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∞ | Chapter 29 - Impasse | ∞

Neutral Grounds

"Is it always like this?"

Jarek raised an eyebrow quizzically.

"Waiting," she answered listlessly, eyes lifting to meet his.

"Yes, I suppose," he replied quietly and she studied her first friend that she had made.

"Do you feel like you're missing out?" Adrastea gestured to herself in the camp.

Apparently, Rhydderch hadn't trusted her to keep her word and had posted Jarek as her babysitter. She couldn't blame him. If she was in his position, she guessed that she'll probably do the same.

He laughed. "Yes. But having your company isn't all that bad."

She snorted. "I'm sorry that Rhydderch is making you babysit me. I know you'd rather be out fighting."

Jarek's eyes softened as he glanced away. "I would be telling you a lie if I said I enjoyed fighting."

"Why?" she peered at him. "Don't you? Aren't you here in the rebellion to feel like you're making a difference?"

He tensed. "That's only half the reason."

Adrastea bit her lip. "What's the other half?"

There was a silence so tense that it made her feel uncomfortable for even asking.

"I'm sorry if I was making you uncom-"

"Getting into the thick of things brings me one step closer to Eria," Jarek interjected. "If I die in the midst of battle, I'll be reunited with her."

She gaped at him before looking away. "I see."

Silence reigned once more and she shifted in her seat. What could one say to that? Nothing. Absolutely nothing. There wasn't anything she could say to comfort Jarek or to make things better. It was clearly his wish to be reunited with his soulmate but he didn't want to go about doing it via suicide; he wanted his death to be meaningful.

Besides, she didn't have a clue that was how Jarek had felt.

But, wasn't that how she had felt when it came to her own soulmate and his endeavours? Hadn't she said that she couldn't live without him? And look how she had reacted when she had thought Rhydderch was gone?

Suddenly, everything became clear as if the fog that had clouded her mind was swept away.

"I understand," she said quietly, offering him a tiny smile.

Jarek smiled but she could see it didn't reach his eyes.

"You don't have to feel sorry for me. I made peace with Eria's death a long time ago."

At the tone he had adopted, she could feel her heart break for him. At the opportunities that the pair had lost and that all Jarek had of her was the memories in his mind.

"I-" she began but was cut off by the sound of guns being fired.

* * *

Castle Inanis, Vallisrem

"We are not family," Rhydderch said forcefully, jaw clenched tight as he restrained all the fury he had bottled up for twelve years.

"We have the same blood in our veins," Medeia said cajolingly.

"You killed my parents."

"They were in my way."

"Why?" he spat, releasing one hold of the reigns he had over his emotions.

"You know why," his aunt said, the same blue eyes that he shared with her was fixed on his coolly. "Your father didn't deserve to be Regnant just because he was a man. I was older, smarter, more capable more than a Regnant than ever will be."

"You didn't have to put Izla and me in those situations."

"I didn't, no. But it was best for me. You would be a potential heir, another obstacle and getting you killed would make it too suspicious."

The soft tone his aunt was using was getting on his nerves. It was as if she was discussing the trivial topic of the state of the weather or something equally banal.

"Enough," he said firmly. "I'm here to conclude our deal, not drag up the past. You will stick to the conditions of our deal, won't you?"

"Who else knows?"

He raised an eyebrow. "Who else knows what?"

Medeia circled around him, the hem of her dress sweeping the floor as she pursed her lips. "Does anyone else know about our deal?"

"No. Circe did, but she's dead," he replied stoically. He couldn't give anything away.

"Not even your little healer?"

"No." His heart pounded and he tilted his head arrogantly. "Are we done with the empty talks?"

She hummed and settled into an ornate chair near the door. "We are if you hand me control over the four cities. It's as easy as that, dear nephew."

This was it.

If he ought to show his hand at this moment in time. Everything was riding on this and if he fucked up, he would lose it all.

"What if I don't?"

"If you don't?" Medeia asked, the smile of incredulity forming on her face as she regarded him.

