Chapter 29

Get comfortable, this is a long one!

The sky was covered with, roiling clouds, and the air was filled with small snowflakes slowly making its way to the ground. It would be a cold day, but it would not deter them from their goal.

Aelin walked down the stairs leading to the warehouse below the apartment. She stopped before reaching the bottom of the stairwell, and looked out across the many faces in the room. All of her friends were present, as well as the covens of Rhiannon and Manon. Ren had also brought the other leaders from rebellion, who was all now looking at her, waiting for her to speak.

Aelin straightened her spine, and let her arms hang at her side. She met Sam's eyes, who gave her an encouraging nod. Then her gaze shifted to Rowan, who tilted his lips in a half smile. It had been two nights since her talk with Sam, but she had not been able to talk to the fae warrior yet. Later, she would do that later.

Aelin swallowed, this was scarier than she thought it would be. She drew a deep, slow breath to calm her nerves.

«Many different reasons have brought each and everyone of us here today. But our end goal is the same, and today we take the first big step towards that goal.» she said to the small crowd before her, her eyes met Ren's gaze. «We will no longer cower before this conquerer, we will no longer hide in the shadows fearing what lies ahead of us. This is no longer a rebellion. Now,» she tried to meet the eyes of everyone, one after another, «we bring this war to the tyrants own doorstep, and show him that we have not given up, that we are not afraid.» she looked at Sam, who smiled at her now. «This is a big day, and I know that we will prevail, together we can beat him.»

She put a hand on the railing next to her, and tried not to grip it too tightly. «Now go, get ready, find your posts. Fight for the loved ones we have lost, but most of all, fight for a better future. A future where we do not need to hide, a future of freedom and safety.» her heart beat wildly, so she took another deep breath. She looked at Rowan, the crowd seemed to be holding its breath. She lifted her chin, trying to like the queen she was. «Divided we will fall, but when we stand united we will prevail.» She stepped down from the stairs, as the crowd began cheering. Maybe the speech had been a bit too much, but she hoped it spike their morale, at least a little bit.

Slowly the crowd dispersed, groups left to ready for the battle one after another. Sam pulled her into a hug, which she returned in full. «You did great.» he whispered into her ear, she just smiled up at him.

She slowly pulled away from the hug, and found Rowan standing a few paces away. «Was it too much?» she asked him. Rowan looked at her for a moment.

«Only if we all die.» Rowan said, the corner of his mouth lifted into a smile. She raised her eyebrows at him, and Sam chuckled next to her. «But we won't. Last time we had far less fighters, and we still managed to pull it off.»

«Yes, well, last time I was older and more experienced.» she mumbled.

«But just as dramatic.» Rowan snorted, she huffed at him and put her hands on her hips.

«I was not being dramatic.» she said, and narrowed her eyes at him, pursing her lips.

Just a little bit, Princess.

I was not! I did my best to give an inspiring speech to boost their morale.

I never said it wasn't good.

Then why say it was dramatic then?

What is so wrong with that, I like it when you're like that actually.

Sam looked back forth between them as they spoke silently with mere gestures. He cleared his throat, and suppressed a smile. «We do need to get ready as well, and Dorian is waiting for you, Aelin.»

She blinked. She had forgotten he was there for a second. «Right, let's go.» she said, her cheeks blushing slightly.

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A patrol was headed down the street beneath them. Sam and a group of rebels armed with bow and arrows, hunched low on the roof waiting for Ren to initiate the fight on the ground below. When reinforcements arrived, they would start firing their arrows at them. Then their group of Crochan witches would attack the royal soldiers from the rear.

Even with gloves on the cold numbed his fingers, so flexed them to try to get some warmth into them. Shouting and the clanging of weapons could be heard from the streets. Sam readied his bow, knocked an arrow, and watched as the soldiers below let one of the kings men run back to call for help. Just as they had planned. It has begun.

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«The wyrdhounds are just up ahead.» Rowan said quietly to Manon and her thirteen. «Get their attention, then head down that corridor. Weak points are their eyes, armpits and mouths. There are seven of them, do not underestimate them.»

Manon narrowed her eyes, but then nodded. «We'll whistle when we're ready.» With that she motioned to her coven, and as one they began stalking towards their prey.

Rowan and Aedion, waited in the dark, until they heard menacing growl and saw the witches lead the stone beasts out of their way.

«Let's move.» Rowan said, and grabbed the vat of hellfire as Aedion did the same. Slowly but surely they made their way towards the dark tower.

«Lead the way, Prince.» Aedion said quietly.

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Aelin and Dorian made their way through the many hallways of the huge castle. She was clothed in all black, and her hair had been tied back in a tight braid. Horns were sounding in the distance, a call for reinforcements. She peeked out of the window and found that all the distraction points busy with fighting rebels and soldiers. Good, so far so good.

With Gokdryn slung across her she turned and nodded to Dorian who nodded back. Rowan had given her the sword the night before along with a gold ring, Athril's ring. She remembered when he had first found it, that time when he made save Luca on a frozen lake with a giant fish monster underneath.

They sauntered down the hallway and headed straight towards the throne room, towards the demon infested king. She glanced over at Dorian and saw the hilt of Damaris hanging from his belt, she had given him that one.

«Cut down the rebels, but take some alive to interrogate!» the kings voice boomed to one of the generals. «Where is the Captain, his place is here. Find him!» she was glad she was the that general right now, the King was not in a good mood to say the least.

The doors to the throne room was thrown open, and a sweaty general hurried out to fulfill his commands. Or to just get as far away from the King he could get before the Oh Mighty Tyrant decided to have him executed.

