Heart Over Sword-Chapter 256: The Tunnels

Evanna woke in a daze, seeing the flickering blue flames in front of the tent she found herself lying in. Surprisingly she felt just right from the heat of the floor, the furs and to the elf cuddling her side. Her mind was still foggy as she tried to recollect why her body felt so stiff, so sore.

But everything seemed so peaceful, so right as she stared at the handsome elf whose features were soft, white hair a little messy against his clothes.

The princess turned slightly to face him, grimacing from the pain shooting throughout her body on top of the aches and pain from what could only be bruising across most of her skin. Unable to stop herself, Evanna caressed Arawn’s sharp jawline making his lip twitch slightly.

She frowned after seeing dried blood on his lip. That was when the realisation hit her with a hammer to the gut, and her heart broke all over again. Arawn exerted himself using his powers just like she had whilst trying to defeat the dragon.

The dragon that.. the images of the white beast collapsing on top of Ger flashed across her mind. The way the ice instantly cracked beneath its weight, leaving Ger’s body to fall to the depths of the lake.

A single touch to Evanna’s cheek drew her attention away from the grief trying to drag her into a bottomless pit of despair; her gaze flicked up, her vision clearing as the tears dried up whilst she stared back at Arawn’s soft yet intense icy blue eyes.

They soothed her inner turmoil. Arawn’s thumb wiped away the lone tear that had escaped her eye before resting his hand on her waist.

"I am sorry, Evanna. Truly I am," Arawn whispered. Evanna could hear the sincerity in his words.

With a sigh, she lowered her face to his chest, curling in on him, grimacing against the pain shooting across her body. "I can’t believe it.." she murmured. "It doesn’t seem real even though I saw it with my own eyes."

Arawn stroked her hair soothingly. "I know." The prince didn’t know what else to say or do except to comfort her.

Arawn, too, found the situation surreal. He’d fought beside others, and they’d died before him, but this had been entirely unexpected. He was aware of the existence of dragons, but he never thought one was sleeping under the icy lake in Lyvaria. Now to lose Ger to that dragon in the process of killing it was also unexpected.

Evanna fell back asleep, and he didn’t blame her. They had yet to meet the king and queen of Lyvaria. It seemed almost too cruel to press forwards like this, but Arawn knew she would not stop now, especially after the death of her friend. She couldn’t lose her mother on top of it.

Sleep crept up on him too easily, though it was his own exhaustion from using too much of his gifts that let him allow sleep to take him and cuddle his princess. When the prince next woke, he was disorientated by the flickering blue flames and the darkness outside the tent. He soon realised they were in the tunnels of the mountain, and no light would enter from there onwards.

Evanna was also not beside him. After sitting up and peering outside the tent flap, Arawn found her listening to Axel and Ronan. It didn’t take him long to figure out that Evanna told them they could turn back. She would not want anyone to die because of her.

They were strongly refusing.

"Please do not insult us. We will continue. What happened to Ger could have happened to any of us. And we would gladly lose our lives protecting you. No." Ronan held his hand up, stopping the princess’ interruption. "You need to hear this clearly. We swore an oath to protect you. We might not be knights, but an oath cannot be broken, nor do we wish to break it. You may have chosen us for this quest, but we also chose to follow you. What happens on this journey.. our fate is already written in the stars."

Axel nodded along, pointing his thumb in Ronan’s direction. "What he said. You cannot get rid of us now, lass."

Evanna lowered her head, hands going to her face. "Do not blame yourself. This is not on you. Nor could it ever be. Ger made his choice, as have we." Ronan patted her back comfortingly.

"Hold ya head up high, lass." Axel tilted her chin up with his enormous hand. What would she do without them? Her heart pinched just thinking those dark thoughts. She did not know. Ger was already lost.

Evanna’s gaze moved to Arawn, who sat beside Ronan, his gaze intently on her. She was not crying like he expected. Though she did not cry much earlier, only a few tears escaped her eyes.

No, something seemed to have changed in Evanna’s gaze, though. A slight hardness had crept in. Those emerald eyes that always glinted with mischievousness and with a little innocent light had dulled slightly. Of course, she was grieving, but Arawn felt pained to see her in such conflicting agony, even if it was hidden very well.