"If I don't do as agreed," he replied flatly.

"Then what will you do, dear nephew?" she asked, hands clasped over her abdomen, her posture graceful and calm. "Would you run them all on your own?"

"No." His voice was strong and it resounded throughout the room. "I'll use them to get rid of you."

The smile on her face didn't fade one bit.

"And then what will you do? Become the sole Regnant of the five cities? Reclaim your rightful place on the throne should your father have not been murdered? Erase the last twelve years of your life away? Revolutionise our entire culture? Our history?"

He remained silent.

"You've become predictable," she sighed, shaking her head. "And boring." Her eyes met his and she leaned forward, the raven curls that she had fallen across her chest like shiny ribbons.

"Why don't you say it as it is?"

The tone that she was using was sultry and knowing. Rhydderch didn't like it one bit but he wasn't about to admit it. Once more, he remained silent but simply fixed his eyes on hers.

"You want power. You crave it. You want it to run through your veins, letting it thrum through you until its a part of you," she announced, mouth lifting into a smirk. "Like its another appendage of your body."

Medeia stood up and moved towards the desk at the right corner of the room. "Power is addictive isn't, it? Getting it isn't enough. You want to possess it, use it, control it. And you'll do anything to make sure it's yours."

His eyes darted towards the shelf of skulls.

"It is interesting that you and I are actually not as different as I thought," she said, turning around to face him. "It seems that you are worthy of the Karstovoka name after all."

"Power...is addictive, isn't it?" she continued softly, fingers tracing the length of the wooden desk. "Once you get a taste, you can't get enough."

Abruptly, her eyes snapped up to meet his. "I should have seen it coming. Had seen it coming, in fact." Her fingers suddenly dragged the tip of her nails against the wooden surface, producing a piercing screeching sound that rang in his ears.

"Unfortunately, there is only one throne for one Regnant."

He straightened. "I got those cities fair and square. What exactly have you done to win them?"

Medeia shrugged, undaunted. "It doesn't matter. You have three options. First, you can surrender them to me. Secondly, you can run and hide while I will hunt you down like I will do to Izla. Or," she paused. "You can be like your father." Her hand drifted up to her collection of skulls.

"Decorating my castle with your head."

It was as if the room had grown colder just by the icy tone that Medeia had assumed.

"Is that all you can do if I refuse?" Rhydderch asked, eyes gleaming as he sat down on one of the chairs and drummed his index finger on the armrest.

"No, course not. I have my contingency plans," Medeia smiled. "If you're not going to give me the cities, I will burn them all down."

Rhydderch stared at her nonplussed. "I take it that that's your Cleansing Contingency?"

Yes, would it be terrible to enjoy the stiffening in his aunt's shoulders and the way her eyes lost that little glint in them? No.

"You know about that?"

It was his turn to smirk knowingly. "Did you really think I wouldn't know something important as that?" He laughed. "Planting bombs throughout all the cities and activating them when you wouldn't be able to control them."

"How?"

"Where do you think Izla is?" he countered with a smirk that morphed into a glower. "Yes, I lied about that, I'm afraid," he admitted without a hint of remorse or regret.

He sat in silence, eyes gleaming with pure satisfaction while watching the woman who had snatched everything away from him as she struggled to respond.

Finally, her eyes seem to spark with rage and madness; her true colours, he thought.

But when she started to smile and throw her head in laughter, his gut churned and he could only watch in uneasiness as he entertained the thought that perhaps... he didn't have the upper hand at all.

"Do you really think you can outwit me?" Medeia questioned, eyes flaring with tangible madness as she slammed her hands down on the desk.

"Me? No, you can't!" She shrieked. "You may be clever Rhydderch. But I'm more ruthless and more..." she paused. "Diligent."

He clenched his jaw, refusing the urge to back down.

"It seems that I gave you too long a leash," she mused, tapping her nails against the wood. "Fortunately for me, I aim to know all of my enemies' weaknesses."

