novelxo Chapter Forty-One
Mircea
Everything was wrong. It had been for the last two days. Marcy and Jackson had still been imprisoned with me, but then last night I was taken back to my old room. I slept in my old bed, or tried to sleep in my old bed, and woke to someone pushing me into a bath. They cleaned me, dressed me, and then I had gone through all the pre-wedding formalities necessary for a royal.
If I was honest, I would say I don’t remember much of it. There was only one piece of information I had to hold onto, and that had been passed on already so there was no other part for me to play. Not until Vali got here. Not until this fucking ring was taken off of my finger and I could control my body again.
But right now? Right now I was at the front of the great hall, standing to one side of the dais and waiting patiently for my bride to walk towards me. My bride dressed in a pure black dress, a familiar and soft smile on her lips which eased my racing heart. There she was, the fake vision of Vali as I had been told to see, working exactly as they had planned. The distorted reality was both so obvious to me and yet so believable. I knew it wasn’t Vali, it couldn’t be, because it was wrong to see her in a black dress on what was our wedding day.
The real Vali wouldn’t wear black, nor would she wear white to blend with her hair. She would wear something golden-brown, a shimmery yet earthy tone that would match her eyes when they glowed. She also wouldn’t wear heels, she’d be barefoot, and that would make sense because we would be outside under the moonlight, not inside away from nature. And she wouldn’t be watching the crown that was waiting for her behind me, she would be looking at me with the same devotion I had as I watched her.
Through the lack of control over my body, I was still able to feel as my eyes stung. As my vision blurred. Maybe those watching thought I was simply tearing up at seeing my bride walk down the aisle towards me, and it was just a part of what should have been happening. But Traian knew it wasn’t because of joy that tears fell down my cheeks, and Nari knew the same.
As did Kang-Dae as he handed Nari under the illusion of Vali over at the front of the ceremony, his eyes locked onto me. He blinked twice before he bowed his head to me, and I bowed my head back while my heart sat in my throat. He’d blinked twice. He’d blinked twice.
“We are gathered here today, to witness as these two join hands for eternity, as they take a step of faith into the future together. As they Bond to one another and promise to love each other unconditionally for the rest of their days.” My uncle’s voice echoed through my ears, and I had to swallow the bile that was burning my throat.
“Unconditional?” I heard someone’s voice ring through the room, just as the temperature dropped a few degrees for good measure. Anne. I couldn’t turn to see if it truly was her, not when my body was being told to stand facing Traian. When I was being told to stand as still as a statue or risk getting killed for my incompetence.
“Antanasia-”
“And what Bond are you talking about? Prince Mircea is already Bonded, already spoken for. This wedding goes against our laws. Aside from the fact he is only to wed his Bonded since they found each other before either of them were married, this marriage is happening under duress.” That was definitely Anne. Thank fucking Selene. I could hear as people stood from their benches and seats, could smell as pendants were removed from bodies and the scent inhibitors no longer concealed their wearers. Wolves.
“Mircea is promised to our Chosen, and if you do not hand him over to our protection, we won’t hesitate to kill you.” Dallas. That was Dallas. It had to be. My uncle’s eyes locked with mine and I scraped whatever control I could back to simply smile at him, I clawed and fought just so I could show I wasn’t defeated.
“Kill me? You’re in a room filled with vampires who have power and loyalty to me.” Traian said, and I saw in my peripheral as Nari, still under the illusion of Vali’s appearance, turned to face the intruders.
“Where is your Chosen?” Nari asked, her voice blending with what I knew was hers and what I remembered as Vali’s. “Did she send you in here to be sacrificed?”
“No, she’ll be here any second now for her mate.” Dallas replied.
My uncle created a ball of fire in his hand as Nari took hold of daggers from hidden pockets in her dress. She didn’t have a power to use in combat since she was an oracle; able to see future possibilities and work her way through life by following the path she wanted. But judging from the look on her face, this wasn’t what she had seen happening tonight, or she believed it wouldn’t happen. Either way, she was surprised, and I knew she hated surprises.
“Mircea, protect me.” She said, and my body finally turned around to see thirty or so wolves inside of the great hall, scattered around the edges to keep the vampires contained. Anne and Dallas were at the centre, just in front of the doors, and I couldn’t stop myself as I gathered energy in my hands and shot it towards them.
But that wall of rippling energy froze as the doors opened and Vali walked in with her hands outstretched, pushing her own power, or her half of our power, against mine. As much as I wanted to back down, I knew I couldn’t… but I could at least try. Knowing that it was the real Vali I was looking at now, the real Vali I was fighting against, did make my body falter for a second, as if the Bond between us was enough to remind me what was most important.
As if the Bond between Vali and I was stronger than the imperium ring.
Vali, pull the Bond. Try to control me. I told her, her eyebrows furrowed as she stared through our colliding energies right into my soul. Confused. She was confused. They’ll make me kill you unless you override the imperium rings control. You can shatter that hold, especially this close.
“Mircea, stop.” Nari instructed, and my body wasted no time in dropping the power it was throwing out. But without that conflict…
I looked at Nari out of the corner of my eye, and saw she wasn’t using the illusion of Vali anymore. And that she had a look of terror on her face. When I looked back to Vali, she was focused entirely on the vampire next to me.
Before I could figure out what was truly happening the room filled with fire, and pure terror iced my veins. Especially when those flames seemed to rush solely to Vali…
All she did was stand there, a defiant look in her glowing red eyes.
And a familiar and soft smile on her lips.