The Shadow King sat on his throne of shadows. The Shadow Palace was a magnificent place. It seemed almost unreal. The walls and floors were of shiny, black stone, but they also rippled like water. You felt like you were being swallowed up. There was an unnatural silence there. It absorbed every sound.
The Shadow King kept his eyes on the prince who managed to find his way to him. The prince fell to his knees before the mythical Shadow King. It took him months to find his way to his palace. He was slowly beginning to think that he was really just a myth and now he was standing in front of him. He was real.
"What brings you here, Prince Ciaran?" the Shadow King asked him.
"Do you know who I am, Your Majesty?" wondered the prince.
"I know everyone," replied the Shadow King. "However, it is a surprise to see the Prince of Deira in the shadows. You don't believe in gods there, after all."
"Not everyone," said the prince.
"So what are you here for, Prince Ciaran?" the Shadow King asked him. "What wish brings you here?"
"I want to become the king of Deira," said Prince Ciaran.
"So an unwanted prince, despised by his father, would like to become a king." laughed the Shadow King. "A bold wish, but I won't grant it."
"Name your price," Prince Ciaran urged.
"I'm sure you would be able to pay any price, but it would be pointless. Death is chasing you and will soon call you to her. Quite possibly before I could grant you your wish," said the Shadow King.
"There must be a way to avoid death."
The Shadow King smirked. "Fate has not been very kind to you, Prince Ciaran," he said. "But there is a way. Only one person has been able to cheat death."
"Who?" asked the prince.
"A girl blessed by the gods. King Damon's bride." replied the Shadow King. "However, she can be crueler than I am. I don't think she would be willing to help the enemy."
"I'll find out how she did it and then I'll come back," said Prince Ciaran.
"I don't think it's a very real possibility, Prince Ciaran, but if you manage to survive, I'll be happy to grant you your wish," said the Shadow King.
The picture has changed.
Prince Ciaran was talking to General Marcellus.
"That's a crazy idea," said the general. "Do you realize what the consequences would be if we kidnapped the king's bride?"
"She can be useful in other ways," said Prince Ciaran.
"She's a witch. She'll kill us." Marcellus objected.
"If she was a witch, she would have cursed our entire army and we would have lost a long time ago," Ciaran countered. "So either she really hates her own kingdom or she's not a witch."
"But how are you going to get her to save your life?" General Marcellus looked at his prince as if he had just gone crazy. "She will be the queen of Amorite and we are at war with them. You are her enemy."
"Not if she falls in love with me. People do crazy things for love."
"Have you lost your mind? She will never fall in love with you."
"We have to try because I don't feel like dying."
"Your army is loyal to you," said General Marcellus giving up. "We'll do what you tell us."
Ciaran smiled mischievously. "Then let's hunt a witch."
The picture changed again. This time they were already at home in Hiraeth.
"If I didn't know you, I'd think you were falling in love with her and not her with you," said General Marcellus to his prince.
"It's just a game. A perfect pretense," Prince Ciaran replied. "She has to believe I love her to get what I want from her."
The image transformed into a new scene.
"Looks like you're jealous," the general smirked.
"He's pulling her away from me," Ciaran said as he watched Amaya and Mathias lay in the grass watching the clouds. She never smiled like that with him. She constantly keeps her distance from him and now hardly sees her because she spends all her time with him.
"Then send him away from her. Order the guards to keep him at a safe distance from her or you can lock him in the dungeon." Marcellus suggested.
"I'm trying to gain her trust. If I put her friend in the dungeon, I'm definitely not going to win her over," Ciaran replied.
"Not even when you look at them like that," Marcellus remarked. "It wouldn't be a problem to make him disappear mysteriously. We'll say he ran away."
"She's not stupid. She wouldn't believe it," said Ciaran. "She's not what we thought."
"I noticed that," Marcellus said.
The vision moved to the dungeon of the palace.
The prince sat behind bars. General Marcellus came to visit him as he did every day.
"Let me go, Marcellus," Ciaran demanded.
"I can't because you'd screw everything up," Marcellus replied. "You've completely lost your mind."
"You heard what she said. A life for a life. You have to stop her."
"She knows what she's doing. We've come too far to give up now."
Ciaran couldn't deny that. He has done a lot to get to this point. He finally had a goal within reach. He didn't protest.
"At least make sure she doesn't hurt herself," said Ciaran.
"I'll try," said Marcellus.
It was dark.
Amaya was alone in the thick darkness. The echoes of her heartbeat carried through the wide, empty space.
A figure formed out of the darkness.
Arawn.
He approached Amaya. With a gentle touch, he smoothed the unruly strands of hair behind her ear. He looked deep into her eyes.
"You refused to see the truth, so I had to show you, who you sacrificed your life for," he told her.
"It's just your delusions." Amaya didn't want to believe what he showed her.
"You yourself feel inside that I am not lying to you," said Arawn. "You always felt there was something wrong with him."
"You are the king of all liars, so why should I believe you?" she still refused to believe.
