In The Name of Shadows - A Darklina Story

Chapter 18: A Hard Training

Publishing date: 04/24/2022

Alina Oretsev, the Havoc Summoner, had been through the hell of a lifetime in the past few days. Some unspoken words and awkward understatements had hung between her and the Darkling, filling Alina's soul with embarrassment and concern. It didn't make things any easier for the girl to be unsure if Aleksander knew what had happened that night, because he hadn't spoken to her inside her mind for a long time. Young Grisha would have given almost everything to find out if the Shadow Summoner knew what her dream had been about, and therefore if he was going to use it against her in any possible way.

It was an extremely embarrassing experience. Alina had no idea how it even had happened, or what had made her get carried away by her fantasy.

And what's more - in such form.

The girl felt that she was starting to lose control of her emotions. The negative experiences she had been accumulating for a long time only strengthened her in this state and made her lost in her own emotional mess. She seemed to love Mal, but at the same time she felt contempt for him for not accepting her. She still seemed to hate the Darkling, but it was no longer the same hatred as before, repressed by sinful thoughts.

Alina remembered that she had recovered for a long time after killing Aleksander Morozova. Because, unfortunately, despite the hatred accumulated deep down her soul, she also loved the Shadow Summoner in her own strange way. And although the love for Mal had a different power and form, the feeling the girl had for the Darkling was the kind of love that happened only once in a lifetime and that couldn't be simply forgotten. It was a sick and cruel love, but at the same time also the unique and encompassing feeling, which penetrated the soul.

Aleksander was right. There were only two of them like this in a whole world. The universe had created them for a purpose, and it was impossible to just deny it. Alina was afraid of this knowledge, and it had been terrifying her that a day after day, step by step, touch by touch, she had been successfully manipulated by the Shadow Summoner. Yes, she struggled with it. Yes, she remembered his sins. But more and more the girl saw herself being undoubtedly the same as Aleksander. And the young Grisha didn't know whether to be afraid of it or to savor in this strange need for power. There were so many contradictions and so few answers. Alina felt trapped, not knowing what to do next.

And now the Havoc Summoner fantasized about the Darkling. Now she additionally had erotic dreams about him.

The white-haired girl flinched as she looked at her own mirror reflection. Genya had just left, leaving Alina beautiful and in impeccable makeup. The black and white kefta was hidden under an elegant black coat decorated on top with stunning ermine fur. Alina looked in it like a real queen. The soft white fur of ermine contrasted with the sophisticated makeup of the girl, making her skin looking radiant. The long white hair had been tied in a majestic braid over her forehead to give the young Grisha more freedom of movement. Here and there, Genya had placed some black hairpins to keep Alina's thick hair in an absolute order.

The Havoc Summoner wondered why Aleksander had wished her to be prepared for a horseback riding. It was still a dawn outside. The autumn air was crisp, and the ground had been still foggy. One of the great windows overlooking the courtyard of the Little Palace had been slightly opened by Genya, causing cool gusts of air to burst inside the Darkling's quarters and to make Alina an involuntary screech.

What is he up to again? Thought young Grisha, afraid of the worst-case scenarios. Where is he getting me out again? And why he is doing it so early in the morning?

Alina knew that Aleksander would not tell her anything anyway. She just hoped that this unannounced trip had nothing to do with Mal or with Grisha killers, about whom the white-haired girl had not yet had a chance to talk to the Shadow Summoner due to his "more urgent" matters regarding Aleksander's sovereignty over the Second Army and disturbing hostilities of Nikolai.