CORRUPTED (Book 3 of the Tempted Series)

Chapter One

He was right there... Just out of reach. Floating as if in a zero gravity chamber, his arms were outstretched and limp, letting his body take him elsewhere. With the dark nothingness surrounding you and him, the distinctive features of his face could still be made out just as crisp as it can in daylight. You just wanted to reach out and hold his cheek in the palm of your hand to softly wake him from the strange slumber he was in. But he slipped away just as quickly as he did before.

Despite there not being any sort of weather in the Other World, the air around you is humid yet cold. Goosebumps line your body except that one part of your face where the small flame of the candle lights at your side, reflecting a source of color almost rare in this world. Three fingers rest on your temple and your eyes are heavy, but sleep is the last thing you want to do.

Your eyes look to the dancing flame, and your mind is suddenly flooded with memories, but only one surfaces: the sight of an explosion from underneath the depths of water blooming into your view. The shocking silence replacing what should have been the loudest sound you've ever heard, and watching it behind a black veil.

How can a single flame, no larger than a finger, be a part of a fire not unlike the one that set this very castle on fire. This small, contained, substance flickering back and forth with the air around it, can cause so much destruction.

Destruction to a building.

A life.

And yet somehow... Things happened after that. After what you thought was or should have been your death... Led to one thing after another... And now here you are: alone and zoned out, with the only source of light in the whole large room is the candle stick that rests on arm of the throne for which you sit in.

It's been months. Or so it feels. You keep forgetting that no matter how much time you think has passed here, no time passes in the Real World.

But you being one of few beings that sleep in this world, it seems many weeks has passed since you became ruler, but not a period passes where you don't wish Anti were here next to you.

But you're not completely alone...

One of the doors of the throne room suddenly opens and Doctor Schneeplestein peeks in. The creak of the door makes you jump, snapping you back into reality.

"Your Majesty, my apologies, did I startle you?"

At a time where you are more awake, you would usually tell him that you don't want him calling you 'Majesty', but your mind starts to wander off again.

You shake your head slowly, not making eye contact. "No."

"It's the middle of Fall. You are usually sleeping by now." He pauses as if a thought popped into his head. "Did you have the dream again?"

You have this reoccurring dream. It's always been the same and nothing is ever different. You're floating in what looks like space, just without the stars. Anti floats in front of you, but he appears to be asleep. His eyes are closed and his breathing is minimal, it's like he's frozen in time.

You can't feel yourself there, it's more spiritually than physically, but he is there right in front of you, drifting closer and closer to you. Once you are close enough, you reach a hand out, trying desperately to touch him. But just as you are about to touch his cheek, the dream ends before you can wake him.

At first you thought it was nothing, but after it occurred three days in a row, you decided to tell the doctor. Now every time you have this dream he does these checkups to watch and listen to your soul to see if Anti is trying to reach out or contact you. Just to see if there are any unusual differences that could potentially be signs from Anti.