His heart began to pound and anxiety settled in his stomach, giving him the urge to throw up there and then. Panicked, his mind began to race, wondering what his aunt was talking about but deep down, he knew.

He only had one weakness.

"Did you really think you could have the final say? You did, didn't you?" Medeia cackled. "Unfortunately for you, there's nothing you can use against me. I have nothing to lose but everything to gain."

"You really must be losing touch with yourself to think that I had just one trick up my sleeves," she added triumphantly before rapping her knuckles against the table.

Rhydderch could only watch in masked horror as two Valiants came in and she was dragged into the room.

Everything came to a stop and he could only watch as she was tossed in front of him, bound and gagged. The Valiants that had brought her in left as soon as they did, no doubt they were posted outside the door, ready to barge in at any sign of trouble.

From his position, he could see that her eyes were wet with tears and he could see bruises on her neck. Immediately, he wanted blood. Their blood.

But he couldn't do anything, yet. Things had backfired and now, he was racing to think of something to get them out alive from this impossible situation.

"She is pretty, Rhydderch. I'm immensely glad that the fates blessed you with such a brilliant and lovely soulmate," Medeia crooned as she pulled her up harshly, her actions a contradiction to the demeanour she had taken.

A muffled groan sounded from her gagged mouth and he clenched his jaw hard, already feeling his teeth grinding against each other.

How could he get them out of this?

Adrastea was watching him with fear in her grey eyes and he resisted the strong urge to pull her away from them and to simply lift her into his arms so that they could run.

But it wouldn't work.

He had gotten them into this mess and now, he had to find a way out. With them preferably alive and intact.

"So, I would like to ask once more," Medeia slipped a dagger from her desk and traced the tip of it against her cheek. "Does she know?"

He shook his head. "I told you she doesn't!"

"Really?"

To Adrastea, Medeia grinned beatifically. "Did you know Rhydderch is my nephew?"

Rhydderch could only watch as the tip of the dagger pressed into her cheek and immediately, a bead of crimson blood welled out.

"Let her go. How can you expect her to talk when you gagged her?"

"Oh! That's right! I completely forgot! You must excuse my manners. They seem to have completely vanished along with Rhydderch's."

With the gagged removed, Adrastea heaved in deep breaths and her eyes darted towards Rhydderch who looked stoic as ever but there were hints of desperateness and anxiety in those blue depths.

"I would like to clarify that Rhydderch has been making deals with me. His aunt. He would capture all the cities and in return, I would grant him his freedom," Medeia announced genially.

But she could only stare at Rhydderch in shock despite the dagger held at her face and the rough handling she had received from the Valiants who had invaded their camp at neutral grounds.

Suddenly, everything made sense.

No wonder Rhydderch had described the person he had made akin to the Devil.

Not literally the Devil. But the person is widely considered to be a reincarnation of him.

How much do you think you know my brother? He has secrets. Did you know that?

What is my brother's full name?

You may not understand it yet but you will eventually. You have nothing to worry about. Everyone will be fine. Spy or not. Trust me.

She gaped at him, eyes wide at all the sudden hints and clues that had been given to her over the months and how had she been so blind not to have connected the dots?

Even Izla's minute hints she had given her the insight but Rhydderch's skills at changing the topics have blinded her from it.

Every time she had questioned him about his plans and whatnot, he had seemed so confident and assured that they would go exactly as planned. She had wondered how.

And now she knew.

They had all been planned down to the very last detail.

"Ah, you really have been telling the truth, haven't you, nephew?"

Adrastea watched as a muscle ticked in his jaw.

"Now with your soulmate in attendance, would your answer still be the same? Will you hand over control over the cities or would you rather watch me carve out her pretty face so that her skull can be amongst my collection. You can watch, of course!"

She shuddered involuntarily, eyes taking in the many skulls arranged on the shelves opposite her and her eyes darted back to Rhydderch's desperately.

What she saw in those eyes made her heart stop.

Those blue eyes swam with hopelessness and defeat and she could hardly believe it. That didn't seem like Rhydderch at all. Her soulmate was never one to give up, no matter how tough or impossible things went.

