he did was point his bloody sword forward through one the gaping holes in the wall and leave. Leave her in pain. Leave her feeling alone. She could feel the tears roll down her face. Someone held her head. She couldn't see who it was, her eyes closed. Darkness taking her.

That was it. That faithful day.

When she woke up, she was mending. The healer was working on her legs. She not only had cuts in her back but had apparently broken her right leg in three different places and her left foot was a mess. Her arms was also in bandages.

The healer, Margaret, then filled her in on everything that happened while she was out. Including the fact that the King and some of the royal court was dead. She did so shaking and with fear in her voice.

The days following her recovery were filled with executions and not just royal heads rolled. High ranking officials followed, guards, soliders and normal fae that were accused of one crime or the other.

The healer from before, the one that sedated the old dwarf was also on the chopping block.

It seemed most fae that held no position of power being executed were healers. No wonder Margaret had been shaking so much.

It took a total of three months for the executions to be done. Mostly because most of them were hunted down. Either brought back for a proper execution or torn apart by spelled animals or the weres did the job.

There was no shortage of creative ways he executed fae. Beheading, hanging, drawn apart, bathed in fire, iric acid, shot at, hunted down, eaten, drowning, frozen and broken, the list continued.

By now she had made it to the city. Walking the black cobbled streets crowded with fae, young and old. Everyone appeared happy. A group shared drink and pastries at a cafè, eating the pastries hurriedly before they froze. It was fun watching them.

She moved on. Her home for the past three years was an apartment on the East side, made mostly from stone and partly from ice. In a nice part of the area. Nothing too fancy, just something generally nice she could afford with the jobs she worked. She wanted to get there fast and lock herself in.

Maybe get a fire going, with warm a scozzleberry drink, a good book and blast music from her player. An invention made by one of her elven friends in the city next door that made her days more bearable.

Her demeanor didn't spark any kind of attention. There were other fae that had the same mood coming off of them, although the tried to appear happy.

There were some fae that had not found their chosen yet. Some for as long as ten, twenty years. There were some that were rejected by their chosen.

It was a horrible thing to reject one's chosen but some still did it. Like hers. It would rip a part out of you and you would continue to feel that pain till the day you died.

The pain would take over your mind, driving you insane and it did not just affect one party alone. Both fae would feel it. Till one of them died.

Most of the fae that commonly practiced rejecting their chosen were royals, members of court. Fae in search of power. Status.

Some fae that were rejected or did the rejection ended up killing themselves. Some chose to live with it. Looking for another fae they could spend their lives with or live it alone.

Then there were some that did not have chosen at all. No one knew why or how, but they did not. The fae themselves knew and they could not explain how they did.

They described it as an empty dull feeling. The sensation of feeling hollow.

She wished she could feel that instead of this pain. It would be better.

She refused to take part in the festivities today. She just wanted to be alone. Only going out when she had to.

She turned a corner, the street lamp casting white light that jittered wildly. The light fleck was getting restless to leave already. The night was getting into full swing.

Her apartment building came in sight. She hurried. Her pace quickening. The building had a stone front exterior. The work of dwarves. One of the oldest buildings in the area. The building had gone down many hands. Many hands that had left imprints on it. She walked past the open copper doors.