Chapter Seventy-Seven: Chains
When Ella woke up, it was only because something warm twitched against her back.
She flinched when the twitching motion came again, realizing that something very warm was also resting against her stomach. She blearily lifted her head, blinking stupidly at the early morning sky until something soft tightened around her legs.
She blinked at the trees around her with blurry vision before glancing down.
Xaphile's muscular arm was wrapped around her waist, holding her securely against his body, and his left wing had somehow draped over her like a blanket.
Blinking rapidly, Ella gently lifted herself and peered at her legs. Sometime during the night, he'd wrapped his tail around her ankles, totally ensnaring her.
What happened? she dazedly wondered, trying to wake her brain up. Why are the two of us sleeping outside?
She wondered at it for a few long moments until everything came back with a jolt. Her heart jumped and lucidity popped into her head, waking her up almost instantly. She was just about to pry herself free and wake him when she felt him shiver a little.
His whole body trembled slightly for a moment before falling still.
Confused, Ella twisted herself and awkwardly peered at him.
He was fast asleep, mouth slightly open, eyes closed, but his cheeks were wet, and even as she watched, another silent shiver went through him and a fresh wash of tears slid out from behind his closed eyes.
He was breathing deeply and evenly, and there weren't even any signs that he was having a bad dream, but it bothered her nonetheless.
Crying while awake was one thing.
Crying in his sleep was another.
Carefully lifting his heavy arm and turning over on her other side, Ella gently buried her face against the fur running up chest and closed her eyes, but she realized with an unexpected jolt that he smelled really good, so she pulled back instantly.
She still wanted to do something for him, though, so she looked up at his face and tentatively stroked his hair, but his arm unexpectedly tightened around her middle. She jumped, blinking as he leaned into her touch, long ear flicking.
Ella realized, then, that she felt no discomfort at their close proximity. If anything, the warmth coursing through her actually made it enjoyable.
It was strange.
Her feelings were changing, little by little, and she was no longer afraid of it. Stroking his long hair, she watched as a fresh wave tears trickled down his pale cheeks.
"Shh," she soothed, scooting herself upward until his head was slightly below her own. "Shhh... don't cry. Everything is fine. You are safe."
"Not... fine..."
The unexpected reply made her heart freeze.
She stared off at the scenery with a tight expression, then looked down, but to her surprise, his eyes were still closed, there was no change in his breathing, and he was still asleep.
"You're safe."
"No..."
Ella's eyebrow twitched.
Mental Ox is arguing with me even in his sleep, she silently huffed to herself, making a sour face. What will it take for him to understand?
She didn't know.
And it frustrated her.
With each passing day, she was slowly coming to realize that she really was beginning to fall in love with him, for all his flaws and morbid behavior. He was reliable, simple-minded, and unbelievably honest... very good husband material, in fact.
He was also strong, extremely compassionate, and could look her in the eye while he talked, but his heart was damaged in a way that she didn't know how to fix, and truthfully, there was a part of her that still didn't even know why she wanted to fix it.
She couldn't really fathom or understand herself, but she was beginning to feel comfortable with the thought of loving him.
She was even beginning to feel that he would somehow be okay as long as she stood by him.
No matter who he had been on Earth, or how many bad things she had done to him, they would be okay. Little by little, one step at a time, she would do good things to make up for all the bad.
To heal the hurt she'd inflicted.
She wanted to be able to look into his eyes without seeing so much pain there.
She secretly longed for that day, but she also knew, deep down, that she couldn't ever tell him how she felt.
That if she did, it would hurt him, and she would lose what they were slowly building.
And that, for some horrible reason, terrified her.
Ella sighed.
Feeling slightly more awake, she slowly pushed back, yawning a little, but Xaphile's closed eyes were still streaming tears.
Mouth twisting, she sat up and touched his wet cheek with gentle fingers: his left ear twitched a few more times, and the feathers on his wings fluffed out a bit, but aside from that he didn't stir.
