My heart is drowned with you.

Schemes

Cardan enters the council room. The living council was already assembled. It wasn't unusual, that the members of the living council were already on palace grounds. What was unusual though was they were awake before late afternoon.
Grand General Madoc was nowhere to be seen.

They all rise.
Like a cold breeze, Cardan walks past them, his cape fluttering behind him. This was the first council meeting with the High King present for usually his Seneschal would take his place.

In Cardan's current state, the blood crown was only an accessory to his gruesome nature, prominently the scorn he wore. Outside, the storm has gotten more violent. The high trees were clashing against the windows, soaked from the sudden downpour.

„Your Highness!" Randalin exclaims. "Is it true that Queen Orlagh has the Kingdoms Seneschal?"

The other councilors who seemed to be woken up from their sleep exclaim in surprise.

Cardan grits his teeth. "Indeed. My most trusted sources have told me so just now. Yesterday night, our Seneschal was sent to the tower of forgetting on Balekins requests. It was then, when she was taken by Queen Orlaghs mermen and my kin."

"Queen Orlagh must have killed her because of the disputes regarding the marriage to Nicasia!" Mikkel shouts in accusatory tone. The entire council broke out in loud accusations and wild theories. It was then, when nobody was paying attention to the High King, when Cardan grabbed Mikkel's head as swift as the wind and says -almost whispering- "We do not know if she is dead yet."

The council members are instantly stilled and stare at Cardan in disbelief.

"High King... forgive me" Mikkel answers shaken. The troll was not used to fearing another Fae, though Cardan's infamous reputation could have been believed in that moment. Cardan's gaze seemed to burn into his face.

Cardan lets go of his subject and returns to the head of the table.

Precisely then, Grand General Madoc enters the Council chamber. With heavy steps, he walks towards the other end of the table. His greenish face shimmering red with fury.

"Your majesty! Jude has been kidnapped by the Undersea" He looks Cardan straight into the face and makes no attempt at bowing or kneeling. The wrath is obvious on his face.

"Indeed. We will demand her release at once." Cardan doesn't break eye contact.

"We must go to war!" Madoc shouts. It is unusual that a general or any councilor would scream directly into the face of the High King, yet Madoc made it obvious that Cardan was not his High King.

"Madoc! You forget yourself!" Cardan shouts. His voice is deep and clear, ringing with authority. He hasn't felt this irritated in a long time and Madoc questioning his status seemed like an insult not directly to him - but to everything Jude wanted him to be. Everything Jude worked for so that he would be accepted.

"Forgive me, High king. Yet my daughter, though only a mortal to all of you, has been kidnapped." He looks around the room "You all forget that she is this High Kingdoms Seneschal. By kidnapping her, Queen Orlagh means to control us, including you, your majesty!"

"Mortal or not, she is, as you said, our Seneschal. I will not allow more harm to come her way" Cardan exclaims coldly.

I promise.

"Randalin" Cardan turns to the minister of keys.

"Yes your majesty" Randalin looks to the ground as if cowed.

"Send three messengers to the Undersea. We demand the freedom of our Seneschal - at once. Let her have three nights and days to answer what it is that she demands" Cardan says grimly.

"Your majesty! We should attack the Undersea at once! What good will sending messengers be?" Madoc interrupts Randalin from answering, drawing all the attention to himself again.

Without warning, lighting strikes one of the colored windows with a loud bang, blowing it to bits and pieces. The councilors look around them startled. It is only Cardan who does not move.

"Madoc! I will not have you question my ways another time! Consider yourself warned." Cardan's voice was loud and angry. And it was obvious that he would not tolerate another interruption.
„We will send messengers now. When we hear back from her, I will decide further."

Madoc turns away in anger and walks out of the council room. Another insult, which Cardan decided to ignore for he wasn't sure what he would do to Madoc of he acted upon his anger. He felt like breaking something - killing someone.

"We will get her back." Cardan mutters with resent in his voice. He places his hands on the vast table and looks down, attempting to conceal the desperation in his face.
Attempting to conceal that he felt trapped - backed into a cell with no air to breathe.

I will get her back. No matter the cost.