Of Silver Rays and Raven Fur | ONC24

8. Inertia.

Silver strands absorbed the faint light that filtered through the wide window, and round eyes glinted a bright cerulean. Accalia could only stare, awaiting an answer she already knew.

The gentle illumination cast an ethereal glow upon his disheveled raven locks and grey orbs. Alarick took a small step, leaning forward until his forehead rested against hers. 

"Your mind," he whispered, "my mind."

She exhaled softly in an attempt to calm her excited heartbeats. "Connected?"

"Connected." He nodded, leaning into her palm as she cupped his cheek. His eyes closed briefly, battling against the sudden wave of dizziness that attacked him.

"Your temperature..." Accalia trailed off as he shifted, standing straighter and blinking rapidly to regain focus.

Alarick forced himself away from her and tugged the sheets tighter around his body when goosebumps spread all over his body like wildfire. Both stared at each other, their minds racing with jumbled thoughts. Neither had expected this turn of events.

"Accalia."

A shiver shot down her spine at the sound of her name leaving his mouth. How long had it been since anyone had used it? Or called for her? She hummed in response, inviting him to continue with a gentle tilt of her head.

"Is this...because you saved me?"

"Yes, it is," Accalia affirmed with a nod, motioning for him to follow her. Then, she continued, "You will only gain more power now that the first shift has occurred."

As they strolled through the corridors, retracing the path he had taken to reach her, everything seemed to come alive around them. The flames grew vibrant and burned more fervently, casting flickering shadows on the walls. The curtains billowed more vigorously in the breeze, and the chandeliers gleamed brighter, as if competing to light up the halls.

It was as though the very elements of the castle were vying for her attention, growing livelier in her presence.

"Power?" he echoed, curiosity evident in his tone despite being distracted by their surroundings.

Accalia grinned, pride burning in her aquamarines. "Indeed. You are the first Lycan, after all, and the king of all wolves. The moon blesses your very existence."

Beads of sweat formed on his forehead as heat surged through his body, a thousand needles pricking his skin and digging into his muscles. "Lycan," Alarick repeated quietly. His breaths stuttered, his eyes blurred, and his steps faltered. 

Everything had turned upside down when his knees buckled, and he was soon engulfed in a tender embrace. She buried her face in his exposed shoulder. "It seems that you are yet to regain your full strength."

Alarick barely managed to open his mouth before his body surrendered to exhaustion, going limp in her arms. Holding him tighter, Accalia released a heavy breath filled with uncertainty and nervousness, pondering once more why she was doing all of this.

With a twirl of her hand, a blue aura enveloped and slowly lifted him until he hovered by her side.

"The whims of an immortal," she murmured, carrying her Lycan the rest of the way to her room. Her gaze fell upon his sprawled form atop the mattress after she set him down, and a small smile graced her lips, coloring her cheeks. "Well, immortals," she chuckled, climbing into bed as well.

Alarick lay still, his breathing slow and steady. She was glad he looked peaceful and healthy. The first shift must've been extremely draining. The strenuous healing had taken him a little over three weeks. 

She's never felt as lonely as she did during this period. It was ironic for her to harbor such feelings. However, she'd been living alone for as long as she recalled with nothing to alleviate her tenebrous solitude but the dull task of watching over the night and its barren lands.

Then, one day, completely out of nowhere, the deepest and strongest of howls pierced the darkness of the grounds and the skies until it tore through her gloomy life.

As she gazed at him, Accalia realized his presence was dearer to her than she had initially presumed. Alarick not only promised to overthrow the inertia she'd been drowning in and break through her doldrums but also to fill her monotonous, bleak existence with more life than she'd ever given to Ducriedan. 

Yet, his calm breaths evoked an unfamiliar apprehension that gripped her bones.

As a Goddess who had lived for millennia, the idea of breaking free from the chains of familiarity and tearing down the fortress she had erected around herself had never crossed her mind. However daunting the notion seemed, she couldn't deny the intrigue and excitement it stirred within her at the mere prospect of such liberation.

With a sigh, Accalia sunk deeper into the pillow and watched the gentle rise and fall of his chest. It soothed her restless thoughts. Eventually, she too succumbed to the beckoning arms of slumber, drifting into dreams where the stars danced in the sky and the night whispered secrets only the moon could hear.

Word count: 832.

Total word count: 8878.

A short chapter. Nothing much is going but we're getting a lil info about our Accalia and the promising connection between them. They already seem super dependent on each other lol

MEANING OF THE WORDS USED:

Inertia is a tendency to do nothing or to remain unchanged. (Inertia can be defined as a property of matter by which it remains at the state of rest or in uniform motion in the same straight line unless acted upon by some external force.) (Guess who that external force is? Hehe)

Doldrums is a state or period of stagnation or depression.

Ducreidan is a made-up name for the world they live in. It was first brought up in Drakaina since the story is about Dragons and both are related.