"some monsters take the form of humans." 

Thethia: Royal Grounds, Underground Dungeon

• Elizabeth •

What is going on?

Elizabeth froze as she stared at her sister. Elianna had her head hung low, and her limbs fell limply against those chains. Turning her head to the side, she saw another engraved circle beside the one her sister was trapped in. That one was empty, and even a fool would know that it was for her.

Panic rose in her as she spun around, ready to escape this place. However, before she could even take a step towards the door, the Temple Keepers closed in with each other, shoulder to shoulder, forming a barrier which prevented her from leaving.

"Move!" she demanded, disregarding her composure totally.

"My daughter, do not be afraid," Wynston said, the sly smile remained on his face.

"What do you want from me?" she panicked, the desperation in her shaking voice was unmistakable.

"You're going to get stronger and you will hold an unimaginable amount of power," Wynston held her cheeks in his palms and looked towards her as though she was nothing but his tool.

"You have truly gone insane, Father," she spat, seized by the overwhelming fear within her.

"Your Highness, you would be truly powerful with the girl's gift," The Priest snickered while his scrawny fingers danced in anticipation.

She abhorred the Priest, knowing that he was the reason behind Father's power hunger. Since they were born, the Priest had been instilling ideas in him. Although no one ever told her about anything, she could confidently assume that he was the reason why her sister was kept hidden and never conferred the title of a princess. When she passed out from her illness when she was eight, Renae told her that the Priest had fed her with her sister's blood so that she could recover from it. The thought of it utterly disgusted her that she eventually spent the next few days heaving her guts out without anyone knowing.

Although she couldn't admit that she liked her sister, she never wanted to be the monster who would kill mindlessly in order to trample on many others. In this instance, she finally understood the meaning behind the Second Prince's words. But its too late to even regret now.

"I won't do it," she rejected firmly.

"Elizabeth," Wynston frowned, and the sharpness in his tone sent a cold chill down her spine.

"If that's all you wanted her for, then let her go," she spoke coldly. "I will never take her powers."

"In this case, you left me with no choice." Wynston eyed on those Temple Keepers behind her and commanded, "Get her."

Elizabeth spun around and pushed away an outstretched arm that was trying to grab onto her. Casting a blinding light towards the two Temple Keepers in front of her, they stumbled back and she immediately swung to the side to get past them but was hindered by Temple Keepers at the back. Just how many of them are there here? 

She clicked her tongue as a display of annoyance and the Temple Keepers charged towards her. Her agility had helped her escaped from their forceful grasps while she released another flash of light to buy herself some time. Chanting something in Thethiac, she used glamour to change her appearance to look like one of the Temple Keepers. She moved discreetly and blended in perfectly with them. The confused Temple Keepers stared at one another, not knowing who amongst them was the princess. They walked in circle, and she inched through the perimeter until she was close to the door. Then, she launched towards the door but just when her hand touched the handle, she felt a force charging towards her. Cursing under her breath, she rolled to the side to avoid the incoming energy orb.

Within split seconds, the Temple Keepers surrounded her once again. Three of them pinned her down, pushing her body against the rough, uneven ground with bruising force. She struggled against their hold forcefully until she felt something jabbed through her neck. Screaming from the pain, her vision began to blur while her eyelids grew heavier with each pounding pulse against her temple.

"Why do I always have to become the monster for your sake?" she laughed bitterly, peering straight towards the blurred silhouette of her father. At the back of her mind, she thought about her sister.

Then, strength left her body, just like how her consciousness left her.

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• Elianna •

The heavy, loud sound of moving shackles woke her up from her sedation. She turned her head to the side weakly and forced her leaden eyelids to open as she saw a few men moving around right beside her. Blinking a few times, her vision began to clear and she immediately recognised these people. They're the ones who often haunted her in her dreams. The Temple Keepers.

She squinted hard, noticing that they were surrounding a body and she caught sight of chestnut brown hair that was in a shade that was identical to hers. When the Temple Keepers moved, she immediately got a glimpse of a familiar face. It was like looking into the mirror, except that she had her eyes wide opened while her reflection closed her eyes. Elizabeth?

Elianna watched as her sister's body slumped against the chains, seemingly unconscious. They had her wrists and ankles cuffed and chains secured her body against the wall. Realisation hit her right away and she glanced down at her body. She was chained in the same way and panic immediately struck her along with a hefty dose of fear. Forcefully pushing against the chains, she struggled to no avail as her body was held close to the uneven ground filled with deep holes and seemed to trace up to a magic circle.

"Just manage to put one down and the other woke," Wynston clicked his tongue in ire. "You children sure are trying to give me a hard time."

"What are you doing to us?" she demanded coldly.

Wynston laughed mockingly and each sound instigated a fierce amount of terror in her heart. They pierced through her skin like blunt needles forcing its way through her skin. Annoying, painful and disgusting.

"Your Majesty, all the preparations were done." A scrawny man sounded from behind Wynston. Elianna have not seen this man before, but he wore an attire similar to those Temple Keepers. Just that, his robe looked more elaborate than those Temple Keeper. He must be the Priest. She assumed.

"What are you going to do?" she insisted on asking, again.

"You will know," the scrawny man screeched, baring his yellow teeth at her.

The Temple Keepers stepped away from Elizabeth and positioned themselves at different points around the both of them. She looked towards her twin with wide eyes. Elizabeth was still unconscious at this point and when Elianna shouted her name, she was still stuck in her own abyss.

Long verses of Thethiac were chanted monotonously and she mentally cursed, knowing that she would die before any help could arrive. The floor beneath her shone brightly, blinding her as panic exploded in her chest and she felt the light pierce through her skin. She screamed at the pain when she felt her gift being drained out forcefully. Her shadows left her bit by bit, leaving a terrifying hollowness within her.

No matter how hard she tried to force her gift back, it would not heed to her command. Then, she tried to draw in a deep breath, but the air went nowhere. She couldn't even be bothered by the pain because the fear of her life slipping out of her was even more terrifying.

I am dying.

━━━━━━━━━━

Thethia: Royal Grounds, The Woods Near the Royal Palace

• Thunder •

"We will reach the Royal Palace up ahead," Thunder announced, voice low.

"How do we find her?" Ilias asked.

"I can feel her presence." Thunder replied.

"You're contracted to her?"

"Not a contract. It's a bond," he corrected, hissing at Ilias. "We need to move fast. Something's wrong with her."

On the way to the Royal Grounds, he felt her panicked and her presence grew weaker. Worst of all, he knew this feeling too well. It was the same feeling he remembered when Jason was dying. Fear penetrated deep into his heart at the thought of losing Elianna. It would be impossible for him to handle the idea of seeing her die. He would never live through the pain that he had experienced ten years ago. He didn't want to be left alone, again.

They moved swiftly through the woods as Thunder guided them closer towards where he knew her to be.

Your Divinity, I'm begging you. 

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