"Stop this! You cannot do this to us! Think of me, of the children! We could die!" A woman screams.

Auriella cannot see her face, but she could hear the plain fear in her voice. She was backing away from someone, a man. He had his arms out, reaching for her. The woman sobbed, unable to get away from him.

The man grabbed the woman's arms, "I need to know. All the others have failed, but if you go in, there is a chance that you and the children could be... extraordinary." The faceless man says, his voice soothing but dangerous.

The woman caresses his face, "You are not you. Please, don't do this to us." She takes one of his hands and places it on her swollen belly, "We have always talked about having a family. If you do this to us, the children might not survive. I may not survive." She persists.

The man looks down at her belly, "But if this does work, our children will be powerful. They will have abilities that will be unmatched. Think of it. They will help us gain Prythian. We will rule together as a family." He tells the woman.

She backs away from him, "Our children are not for your personal gain! They have your blood as well as mine! I will not let you put them in danger!" She yells at him.

The man takes her hands once more, "You think I don't care about your wellbeing as well as theirs? I want this to work, but I also want you alive. If this works, we could be unstoppable. Our children, as well as us, will be the most powerful fae that ever existed."

She shakes her head, "I don't want that. I just want you and our children. How is that not enough for you? We have created a life for ourselves. Do not destroy it because of this. I will never forgive you if something happens to them or to me." She tells him.

The man gently takes her arm, "Then I will just have to live with that. But you will go in, either by your own will or by force. I am not letting this opportunity waste away because of your fear." He says.

The woman fought to stay in her place, but the man was too strong. "Please, stop this madness! Be the man you used to be, the man that I fell in love with! I don't know who you are anymore! You're not the man I married!" She cries.

The man forces the woman up the steps before placing her in front of a contraption that Auriella cannot quite make out. The woman kisses the man, "I loved you. I loved you through all of this. If you do this, you will lose me. You will lose us." She breathes against his lips.

He places his hands on her face, "I am doing this because Prythian is meant to be ruled. This is my chance... you are my chance, along with our children, to make things right. To set things into motion. If I don't rule Prythian, someone else will. But they will be worse than me." The man says.

The woman takes a deep breath, "I hope that this doesn't work. I won't let you destroy our family. I refuse it. Your wickedness will die, along with everything that you built." She steps back from him, walking closer to the unknown contraption, "Prythian will never be yours."

Then she falls back, engulfing herself in the dark liquid of the...

Auriella jolts awake, unable to breathe.

The mattress beneath her was wet with her sweat, her skin prickling with heat. Tears streamed down her face, but she didn't care. She was suffocating once again, feeling as if she couldn't escape.

Warm rough hands took hold of her face, but she cannot see who the person was through her blurred vision. She holds onto them, feeling the scarred hands that once held her. She could feel her shadows tugging tighter around her, trying to comfort her.

"Ella, it's me. It's me. I'm right here." She hears her mate's voice become clearer. His hazel eyes were the first to come into view. He wiped the tears from her face with his thumb, giving her reassurance that it was him.

Auriella put her hands on his face, wanting to make sure it was him, to know that he was real. "Az?" She breathed.

She felt her entire body regain feeling once again.

They were in her room, the afternoon sunlight shining through the windows. Her sheets were ruffled and pillows were tossed onto the floor. Perseus wasn't beside her, but she could hear him scratching outside of the door, his muffled whines coming from the crack underneath it.

Azriel's face was filled with nothing but worry. She could feel his body shaking with silent rage. His shadows were peering at her and his wings were tucked in tight behind his back. She sends a feeling of calmness down the bond, seeing his shoulders relax.

"What happened to you, Ella?" He breathes, his eyes never leaving hers.

She swallows, unable to speak or think clearly. As much as she tries, she cannot make out a single word. Azriel searches her eyes, "If you can't speak, open your shields and show me. I know you can." He tells her.

Auriella shakes her head, I can't. She sends down the bond.

His eyebrows narrow, "You can trust me, Auriella." He says.

I can't show you. Not until I know more. She tells him.

Azriel sighs, but he doesn't persist any further. He stands from the bed, his warm hands leaving her face. He goes to the bedroom door, opening it for Perseus to enter. The wolf storms in, jumping onto the bed, and lays his head on Auriella's lap. She pets him, trying to find the comfort that always made her feel safe, but she felt none.

Her mate stands by the door, "We have to head to Rhysand and Feyre's estate to go over what is going to happen tomorrow at the Court of Nightmares. You should get ready." He says to her before exiting the room.

