A Court of Games and Fate

The Fate of the Court

          After the argument between herself and Lucien, Andromeda curled deep within her mental walls, becoming a mere shell of herself. It was only another two days before Amarantha sent some guards to release the princess from the cell. Deep within her own mind, she didn't even find it in her to fear why she was being released. Not that it was necessary. The first thing Andromeda was sent to do was bathe until the layer of grime and proof of her time in the cells were scrubbed from her skin.

          Andromeda had waited and waited that first evening for her mother to summon her, expecting some kind of talk where she could get a better look at her daughter's breaking. Not that it was from the punishment, but she wouldn't know either way. No summons came though. Andromeda was granted an evening alone in her chambers, it seems. Perhaps that was worse. It was proof that the queen truly did not care for the princess enough to even bother with seeing through the punishment. That, or her mother couldn't bear facing what her treatment had done. With the final task coming up, the queen's attention must have solely been on how she could win.

          Instead, a knock on her door had revealed a frazzled Eris.

          "Were you followed?" Andromeda had questioned, mentally feeling around for any nearby guards. Seeing the male shocked her enough to re-enter her own body. At the shaking of his head in confirmation, she quickly pulled the male into her chambers. "What are you doing?"

          "I heard you were released. I had to come check on you," he responded. They were safe in her chambers, but he still glanced around cautiously.

          Andromeda crossed her arms across her nightgown-covered chest. "I'm fine."

          Eris glanced deep into her eyes. For once, he seemed slightly put out. Andromeda tilted her head in question. "Don't look so concerned for me, I said I'm fine."

          "The final trial is approaching," he finally spat out.

          "I'm aware."

          "How strong are your abilities? Have you been trained?" Eris continued to question. Andromeda raised her eyebrows at the male. It had been an unspoken agreement between the two that her powers were not up for discussion. The less information shared outside of herself and her father, the better.

          "I'm decent enough, Eris. What is this about?"

          "Decent enough is not enough," he began speaking just above a whisper. "We can no longer hold off to see whether or not the girl succeeds in winning our release. You need to be ready."

          "Ready for what? Taking down my mother? I'm pretty certain I've shot those chances down the drain now that she sees me as a threat. Feyre is our only hope."

          "If and when she fails, all we will have is ourselves and you. The High Lords that can challenge Amarantha currently have their powers on a tight leash. Cauldron, your father could have defeated her in seconds had he not also been tricked by her."

          "I am aware of this. I am also aware that all our powers are stifled down here, High Lord or not. What are you suggesting?"

           "I don't believe for a second that your power can't be trained to be as strong as your father's prior to our capture. You are not constrained by her magic yet. With the right training, you can do the job that your father has been unable to complete. You can and will kill your mother."

          The hairs on Andromeda's arms rose. This conversation was going too far. Her chamber had always been relatively safe when the maids were gone, but even then, the treacherous conversations typically were not spoken above soft whispers. Eris was fearful, and reasonably so.