CRESSIDA'S POV
At dawn, the carriage waited.
There was no ceremony. No goodbyes. Just solemn looking guards and a teary eyed Alicia.
I glanced back at the palace one last time, trying to retain its memory. I could see the balcony of my room from down here. How the sunlight reflected against the palace's roofs.
"We have to go princess," the carriage driver said softly.
My chest tightened at his words.
This was it. This was goodbye.
I finally got inside the carriage, trying not to cry as it started to move.
Alicia grabbed my hand and squeezed it reassuringly and I smiled as I lowered my head to her shoulder.
At least I wasn't completely alone.
We still had each other.
The journey seemed endless, my stomach was sick from its motions and as we travelled further I kept praying for something to happen, something bad.
For bandits to attack our carriage and rob us so we couldn't reach Silverfang, just something dramatic like that. But of course nothing happened, the journey was uneventful and smooth.
Finally, we arrived in the ice covered mountains of the Silverfang Empire, where the road was dark and the air was heavy and cold.
Alicia put on her gloves and handed mine to me, but I ignored her.
I liked the cold and I honestly hoped I would freeze to death before I reached the Black King's Castle.
Unsurprisingly, I didn't freeze.
Our carriage finally came to a stop at the Black stone walls that seemed to pierce the clouds, the silver gate was high and shiny, decorated with ancient runes that radiated power.
Even their warriors were different, they stood tall and proud adorned with their black and silver uniforms and their harsh frowns.
This was it, the mighty Silverfang Empire.
"Wow, this place is no joke," Alicia said under her breath.
One of the guards stepped forward, his voice as cold and cruel as I imagined it to sound.
"What business do you have in Silverfang?" he asked, looking through the carriage.
"We are from Stormhaven," the Carriage driver replied, handing him the scroll. "We have come with your King's newest bride, Princess Cressida."
The guard actually scoffed at the mention of my name. "Another bride, huh?"
My breath caught.
"Open the gates," he instructed. "The Black King's newest bride has arrived."
The heavy silver gates slowly opened and our carriage continued inside as my hands began to tremble.
I had finally arrived, in the empire that was meant to kill me.
****
Silverfang did not welcome brides.
I understood that the moment our carriage passed beneath its gates.
The pack people barely regarded this strange looking carriage, they barely noticed my presence.
Stormhaven had celebrated my sacrifice.
Silverfang received it like paperwork.
The carriage slowed to a stop as we arrived in front of the large black castle. Armed guards were lined in rows, their silver armor gleaming against the dull sky.
None of them even budged at my carriage. None of them looked at me with reverence—or even curiosity.
I was not a bride to them.
I was a nobody.
Alicia stepped down first then offered me her hand. I took it, trying to steady myself as my boots touched the Silverfang soil. Even the ground was cold.
An older woman dressed in long dark robes approached us, her expression sharp and assessing.
"Princess Cressida of Stormhaven?" She looked between me and Alicia in slight confusion.
I stepped closer to her.
"You are summoned before the Royal Council," she announced flatly.
Not welcomed.
Summoned.
We followed the woman through the Castle, past its elegant halls carved with obsidian stone, with nothing but our footsteps against the glossy marble tiles.
Servants walked past us without any acknowledgement.
For the first time in my life, I felt… invisible.
The council chamber was vast and circular, its ceiling high and adorned with a small chandelier.
The Elders sat in elevated seats, in the centre was a golden seat, decorated with fur and the Silverfang Crest.
That was his seat, I figured. But it was empty.
King Alessio didn't seem to care about the face of his latest bride.
"So this is Stormhaven's tribute?" One of the Elders said, his eyes trailing around my body in a way that made me feel bare.
"She looks fragile," another said.
"She looks like a peasant, is this really the princess of Stormhaven?"
"Stormhaven is a destitute pack, I am even surprised they could produce someone like this."
"She is beautiful though," the first elder said with a pitiful smile. "Too bad she will not be able to help the Alpha procreate."
Their words felt like bullets on my skin. I tightened my jaw, trying to will myself not to break down in front of them.
I would not give them the satisfaction of fear.
A figure moved from the side of the chamber, slow and deliberate.
He was tall and broad shouldered, dressed in a silver robe that was embroidered with the crest of the royal house. His black hair was long enough to be swept into a tight bun. His features were sharp and precise in a way that felt predatory.
And his eyes… as soon as they met mine, I felt something in me recoil.
