TIMELESS - An ACOTAR Fanfiction

CHAPTER 13

"I can't believe you talked me into this."

Zivia spared a glance at Azriel, who was treading behind her as they sneaked back into the mortal lands at dusk.

"You say that as if I dragged you here against your will."

Silence was his only response, which was not that unusual. She herself hadn't expected that he would join her here.

The Illyrian hadn't let her go without proper explanation of what she meant when she said adventure.

"I was just being dramatic, okay?" she'd said then, back at the Night Court.

A cacophony of voices drew both their attention.

"…come back. I'll leave you to take care of everything here while I'm gone." A woman's voice.

"That's Vassa," whispered Azriel behind her.

She didn't know that she was expecting something from the mortal queen until she felt a twinge of disappointed upon seeing her looking as normal as a regular human being should be. Her blue eyes shone like opals in the dark, sharp and a piercing contrast to her reddish-gold hair which was an almost twin to Lucien's, albeit much longer and wavier. Her father was right, Vassa exudes the confidence of a strong and fiery woman – an attribute Koschei very much likes in his prisoners. Something he found in the majority of her people – her sisters.

"As if that wasn't what I was doing already – "

"Jurian." Lucien's voice sounded like a warning.

"Right. Sorry. As her majesty wishes."

Zivia could almost feel the collective eyerolls of his two companions as Jurian dropped to a dramatic bow.

She and Azriel kept at a distance as they followed the trio farther away from the heart of the mortal territory.

"Do you think she already knows?" she asked the spymaster.

"She's a smart queen. I bet she suspects just as we do."

They both came to the conclusion that if the other mortal queens were unconscionable enough to sell a fellow queen to a sworn enemy because of selfishness, then it is most likely that they might ask him again for help after the disastrous result of their alliance with Hybern. Though they couldn't be sure of what kind of bargain they would be willing to accept and how far are they willing to sacrifice yet again.

When the remaining dregs of daylight vanished, so did the beautiful young woman before them. The transformation was quick but impossible to miss. It was as if a fire ignited from within the queen, turning her eyes into glowing embers before lighting up her hair and down until her whole body is ablaze with a light so intense it blinded her for a few seconds. An ear-splitting screech resounded over the land and she opened her eyes and saw a magnificent firebird hovering above them. Its feathers of fire glowed with the red and gold of molten lava, spewing sparks as it beat its massive wings in the air.

The creature circled above them once before soaring higher and flying away.

Zivia knew exactly where it is going. She was halfway to winnowing when Azriel grabbed her by the arm and pulled her back from the enveloping light.

She was so focused on the firebird that she almost forgot he was there with her. "What?"

"Where are you going?"

"Where else? I'm going to follow Vassa."

She didn't think that the spymaster's brows could furrow any deeper. Apparently, she was wrong. It's really a wonder how he hasn't got any wrinkles on his face yet.