Chapter 28: Twenty-three

I practically flew down the stairs preparing myself for anything. Another scream sounded and I ran faster. When I had finally gotten off the stairs I ran through the halls and towards the door. What I saw coming through it stopped me in my tracks. I couldn't help the small gasp that left my mouth at the sight.

There was blood. So much blood. Tamlin was carrying the screaming faerie over his shoulder as he ran through the halls.

"Tamlin, stop!" I yelled, and to my greatest surprise, he did, "You'll make it worse." I ran over to him and grabbed the Faeries shoulders, "You can't hold him like that, you'll only make him bleed faster. I gave Tamlin quick instructions and soon the two of us had carried the wounded Faerie into the dining room and set him gently on the table.

"Can you use your magic?" I asked him quickly. He just shook his head and looked down as if it was a weakness. Honestly, I didn't give a fuck what he perceived as what was a "mortal weakness" I just needed to assess the situation. "Alright. We need to stop the bleeding. Now. Get some cloth and begin to pack the wound." I looked towards him. He looked extremely wary of my instructions. From the moment I met him, I knew he was the type of male that didn't like to be bossed around, "Go." I demanded. If looks could kill, I'd be dead. But he complied, and that was all that mattered.

I knelt down to where the faerie's face was, and offered it the most comforting smile I could muster at that moment, "My wings." The faerie cried to me, "She took my wings."

"I know." I pushed the faerie's hair from its eyes to reveal tears upon tears that had fallen, "You'll be alright. I swear it." My voice was softer than usual.

Tamlin quickly came back with the cloth. And only seconds later we were joined by a bloody Lucien who'd walked through the front doors. It seemed like Lucien had found the Faerie and Tamlin had carried him back.

I looked to the High Lord again, "On my count, you're going to press those clothes to the wound and press down. We need to stop the bleeding as fast as possible." I assumed the two wouldn't be familiar with mortal methods of healing when I asked Tamlin to get the clothes in the first place. I was correct  when I saw the looks of pure curiosity and disbelief from both of them. I chose to ignore it and kneel back down next to the Faerie again, "This is going to hurt. But I need you to let us do it. Do you understand me?" Another pained tear slipped from the faerie's eye but he nodded at me.

I looked back up to Tamlin and gave him a firm nod. He didn't spare me another glance as he pleased the cloth to the Faeries back. Another scream pierced the room. I closed my eyes at the raw pain that laced it.

I looked at the Faerie again, "Don't think about them. Just look at me ok? You'll be ok." I felt my eyes fill with tears that I wouldn't allow to spill.

"She took my wings." The faerie cried again, "She took my wings." he repeated.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry." I smiled at him again. Trying to relay assurance, but we both knew it was empty.

Lucien had brought in a bowl of water and new clothes only a moment ago. Tamlin handed him the bloody rags and Lucien took them into a different room as Tamlin began to clean the wound with the new rags.

I stood up again, this time to truly inspect the damage. A breath whooshed from my lungs. Whoever she was, hadn't just taken his wings. She'd ripped them straight from his back. The wounds were jagged— cartilage and tissue cut unevenly. Almost as if she'd sawed his wings off bit by bit. Mother above, his pain must be unimaginable.

Blood still oozed from his back, telling me our attempts to stop the bleeding weren't working.

"She took my wings." He repeated again.

"You have to keep still." I practically whispered, "You'll bleed faster if you don't."

"N-n-no." The faerie cried trying to twist on his back, away from Tamlin, from the pain that surely radiated as Tamlin tried to clean the cuts and stop the bleeding.

I grabbed the faerie and as gently as I could push him down to keep him from moving. He trashed in my grip, but he was weakened and I would not let this faerie die because he didn't know that moving could kill him. I looked at the Faerie's face once more to see that all the color had blanched, leaving a sickly green-white in its wake. I looked up at Tamlin, we both shared a knowing look.

