Queen of Night

27. Flames of the Hunt

Iyan blinked her eyes open and winced. Sticky wetness clung to her hair. She lifted a hand to the spot and eyed her fingers. She was bleeding. Iyan sat up and her head swam. Her daggers, as well as her outfit, were gone. She now wore a white shift.

Something growled behind her. She turned and gasped. Iyan scrambled backwards until her back was pressed against the metal bars of her cell. A golden beast prowled in the back of the cell. It resembled the lions that she'd seen traveling in circuses.

The creature growled again and continued to pace. It was larger than the Tenebris, with fangs hanging over its lower jaw and talons that scraped against the floor. Iron covered its talons. I've seen this before, she realized. There was a creature like this in Sybella's vision and my dream!

Iyan swallowed and continued to watch the creature. It didn't approach her. It only growled and paced. After a moment, it sat down. She hesitated, then inched towards it. The beast snarled at her and began pacing again.

Iyan tilted her head, something about the animal striking her as odd. It blinked and continued to walk. There was something almost human in its eyes. The beast faced her again. Brilliant blue eyes met hers.

Iyan stiffened, reaching a hand towards the creature. The beast watched her warily. "Lucille?" She whispered.

"You're smarter than you look," Ezlyn cooed. Iyan spun and Lucille hissed at the Queen. "I wanted you to wake up to a familiar face. It seems that true friends will recognize each other whether they be beast or human."

"What am I doing here?"

Ezlyn stood and approached the cell. With a wave of her hand, the bars melted away. Iyan looked over her shoulder. Lucille remained in the cell, but Iyan was in the open with the Queen.

"You are here because we have need of you. It seems Prince Arius has grown fond of you. He managed to escape us, but he won't be safe for long. Not with you hunting him," Ezlyn chuckled.

"What are you talking about?"

"Oh, sweet girl." Ezlyn stroked her cheek. Iyan turned her face away. "You have your mother's spirit, as well as her looks. It seems all Julius was able to pass on to you was his eyes. Asena is nothing like him. Poor Julius was always a weak man. I don't know what Leila saw in him. She was a very talented witch, you know."

"You like to hear yourself talk, don't you?"

"On the contrary. That would be my husband. He's occupied with the troops right now, but he'll be here for the transformation."

"What transformation?" Ezlyn drew an iron blade and pointed it towards Lucille. Iyan forced herself to appear calm. "You're not turning me into one of your beasts."

"A Soleone, Dear. Beast is such a savage word." Iyan eyed the iron blade that she held. "Isn't this a neat trick? A witch showed me that Faeries can build up an immunity to iron by exposing themselves to it bit by bit. It's like poisoning yourself to become immune to it."

"I don't care. You're not turning me into one of your Soleones."

"Oh, but I am." Ezlyn laughed and grabbed her arm. Her palm glowed gold and Iyan found herself in chains on the floor. There was a collar around her neck, as well as clamps around her wrists and ankles. "You see, we've discovered a little secret when it comes to controlling the Soleones. They are far more compliant when you make them hunt someone who has harmed them."

"Queen Rhosyn, your prince's mother, was our very first test. The human we had transformed and sent after her was just a random person. We ordered it to kill her and Prince Arius, but it only succeeded in killing the Queen. It returned and we proceeded to learn from our mistakes." Ezlyn dragged her iron blade across Iyan's throat with a cackle.