Long before Luminaraeth was divided, back when Kings and Queens ruled, worlds interacted. The humans knew of beings who held magic in their veins, and these beings of magic knew others bearing the same gift, only they were stronger and more powerful, blessed with raw gifts of the elements. These beings were known as the Fae.
The fae were friends of Luminaraeth for eons, sharing their gifts and knowledge with them, but over the decades, the relationship between the two worlds became strained. Mistrust, greed, and envy clouded them. A war broke but because the Kings of both worlds did not wish for it, they agreed that they would leave each other's world never to return, and so an oath was made that neither world would interfere with the other, and the gateway between their worlds was closed.
But a young fae female had fallen in love, and her heart would never allow her to leave her betrothed, and he would have done anything to be with her. So they both begged their fathers, the kings, to allow them to marry. The kings relented, for their love was undeniable and was blessed by the heavens.
And so the Fae female gifted with a unique gift inherited from her ancestor Aurevia of the wildfire, stayed and became Princess of her new home. The King worried for his daughter, left her someone who stayed behind to look after her, to protect her, someone blessed with the gift of wind.
*
She had collapsed and awoken at some point. A quick survey of the room confirmed what had happened, but she was too tired to think, so she let darkness swallow her again.
Lyla could barely stay awake when she was conscious; her brain was too foggy, her eyes blurry, her throat was dry, hunger clawed at her, and her limbs were useless extensions of her body.
She had lost her sense of time
Whenever darkness came to claim her, she readily gave in
*
Lucien was losing his patience; his anger could barely be contained. It had been five days, five days of frustration, five days of realizing his care meant more, five days of denying his feelings.
He pushed it off as care for a comrade, a person who had become an important part of their team, a friend. The knowing looks from his friends told him they didn't buy it. Whatever
*
Leo ran towards where they had left their horses; apparently, he had found a secret cave hidden behind rocks. He needed them to check it out; there were signs of activity at the entrance.
They all followed him. The cave led deeper than they assumed, and when it finally gave way, Lucien was too stunned to comprehend what he was seeing.
Three charred corpses, and at the end, chained to the stone was the woman he had been waiting to see for days, but what they had done to her…
Mor's cuss beside him was echoed by Felix, and Livie stared wide-eyed at everything. Leo, though, had his brows furrowed, already trying to calculate what could have happened, but he didn't care; all his focus was on the unconscious female.
His legs carried him to her like his whole body knew where he needed to be, even before thinking it.
"Laura," he whispered, kneeling before her.
The rest of the group moved then, Leo and Felix unchaining her while Livie and Mor helped hold on to her.
Quickly, Livie started healing her, and just in case the bastards had used the green liquid on her, she gave her an antidote. She had woken up at some point, though she had barely been able to comprehend anything.
Leo was now moving around the room, studying the corpses. They seemed to have been burnt alive, even the walls showed signs of a fire, but how? Who burnt them, and how did Laura survive it
Mor helped Livie with what she needed while Felix stood outside guarding
Lucien held onto Laura, her head lying on his lap. They had hurt her beyond words; cuts marred almost every part of her body, several of her ribs were broken, her shoulder was dislocated, her ankle twisted at an angle, she had a deep wound on her thigh and another on her side, and strangulation marks on her neck.
Silent tears had started falling from Livie at some point while Mor just stared and stared at the female who lay battered before them. He couldn't blame them; he had never seen anyone so physically broken. It made him angry, so angry he wished the three had been alive to face his wrath, so angry he swore to payback tenfold to whoever ran the drug ring. He was going to thoroughly destroy them.
Leo left at some point to find a better hiding place close by where they could move her. Felix remained outside, and he knew it was partly because he couldn't stand to see her wounded body.
For hours, Livie healed her resting only to regain strength, and then she was back at it again. Leo returned, having found a spot, and they all so carefully moved her.
For two days, she remained unconscious, and in those two days, he stayed beside her.
The rest of the group had left them inside a small cave Leo had found. When she finally awoke, Livie and Mor were out looking for herbs while Leo and Felix had left for the closest town to buy supplies.
Her eyes had twitched first before she had slowly opened them, fighting against the blur. He was immediately there.
"Lu…Lucien"
"Hey"
"Where...are…"
"We're somewhere safe, don't worry, I'm here."
She blinked, then blinked again as if trying to determine if he was really there. Her lips turned up in a small smile.
"You came," she said before losing consciousness again
It hit right at his chest. Heavens had she thought they wouldn't? Had she stayed that whole while in there, thinking they would abandon her?
Yet by how hurt she was, it was safe to say she hadn't told them anything
"I will always come for you," he whispered, placing his forehead on hers, "always."
A single tear fell on her as relief and adoration flowed inside him. These past days, he had been trying so hard not to care, but having her here with him, he couldn't deny it; he cared a lot more than he had imagined he would ever feel for her.
Somewhere along the way, she was no longer just a stranger who had become an ally and a friend; she had become someone he respected and admired. Someone whose smile brightened everything, someone he could easily talk to, someone who made him laugh freely, someone he could count on, someone his friends liked, someone who made him feel things he never felt before. It scared him, but at the same time, he liked it.
How had this strange and secretive being become so much
*
At some point, Lyla had woken up again. Lucien slept beside her in a new cave. She didn't know how long it had been or how they had rescued her. They, because she knew his friends had also come from their lingering scents inside the space
Lucien stirred and woke up. His eyes surveyed her up and down before settling on her face again. She had never thought she would miss those starry orbs so much.
"Hey," she started
"Hi' he smiled
"Where's everyone?"
"Out on errands. How are you feeling?"
"Better"
"Hungry? You should probably eat," he said, trying to move, but she held his arm.
"Thank you for coming for me."
"Of course. Did you…Did you think we wouldn't?"
She looked to where her hand held his, "towards the end, yes."
"Laura…"
"Lyla," she said, finally letting out that bit of truth. She looked up, waiting for his reaction to the deception, but to her surprise, he smiled, "You knew?"
"I suspected it wasn't your real name. The others did too. You were just a bit slower at responding at times."
She smiled shyly, "Sorry."
"No, we get it, we were strangers."
"Still…I'm sorry for not telling you earlier."
"Lyla," he whispered, familiarizing himself, "Lyla," he said again, a bit louder, and her name was a sigh, a relief, an assurance, a call to her soul.
She reached and hugged him, and he responded immediately, wrapping his hands around her, careful of her still healing body.
Rain, wood, and spice
Slow tears ran down her face before she realized it, and he inched closer, his warmth an assurance that she was okay, she was safe.