𝐑𝐈𝐅𝐓𝐇𝐎𝐋𝐃 𝐀𝐂𝐀𝐃𝐄𝐌𝐘

Short Story Competition

I wrote a story for this competition in my old home town and decided to post it here since my theme was related to Fae:
(TOG and ACOTAR)

• Sorry this isn't an update •

~

Bloody Crown

Spitting out the iron taste in her mouth, Eveleigh Hawthorne sprinted fast and wild through the irksome corridors.

She ran, her heels clicking on the floor becoming the only sound other than the distant screams behind her. No matter how many she allied with, or how skilled her soldiers were, no one was prepared for what came for them.

Slashing her sword across throats and clashing metal with metal, Eveleigh already knew this wasn't going to end well. For her or her people. So, she ran to the only place that would give them a fighting chance, she ran to her dead father.

Pushing away the guilt and fear of leaving everyone on the battlefields alone, she prayed to every god that they would stay safe, and even as her gashed thigh screamed in pain she didn't dare stop.

"Glad to see you're still alive," A familiar voice drawled and Eveleigh halted right when a person stepped out from a corner, moving like a shadow. "It would be such a disappointment not to see this kingdom fall with their queen's blood painted on my hands."

"Barron," She forced a sly grin as she examined him from head to toe and spotted an old scar running along his cheek.

Picking at her nails she tightened the grip on her sword in the other hand and pointed at his scarred face, "Not too shabby for a ten-year-old kid, eh?"

Barron's emotionless face tightened, and Eveleigh knew she got to him. Quicker than anything humanly possible, he unsheathed two daggers from his side and flung it straight at her, so fast that she would've died, but she was faster.

Ignoring the agony barking in her leg, she sprinted past them but faltered and only seconds later did she feel a wet sensation slide down her pointed ear to her neck.

A thin cut, enough that she healed quickly, skin stitching back together alone.

It's been too long, she'd have to escape or at least distract him. Her gaze slid from Barron to the door just behind him.

Barron, her uncle, her family, and her enemy. She looked at the way his cold eyes bore into her with only rage and bloodlust, and she knew that her uncle was gone, turned into a heartless creature.

"I don't want to fight you," Eveleigh warned but he just smirked and attacked, much more confident, like he knew all her moves.

Her ashy hair blew gently as an arrow whizzed past her head and into Barron's shoulder, turning around in shock she found Will, her mate, panting wild as he didn't waste another second in firing another with his bow.

Eveleigh knew this was her chance to slip away so she gave her mate a nod, and bit her lip nervously, despite herself.

He looked at her while dodging Barron in easy steps, come back to me.

She bowed her head even if it made her neck ache, I will.

Leaving him just like everyone else was like a slap to the face but she willed her legs to take those steps to her father. Then she was pushing back the heavy oak doors before slipping inside, nothing but a simple white room surrounded her.

This had to be the right room, she could feel it, or feel him. But, where was he?

More shouts echoed outside and Eveleigh knew reinforcements had come, how long can Will fight?

Until my last breath.

She knew his answer but wouldn't allow it. Limping around the whole room, she circled it twice, thrice, before stopping to gather her strength. Nothing, she found nothing, no one.

Then there was banging on the door, harsh and powerful shoves that sent the ground shaking.

They were here.

Wiping at the sweat trickling along her brow she started talking, not to herself, but to her father, if he was even listening.

"Father," She breathed out, "I know you're here. I need you to listen to me." Her voice cracked but she continued, "Our people are dying. I've tried everything, I trained every week and every second just for this day but, we're going to perish. They have dark magic father, dark magic," She whispered, anger boiling in the pit of her stomach, "All we have is steel. It is not enough, I should've known."

She let everyone down. And when no answer came, from her father, or the gods who guided her past evil and through life, her shoulders slumped in defeat.

"You are the answer, daughter," A deep voice echoed soft and smooth, Eveleigh spun so that she was facing the king, her father. All the words she planned to say got stuck in her throat because all she thought was, he looks just as I remembered.

Hair as dark as the night was braided and slung on his shoulder and his eyes, silver and green, Hawthorne eyes. But his body was transparent, almost invisible.

"What do you mean, I'm the answer," She forced herself to say, even when a thousand questions ran through her mind.

"You are the only one who can stop them Eveleigh, you are the Queen of the Fae, a weapon. Tame it before it controls you."

And that's when she felt a searing pain strike her heart, but no blood poured out and her vision blurred.

She felt the agony of her mate rip through her before she heard him scream. The sound of the doors open and hit the walls were loud but Eveleigh heard nothing, Will was still alive but so close to dying.

Something snapped within her and she didn't know what happened until all the men with demon eyes were on the floor clutching at their throats and suffocating.

One after the other they fell dead, and when Eveleigh was left alone with Barron she didn't bother glancing at him before she croaked, "You killed my mother."

And something like regret flashed in his eyes before they spun back and his heart stopped, no oxygen left for him to breath.

Wind swirled around her like a hurricane and she was in the center of the eye. This power, there was nothing like this.

She didn't waste another second as she ran to Will who was sat against the wall eyes closed and blood, so much blood, around him.

Touching his face, she willed him to heal, she pushed all her power into him. His eyes fluttered open and he gulped the air around him.

Run. He seemed to say.

Not without you.

Pulling him off the floor, he stood shakily before gaining his composure and she gave him a cat-like smile, "Let's go rattle the stars."

~

Thoughts? I'd love to hear you're opinion guys. On a totally unrelated question, how's your summer so far??