Early sunlight filtered through the leaves above, shining down on them in gentle dapples, and a warm breeze ruffled her hair, but he was still crying and she wanted him to stop.
She wracked her brain, trying to think of a way to soothe him without actually waking him up until a memory of when she'd been a little girl hit her.
She'd woken from a nightmare in tears, so her father had come into her room just to sing her back to sleep. Remembering the feeling she'd had back then, she made her choice.
Taking a deep breath, Ella closed her eyes and did the only thing that came to mind.
"Heart beats fast, colors and promises..." she hummed, "how to be brave? How can I love when I'm afraid... to... fall? But watching you stand alone... all of my doubt suddenly goes away somehow. One step cloooooser..."
When she drew out the last note, her voice echoed through the woods so clearly and hauntingly that even the birds in the trees fell silent.
For a long moment, it was dead quiet.
"I have died every day waiting for you," she chimed, "Darling don't be afraid, I have loved you for a thousand years... I'll love you for a thousand more..."
When she'd heard this song the previous night, it had thoroughly stunned her. The emotional yearning, the sound of his voice, the magical illusory music that had accented it all, everything he'd put into it... it had all embedded into her core.
To her surprise, though, her method worked: with one small verse, his tears had halted.
Lifting a hand, Ella reached out and tenderly stroked his ears, waiting until his body twitched.
"Xaphile," she muttered, setting her palm against the side of his cheek. "Wake up. It's morning."
After another moment, his eyes opened and focused on her, rippling blue green coated in a sleepy glaze. Blinking once, he pulled his arm away from her and pushed his body into an upright position, tail uncurling from around her legs.
Long black hair slid across his shoulders as he rubbed his eyes.
"Is it over?" he groggily asked.
"If you're referring to the celebrations, I have no idea," Ella quietly retorted, lifting a hand and touching his ruffled feathers with gentle hands. "We should go see what's going on."
"Uh huh..." he yawned, stretching his body. "Give me a second to wake up."
"Forgive me," Ella muttered, gently getting up. "I probably should have waited to wake you, but I'm a little worried about the scuffle you and that girl had last night."
Xaphile didn't respond, merely closed his eyes again: he seemed perfectly content to just sit there.
Hit with an odd temptation, Ella squatted down, stretched her hand out, and gently rubbed his ears again.
He didn't respond to the touch for several moments, but eventually his eyes slid open, and without moving his head, he looked at her sharply.
"Why are you touching my ears?" he confusedly asked. "You've been doing that a lot lately."
Ella paused as she thought about it.
"I don't know," she admitted, standing back up and smoothing her skirt. "Your ears are so strange to me that I guess I can't help but touch them now and then."
Xaphile raised his head a little higher, looking perplexed and mildly offended.
"Gee, thanks."
"I never said it was a bad thing," Ella snorted, rolling her eyes before turning away. "I'm going to see if there's a river I can bathe in. I'm growing a little weary of the warm natural springs on that island they've been keeping us cooped on."
"Suit yourself," he yawned, getting to his feet as well. "I'll head back and see what's going on while you do that."
"Be sure to have Amelia come find me if you see her," Ella called, grabbing her cloak and tossing it over her shoulder.
"Will do," he called back, rolling his shoulders as he slinked away; then he paused. "And thanks... for stepping in when you did last night. Things could have been bad if you hadn't."
She merely waved, not even turning around.
Walking through the underbrush, she shielded her sensitive eyes from the sun and headed towards the sound of water in the distance. She didn't exactly know where it was, but she could hear it growing louder, and to her relief she soon found herself in front of a small, deep stream.
"Lovely," she muttered, stripping her clothes off with a sigh.
She stepped into the frigid water, hissing and dancing a little, but then, she merely dealt with the iciness. She shivered as she moved forward until the liquid cascaded around her thighs. Taking a deep breath, Ella squeezed her eyes shut and dove forward, letting the unpleasantly cold submersion wash over her small frame.