"Because you know I'm right," Arawn replied. "I've never lied to you."
"You need me, so you'll do anything to get me. For example, allied yourself with King Damon."
"And now you need me," he remarked. "That prince of yours will not protect you from the death that is already coming your way."
⸸
Prince Ciaran woke up with a dagger at his neck. Amaya glared at him with fury in her eyes. A wildfire of anger, as he had never seen before, burned within them. She was trembling with anger. He felt the blade dig into the skin of his neck. He was afraid to even breathe because even the slightest movement could cut his throat.
"You vile liar," Amaya said with all the venom on her tongue she could muster.
"What are you talking about?" Ciaran didn't understand.
"You know very well what I'm talking about, Ciaran," she retorted. "I thought that the prophecy about the eternal king was nonsense and that I would never be foolish enough to create one, but I was clearly wrong. Isn't it, Your Majesty?'
Ciaran sighed. He knew exactly what message her words carried.
"Amaya, let me explain," he said carefully.
Now he had to be really careful with his words. She was like a wild animal ready to kill. She longed for blood. He knew her well enough to not want to end up on her list of enemies she wants to take revenge on.
"I don't need to hear any more lies."
She pressed the dagger harder against his neck, but still not hard enough to draw blood.
"You said you'd never mess with my head," said Ciaran.
"Obviously we both lied," Amaya replied even if she didn't do that, actually. "I should have done it a long time ago and killed you. It would save me a lot of trouble."
"Like the bond between us?" Ciaran remarked.
"There was something suspicious about it from the very beginning. At least now I know what. It is a mockery of the gods. I was bonded with a liar and a traitor. It's a curse."
"Have you thought about the possibility that we are simply destined for each other? We belong together, Amaya."
"Never. It was just a lie."
"I may have lied about the reason I set out to find you, but you must feel that my feelings for you are honest. I didn't lie on our wedding day."
"I would kill you, but you deserve to see what you did to me. It's your fault I'm going to die."
"I was willing to die alone in battle rather than watch you die, Amaya. But you locked me in the dungeon."
"Your remorse won't change what you condemned me to."
"You'll never believe me that I love you, right?" said a desperate Ciaran.
"Never," Amaya said.
General Marcellus and his guards burst into their bedroom. They stopped in shock. Amaya gave them a murderous look.
"Are you arguing again?" said the surprised general.
"Everything is fine," Ciaran said, even though it clearly wasn't.
"In that case, you probably won't like the royal army attacking us," said General Marcellus. "They came for her."
"Wake up all the soldiers, let them arm themselves and prepare for battle. Evacuate Hiraeth. Let there be as little damage and casualties as possible." the prince gave orders.
The guards ran to do as the prince ordered them. General Marcellus remained.
"Is everything really alright?" he asked.
"Of course," Amaya replied in a spooky cold voice. "You may leave, General."
It's kind of crazy how scary she was when angry. Most people are messy and loud when angry but when she was truly furious she was calm. At that moment she was showing her truest self. The one born to kill. Dark creature. Her calmness was almost unnatural. The coldness in her eyes.
Ciaran took advantage of her inattention. He pushed her hand away. He flipped her over. Now he was on top. He held her hands above her head. His grip on her wrists was tight. The dagger she was holding slipped out of her hand. Amaya wanted to pull him away from her, wanted to throw him off her, but Ciaran was bigger and stronger.
"Amaya already knows the truth," Ciaran said to Marcellus.
"And now she wants to kill you," Marcellus laughed. "Again."
"That's not funny," Ciaran snapped.
"You had to expect it to happen one day," Marcellus said.
Ciaran got Amaya off the bed. He was still holding her hands so she couldn't attack. He handed her to the general. Amaya tried to break away from him, but General Marcellus didn't give her a chance and twisted her hands behind her back.
"Ciaran, it hurts," she whimpered.
"Don't hurt her," said Ciaran.
"She's just playing on you," Marcellus said. "She wanted to kill you a few seconds ago. Do you remember?"
"Take her somewhere she'll be safe. Don't let anyone get to her." Ciaran ordered him. "And don't let her run away."
Amaya laughed. "Do you really think you can hold me back, little prince?"
"It's for your own good, Amaya. There are soldiers out there who want you dead and you're mortal now," Ciaran told her.
"Because of you," Amaya snapped, showing her anger for a brief moment. Almost immediately she put on that scary mask of calmness back. "They all will die. Everyone in this palace will die. I will cover this land with their blood. Their screams will be carried in the wind for centuries. And after I'll end with what you love the most, Ciaran, I will kill you and keep your shadow as a trophy."
Her words sent chills down their spines. So much cruelty written in her eyes.
"Why do you want to keep her here when she clearly doesn't want to stay? We don't need her anymore," said General Marcellus.
"Because I care about her and I don't want anything to happen to her," Ciaran emphasized to him. "So if you're planning on making her mysteriously disappear or pretending she ran away, you'd better run away too."
"As you order, my prince," Marcellus said humbly.