Son of Night and Daughter of Stars

Chapter 52: The Absence

The castle was in an uproar. 

Not only was Amandla missing, but she'd put on quite the show on her way out. Marzanna had left no survivors in her wake. Servants and guards littered the hallways, a kind of massacre the kingdom hadn't seen in decades. 

Nyx didn't have the time to be worried about that, though, as much as it pained him to ignore those people. He didn't have time to worry about whatever the future held for him, or Delilah's cruelty, or Aelin's fury. All he had time to worry about now was the killing calm, slowly settling over him. 

And Estelle. Always, Estelle. 

She dragged him and Artemis into the darkness with her, taking them straight to Amandla's cell. Nyx wanted to tell her not to bother. But he didn't dare. Estelle had settled into her own killing calm, and he was afraid of what she'd do if he tried to pull her out. 

Estelle released his hand the moment they reappeared, stalking for the bent-apart bars of Amandla's cell. "This is how you found it?" 

Artemis nodded. "I came down to... to try to see her again." 

The chains that had held Marzanna down were broken in two and covered in a layer of dust. Estelle knelt and picked one up, weighing it in her hand. Then faster than a blink, she hurled it into the wall, where it shattered loudly against the stone and fell back to the ground. Estelle spun around, her jaw clenched tight as steel. 

"We need to find my mother. Now."

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Artemis didn't know what to do anymore. 

She'd set out with two clear goals: Find Nyx and Amandla, and bring them home. So far, she'd failed at both. Nyx and Amandla may have been standing in front of her last night, but she'd never felt so far away from either of them.

Amandla wasn't the woman Artemis had come to know and love anymore. She didn't belong to herself anymore, much less to Artemis. That-- that goddess was using her, to whatever ends she wanted with no care if Amandla lived or died or even suffered. Her body was a mere vessel, to be used only for the gain of people set on destroying Artemis's home and everything she cared about.

And Nyx...

For as long as Artemis could remember, Nyx had been a restless soul. Never able to sit still, never able to just stop and listen. But now... now...

It was as if his whole center of gravity had shifted. Shifted away from the boy she'd grown up with, the boy who'd believed himself invincible, to the warrior standing beside her now. Nyx had always been larger than life, a skilled fighter and a loyal friend. But in the time he'd been away, those relentless, sharp edges had hardened and refined to something new. To something, someone, she hardly recognized. She hadn't yet decided if it was a good or a bad thing yet. But she knew who was to blame either way. 

Artemis slid her gaze to watch the Princess of Terrasen as she walked ahead of her, her steps full of purposeful but not panicked speed. She hadn't even known the female for a full day but had already decided she liked her. She had a blazing sort of spirit that reminded Artemis a bit of her Aunt Gwyn, but a tempered demeanor like Nesta. Artemis didn't pretend to know the Princess, but she felt she understood why Nyx was so drawn to her. Especially after hearing him go on and on about her last night. This was a woman who defended her own with every stitch of strength she had, and who loved fiercely and wildly. 

Artemis could respect that. She didn't harbor any dislike towards the Princess. But she found herself wishing she hadn't been the one to find her cousin. What they had done, what had occurred between them, was something that couldn't be undone. Artemis didn't know how to feel about that.