Set Fire to my Atmosphere

Chapter 4

The moving of the coffin had rubbed her wounds raw, old and new. Aelin didn't care enough to know where she was headed as long as the Wyrdkeys were out of Maeve's grasp.

She had also lost track of how much time went by in that iron coffin as the usual routine was Cairn unlocking the box to torture her while Maeve asked one simple question everyday, "Where are the keys?" And then Aelin's silence resulted in Cairn knocking her out.

It had become a routine that the queen was now accustomed to. There were a few times when Cairn and Maeve let her out of the box for a few hours just to experience freedom. Freedom she could have if she just told the Queen of the Fae where the keys were.

But the Queen of Terrasen had accepted death the second that the iron mask was clasped around her head, it was just a question of when Maeve would have mercy and just kill her.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~The box was open the next time Aelin woke up. Aelin found herself staring ahead at a wall of bricks.

"Awake so soon?"

Aelin moved her head slowly to her left, the movement sending excruciating pain through her body.

"Well since I have you here, why don't you tell me where the keys are before I unleash my new weapon on you."

Aelin just stared her down.

"Fool, Fenrys get her out of there." Fenrys emerged from the shadows and wrapped his arms around Aelin, slowly lifting her out of the box careful not to touch any wounds, but she was covered in them.

They both stood, Aelin wincing at every movement, leaning all of her weight on the warrior, Fenrys doing his best not to look like he cared in front of Maeve.

"Aelin, sweetheart, haven't you been wondering how your friends have been doing?" Aelin's eyes jolted up at her. "After all, it has been five months."

Five months. The two words clamored through her brain. Five months. But she had never expected to come back.

"I will give you a choice, would you like to write a letter to your cousin, your general, Aedion Ashryver? Or would you rather it be Rowan Whitethorn? Apologies, Rowan Whitethorn Galathynius?"

Aelin's eyes teared up. If I write a letter, they'll try and find me.

"No." Aelin spat at the Queen.

"It's not a choice on whether or not you want to send one, it's a choice on who."

If I write the letter, they might lead the Wyrdkeys to Maeve.

But before Maeve could reply, a whip struck Aelin's bare back. Even Fenrys flinched, narrowing his brows at the sadist, Cairn, who was now standing behind them with a whip in hand.

"You're quite the stubborn child," Maeve drawled from the other side of the unknown room. "If you don't I'll send an army of Fae warrior to retrieve Aedion or Rowan so you can explain to them why you didn't send the note."

The anger in Aelin started to boil. She didn't say a word, but as Cairn unlocked the shackles on her wrists, not her ankles or her face, she said, "Aedion."

"Perfect. Sit her down, shackle her waist." Fenrys did as told immediately, flinching when he locked the shackled on her mangled backside.

"What do you want me to say?" Aelin said stiffly.

"Anything you want darling, just keep in mind, the Wyrdkeys would be great." She said as she left the room with Cairn hand in hand. Fenrys waiting behind. She had known that Fenrys was under strict orders to do anything to assist her, but she had also known that Fenrys was fighting it with every breath.

"Whitethorn is looking for you."

Aelin paused with the pen in her hand. Her breathing becoming shallow.

"I told him not too."

"You told Manon to tell him, the blood oath doesn't work unless the order is straight from you." Fenrys rasped, his oath was now bearing down on him.

"Does Maeve know where they are?" Aelin said through gritted teeth. Now she knew she had to write the letter for Rowan instead.

"Aedion, yes. Rowan, no."

"How will she give the letter?"

"Through me. She knows that I know where they are, but I won't tell her." But he couldn't tell Rowan where Aelin was, or Connall's life was forfeit. The punishment for not telling her where Rowan was, was a mere beating that he'd become used too.

A long pause hit them before Aelin said, "Why? Why wouldn't she just wage war on them, she could easily get the keys from us that way."

"Maeve, she has something bigger in store, I don't know what, but I know it'll shatter people oceans away."

One tear escaped Aelin's eye and hit the paper.

"I know what I have to write," she whispered.

And so the pen hit the paper and all five months of pain poured out of her heart.