Made of Fire and Shadows (ToG and ACoTaR Crossover)

Chapter 10

Meave

I smirked down at the crippled figure in front of my throne. His long blond hair was matted and tipped with still drying blood. A whimper escaped his lips as Cairn raised his whip.

"Enough," I said. "Throw him in his cell, it's time to spend some much deserved time with our dear friend Aelin."

Cairn grinned at me and ordered the guards to drag the prisoner back to the dungeons. I nodded my head in his direction and went back to cleaning my nails, I was vaguely aware of the throne room's door slamming shut, as Cairn disappeared through it.

My fingers were drumming on the arm of my throne, and my foot was tapping impatiently.

'Where the hell is Cairn?' I thought.

I growled under my breath and stood, the guards stationed at the door stiffening. My flowing, blood red dress brushed against the floor as I descended down the few stairs from my throne to the main hall. With a wave of my hand the double doors were swung open, revealing a long, stone corridor. I walked right past the guards, without even glancing in their direction, and set a brisk pace towards the end of the corridor.

I threw open the small door to the dungeons, growling when it hit off the inside wall and almost swung back into my face. I stepped into the low roofed hallway, careful not dirty my intricate dress on the filthy floor. My head snapped up when I heard an enraged roar.

"What happened you incompetent fool!?" It took me a moment to work out who had spoken, it sounded a bit like Cairn, but the insult seemed far to smart for it to have come out of his mouth. Storming round the corner, and into Aelin's cell, I was relived to see that it was an other guard that had shouted. Cairn was seething in the middle of the room, hands braced against the edges to the iron coffin.

"What happened?" I said, my voice ice cold and dripping with venom. The guard turned from the man who had been given the task of guarding the cell, and looked at me.

"She's dead," he said, his voice unsteady. Rage rose in my chest, but I forced it back down.

"What?" The guard turned to the man behind him, gesturing for him to explain.

"When Ael... the prisoner came back from her... appointment with Cairn, she was in a bad way." He paused for breath and it was an effort for me not to kill him now, it sounded like he was sympathising with her!

"I threw her in the coffin and guarded the door, no one has touched her since," I threw an ice cold glare his way and he added quickly, "your majesty."

I sent him a too sweet smile and said, "So you thought it was a good idea to put our near dead prisoner in an iron coffin? Iron stops fae from healing you idiot!" I took a deep breath and stormed towards the centre of the room, throwing Cairn out of the way as I peered into the dark box. Grey tinted skin, matted blonde hair and vacant blue eyes greeted me. I let out a low growl and threw my hand out towards the man who had done this, the man who had been guarding the door.

I smiled at the satisfying sound of bones breaking and the man screeching. I returned my focus to the dead princess before me. She definitely looked like a corpse but something was wrong. Because of my magic I could normally identify when a person has died, and how it happened, but Aelin's body just felt... empty. Like a shell.

"She's not dead," I said, and felt more than saw Cairn stiffen behind me.

"Her soul has left her body, yes, but only in this world. She is probably in some sort of alternate universe, like our own but different. We had a case like this a very long time ago. A small immortal woman with an immense power, she was held here until she died, or so we thought." I took moment to remember what had happened.

"The body felt empty, in the exact same way this one does."

"Where is she then?" Cairn's confusion was evident in his voice, I growled at him and explained again.

"She has entered another world, there is no way we can know what one at this point in time. Once we obtain the wyrdkeys we will be able to travel through portals to reach Aelin, and destroy the world that is harboring her." I straightened and turned towards the door, where a pale faced Fenrys was standing.

"Where have you been?"
His hands where in tight fists at his sides and there was a determined expression on his face.

"Out," was all he managed to say. I paused at his side long enough to say, "Dispose of the bodies and then meet me in my bedchamber after your done."

I exited the dungeons and walked down the long hallways, 'All I have to now is wait for dear old Rowan to come knocking.' I thought.