Shadow Queen - Azriel x oc

↳ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ 6 - ᵗʰᵃⁿᵏ ʸᵒᵘ

゜✧*̣̩☽⋆SHADOW QUEEN ✧*̣̩☽⋆゜

𝒩𝒽𝑜𝑒𝓀𝒶𝒹𝒶-𝓉𝓊

The lake soothed my muscles. I hadn't realised I was so tense after the ambush. My hair floated around me in a halo. I could feel a pair of eyes on me, undoubtedly staring at my markings, but she didn't dare ask.

I was in my underwear, and no matter how much I promised Laenna she didn't have to wear a dress, she refused to do so too. "What if one of the warriors is near?"

"They won't see nor hear us. Trust me," I said. After five days, I let my shadows out and ran free. That was an even greater relief. They swam close to Laena and circled her without her noticing.

"How would you-oh." It dawned on her. I ensured that she wouldn't be scared to make my point. There was an even scarier way of doing this, but that was for cases of survival. I needed to go unnoticed since I hadn't been allowed inside this camp. I couldn't imagine which crime they would try to condemn me for if someone found me. Lord Devon would love that, I'm sure.

"Taking away one's sight and hearing, what else can you do? Wait. Are you talking? because I can't hear you." The shadows left her, and I sent them a little further away to the lake's surroundings. They would tell me if someone got close enough.

"A lady doesn't reveal her secrets..." I dropped my accent and said, attempting to imitate a Lady. Some of their accents could be funny. I wondered how I sounded to other people.

The sound of your voice is one of the most exotic things I've heard. I'd love to hear you as you c-

"You must have accumulated a few over the years," she arched a brow. "You must know all the dirty details about the Courts!"

Laenna wasn't one for gossip, unlike most females here; she was very level-headed. The ins and outs of the Courts must be the most sought-after information—apart from who the High Lords' mistresses were. In the past, sneaking around was much more difficult. However, my shadows could find anything I wanted. They heard and saw what most would not. Being the only one like this had been hard. Yet they didn't share my power. They are different.

"I haven't met all the High Lords. I am more acquainted with their parents and grandparents. I've been busy these past 500 years," I admitted, sinking into the water to refresh myself.

"More secrets?"

They were my biggest secret. My shadows spiked at the thought. She wouldn't do anything; she's good.

"So, where will you be going, Sombra? Or is that a secret, too?" The answer might surprise you, Laenna.

I swam closer to her. She looked like a doe. Her big, soft eyes studied my every move. She tried to be sneaky and tried to catch a look at my markings, but her gaze didn't go unnoticed.

"I was hoping to stay. I owe you, and I shall repay my debt." That was the thing with old beings like me. It saddened me as well about the present Prythian. These people didn't know honour. It was also why many tried to be on our good side or rather got us to owe them a favour they could collect later—always for the same selfish reasons. Power.

She furrowed her brows. "There must be something more important you should be doing than being here, right?" Her shoulders dropped. It was as if she hadn't wanted to say that. Did she want me to stay?

"It's precisely for that selflessness that I want to help. How about I stay until I find a way to stop you from bleeding?" From the moment she told me about the event that tormented her mind and didn't let her sleep, I thought that it would be a great favour to pay in return for her hospitality.

Her head cocked to the side, "But the herbs are doing just fine..."

I tusked and shook my head. "I thought I'd recognised those herbs," the same itchiness in my nose returned. "They trick your body into thinking it's not ready or healthy enough to bear children." Many women had used them in the past to induce a miscarriage. Before the contraceptive potion existed, men and women—the latter more so than the other—would go to great lengths to avoid having a baby. Sadly, some lost their lives doing so.

"There's a reason why they are illegal, Laenna. They are toxic! They can make you barren." Her eyes widened like the moon, colour draining from her face.

"I didn't know that!"

"You and many women have used them before. The ones who sell them don't care about you—just the money you give them." Money was scarce, more so in the non-enslaved human parts of Prythian. They would do anything to have a warm meal. They weren't so innocent, but all odds were against them.

"You would do that for me?" Her eyes watered.

"As old as I am, my word has value. And I've never broken a promise." One, just one promise, was still pending execution. Unexpected events hadn't allowed me to carry it out. But one day, I'd get my revenge. I had promised to kill him after all. I thought the vow would make me resist, but any positive thought for that person was long gone.

"How do you say 'thank you' in Dhaenin?" she asked.

"𝒩𝒽𝑜𝑒𝓀𝒶𝒹𝒶-𝓉𝓊."

She repeated the word enthusiastically in very broken Dhaenin. However, I was shocked when she launched herself at me to hug me and when I heard her speak my language. I would help her. I would ensure she was safe.

"You're Gods-sent, Sombra!" she exclaimed while pulling away from me. "I don't remember the last time someone did something like- Oh no." Her voice became quiet, and her brows pinched.

I followed her gaze to find a man, a dark-haired Illyrian warrior donned in his leathers, walking through the treeline nearest to the lake. The material accentuated his features; it also gave him a dangerous aura. The wings tucked in behind him were proof of his status. A warrior.

My shadows rested around said trees. Even though he was close, he still wasn't at a distance, which would cause me to worry, so I wasn't informed about him. He would pass right next to us without paying heed because he didn't know or couldn't see us there.

"He can't hear us," I explained confidently. "Even if I RAISE MY VOICE-" her hand covered my mouth, terrified by the volume. Much to her surprise, the warrior kept walking, not glancing once in our direction.

Her mouth opened in an "o" shape. "A gift from the Gods indeed."

゜✧ *̣̩ ☽ ⋆ ゜゜✧ *̣̩ ☽ ⋆ ゜゜✧ *̣̩ ☽ ⋆ ゜

Dhaenin vocabulary:

𝒩𝒽𝑜𝑒𝓀𝒶𝒹𝒶-𝓉𝓊    -   thank you.

Hi, dear readers! Hope everything's alright!

How are you finding Sombra? And her dynamic with Laenna?

These chapters are needed to show my OC's personality and get insight into her life. I hate when, in books, the OC is introduced in one chapter, and that's it. Boom. The other MC appears, and there's no more background story.

Do you like Sombra speaking another language? (She speaks many, but Dhaenin is her mother tongue, and that's where I'll emphasize). --> which is your mother tongue?

PS: It's completely invented, so if it doesn't make sense, I'm to blame.

Love,

𝓛𝓲𝓪