I felt the cold, hard weight of the hilt of a dagger biting into my hand. I glanced between it and the palm of my hand as I noticed the prickling sensation of being watched. I looked up to see a large, empty room. I turned around and saw Evaris standing behind me. He smiled encouragingly at me. "Go on. It doesn't hurt." He held his hand out, showing me a long, silvery scar stretching across the palm of his hand. "I had to do it, too."
I turned back to the altar I was standing in front of and stared at the shallow bowl resting on it. Clearly, I was meant to pour my blood into it. I looked at the silver dagger again as the light gleamed threateningly off of it. In one quick, sharp movement, I jerked the blade down my palm. I gritted my teeth against the throbbing sting. Dark red blood dripped off of the tip and onto the altar. I hissed between my teeth as I squeezed my hand, letting the beads drip, drip, drip into the bowl.
"That's enough," Evaris said as he pushed me gently aside and handed me a black cloth, pressing it onto the cut. He turned away and pulled the cork off of a small vial that contained a thick, black liquid. The liquid oozed out in a thick, viscous trickle and he swirled the bowl around once the vial was empty.
He turned towards me with the bowl in hand. "Like those?" He asked, nodding towards my arm. I looked down to find silvery tattoos similar to the ones on his neck swirling down from my shoulder to curl around my wrist. I stared at them, twisting my arm this way and that to see them better. I nodded gently as Evaris stepped closer.
He dipped his fingers in the strange concoction and brushed them across my collarbone, leaving a smear of paint there. He did the same to my other shoulder and repeated the motion a few times over my shoulders. He joined the one on my arm up with the new one. I watched him the whole time, the moment calm and strangely intimate.
Once he was finished, he stepped back and took the cloth from me, wiping his fingers on it. He took a crown of gold, bone and obsidian similar to his and placed it atop my head. "Iowyn, dear," he purred as he knelt in front of me, one hand planted on the ground and the other clenched over his heart. "Queen Iowyn."
I sat up in bed, the covers tangled around my legs. "Evaris," I spat, confused. My words scraped through my throat and I winced. What was that? A dream? A nightmare? I looked down at my arms, relieved to see them free of tattoos. "Iowyn?" I heard a familiar voice and I looked up to see Nicodemus standing at the door. "How're you feeling?" He rushed to me and sat on the edge of the bed. "I found a way over the ruins, and you took too long so I got worried. I went through the tunnels and found you curled up on the ground with flames surrounding you."
I looked up at him, taking in his dishevelled appearance. "Where are we?" I croaked, looking around the room.
"Arcana." He nodded towards the window, where the curtains drew back, pulled by his magic. "We need to set up the wards, and take inventory of Edrisa's resources." I nodded slowly, looking around the room.
Oak panelled walls, candelabras, and rugs covered the stone floor. Heavy blankets were resting on the foot of my bed. A clock ticked away the passing seconds. But that doesn't matter. I was immortal now. "But where, specifically?"
"My townhouse."
"You have a house?" I looked up at him, surprised. He nodded as the fireplace crackled to life, filling the room with a woodsy scent. "I need somewhere to go when I'm not staying at the castle."
"Nicodemus?" A familiar voice called. Evaris. He seemed to be everywhere. Including my dreams. "Is Iowyn awake yet?" Nicodemus winced as Evaris' voice drifted closer.
"I sent him a fire message," he explained as Evaris ducked into the room, his magic hovering around his legs. Worry creased his brow as he sat on the other side of the bed and smoothed my hair away from my face. "Are you alright? What happened?"
I shrugged. "Nicodemus rescued me."
"Why were you even there in the first place?" He gave Nicodemus a vicious glare. "I specifically told you she wasn't to go in there alone."
"I know," Nicodemus sighed. "But there was a dragon. And she's not a porcelain doll to be protected," he added firmly. "She can look after herself."
YOU ARE READING
Untold
Fantasy'They pulled the chair across from me out and sat in it. The tavern carried on when the figure made themselves comfortable. My grip tightened on the hilt of the dagger. They pulled the hood of their cloak off and unclasped it. Their movements were r...