As expected of a princess who had been taught from a young age how to mask her emotions. This was no time to mask emotions, though, especially among friends. He hoped to see her smile and laugh again. It might not be today or tomorrow, but soon he wanted to see those eyes brighten once more.

**

Hours later, Evanna woke relatively early and found Axel and Ronan already awake, if a little tipsy from whatever they’d been drinking. They offered her some, but for once, she refused. The burning taste of alcohol was not what she wanted.

All she felt now was a cold numbness clawing at her heart, and she didn’t want to feel it again. Her mother’s impending death was hanging over her like a guillotine axe, though she also felt the weight of everybody’s lives on her shoulders. Flicking her gaze on Arawn, she couldn’t even imagine how she would be to lose him.

Ger.. dying.. was surreal, even though it was evident without her best friend sitting with them. It was a strange weight, a loss settling deep in her heart. Her eyes were drying as a numbness settled over her.

"It is early morning." Garrett returned from his post. Evanna didn’t think much about it and instantly felt guilty for passing out and leaving everything to the others. What an awful woman she was. "Your Highnesses, are you ready to move?" freewēbnoveℓ.com

Garrett’s eyes flicked over them, an edge of worry in his dark gaze. Seeing such emotion from him was strange, especially over her. "Why would we not?" She asked, rising from her spot on the ground. "Let’s get this over with."

As almost paralysing as it felt knowing her best friend, her lifelong friend, Ger, had perished, she knew he would want her to continue. Her mother’s life was in danger, and facing a dragon seemed more terrifying than meeting her grandparents, that seemed to have a rocky past with her mother. Whether they gave the gem willingly or not, she was determined to get it no matter what.

After packing up their camp, the remaining group ventured deeper into the tunnels. Fiza had turned into their guide after stating she had travelled through most routes under the mountain. Almost trudging through the mountain, the group was quiet, lost in their thoughts, the heavy weight of grief surrounding them. It didn’t stop them from being alert, though.

Although they weren’t expecting warriors to jump out of invisible doorways in the walls of the tunnels and point their swords at their throats. Axel had his hands on the throwing axes by his sides, Ronan a hand on his sword, but Evanna raised her hands as Garrett, Arawn, and Fiza moved slightly to the front.

A few swords lowered slightly, wavering once Evanna pierced the elves’ eyes with her own. A few flinched, and some glanced at each other with widened eyes. Yet their swords did not lower. Whoever was in charge did not tell them to drop their defence.

The sounds of boots clinking together at a languid pace reached Evanna’s ears before she noted a man with long dark hair flowing past his shoulders in a straight line, eyes a piercing blue and as sharp and cunning as a fox, an outfit that stood out among the guard and a smirk on his beautiful lips.

"*Well, this could be the beginning of quite the hearty joke.. A Flori prince, the spymaster, humans and a woman that could be none other than Princess Evanna Goodrich.*"

"*Edric. You should know better than to greet your guests with such hostility,*" Arawn greeted, his voice tight.

"*Guests?*" The man in charge, Edric’s voice lowered menacingly. "*Is that what you are?*" He glanced at the tunnel walls like they answered his question. "*You try sneak into the palace without sending word.*"

Feeling particularly sour and somewhat menacing herself, Evanna stepped forwards, glaring at the elf whose sword cut into the side of her neck. He flinched, dropping his gaze and moving his sword away. Ronan and Axel tried to reach for her, but one look stopped them.

"*I do believe word would be sent from the borders of our arrival.. Is this how you treat the prince of the Flori and the princess of Dunhurst? If these tunnels were truly a form of defence, you would not allow the entryway to be so unguarded.*" Evanna stepped closer, sneering at the elf whose face grew harder by the second. "*Or am I to believe the Lyvarians are so foolish or lazy to leave one of the entryways to the palace without any form of defence?*"

Edric’s brows pulled together as his eyes scanned her features, no doubt looking for pointed ears after she spoke fluent Muranthian and in the Lyvarian tongue, unlike the Florian, whose words were spoken much slower and much easier to understand.

Though he was already aware of who she was. So why was he now looking at her astonished, like he recognised her?

Did she resemble either of her grandparents? She would not know, nor did she care. All that mattered was getting what she wanted. The gem that would finish all of this.

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