Auriella doesn't move for a moment, holding her wolf's head in her arms. Her tears fall slowly down her face. Perseus licked the water away. She smiled sadly at him, her mind still focusing on the vision.

But after a few minutes have passed, she gets up from her bed and heads to her closet. She puts on a long-sleeve gold dress that shone in the sunlight. She brushes her hair, putting up her long locks into a ponytail. She looks at herself in the vanity mirror, fixing her tear-stricken face.

After she finished getting ready, she could see Cassian, Emerie, and Azriel standing in the foyer, waiting for her. Emerie pulls her into an embrace, "Are you alright? I was so worried about you." She says.

Auriella nods, "I'm sorry. I wasn't feeling well." She tells her.

She could see that Emerie was contemplating on questioning her further, but Cassian grabbed her hand. "We'll see you two over there. Don't be late." He says, winking at Auriella.

Once the pair had winnowed away, Auriella was left alone with Azriel once more. Perseus had gone out the open doors of the House of Wind, sitting outside.

"Thank you for helping me." She tells him.

Azriel nods, his shadows swirling around him. "You worried me." He says, his voice low. Again, she could feel his silent anger rushing through his body; boiling his blood.

She took a step toward him, "I will tell you about it soon. I promise." She says, taking one of his scarred hands into her own. She looked down at it, seeing the white burnt lines around his entire hand.

"How did this happen?" She asked, tracing the lines with her finger.

He took a deep breath, "When I was eight years old, my half-brothers wanted to see how entertaining it would be to combine an Illyrian's healing gifts with oil and fire. They restrained me and held out my hands, pouring oil onto them, and lighting them on fire. I tried putting the flames out, but nothing worked. My father's guards were the ones who extinguished them, but the damage had already been done. Now, my hands are stuck like this." He explains.

Auriella feels her heart tighten with sadness and anger. How could someone do such a thing? She shakes her head, "How cruel," she breathes.

She could imagine him as a young boy, seeing his hands burning and screaming for someone to help him. She could see him trying to put them out on his own, tears streaming down his face from the searing pain. She could see his horrified face as his hands healed, but not fully.

"You don't have to hold in your disgust, Ella." He tells her.

Auriella looks up at her mate, seeing that his expression was unreadable. She knew that face. It was a mask that she sometimes wore to hide her true feelings, not wanting anyone to see her falter. He wore a mask of steel, but she could see right through it.

She smiled at him, taking his scarred hand up to her lips, kissing it gently. "They are beautiful, Azriel. They are a part of what makes you who you are. Brave, strong, and untethered." She whispers against it.

She could see his mask falter for a moment, in awe with what she had said. His eyes had softened, gleaming in the yellow sunlight. It seemed that her words had affected him in some way, his shadows brightening.

Auriella smiles at him, "We should go. If we don't, Cassian will come up with inappropriate jokes to throw at us." She says, entwining their fingers. Her heart swells and she feels her stomach flutter with emotions.

Her mate nods, shaking away his surprised expression, "Yes, we should." He tells her, whistling at Perseus to come before they all winnow away.

***

Auriella and the rest of the Inner Circle sat around the long dinner table, waiting for the High Lord and High Lady to settle into their chairs.

The High Prince was in Morrigan's arms. She bounced the child in her lap, grinning at him whenever he giggled at the sudden movement. She cooed at him, giving him small kisses on his cheek, which he accepted.

The tension was high in Prythian after bodies and bones were discovered at the front of Under the Mountain. There were representatives from every court looking for answers as to what was happening and everyone was on high alert.

Auriella could see that Rhysand was restless. Cassian had mentioned that he was barely sleeping due to not finding out anything that led to the unexplained phenomenons.

Recently, Night Court citizens had reported that three fae male bodies were discovered on the shoreline of Velaris. Their bodies were covered in dark magic that prevented anyone from touching them.

Rhysand and Feyre had gone to the shoreline themselves, wanting to see if their own magic could destroy it, but nothing worked. It seemed surreal. The two most powerful High Fae in Prythian couldn't even penetrate through the dark magic.

It seemed that this "Being" was real, coming back to take what it thought was theirs.

Auriella knew that she had to tell Rhysand about what happened down at the library, but it seemed that he already knew. His eyes stared at her with gentle darkness that stirred her shadows.

