A Court of Shadows and Promises

Regal Blood

Blood trickled from the corner of my mouth as my head whipped to the side from the force of the fist that connected to my face again. My chest heaved as I struggled to breathe, to try and find the will to even keep my consciousness from slipping away. Before... I would have given up, would have been ready to succumb to the sweet promise of death after these last few days of hell. Now- now I had reason to stay alive.

I spat the blood onto the stone floor with a grimace, too weak to fight back after days of this torture at the hands of Namor. He had held true to his promise of blood and violence for what I had done. The treason I had committed against Hybern by preventing Azriel's death. Not one part of me regretted it.

He sneered and his boot connected with my abdomen, easily sending me to the floor as I was already on my hands and knees. Another vision sprouted behind my closed lids, leaving me aching- and not from the physical pain. How I wished it was that.

My mother... beautiful and brave, telling me to look at her. To only look at her as my wings had been brutally ruined and cut from my body. As I was only able to watch as they did the same to her and then- then they killed her. And then me. My mother was dead. She hadn't been granted a second chance.

A sob escaped me as I mourned a loss I hadn't even known I'd endured. Every inch of me wanted to scream and tear the world apart in retaliation. She hadn't deserved it; I hadn't then, either. Now... I was someone else. Someone who didn't deserve the new life I had been granted, not that I had asked for it.

I attempted to get back up, hissing in pain as I did. He knew how to inflict the most amount of damage and pain without killing me right away. Who knew how long this would continue. I wasn't even sure how long it had been. A few days at least. He hadn't bothered to take me to the king. No, he'd have killed me on the spot. Namor received enjoyment out this; he would drag it on until he no longer could.

After he had first dragged us back to Hybern and cornered me in my chambers, I had fought. Put everything I had into stopping him, but I had already been at a disadvantage with that damned wound from the dryden. There had been no time to do anything and each time he left me here, I was too weak to even attempt to leave.

He snatched me around the throat and dragged me up as if I were a limp doll. My hands wrapped around his wrists as I gasped, my heart thundering. I hated my neck being touched more than anything.

"I've let you make a fool out of me too many times," he spat, his dark eyes boring into mine, "You're nothing- nobody. You don't get to decide-"

Red hot anger flared through me, rearing its nasty head. Lies, all of it lies.

My voice was hoarse from the previous screaming that had shredded my throat the last few days as I spat, "My. Name. Is. Verena. I belong to the Night Court, to a line of powerful fae. And you... Your death will be my favorite of all the ones I've caused over the years. That is my promise to you."

He didn't appreciate that, not one bit. My knees slammed into the hard floor once again but there wasn't time for me to recover as another blow landed. And then another and another. He went into a rage, taking every bit of it out on me. With every hit, every kick- another snare of memory seemed to surface. Another piece of me fell back into place.

A punch to my stomach.

My father flashing a rare, genuine smile when I had made him proud. The gifts he had spent a lot of effort and thought into getting for me as an attempt to make up for the time he never seemed to have for his children.

A boot crunched down onto my hand.

Cassian's face as it lit up at my excitement over his offer to train me. He had declared I'd be one of the best warriors the Illyrians had ever seen by the time he was done with me. Female or not. I could recall the way he had a knack for making me laugh when it seemed nearly impossible. A constant warmth in such a cold world.