THE PALACE;
Sage fought to move, her feet still heavy as stone. At the same time, fear tightened in her chest. The assassins were no ordinary men — and they were coming for King Thalion.
A strange surge of energy rushed through her body. She squeezed her eyes shut, then forced them open.
"AStra," she whispered.
The weight vanished, she was finally able to move.
She stumbled forward, then broke into a run, racing out of the palace. She had to leave town, had to get back to Miss.Roselyn. She would be sick with worry by now.
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Meanwhile....
in the king's chambers, Thalion lay awake on his bed in the darkness.
He hadn't been able to sleep. Something felt wrong.
A presence lingered in the room.
It vanished.
Then it returned... stronger, not one, four. Thalion sat up slowly, listening as footsteps crept across the stone floor.
A blade flashed toward his face.
He rolled aside just in time. The knife struck the pillow where his head had been.
The attacker lunged again.
Thalion dodged, then drove his fist forward. The punch connected with the man's jaw, sending him crashing to the floor.
Heat flared in Thalion's hands. His fists burned red, flames curling around his skin, but the fire did not harm him.
Thalion stepped forward slowly toward the intruder laying on the floor, but suddenly, sharp claws raked across his back.
He groaned in pain and spun around.
Another attacker drove a blade into his side.
Pain exploded through him.
The knife was coated in poison. He felt it spreading, weakening him. It was as if half his power had vanished.
The three assassins closed in: the one with the burned face, the one with the claw, and the one who had stabbed him.
They grabbed him and forced him to his knees. His head bowed despite his struggle. He kept groaning in pain.
Footsteps echoed through the chamber.
Thalion lifted his head and met a pair of red eyes. A dagger gleamed in the figure's hand.
His heart pounded.
Slowly, his claws began to grow.
Then, in a flash, he moved.
The two assassin's holding him down dropped to the floor dead. He turned to look at the last assassin with the dagger. Thalion's eyes burned red as he stared at the person before him who didn't seem to be affected or scared by what had happened to the others.
Thalion made to attack but stopped when he noticed the assassins attention somewhere behind him, he turned back and saw a strange feminine figure in the dark, he stared harder but couldn't see who it was.
He turned to look at the assassin but he was no where to be found.
The feminine figure stepped out of the dark. Thalion froze, as je turned to look, it was who he never expected to see.
"Seraphine" he called.
_____________________
SERAPHINE;
It took every ounce of patience I had not to kill this man.
I stared at him, disgust and fury burning in my chest.
He walked toward me and stopped only inches away. A slow smirk spread across his face as his eyes traveled over me, as if inspecting his prize.
Before he could take another step, I raised my dagger to his throat. The blade pressed against his skin, and he froze.
"Where is she?" I demanded.
"Who?" Thalion asked calmly.
"My daughter," I replied, pushing the dagger harder against his neck. A thin line of blood slid down his skin.
"So… that's what you're looking for." He laughed softly, mockingly.
"Find her if you can."
In the next instant, a powerful kick sent me crashing to the floor. My dagger skidded across the stone.
I rose slowly, brushing dust from my dress.
"So stupid for a father," I muttered and vanished.