She shared a look with Dorian. Now, it was time to face his father. She gave a nod, signalling that she was ready.

Dorian strode through the door and Aelin followed close behind him.

The King was standing by one of the giant windows, watching the battles that raged across the city with a deep frown on his face. He turned to see who had entered unannounced, and glowered at Dorian. «Not now, son. Go back to your tower.» the King practically growled.

«I'm afraid that I simply won't do that, Father.» Dorian said. «You see, you don't know me as well as you thought you did.»

«Stop speaking nonsense and leave this room, now.» the King set his coal black stare at Dorian, and that's when he noticed her standing behind Dorian. «Who is that.» Not a question, but a demand.

«This is a very close friend of mine, and also then who set all that into motion.» Dorian gestured towards the city. «And she has score to settle with you, and so do I.» he said as he drew Damaris from its scabbard, Aelin drew Goldryn and leveled it at the king. She smirked at him, but eyed the darkness that had begun to form around the King.

«Betrayed by my own blood.» the King said quietly, with voice void of any emotion. Aelin stepped up beside Dorian.

«No, you betrayed him long ago when you decided to release Erawan into the world, you brought this upon yourself.» Aelin said to the king. «I failed to burn the demon out of you when I was eight, I figured we could give it another try.» she smirked again, and a shadow darkened the Kings face.

«You,» the King took a step towards then, but they did not back away. «I see you survived that night, but you will not live for much longer, Heir of Brannon.» he drew his own sword, Nothung.

The darkness came spearing towards them, no,  not them, at her. Aimed straight towards her chest, too fast for her to dodge and she had no magic of her own to counter it.

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Manon sheeted her sword and flicked out her iron nails. They had cut down three beasts before they fully awoke from their hibernation, but that they were fully awake the fight had turned challenging.

The wyrdhounds were fast and vicious, but so were her witches. One of the beast pounced on her, she hunched down low and brought nails up cutting the underside of its armpits. Black blood sprayed down on her and the beast roared, but it did not falter as it launched for her legs.

Manon leapt into the air and landed atop it, and plunged her iron nails into a crack in the stone at its neck. Wailing, the beast tried to toss her, but she dug her nail deeper until it collapsed beneath her.

Four left.

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Aedion and Rowan slowly hurried down the ancient passages. They where getting close now, a headache pierced his skull telling him that the tower was nearby. And soon he felt blood trickle down first one nostril, then both. A glance over at Aedion told that the general was feeling the effects of the tower as well.

Echoes of roars and shouts came from behind them. The witches were holding their own against the wyrdhounds. Good.

«Put it down here.» They lowered the hellfire slowly to the ground, and Aedion began uncoiling the long line, backing away as he did.

Now they had to wait for Manon's signal.

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When he had ran out of arrows, Sam had jumped down into the street to join the fighting. He now stood back to back with Ren as he deflected and countered the onslaught of the soldiers.

There were a lot of soldiers. If it hadn't been for the Crochans they would have been easily overwhelmed by the sheer number thrown at them.

The snow that had been so white and undisturbed a moment ago, were now drenched red with blood and gore.

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Manon glanced at her Second after downing another beast with the help from Vesta and Lin. Her Second was covered in black and blue blood, but that did not seem to slow her down. Asterin plunged her blade into the beasy charging straight at her. It died before it could issue another roar, and Asterin wrenched her blade from the skull of the last wyrdhound.

Manon gave her witches a feral grin, still wild from the fight. «Nicely done.» she was proud to have such a skilled coven, unmatched by any foe.

She whistled loudly towards Rowan and Aedion. It was followed by a second of silence, then she heard the strike of flint and a hissing noise.

«Run for the exit!» Rowan shouted from the darkness. So they hurled down the way they come from, racing to outrun the blast that would soon follow.

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A shield of ice appeared in front of her blocking the darkness from hitting its nark. The King whirled to face his son, and narrowed his eyes at him.

«Interesting, very interesting. Let's how well you master your gifts, boy.» the King drawled at Dorian, then the darkness rolled back and shot at them again. But this time it split into five spears. Two going for Dorian, and the rest advanced on Aelin from different angles.

She jumped to dodge the one aimed at her front, a shield appeared to block the other two that came in at either side of her. She smirked at the King. «Is that the bes—» a sharp pain slammed into her left shoulder from behind, and screamed at the searing pain.

«Aelin!» Dorian rushed towards her, blocking the onslaught from his father on his way.

She grounded her teeth together, «Cover me!» she shouted to him, then set of at a sprint towards the King, sword raised. She ignored the pain in her shoulder as she slashed her sword towards his chest, only to be met by Nothung as the King deflected her blow.

She feinted to the left, then swung for his right, but he met her every blow. The old man was no push over it seemed. Dorian jumped in joining the fight, while he maintained his endeavour in shielding and deflecting his father's magic.

They spun, slashed, feinted and stabbed, a vicious three way dance that went on and on. Sweat began trickling down the side of her face, and spear of darkness shot straight for her head. She flinched just fir a second, but a second was all it took as the King brought his sword down towards her head.

Dorian blocked the dark spear, just as Aelin leaned back to avoid the the sword swinging towards her. But she was too late.

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The exit ahead of them was clear, their plan of distraction had worked splendidly. They had left a longer line this time, to give them more time to get out of the way of the blast. They would be put of the tunnel before the hellfire got lit up.

Just a few more feet now, and he could race up to the castle to aid hus mate in her fight against the man that ruined her life.

His legs buckled as a searing pain lanced across his face, and he almost fell to the stoney floor. He touched his face and looked at his hand, nothing. No, no, not again. He pumped his legs harder, speeding towards the open air. He had to reach her before it was too late.