Instantly coming up for air with a breathy gasp, she shook her head free.
"Gods, that's cold!"
Shaking herself off, she slicked her hair back, then noticed it was getting longer again.
Fiddling with a few stray strands that curled around her ears, she debated on asking Amelia to cut it before she remembered something and paused.
She had seen in his memories that Xaphile had liked Ella Richardson's hair long.
And she couldn't deny that in his memories, her other self had looked rather nice.
Ella fondled her wet hair, wondering whether or not she should actually trim it.
In the end, she let it go, deciding she would try growing it out. Yes, she was a warrior, but she was also a woman... and if she was going to be honest with herself, there were times when she felt a little jealous of other women's long hair.
Plus, she wasn't even sixteen yet.
No time to change her looks than the present, right?
Ella hummed a little song while she washed herself.
Once her body was completely free of dirt, grime, and the dried blood from a few scratches on her knees, she stood up and stretched.
But then, someone unexpectedly grabbed a fistful of her hair and jerked her backwards.
Ella heart dropped and she cursed herself for letting her guard down when a large, clawed hand clamped down over her mouth to muffle her scream.
She instantly bit down on it, sinking her teeth into flesh and shuddering when she tasted blood.
Once her assailant let go, she let out a wild scream of fury.
"GET OFF ME!" Ella screeched, trying to bolt across the river towards her daggers. "BASTARD!"
Before she could make it there, her assailant tackled her and she went flying into the water.
Struggling to get free, Ella flailed and kicked in an attempt to get free of her attacker. She kicked and bit at him, but he was easily able to hold her still.
When she bit him again, she felt rough hands on her shoulder and all of a sudden, her head was dunked underwater.
Ella flailed, terror flying into her gut and she held her breath for as long as possible, but whoever it was didn't let up.
She slowly began to fade out.
Am I going to die? she hazily wondered, seeing spots. No... I can't... I can't... not...
A flash of a crying face flashed into her head, a face twisted with agony.
Xaphile.
If she died, he would cry.
Fire flared up within her belly and she somehow called forth an extra spurt of strength.
Dislocating her left shoulder, and then her right, Ella wrenched herself around and brought her heel up to where she hoped, prayed, BEGGED the gods, his manhood was.
Her aim was true.
With a thud, her attacker let her go and she cracked her arms back into place. Then her head flew up and she gasped for air.
Scrambling down the river, she finally snatched her daggers and whirled around only to see him literally an inch from her.
Her heart jumped.
He was fast, even faster than she.
Ella hesitantly lifted her eyes, expecting to see a mean, evil sneer being directed her way, or perhaps a leer.
Instead, she found herself staring at a face so familiar thath er heart flew up her throat and she dropped the daggers.
"Olagrell?" she whispered, watching as her attacker's blue-green eyes narrowed in a dangerous manner. "But... you're..."
Before she could finish, he clutched her throat in a single hand and jerked her into the air.
Ella's eyes widened and she grabbed his wrist, kicking her legs when his fist tightened.
"That name," he growled, glaring stonily into her eyes. "How does a mortal like you know it?"
"Uncle Olagrell, stop!" Ella choked out, blood rushing in her ears from the pressure on her neck. "Don't you recognize me?! It's me, Ellameira! Count Byron Rochard's daughter! Stop!"
His left eye twitched and he dropped her back into the water.
His ebony wings spread themselves wide and flapped a few times before he folded his arms and glared down at her.
Clutching her throat, she snatched her daggers and tentatively held them up, coughing violently even as she did so.
"I am not Olagrell," the faery rumbled, leaning down towards her and baring his sharp fangs. "Forgive me for assaulting you, but it needs to be done. I have need of you for a test."
"A test?" Ella coughed, glaring at him. "No. After all that, I refuse. If you're really not Olagrell, keep your hands off me."
"I shalln't," Vordt growled, making her tense. "And there is nothing you can do to stop me."
