The Hanes Enigma

Chapter Nineteen - Hybrid Cultivation

Kim Ryong

It took a while for Brynn to finally trust me. But, after Beom decided that he 'couldn't wait for Her Majesty to grace with her presence any longer', he took me into another room. Having seen me come back bloodied and barely breathing, the little witch finally decided that I wasn't a spy for1 The Clanless after all.

Now, she is muttering 'blood suspension enchantments' or something through the small vent in the wall between our cells. She seems nice and I'm glad my brother found someone like her to be a friend when I wasn't there for him anymore. Apparently, he also has a girlfriend now, and that she too is in The Clanless' slimy grip. I haven't spoken to her, though.

"So, why do they have you here?" I ask Brynn as quietly as I can, so as not to give the guards an excuse to make our lives even more miserable.

"I have no clue. I'm guessing it's because of Jungkook." I barely see her shrug through the barred vent.

"Who?" I frown, not recognising the name.

"My boyfriend. He's a Jeon and supposed to be this massive deal... It wouldn't surprise me if I'm here just to piss him off." She chuckles slightly but I can hear the worry in her voice. She must hate to be the cause of his stress.

"I don't know... If they wanted to piss him off, I would have thought that they'd just hurt you badly and then chuck you back to him. Why keep you and give you food and stuff?" I frown, not buying it.

She shrugs again. "Well, why are you here, then?"

"Because I'm half faerie and half demon. They hate that." I say matter-of-factly.

"Really? I think it's cool. Nova's half faerie too!" She beams and my mouth drops slightly.

"Sh-She's a hybrid?" I blink, not sure if I'm hearing correctly.

"Of course. Didn't you know that? I thought everyone was supposed to know about the hybrid princess... Well, I'm glad that I'm not the only one out of the loop again." She laughs slightly and it seems genuinely happy. If nothing else, I'm glad I could make her smile.

"Wait... So, my brother's dating a princess?" I gape in disbelief.

"I know! Crazy, right?"

We both startle as a loud bang crashes through our eardrums. "Shut the fuck up. I don't want to hear your breath, let alone your creepy little voices."

"Sorry!..." Brynn calls back and I can't help but laugh at that.

"They've kidnapped you, you don't need to apologise to them. You owe them nothing." I shake my head at her innocence. She clearly hasn't been through this kind of thing as much as I have.

Another loud bang rings through my cell and I jump a little.

"I'm an idiot! Wait... rhwystr sain." She sighs in contentment.

"What did you do?" I frown, confused.

"It blocks sound so they can't hear what's going on... So, what's being a hybrid like? Nova always says it's boring. Her magick cancels itself out, you see." The witch explains. "Does yours do that too?" I blink again.

"It what?"

"It cancels itself out." She repeats.

"No.. Magick doesn't do that."

"Well, that's what she says. That's what she's always been told..." The witch mumbles, seemingly a little embarrassed.

"Why would people tell her that? Unless.. Unless they didn't want her to know. We have to get her to access her powers..." My eyes widen. Maybe we could get an escape plan out of this... "Brynn.. If I wanted the guards to see something that isn't there, how strong a spell could you conjure up?"