Worlds Collide(ACOTAR and TOG crossover)

Part 12

Kiara

My face hits dirt and I can't help but groan from the pain I feel in my body. But I'm quickly pulling myself back up, retrieving my sword that had fallen out of my hands. I push my dark hair out of my face and turn back to my opponent. Some new over confident demi-fae male who recently arrived in camp. He's taller than me, stronger than me and I hate him for it. The current Commander of the camp, Roland, wanted to see me against this newcomer. The demi-fae offers me a cocky smile, his unique turquoise eyes are so bright they're almost glowing. I want to dim them, shut off that brightness.

"You should give up, princess, you're not going to beat me?"

I spit out a mixture of blood and dirt, "I'm no princess. And I don't give up."

His eyes scan me up and down, "could've fooled me. Your beauty is worthy of a castle and a crown." He winks and I growl back, trying to hide the throbbing pain in my legs and arms from fighting him. Roland is standing on the edge of the field, watching our every move, and I don't want to disappoint him. He likes me. He's been the only Commander to do so since Garreth's death. I don't want him to see me as a waste of time so I usually comply with his requests. Anything from torturing prisoners, reading the minds of enemies, killing those who threaten us, and now, fighting this massive male. Who is still eyeing me like I'm a prize to be won.

"You're right, I might not be able to beat you with a sword. Or with my fists. But I can beat you with my mind."

He furrows his brow and turns to look at Roland briefly. Roland just shrugs his shoulder and nods at me, permission to do whatever I want to beat this arrogant ass. So I drop my sword and tilt my head, offering a cunning smile to my opponent. His eyes widen as my power hits him. He gasps as I cut off his air. Falls to his knees as I paralyze him. I turn off his vision causing him to drop his sword and cover his face with his hands. All of this is just a fraction of my power, a very small tease what I can do. He hits the ground three times, his only way to ask for mercy. All at once I let go, giving him all of his senses back. His breath comes in pants and he still remains on his knees. When he finally stands, he wobbles off balance and has to bend over for a minute, still breathing hard. When he speaks, it's raw, hardly louder than a whisper. "What are you?"

I pick my sword off the ground and walk past him, brushing his shoulder with my own as I respond, "I'm not a princess."

My body is still in pain as I collapse on my bed. Every muscle is sore and pulsing. My arms are riddled with cuts that have healed but dried blood still coats my skin. I hear my tent open and a laugh before I feel a body sit on the end of my bed. I open my eyes to see light blue ones staring back at me. Tan skin, dark blonde hair and the kindest smile complete the face looking at me. "He really did a number on you."

I sit up, trying not to wince, "Pretty sure I won though."

He laughs again, "yes, I saw that. After you got your ass kicked." I ignore the pain as I shove his shoulder.

"Did you come here to comfort me or make fun of me Hayden?"

He carefully wraps an arm around my shoulder and leans his face in to kiss my cheek. "honestly, a little of both." I can't but laugh as I relax into his touch. What had started out as a casual fling for us when we were lonely had turned into Hayden becoming the only one here, I could really trust. He was a human male though, so I knew better than to get too attached. He was going to get old; he was going to die. I was not. "I can't believe you did that to him though. Do you have any idea who he is?"

I look up at him and shake my head, "that arrogant prick is someone important?"

"Kiara, that's Aedion Ashryver. He's supposed to be the next great General. Even though he's young, he's still very well known, and very feared. His reputation will only grow as he gets older."

I don't care about reputations or who someone is. Mostly because I had never bothered to learn the history of this world, so I really don't know anything. But also, in my life, I have learned that no matter who you are, who you are related to or how feared you are, you aren't guaranteed a happy ending. Reputation meant nothing.

Hours later after my muscles have stopped throbbing, I decide to climb up the mountain a bit, wanting to watch the sunrise. I sit down on a boulder and pull some bread and meat out of my pack. I like to eat up here, watching as the sky turns purple and pink. Hayden always asks to join me but I don't want him here, I don't want to have the memory of him here after he's gone. This is my space. That's why I growl a bit when I hear footsteps behind me. I turn around to see the blonde haired supposedly famous soldier looking down on me.

"Am I interrupting?"

"As a matter of fact, you are."

He doesn't seem to care as he eases himself down to be sitting next me. I inch away a little, hoping he gets the message that I don't want company.

"You don't like me very much do you?"

"I don't like anyone very much so don't take it personally."

"Why don't you like anyone?"

"In my experience, liking someone will eventually lead to them being taken away from you. So I try not to waste my time."

His eyes grow soft, almost sorrowful. "I guess I have to agree with you on that." His unique eyes meet my own and he offers me a soft smile, "well we seem to share similar stories of losing those we love. And you almost killed me today. I want you on my side, Kiara."

I take a bite of my food and consider his words. "Your side of what?"

He sighs and stares out at the sunrise, "My home was taken from me. I want it back. I want to start a rebellion. And I want you to help me."

Kiara-present

After that day on the mountain when Aedion asked me to join him, we became a team. We trained together, fought together and planned together. We became so close that I didn't even feel sad when Hayden moved on from the camp. I had Aedion and he was all I needed. Not in a romantic way. There were never feelings like that. Aedion was my brother and I, his sister. He filled a part of me that was missing. He became my family. We became unstoppable together. While he went off and became a leader in Ardalan's military, I stayed hidden and led the rebel forces. While Aedion became the Wolf of the North, I became Wolf's hidden weapon. He led me to Aelin. He is the reason I am who I am, the reason I have a family. I owe so much to him and he owes so much to me.

So now, walking to speak before hundreds of soldiers, it feels odd to have both of my brothers walking by my side. Odd in the best way. I look to my left where Rhys is staring straight ahead, a strong look on his face. He turns when he feels me staring and offers me a small smile. There's still awkwardness between us, but the tension that had been there is gone now. And to my right, I look up and see Aedion scanning our surroundings, always on alert. Two strong warriors, different in so many ways but the same in so many others. My brothers.

Aedion breaks the comfortable silence between the three of us, "you ready to rattle some nerves, princess?"

I roll my shoulders and wipe the smile off of my face, "oh, I'm so ready."