She remembered. She remembered what it was like to breathe the fresh air of Terrasen again after she brought the Glass Castle down with Dorian. She remembered being crowned Queen of Terrasen. She remembered the good.
The good was what kept her going. The bad was what made her want to stop.
Arobynn. Sam. Endovier. Nehemia. King's Champion. The war. Cairn.
Maeve.
A bloody cough escaped her throat, splattering the grass in front of her with even more blood.
She may have thought she was crying bloody tears for how hot her face felt. Stars floated across her eyes, stars so bright and beautiful.
She felt it was okay.
Queen Aelin Ashryver Whitethorn Galathynius felt at peace now.
She heard his screams in a distant world. Begging the Dark Queen to stop.
She had bartered a thousand years. A thousand years with her mate, so he could walk free.
So when she left, she felt at peace.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Rowan thought he knew pain. Thought he knew pain when Aelin fell unconscious after shattering the Glass Castle in Rifthold. Thought he knew pain when she screamed take it off! Thought he knew pain when she had given herself up to forge the lock.
But nothing compared to now.
He ripped free of Rhysand, whose grip fell loose anyways, and ran for Aelin.
Ran to his light that flickered out. Only to be met with an invisible wall. She coughed blood and looked up at the sky as another lash came down upon her back.
"AELIN!" For he could feel her slipping away. For he had stood back and felt his efforts were nonexistent, for he felt nonexistent.
He saw the future, and he didn't. There was no room, no purpose, he felt, for himself without Aelin here.
He saw a smile trickle across her face and he knew he was sobbing because as he ripped through the walls holding him back from his mate-
She was gone.
His light was gone and the world went permanently dark for Rowan Whitethorn Galathynius.
He fell to his knees in front of her and grabbed her still warm hand and held it to his chest while shuddering sobs worked their way up his throat.
And through his tears, he kissed Aelin, and held her even tighter against his chest.
So damned the world was. For he would tear it apart to get Aelin back.
Author's note - Donate to Lebanon. And please don't hate me for this chapter!
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The Ends of the Earth
FanfictionIt's been two years since Aelin defeated Erawan and Maeve in a bloody battle. Two years since her life changed. And it's about to change again. Someone from her past comes back and Aelin must burn through her titles again to keep loved ones safe. Ve...