"Lucien," Tamlin said— a quiet command. Lucien's metal eye narrowed, backing up a step. And another. And then vomited in a potted plant before sprinting out of the room.

The Faerie twisted in my grasp again, drawing my attention back t the situation at hand. To be honest, the sight before us would make anyone vomit, and I didn't know Lucien very well. Who was I to judge?

I looked at the faerie again, "Please," I begged him, "Hold still."

"She took my wings." He sobbed, "She took them."

"I know," I murmured, "I know."

Tamlin touched the rag to one of the Faeries wounds, the faerie screamed so loudly my senses guttered. My grip loosened for only a moment and the Faerie tried to rise, but his arms buckled, and the faerie collapsed face-first onto the table.

Blood gushed so fast, the faerie had lost too much blood already. The blood had run down the table and had dripped onto the floor creating a puddle of red. A sight that would only add to the gory memories that had already been seared into my mind.

"The wounds aren't clotting." He spoke softly.

"I know." I didn't even look up at the High Lord. My attention was only on the wounded Faerie that looked like he could barely even lift his head.

The faerie whimpered, panting slowly, "She took my wings." he whispered. And somehow the sound was even worse than when he was sobbing. It was like the Faerie had accepted his fate. And I knew then, that the Faerie was going to die. Death wasn't just hovering in this hall; death was counting the faerie's last heartbeats.

I took the faeries hand in mine, and the faeries fingers wrapped around mine almost instinctively.

I may be a monster, but no one should have to die alone. I wouldn't stand for it.

"She took my wings." The faerie whispered again, his shaking subsiding again.

I smiled at the faerie again— a soft smile I mainly used with my family, "You will fly again." I stroked the faerie's limp hair, "It will be alright." The faerie closed his eyes and I tightened my grip on his hand.

"My wings." He whispered.

"You'll get them back. And you will taste the skies again. I promise."

The faerie struggled to open his eyes, "You swear?"

"I swear." I breathed. The faerie managed to smile a bit and closed his eyes again. \

And when I felt the faeries breath grow slower I began to whisper. A prayer I had heard since I was little to honor the dead who had died nobly in service to The Flame. I whispered in a language so old, I may have been the only one in Prythian who understood it, "mater te tenet," I whispered, "duc te ad illiam. per portas transeas. olfacies agros immortales lactis et mellis. Non timeas malum. Non sentias dolorem. Introeat in aeternum." I finished the small prayer as I felt the faerie take his last breath. I vaguely heard Tamlin whispering a similar prayer, but my gaze was focused on the faerie whose body had gone limp on the table.

Yet another being who had died in front of me. Who's death I could blame myself for in one way or another. More blood was added to my hands and another person was added to my long list of names.

I stood from the ground, leaving no trace of the person I had been only moments ago, "I'll take care of the body."

"Wai—"

"I said I'll take care of it." I looked back to the faerie, barely hearing the sound of Tamlin leaving the room.

─── · 。ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

I stood under the large tree looking at the freshly dug grave. It was almost dawn now and I'd spent the entire night burying that faerie. The worst part was I didn't even know their name.

The person who had done that... there were no words to describe the horror. I had dealt my fair share of injuries and torture— never to an innocent and I did not let anyone suffer longer than they had to.

Maybe I was a hypocrite. But it didn't make it right.

I wished I could give that faerie justice. But I was a foreign world I knew nothing about, I had no evidence to look at to find this mystery "she" and there was nothing I could do.

I just wished I could do something. With my life. With everything.

But all I had was what I was given. And I was not given much.

─── · 。ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

Heyyy, this is the beginning of some harsh stuff that's gonna go down and it might be a bit triggering. just a fwi. But I hope you guys liked this chapter and seeing the softer side of Dani. Love you guyssss.

Also my only editor is grammarly and I don't feel like re-reading my stuff because I will re-think my entire life. therefore, i hope you all enjoyed this chapter🥰