The Ends of the Earth

Chapter 30

Aelin felt her soul breaking. She was unbreakable is what everyone told her, what everyone believed. But...slowly, ordeal after ordeal, she felt herself fade away. It wasn't a Valg prince no... she could thank the gate for that, but this felt worse in a different way. Her body belonged to herself and she knew it but there was just nothing she could do about it. Nothing she could do about being a slave...again.

She was reminded of her friends who were murdered in Endovier, taken from the world before she could take them from Endovier.

"They're gonna try and come back," Amarantha said from outside the cells.

Aelin tried to move closer to the bars in the cell they were keeping her in but the chain didn't go that far.

She heard that cold chuckle from Maeve that still trailed every dream of hers and turned it sour.

"Isn't that the point?" Was the last thing Aelin heard before a guard knocked her out with a spear to the head.

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1-2-3-4-5 Exhale. 1-2-3-4-5 Inhale.

Feyre kept this pattern going for as long as she was in the jail cell. It was her old cell, the one she was kept in when Rhys sent her the melodic tunes that kept her from going over the edge.

Well the edge felt near this time. She wasn't sure how many more times she could fight her demons. At this point it felt easier to succumb. Then she remembered the family she left back at Velaris.

For them. Always for them.

"They're gonna try and come back," Amarantha's voice crawled up her spine, the same one she snapped with her invisible hands years ago.

She knew they were referring to Rhys and Aelin's mate Rowan, but something in her broke so hard when she thought of Rhys having to face his worst fear again.

"Isn't that the point?"

The next thing she saw was nothing as her head met a spear.

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"We could  control their thoughts," Amarantha said.

"But where's the fun in that, I want them to remember everything, but have to do exactly what we say, don't you?" Maeve circled around a table.

"I just think too much freedom could lead to danger."

"We're better now. We can handle danger like we handled them before. We know their strengths and weaknesses now. Don't you dare doubt me now."

Amarantha found herself nodding in submission to Maeve.

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Rowan was about to sleep from pure exhaustion when he heard a few voices coming from the living room.

They had previously spent the day memorizing every room of the place Aelin was trapped in all from Rhys's memory. He learned a lot about the group he was staying with in that time. For example, they were as tight knit as he and his court back home.

If he felt this lonely in a crowd of people like him he didn't want to imagine what his wife felt right now.

As he stepped out of the bed they offered him, he willed up to the stars a promise, I will find you Aelin, a thousand times and more.

He went down the stairs and found they were sitting with who he assumed was Amren from the way she looked. The 15,000 year old creature they mentioned during their planning.

She looked however to be nothing more than five feet tall.

"What's going on?" Rowan asked as he descended the final steps. Amren stood up.

Aelin would've had a good laugh as to how much Rowan towered over this woman.

"Hello, I am Amren," She didn't bother shaking his hand and he didn't mind, he was over formalities.

"Rowan Whitethorn Galathynius, Kin-" He stopped himself from announcing his title, they wouldn't even know.

"Well, Rowan, I think I found a way to bring your friends here."

Rowan for the first time in a few days almost smiled, but instead he just asked, "How soon?"

Rhys stood up at that, "As soon as you're ready, we just need Cassian to bring Feyre's sister Nesta here then we can bring them."

"But I must warn you the portal I can make won't last long, you must be quick in finding everyone you need and bring them here," Amren told him.

Rowan nodded, he figured it wouldn't be hard, they'd either be all in the same place worrying over the disappearance of Aelin and himself or they'd be at their homes.

1 hour later.

"What took you so long?" Rhys asked Cassian who just entered through the foyer with two ladies.

"Elain had to know what happened," a lady-who Rowan figured was Nesta-said, the delicate one standing next to her, Elain.

"We need to get started," Amren said as she grabbed Nesta and took her to the sitting area.

Rowan was glad she didn't bother with the introductions. He just needed his family here now.

"Close your eyes," Amren commanded Nesta to do while she held her hands. "Imagine this world, this continent, Erilea."

Rowan felt hope for a bit when he heard his home, Erilea.

Amren began muttering words in a language Rowan didn't recognize and Nesta began shaking.

Cassian looked visibly disturbed while Elain stood next to Azriel who Rowan just realized was in the room this whole time.

Rhys was standing with Mor by where Amren and Nesta were sitting.

He would thank them later for the urgency in which they were treating this matter.

But before he could observe anything-or anyone-else, a large rip appeared in the world before him.

"Go! NOW!" Amren screamed, and Rowan launched himself into the rip without a second thought.

But what he had failed to register fully was, Rhys came leaping behind him.