His eyes were black.
They felt bottomless, like looking into an endless dark hole.
"This one will do," he said calmly, stopping right in front of me.
I felt sick.
The other elders turned to him, confusion on their faces.
"Lord Severin, have you already reviewed the decree?" One of them asked.
"I already approved it and the money has been sent out. She will become King Alessio's next bride." He said with a smile that made me want to hurl.
This was him.
The man who approved my death.
Severin circled me slowly, like a predator assessing prey. I felt his presence before he touched me—and when his fingers closed around my wrist, a sharp chill shot through my body.
I gasped before I could stop myself.
His touch was wrong.
Cold in a way that had nothing to do with temperature.
His smile widened. "Still breathing. That's a good sign."
Laughter rippled through the council.
My skin crawled.
"Will she survive the bond?" someone asked lazily.
Severin released my wrist and shrugged. "Unlikely."
More laughter.
"Let us hope she lasts longer than the last one," another elder said.
Severin's gaze lingered on my face. "Hope is unnecessary. The outcome is already decided."
I clenched my fists, nails biting into my palms.
I hated him.
Instantly. Viscerally.
This man did not see me as human—or even as a sacrifice.
I was an inconvenience he had neatly filed away.
"She will be prepared immediately," Severin continued. "The king will meet her when the time comes."
"When the time comes," I echoed quietly.
Severin glanced at me, surprised for the first time that I had spoken.
Something flickered in his eyes—interest, perhaps. Or amusement.
"Careful, princess," he said softly. "Curiosity does not extend one's lifespan here."
I said nothing.
But I memorized his face.
They dismissed me shortly after.
No farewell. No instructions given to me directly. I was escorted out as if the decision had never involved my life at all.
I was placed in an assigned chamber. It was probably the most beautiful room I had ever been in before, but it was cold. Not just because of the temperature, but everything, the color of the walls, the decor, everything felt like an icy prison.
"These people I can't stand them," I whispered to Alicia angrily as I paced the room. "They treat me like I am cattle led up for slaughter with no regard to my crown or my pack."
Alicia only stared at me helplessly.
"I was at the council and this man—Severin—he approved this. He approved me. He grabbed my wrist like I was nothing."
Alicia's face was pale with rage. "He dared to touch you?"
"And laughed about my dying," I added heatedly.
Before she could respond, the doors to the chamber burst open.
Five maids entered at once, their expressions cold.
"Disrobe," one of them ordered me.
"What? Do you have any idea who you are talking to?" Alicia stepped forward. "She hasn't even—"
"Move," another maid snapped, shoving her aside.
Their hands grabbed at my sleeves, ripping my dress.
"Stop this!!" I shouted in panic as I struggled with them. "How dare you treat me like this?!"
The maids didn't listen and they did not stop. Until I was naked and my travelling clothes had become torn fabric on the floor.
They dragged me into a stone bathing chamber, steam rising from the massive pool carved into the floor. The water was hot—too hot—and when they shoved me forward, it burned.
I gasped, my knees nearly buckling.
Rough brushes scraped against my skin. Soap stung my eyes. Fingers dug into my arms, my shoulders, my back, scrubbing as though they were trying to erase something beneath my flesh.
Like they were trying to erase who I was.
Like they were erasing Stormhaven itself.
I could hear Alicia's voice from outside the bath, furiously demanding to be let in.
But she was helpless, we both were.
And so I closed my eyes and endured, because that was all I could do.
By nightfall, I was dressed in ceremonial silver, my honey blonde hair braided and adorned with gems that felt like chains.
Then I was paraded around the royal court, filled with disinterested elders and bored servants.
The older woman from earlier led me around, introducing me to the various guests.
I felt like a pawn in a twisted game, being played according to their fantasies.
All I wanted to do was to disappear from here. I walked around numbly until—
I felt something.
A presence.
Heavy. Intense. Commanding.
My heart seemed to stop as I turned my head.
At the end of the hall, a man stood.
Dark hair, eyes that felt like smoke and fire with an intense energy that seemed to knock me off my feet.
I knew it before anyone said anything.
That was him, King Alessio.
The man who was going to kill me.
From the look in his smoky eyes, I could tell that he recognized me too.
I expected him to step forward, or even smile at me.
Instead he frowned, and with an nauseated look in his eyes, he turned and walked away, followed by his guards.
Leaving me as stunned as everyone in the room.