A Court of Storms and Shadows

Chapter 3 - Aelin

Aelin felt like she was underwater, sounds were muted and any solid ground seemed so far away. The only sure thing was Rowan's hand in her own. They were falling through the portal together. She felt Rowan give her hand a squeeze. At first Aelin thought it was in reassurance; they were together. They were gonna be fine.

But then she felt the portal pull at her body, pull her away from Rowan. She squeezed Rowan's hand back, trying to hold on. He was the only familiar thing in the ocean of nothingness. In the space between worlds. He was her rock, her anchor, she needed him to be here with her, she needed to do this together.

Then he was pulled away as a tidal wave of whatever strange power this portal was made of washed over the both of them. It separated them, pulling them in opposite directions.

Aelin tried to scream, but she made no sound in the portal.

No. No.

The portal spit her out an Aelin tucked into a roll to absorb the impact. She was immediately back on her feet, two daggers in her hands, ready to throw.

"Rowan!" Aelin roared against the wind, yelling as loud as she could. Again, and again, and again. She roared and raged until her throat began to hurt.

She knew he wasn't close when no reply came.

Aelin could only hope that he was in the same world. No, she knew he was in the same world. He had to be. They were going to this together.

She took a few deep breaths. She was Aelin Ashryver Whitethorn Galathynius, and she would not be afraid.

Closing her eyes, she looked deep inside herself, searching for the threads that connected her and Rowan. She felt the threads to Fenrys, Lorcan and Aedion, stretched taut, but they were there. And there, carefully tucked away, Aelin found the threads to Rowan, both of them. She pulled on both the mate bond and the blood oath.

Come find me. Come find me.

Then Aelin pulled up her hood and took in her surroundings. The world seemed less vibrant than hers, and the smells were less noticeable. She frowned.

She pushed her hood back down again and felt her ears.

Round.

She felt again. She let her tongue glide over her teeth. No canines. Aelin was human.

Human.

A grin formed on her face, as she pulled her hood up once more.

Alright, she could be Celaena Sardothien once more. She could play the assassin. She could act long enough to figure out why she was here, where 'here' was and who she could trust. She could hide her identity under the assassin's mask until she found Rowan. Until she was reunited with her mate, her buzzard.

Aelin quickly sorted through some memories before she pulled the mask up, the grin turned into a smirk, and as she started walking, she made no sound. It had been a while, but she had been Celaena for so long that it wasn't very hard to get back into the role. She quickly checked the veil behind which her fae form hid. It was definitely there, and completely in tact.

She took in her surroundings once more. Endless countryside met her gaze, rolling fields stretched out in all directions. Except for the path in front of her. The fields turned into hills, which became steeper and steeper the further she looked. On top of one of them, a gigantic palace glittered in the first rays of sunlight.

That's where she would go.

She only now noticed that it was early morning here. She had been taken from Terrasen around lunch time. Aelin was going to be tired tonight.