Fractured Crown (Book 1: Terra)

Chapter 21

The girl had an eerily calm touch, as if the simple contact of her fingers brushing against Braedon's forehead had sent a warm, tingly sensation down his beaten spine. He had been in so much pain and grief, yet when her lips met his skin, it sent a surge of warmth and calm across his bruised and battered body, his throbbing head but a faint pang.

It wasn't until he awoke, did the pain in his head start again, but this time, for an entirely different reason.

"What...?" he groaned, shielding his eyes from the bright, artificial light coming from the ceiling above. He was in a small, white room, spread out on top of a bed, bandaged, and surrounded by herbs and naturalistic medicines on a table to his right, a medicinal cabinet to his left.

The room was bare, save for a small window on the opposite side, situated too far up for him to see through while lying down. He wrinkled his nose at the smell that suddenly hit him, unpleasant and off-putting. It came from the small bowl closest to his bed.

He threw the thin, white covers off, sitting up and then instantly regretting his rapid movements. He groaned, holding his head, his body pulsing in pain.

"Raena?" he called out, wincing.

He scanned the room twice-over. He was utterly alone. He stood up – slowly this time, and with some effort – only to realise he was completely naked beneath the sheets, bandages and gross-looking ointments covering his stomach, shoulder, arm and chest. He looked around for his clothes, for Raena's bow. She was going to go berserk if he lost her favourite weapon.

He went to call out her name again before thinking better of it. Perhaps she was hiding from these people. But who were these people? They were not Lymphans, that much he was certain of.

Braedon slowly made his way to the window, at first only able to see his reflection due to the illuminous lightbulbs above. He had a cut on his upper lip and a swollen eye. The rest of his face looked cleansed and his hair also washed and left to dry messily. Dark, solemn eyes stared back at him as he remembered his grandfather's outcries while he was being beaten.

As Braedon edged closer to the window, he began to notice the twinkling city lights below, shining through wooden huts and illuminating like little fairy lights on trees that scattered the large district.

He froze. An icy chill spread across his body and his heart leaped into his throat. This wasn't the forest. This wasn't anywhere near the Tenebris Forest. This was a hidden place, an underground district... The Terra District.

Braedon swivelled around for the door just as it opened, revealing a flabbergasted girl, eyes wide and mouth slightly agape. The folded clothes she had in her arms dropped to the floor, and Braedon had to wonder why she was staring so horror-stricken before remembering his nudity.

Braedon snatched the white boxers from the floor and hurriedly slid them on.

"Oh gosh," the girl's bright hazel eyes were wide and unmoving, as if she were scared they might wander further south.

"Get out of my way," Braedon huffed, pulling up the olive-drab trousers and heading for the door.

The girl – who upon closer inspection seemed oddly familiar – remained stock-still, her expression still one of shock.

"Let me see Raena! Where is she?" Braedon went to move past her when the girl placed a hand on his bare shoulder.

He tensed, then instantly relaxed, and Braedon suddenly took in her features, recognising that calm touch. Her sandy-brown hair framed her heart-shaped face and cascaded in waves around her shoulders. The turquoise dress she wore matched the flecks of green reflected in the girl's eyes, mixed with soft browns. She stared up at him, almost a head smaller in height. But that calming sensation she was giving off was blocking something, an uncomfortable memory that wriggled to get through.