Veridia

Chapter 5

Aerithia, present

Geneva knew for sure that she was dead. After the glowing shackles bound themselves across her limbs, pain exploded in her head and everything went dark.

So there was no questioning that she was 100% deceased.

But why did it hurt so much?

Geneva's wrists and ankles were on fire, the pain spreading towards her entire body and making her want to cry out. But she couldn't move her mouth, or anything for that matter.

Something was shifting around her, and then suddenly a bolt of pain shot through Geneva's body, causing her eyes to fling open with a gasp.

Everything was blurry, and for a second Geneva though she was in heaven.

But, when her vision cleared, Geneva realized she was lying on hard ground, and her limbs bound with electric chains that cut into her skin.

Squinting, she could just make out the blurred shape of some people in the darkness.

"Oriel, can you bring a light?"

A male voice.

Suddenly, bright light flooded the room, causing Geneva to close her eyes out of instinct.

When she finally opened them again, she saw three men standing above her.

One of them was the one controlling her shackles. His hands were glowing, and his eyes were narrowed in concentration. He was also older, streaks of gray muddling dark hair.

Another one looked suspiciously like herself, with dark hair, green eyes and pale skin that was untouched by the sun. He was fidgeting, wringing his hands as if something was going to attack him.

And the last one was painstakingly beautiful, with dirty blond hair and blue eyes so azure that that it was as if someone had taken the ocean and bleached all its color into his irises. He had a wary look on his face, and a small furrow had appeared in between his brow.

Something must have hit me on the head. I am not thinking about how my captor is handsome while being tied up in a cell.

With that thought, Geneva mustered her iciest glare and fixed it on the blond guy.

"Relax. We're not going to hurt you." Golden Hair's voice was deep and smooth, but the hard look in his face and ice cold eyes said otherwise.

"What's your name?"

Was he really asking her name while she was literally chained to the wall?

Geneva kept her mouth shut and glared some more. She would not tell him anything, not if that meant he would summon Aerithian forces to attack King Romanov. Geneva witnessed first hand what magic could do. She shuddered, thinking how easily the white-hot energy bound to her wrists and knocked her out.

Never again, she promised herself.

Seeing that she wouldn't answer, Golden Hair sighed and ran a hand through his already tousled blond locks.

"I'm Prince Aleksander. This is my friend Andrei, and that's Oriel over there." He inclined his chin towards each of the people respectively, but his eyes never left Geneva's face.

So this was the prince then. Geneva put this tidbit of information in the back of her mind. He was important, and that made him worth noting. Geneva met his stare with one of her own, lips pressed tightly shut.

"We want to know why you did this."

The prince put emphasis on the word this, venom in his voice. Geneva couldn't help the pang of guilt that shot through her heart. She remembered her sword arcing above her, swinging down with deadly accuracy. She remembered the people, mouths open in silent screams as they fell.