The Fall of Vequera

Chapter fifty-nine | Valia

LOCATION: ARCADIOS, VEQUERA

YEAR: 622 C.E

A SHARP PAIN COURSED THROUGH HER HAND, SUDDENLY.

It had begun to bother her as she stared down at it. The high lady turned to Mary as she slept. The moment was peaceful on the surface but in reality, as long as they were in Arcadios, they would not be at peace. Her thoughts often wandered to Arya and her death as she tried to push the thoughts away, they still came to her mind. Images of her head rolling to Valia's feet flooded into her mind. In front of the fireplace, Valia banged her head against the cushioned chair she sat in. Her hands dug into her thighs. She wanted it all to stop but she knew it would not. She was not much of a hopeful person, not when she longed for it.

She gave them two days and a day had passed quite quickly to her annoyance. And there hadn't been a word from the council or Nikolai. She breathed as she dimmed the fire down until it sizzled away into strands of smoke. Darkness filled her vision as she sighed. Thoughts of Koa pushed through her mind, and she wondered what he was doing and if he took her advice about Prince Tieran. Another pain shot from her hand, and she hissed in pain. She lit the fireplace again, looking down at her hand once more. Then she saw it, the black veins. They went all the way up to her elbow. "Mary?" She called out, her voice shaky.

Everything moved quickly as she forced herself up, but she struggled to keep her balance. No matter how loud she cried out Mary's name, she didn't even stir. Her heart sank as her hands fell to Mary's shoulders and when she saw that the black veins were all over her body. Tears ran down Valia's face as she began to frantically rub Mary's arms, her face, her hands. Anything to stop whatever that was inside of her from reaching to the surface of her skin. It caused black marks to appear onto her skin and spread. A wheeze left Mary's lips as Valia struggled to pick her up with her own body aching. Her mind spun as she thought of everything she had been in contact with since she had been in Arcadios then it dawned on her. The goblet. A groan escaped her and Valia pulled up the door with shaky hands but as soon as she saw the massacre outside of her chambers. All of the knights she had taken to the palace with her were dead.

The high lady remembered what Averill had told her about their swords being soaked in poison. Did Vequera have poison-soaked weapons for Ventrui as well? She stepped over their bodies as she made her way out of the hall with Mary still in her arms. Her vision was blurry, and it pulsed. The flame was barely a dim of light within her. The goblet had been soaked with poison. She thought weakly. A shiver ran down her body as it lost its heat and her legs wobbled but she continued on. Footsteps sounded down the hall and she glanced over her shoulder, seeing Nikolai with three or four knights. She couldn't count properly as she tried her best to get far away from them, but it was no use. She had barely made it out of the hall before they caught, grabbing at her arms until Mary left from her arms to the ground. A cry left Valia as she was dragged from Mary.

"No. No. No." She screamed out. "Let go of me." Repeating those words over and over again until what came out were mere sobs that sounded like words. They fell to deaf ears as she watched as Mary was thrown over the shoulder of one of the knights. She had forgotten about the poison they had used to murder Myrna with. But she wasn't Litinae, so why was it affecting her? Was it because of Myrna's soul and the flame?

She came face to face with Nikolai as he smirked at her. "I will not take credit for this, but I will enjoy it, nonetheless. Take them to the cells. Keep them separated." Valia glared at his back as he walked away, imagining him burning and his screams filling the palace. Her tears stopped, she decided he would not see her shred a single tear. He would regret whatever he had planned for her and Mary.