Even though she was the Daughter of Dawn, Auriella knew that Night Court blood coursed through her veins. Rhysand had every right to know what went on in his territory. She couldn't hide secrets from him no matter how hard she tried.

He would speak to her soon, which slightly terrified her.

Feyre was the first to break the silence of the room, "As you all know, tomorrow is the competition at the Arena of Nightmares. I know that none of us like going there, but this competition is important for the survival of the sisterhood." She looks between Auriella and Cassian, "I hope you two have trained Aiko well."

Cassian grins wickedly at her, "She was trained by the best. Me, of course." He says, plopping a piece of fruit into his mouth.

Amren rolls her eyes, "Cauldron save us," she mutters, drinking her wine. She sits on the lap of her lover, Varian, who stares at the Second Commander, admiring her. It was clear that there was something more between them, but Auriella wasn't too curious.

Feyre chuckles, "Anyway," she looks over to Auriella, "things at the Court of Nightmares are very different from here, Daughter of Dawn. The citizens over there know who you are, but they do not like the fact that the adopted daughter of Thesan has abilities that pertain to the Night Court. They will try everything to make you falter." She tells her.

Auriella lets out a hum, "Well, what do you suggest I do, High Lady of Night? I do not care if I win them over or not, I am there for Aiko and the sisterhood. But if there are certain rules that I need to follow, I am all ears." She says.

Cassian snorts, staring at Azriel briefly, before sitting up in his seat. Emerie glances at him, giving him a playful warning glare.

Auriella looks to Nesta, who didn't seem to mind the interaction. The Archeron sister had her eyes on Morrigan and the High Prince, who were now playing with the golden utensils. She could have sworn that Nesta's eyes gleamed as she looked at them, like she enjoyed seeing them together.

Rhysand takes a deep breath, "You both can discuss the attire after dinner. For now, Auriella and Aiko will be walking into the arena together as trainer and trainee. The same goes for Pyxis and Byron. You will present the contenders to us," he gestures between him and Feyre, "and then you will be flown to the trainer's platform, where you will watch from above. You will not be able to interfere in any way. A dome will be placed around them, preventing any magic of any kind from being placed upon them. Whoever surrenders or dies first, wins the competition." He explains.

Cassian lets out a whistle, "This isn't how it went last time, Rhys. We just mainly let the contenders fight." He says.

The High Lord of Night nods, "I am taking extra precautions. We shouldn't even be having this fight right now, especially since there is an unknown being killing citizens throughout the courts and protecting Under the Mountain with dark magic. But if we cancel this, the Court of Nightmares will riot. I do not want to deal with that. I already have enough on my mind as it is." He says, his violet eyes darkening.

Azriel shifts in his seat, "Why haven't you asked me to go out there? I can try to locate this thing and see if I could get some answers." He tells him.

Auriella looks over to her mate, You can't go out there.

Would you like to tell me why? He asks, remaining unfazed.

The Daughter of Dawn stays silent.

Feyre looks at the Spymaster, "Until the search teams come back with some kind of useful information, we are not sending anyone out there. It's clear that this being is powerful since our abilities couldn't even penetrate its magic. We can't risk losing any of you." She says to her companions.

Rhysand looks over to Varian, "Has your search team returned?" He asked.

The Summer Court native shook his head, "No, we are waiting just like you are. Tarquin is growing impatient, as are the other courts I presume. There is word that Tamlin is searching for the being himself since he has discovered over twenty dead bodies floating at his shoreline." He says.

"Tamlin is still in his beast form. How does he have knowledge of this? Is there someone helping him over in Spring?" Cassian asks.

Varian shrugs, "I am unsure of that. But there is a high possibility that he is trying to," his eyes gloss over to Feyre, "rebuild his court." He reveals.

Rhysand plays with the food on his plate, "I'll have to go over there and see what is happening for myself. He has been inactive for over three years and now he gets off his ass and does something? There is something going on that we don't know about." He says.

Feyre shakes her head, "Enough talking about this. We don't need any more pressure put upon us. Tonight, let's just focus on the competition tomorrow. We will sort things out after." She says, drinking her water.

Her mate entwines his hand with hers, planting a light kiss.

The High Lord turns to Auriella, "Daughter of Dawn, Feyre and I wish to speak with you after dinner in my office. We must discuss certain matters." He tells her.

Auriella looked into his violet eyes, seeing that gentle darkness cloud them. He held authority over her, yes, but he was not her High Lord. She was not going to give him the answers he wanted, not until she spoke to Damian.

So she nodded once, saying nothing.