Intruded Trails (Van Doren Series #1)

Chapter Fifty-two

His Throne

Binuksan ko ang talupak ng aking mga mata. Ilang sandali akong napatitig sa kawalan bago muling pumikit.

Nagbakasakali akong makakabalik pa sa pagtulog ngunit narinig ko na ang paglapag niya sa labas ng balkonahe ng silid ko. Umikot ako sa higaan at iniwasang mapatingin sa pintuan nang marinig ko ang banayad na pagbukas nito. It’s still clear, surreal, and too much for me. Every second of that day has left me a scar and it will hunt me for the rest of my life.

That was the first war I have… and neither of my enemies knew who won. But I do.

It was her. All this time, it was her.

Lumubog ang higaan sa paanan ko. I opened my eyes tiredly but didn’t glanced at him. Nanatili ang tingin ko sa nakapatong na mga libro sa ibabaw ng lamesang katabi ng higaan. I felt his rough hands run on my arms then graze to my wings.

“Does it still hurt?”

Tipid akong umiling ang bahagyang nagbaba sa kanya ng tingin. Laurent’s eyes are settled behind me. The light of the moon fell under his glory. The small sparks on his eyes were flickering again. Hindi ko talaga maiwasang hindi isipin ang mga bituin sa tuwing pinagmamasdan ko ang mga ito. How did it so perfectly matched the sky?

Dumungaw ang tingin niya sakin na agad kong iniwasan. Hindi ko na alam ang iisipin pa. Many things confuses me so much now, I don’t want my emotions to reckon with me. Saka na iyon kapag tuluyan na akong umalis sa trono.

“Nyx was loyal to the Van Dorens,” malamig na usal ko. “Alam mo bang mangyayari ito?”

He sat down properly to my side. Binawi niya ang kamay niya sa mga pakpak at bumuntong-hininga. “No… We did mistaken her as a ‘he’ before,” mahina siyang natawa. “But you shouldn’t compare ni Nyx to the goddess. Nyx is still a phoenix, neither of us can truly tell if it’s a he or a she. Magkaiba pa rin sila ng Dyosa, Theana. Their forms are just bind together.”

“Magkaiba pa rin sila?” bulong ko.

“Yes.”

I heavily sighed. “Good.”

Bumangon ako sa pagkakahiga at hindi inalintana ang mga titig niya. Humarap ako sa salamin at bahagyang tumalikod para matignan ang mga pakpak kong tinamaan ng dalawang pana. It’s been days but until now I still couldn’t move them. Napagtanto agad ni Sullivan ang lason ng mga pana ng Hawthorne noong mga oras na ibinalik ako rito kaya mabilis naagapan. The elven healers healed me in a day, but it doesn’t mean it will be completely healed. This hunts me, too. An arrow across both of my wings…

I feared this might not be the last hit I would receive. They were broken and this is just the first. Ayoko nang hintayin pa ang araw na mawasak ang mga pakpak ko. I don’t want to lose them, I don’t want them stained in blood. But I should be thankful enough. I should be thankful that those arrows have been shot through my wings and not my heart.

Rigor… had worse. Indis told me he wasn’t alive anymore when they found him almost buried outside the gates. Ang mas malala pa roo’y isang araw pa ang nakalipas bago siya natagpuan sa ilalim ng mga buhangin. I didn’t know he fell from the cliff of where we were that day. Hindi na ako nakakuha ng pagkakataon noon na hanapin pa siya dahil tuluyan na akong bumigay sa mga sandaling iyon.

Many died fighting for Ravenhelm. We lose hundreds of knights and Le Eruseige. Pero sa mga ipinarating na balita sakin ni Indis, mas marami ang nawala sa Hawthorne. Their King Reagan demands a trial but I refuse to get out in my room or to speak to that. If they are used to seeing dead bodies of those who fought for them, I’m not. Wala silang maririnig mula sakin.