Shadow and Light: A Darklina Romance

Chapter 6

Author's Notes: Sorry this chapter took a while to post and its not very long! I thought about adding another scene, but figured I'd wait to add it to the next chapter. This way you guys know I haven't forgotten about this story! Things have just been busy, but I hope you enjoy this!

P.S. I just realized the last 3 chapters were only saved as drafts on here and not published! Sorry, I'm new to Wattpad and didn't realize my mistake until now! But you get a lot at once at least.

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Chapter 6

Genya walked into Alina's room and stopped short at the foot of her bed. She stood, staring at the tucked in sheets and comforter, and fluffed pillows, and her heart began to race.

"Alina? Alina, where are you?" Genya asked frantically, searching every corner of the room, including the large bathroom. Her friend was nowhere to be seen. Genya stormed back out and faced the guards.

"Excuse me, who exactly do you think you are guarding? That room is empty! Where is Alina?" Genya yelled, raising her voice for the first time that she could remember in ages.

"We just came on shift, but the guards last night said she left the ballroom with the general, and never returned to her chambers. They assumed he would return her when they were done," the guard said defensively.

The blood drained from Genya's face, and she turned and ran towards General Kirigan's chambers. It was early, but he should be up considering today's plans, and if he wasn't, this was too important to wait.

She banged loudly on his door. It was adjacent to the war room, and he could normally be found in one or the other. There was a minute's silence before she was bid to enter.

Quickly yanking the door open and rushing in, she stopped short to see General Kirigan only half dressed sitting at his desk, looking like he had not slept. The general looked up, and slight surprise graced his sharp features.

"Have you come to confess anything else Genya? Besides sneaking Alina off to see my mother that is?" the darkling asked cooly.

"No! It's Alina! She..." and here Genya paused. She really did not want to be the one to break this news to her general, but someone had to, "she is missing."

The general stood to his full height, and stalked over to Genya with a cat's grace. Genya braced herself for whatever might come her way. It wasn't her fault, but he might not see it that way.

"Explain," the darkling said, standing a foot away, and his shadows drowning them in complete darkness.

"I went to her room to prepare her for the ceremony as you instructed, and when I entered she was not there. Her bed had not been slept in. I did a thorough search of her room and could not find her. When I questioned the guards, they said they had not seen her, and the previous guards at the ball saw her leave with you, and assumed you would return her to her chambers later."

Genya held her breath as she waited for the darkling to respond. It seemed to take forever, even though she knew only a moment had passed for him to take in her words. Sweat trickled down her brow, and she found herself taking an involuntary step back as she felt something sharp pressed against her neck. She backed up into a wall and could retreat no further, but the shadow blade continued to press against her, not yet breaking the skin, but if she moved a hair it would.

"Are you sure that is all Genya? Did you help her escape from me again?" The general whispered in her ear.

"General, I swear to you that is all. I have not helped her escape. I would not keep things from you. You know I'm loyal to you," Genya whispered back. The knife's edge disappeared in an instant, and the shadows faded.

"Follow me," General Kirigan said, throwing on a shirt as he left the room, and Genya hurriedly trailed behind him. She did not envy what he would do to whoever was responsible. A shiver ran down her spine. A quick death would be a mercy for them.

General Kirigan first went to the guard house and questioned the guards about suspicious behavior, and when they had no information, he went to the guards stationed at the gates. Everything was in order there as well. No one had seen the sun summoner.

"Genya, go question the other Grisha to see if they saw anything. I'll go question my mother," General Kirigan said, and left without a look back.

Genya thought for a minute, then went to the dinning hall. There would be several Grisha having breakfast still and that would be a good place to start. 'Alina, where are you?'

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Alina opened her eyes, but found herself in complete darkness. Feeling around, she felt rough wood against her fingertips. Her mouth felt extremely dry and she was famished; It felt as if she hadn't eaten in days. Her chest ached too, and felt strange. Why were her thoughts so fuzzy? She started to panic.

It felt like she was in a box so she pushed harder at her ceiling, and was surprised to find the top moved. Shoving with all her might, she pushed it off and sat up.

She blinked her eyes as the light shone in through a high window on the back wall. She realized she was in what looked like the back section of a store house. It didn't look like anywhere she had seen at the small palace.

Looking down she saw clearly the antlers protruding from her chest, and it took all of her willpower not to scream. Her mind raced through the implications. The stag must be dead. She felt a deep sadness for the majestic creature that she had formed a bond with.

The last thing she remembered was talking to Aleksander in the hallway outside the ballroom. He left, she turned to go to her rooms, assuming the guards that were always lurking were a step behind her, then nothing. Was she drugged during the ball?

The antlers must be General Kirigan's work. She started weeping. Was she now a slave? Were they keeping her in a prisoner somewhere remote before he took her to expand the fold?

Pulling herself together, she stood up. Her knees wobbled, but she managed to step out of the box. As she looked at the box she had been in, she saw a piece of paper attached to the top of the inside of the lid. She pulled it off and examined it.

'You are in West Ravka. Be careful and remember who you are Sankta Alina.'

Alina felt more confused than ever. General Kirigan never called her Sankta Alina, but who else would put the antler amplifier on her and place her in West Ravka. It was a strange move for him. How would the general even get to West Ravka without her? He couldn't enter the fold. None if it made sense!

Perhaps she was drugged, then the general put the antlers on her, and then she was kidnapped. General Zlatan had been trying to kill her for a while. If someone hoped to bring her to him to collect on a bounty, that would make sense. The note still puzzled her though.

Trying the door to the warehouse, it sprung open. She cautiously peaked out, and saw people bustling by, going about their business. She had never been to West Ravka, but she was clearly not in Os Alta any longer. She closed the door, and pulled up her hood and adjusted the clasp on her cloak. It looked strange to her, but no one would recognize the antlers, unless they were looking for them.

Opening the door again, she entered the streets of West Ravka, where everyone most likely wanted her dead.