Ella flicked her daggers up.
"Last chance to back off. I don't care if you are a fae. If you put your hands on me without my consent, I will hurt you."
He merely snarled and charged forward.
Ella tried to swipe at him with her daggers, but to her alarm, the river exploded in a vertical wall and tore them clean out of her hands. She lunged for them, but they went flying nearly ten yards away from the stream. Eyes widening in horror, she backed off, then whirled around and bolted.
"Shite!" she squeaked, tearing through the underbrush away from her daggers. "AMELIA! GUS!"
She heard rapid footsteps and a snarl behind her so bent forward and began to sprint through the woods at top speed, panting heavily and fighting not to panic.
After a few minutes of fleeing, she whirled around and looked over her shoulder, but nothing was there, and everything was silent.
Finally coming to a halt, Ella doubled over and tried to catch her breath, heart thudding madly as she looked around for the insane faery.
"Thank Asgrog," she whispered, letting out a sigh of relief. "I lost him."
Her words were spoken too soon.
The moment she righted herself, the bastard came sailing down from the sky and crashed into her waist, knocking her off her feet Ella screamed only a split second before she and the winged man smashed into the ground.
In an instant, he was on top of her and before she could register what was happening, his fist slammed into her nose. She clamped her small hands over it with a screech of pain, eyes large.
"Do you understand now, little girl?" he purred, smirking into her eyes. "I am more than capable of handling you on my own. Now, are you going to continue this useless fight or will you submit?"
"Piss off!" Ella snapped, then hauled back and spit a glob of blood in his face. "Bastard!"
The faery growled like a wild dog.
"You have the tenacity befitting a soldier, but you have the skills and prowess of an amateur," he muttered, pressing his hand against her cheek. "Be still. What I desire of you will not be permanent unless my suspicions are correct. If they are, your life will be forfeit regardless."
Ella's eyes widened when his grip shifted to clutch her mouth, since his whole body had erupted with a menacing red aura.
What is he going to do to me? she silently panicked, eyes widening even more when he leaned down toward's her throat. Oh, gods...
She let out a startled wheeze when he lashed out and sank his long fangs into her neck, biting so quickly and deeply that she could feel her skin puncture.
She tried to let out a scream of pain, but his hand muffled it.
Vordt locked his jaw to keep his teeth deep in her throat, and a strange, nauseating sensation swept into her body from his fangs like so much venom.
This sensation was different from the time Xaphile had marked her since his magical energy had been cold as ice.
This feeling was almost rancid, like a bitter poison.
Whem he retracted his fangs and pulled away, he gripped her hair, staring hard at her eyes, and just like that all conscious control of her body seemed to leave her.
"Do as I say," he hissed, trailing his nails over her throat. "Don't move a muscle."
Inside her mind, Ella was screaming for him to get away from her and to let her go, but outwardly, she couldn't move.
Not even her eyes.
What is happening...? she whispered, feeling as if she were going to faint from terror. What is he going to do to me?! Don't tell me... please, Gods! Don't!
But instead of violating her, he merely stood up and dusted himself off.
"Get up," he commanded.
To her horror, her body began to move without her wanting it to, and she slowly stood.
She was trapped within herself.
The realization made her entire being contort and ripple with fear unlike any she'd ever known, and he must have sensed her terror, since his gaze became a little less stony.
"It's temporary," he muttered, turning his attention elsewhere. "As I said, I'm going to be using you for a little test. Now, I want you to go find the one who calls himself Xaphile and lure him out here to me. If I raise my left arm for any reason, you will slay him. Grab your things and go, now."
Ella's heart turned to ice when her body began to move of it's own accord.
No... she silently whispered, fighting against herself. Stop... I can't do this... please.... NO!
But her body wouldn't listen.
No matter how hard she fought, it wouldn't listen.
And with every step that she took, the horror of what she was truly about to do took hold.
She was in chains.