Creatures of The Dark

Chapter I

My heart was beating angrily against my chest, a bitter mockery of the fear I was trying so desperately to suppress. I would rather be angry than afraid. Anger would drive you, push you; fear would eat you alive. Fear would be the death of me. I tried desperately to keep my feet under me, my wits above me as the guards half dragged me along the cold stone. I eventually gave up and let myself sag, my bare feet scraping along the floor. They had taken my shoes as soon as the chains were on my wrist, it was harder to run that way. Why make it easier for them, I was in no rush for whatever torture they had in store for me. The echo of their steel-toed boots and the clank of my chains was the only sound in the ever so silent hallway. I wished they would mock me, yell, anything to avoid the thoughts in my head. My shoulders ached and burned in their callused grip. We turned a sharp corner, a final break in the previous endlessness of the first hallway.

A large set of doors came into sight, heavy and set in black stone. There was only one thing that could be behind those doors, the one treachery I could not face. Beads of sweat dripped down my sides despite the cold of the castle. My eyes darted around, desperate for an escape that was not there, for loved ones who would never find me. I braced my feet hard against the stone, frantic to stop our journey towards the double doors, doors that might as well have been a gateway to hell.

The guard to my right did not hesitate as he gripped my hair, pulling me close as he sneered, "Nothing is going to stop us from bringing you to the dark lord, but if you would like a few more bruises and to humiliate yourself further, by all means, proceed." I snarled at the dark fae, standing to my full height. He seemed so young, yet full of unchecked authority, power. The guard's grip did not loosen as he pushed us forward towards the doors. He gave a nod to his fellow cavalry, standing by the door and they opened, slowly, painfully. I had nightmares of this very moment, none of them fully portraying the panic coursing through me. The fear was intense enough to physically hurt.

Everything was too quiet, too bright. I felt as if every moth to mouse had their sights on me. My eyes found the floor and the dirty feet above it, unable to face what was in front of me, who sat on the gilded throne, the one who commanded death as much as he did authority. The guards moved us forward, my legs moved on their own accord.

"Your Majesty." The guards bowed to the fae on the throne, a throne that was not made for him, a throne he stole from a kingdom he stole, ruined. The anger that had been pooling at the bottom of my stomach since the day I was born into this darkness, began to rise, to boil into fury. It drowned out the steady pulse of terror. "Bow to your majesty," The guard gripped my neck, forcing me to my knees.

My eyes shot up, finally meeting those of my invisible tormentor, the unseen conquer of the light fae. I did not turn my eyes away, did not allow my fear to swallow me away. He looked like the monster of legends, his large and muscled body rippled with his dark power. Long blond hair fell across his silk-lined cape. But his eyes... his eyes were the worst sort of evil, a bottomless pit. I all but growled at the dark fae, "He is no king of mine." Before the last word left my lips, my face was pressed to the floor. Pain bloomed on my face. It took all my concentration not to cry out as the guard applied more pressure to the base of my neck.

"You will do well to show respect, " The guard spat in my face. The dark lord ignored my comment as if it was futile, the opinions of a light fae were irrelevant. His steps sounded as he made his way from the throne. Each step was slow and meticulous. The dark lord stopped in front of me, squatting down to my level.

"You may release him now, Varric." His voice was chilled and brooding. He could be singing of rainbows and summer rain, and still bring a male to his knees. His sharp nail latched under my chin, bringing my face up. I found myself glaring as if I hoped to set him aflame, staring at the male who had stolen my life and now held it in his hands. Blood dripped from where his talons had dug into my chin. I did not flinch. I will not be afraid, this monster is not worth my fear, I told myself though my will alone could not stop the shaking. "You are quite beautiful, young fae," he drawled, "Tell me your name."