A Love From A Different World

Chapter 101

Hello everyone. It has dawned on me that there wasn't a chapter upload on Wednesday, and for that I apologize. It appears that I accidentally saved the chapter instead of publishing it.  Therefor, I am now publishing it and apologize for the delay. Enjoy, comment, share, and vote. And as always, happy reading. 

Haloham

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"What is it?"

High Lord Beron looked anything but happy when he was notified that his ward had been broken. Someone had infiltrated his Court and his useless sentries had not only been unable to stop it, but had noticed late. Too late for his liking. Those few minutes that the ward had been opened, any number of beings could have entered and invaded his territory.

Utterly unacceptable. Which was why those sentries were currently being dealt with by one of his sons.

Another of his sons, Eris, was following him as he made his way to the breach.

"Apparently, they found a female." Eris said.

"She's the intruder?"

"I don't know, father, they simply asked for you."

They entered the clearing and saw a sentrie anxiously waiting for them. "Ah, High Lord, I'm sorry to have called you, I'm sure your busy-"

"Get to it, boy."

The male looked nervous as he took a step back, making way for the female lying motionlessly on the ground. "You should see for yourself."

The burning, girl on the ground.

With the wave of his hand, he moved the hair that was hiding her face and almost choked.

For a second, the High Lord became frozen.

The magic, the flames, were enough to stop him in his tracks. It was enough to conclude that the female was clearly part of his court. The hair too had given him a pause, but the face- why did it look so familiar? Beron was sure he had never seen the girl before, but somehow, his brain was working against him, recalling memories that he had pushed away so long ago. Yes, the hair, the facial features did indeed remind him of her-

It couldn't be, she was dead. Had been dead for centuries- and yet...

No, he steeled himself, impossible.

The female was dead, yes, but could it be? Could she have-

Absolutely not.

Beron stepped forward and raised his own magic. His heart in his throat when her magic responded to his once again and opened her burning perimeter.

Next to him, Eris said something, but Beron was not listening. He was far too occupied with his warring thoughts.

That was proof enough, the fire-

No, he would have known if he had sired a child.

...But not if the mother wanted to keep it a secret. And she would, because her husband would have killed her for it.

But how did she hide a pregnancy? How had she hid it from him, from her husband, from her court?

His thoughts were jarred, as if he was forgetting something, as if his mind was invaded and stripped of its memories and infested with new ones.

Hadn't she gone on a trip shortly after they had ended their affair?

"Father..."

Yes, she had left the courts for a while, he remembered now, no one had seen her for months...

Even without having looked at the girl's face, the seed of doubt was seeping into the Lord's mind.

"Father."

As if hearing him for the first time, Beron looked at his son. Eris was staring at his father with an unreadable expression.

He opened and closed his mouth, unsure of what to say. Eventually he asked, "...What do you want me to do?"

There was a rustling in a near by bush but no one paid it any mind.

Beron turned back to the girl. The sight of her motionless on the ground unnerved him. Not because if his theory was true she was his illegitimate daughter, not because her magic strangely resembled his own, but because if it was indeed true, just where the hell had she been for all those centuries?

Him, fearsome High Lord Beron, who did not give a second thought to his sons, was rattled over a daughter.

His thoughts did not feel like his own. Nor did his feelings.

"Take her back to the castle," Beron said roughly, "Send for a healer."

He walked away as his son stifled the girl's flames and avoided his gaze, but not before he marked the viciousness in Eris' narrowed eyes.