He even survived a thousand foot drop from a cliff!

But everything else didn't matter, Adrastea finally decided, laying her troubles to rest, shoulders dropping slightly.

It didn't matter that Rhydderch had hidden so many things from her or had kept her out of the loop. She probably would not have reacted well to it and she would have died not long after. And hadn't Circe Moreau died because she knew too much?

Not to mention the utterly insane Regnant holding a dagger to her face.

The threat of her face being carved out seemed highly possible at this point in time.

"We are at an... impasse, aren't we, dear nephew?" Medeia grinned, as she slid the dagger down to her neck.

Adrastea watched as Rhydderch swallowed harshly, the Adam's apple at his throat bobbing as he stared at her in what seemed like despair.

"Just choose, your soulmate or the power that you already have."

She loved him, she did. But she knew that Rhydderch was power hungry - that he would do anything to gain it. But she didn't know if he loved it more than he loved her. She knew he never said it to her; those three precious words. But she hadn't asked for them, believing that actions spoke more than words.

But she hoped for it.

And now, he was given a choice that would finally allow her to know his true heart.

She smiled sadly at him before closing her eyes, unwilling to see the emotions on his face or the turmoil in his eyes.

Silence reigned.

"Let her go."

Adrastea's eyes snapped wide open as her gaze returned to his, hardly believing the three words that had come out of his mouth. Her eyes met his and she could see the determination in them. The determination to ensure that she would be alright and well.

Her heart swelled and she bit her lower lip.

Did Rhydderch really choose her over power?

Medeia shook her head, a delighted laugh bubbling from her throat. "You surprise me, Rhydderch, truly!"

Abruptly, Adrastea found herself being shoved slightly to the front and her mind raced. It couldn't be this easy, could it? Her mind and heart dared to hope.

"I let her go, but you didn't say she had to be alive."

Her blood froze and her head lifted to meet Rhydderch's as an expression of utter horror flashed across his face.

Everything stopped.

It was as if time had stopped and caused things to move slowly.

She turned her head, eyes widening at the dagger being plunged towards her chest and on instinct, she braced her hands above her and any moment, she would feel the pain of the blade slicing across her flesh-

Instantaneously, the door burst open and gunshots sounded and Adrastea didn't bother to look at the god given distraction but quickly hurtled herself away to grab the hand that wielded the dagger before using her other hand to throw a punch across the Regnant's face before landing another at her neck.

According to medical research and Darius' additional information (based on his experience), that blow at the neck would cause the victim to either die or to be knocked unconscious.

Watching the Regnant stagger down to the ground, warm familiar hands pulled her away and she looked up to see Rhydderch gazing at her with a look of pure relief and joy.

"Didn't I tell you to stay away?"

Instead of the reproach and annoyance he had given her in the past, his eyes were full of relief.

She laughed and-

A shriek full of rage and madness sounded as they turned to see Medeia stumbling against the wall, hand never losing the grip on her dagger and her eyes flared with insanity as she flung the dagger right at her with deadly accuracy.

Watching, Adrastea knew that there was no way she could avoid it and she closed her eyes and buried her face into Rhydderch's neck.

A pained groan sounded and a body landed on the ground.

But, it wasn't her or Rhydderch.

Adrastea opened her eyes and to her horror, Jarek was on the ground, the dagger embedded in his gut and blood was pooling on the ground around him.

Everything turned muted and she sunk onto the ground, eyes on her friend that had taken a dagger for her. She could hardly believe it but there it was.

The evidence was in front of her. Jarek took deep unsteady breaths, his eyes were glassy from pain and there was so much blood.

"Jarek! God, you're bleeding!" She gasped as tears welled up in her eyes and she tried to apply pressure to the wound, her hands trembling.

"Don't die, please!" she whispered, eyes gazing helplessly at the man who had given his life for her.

But she knew he would, he had the pallor of a man that was going to die and had accepted it.

"Why did you do that?" she trembled, sniffling hard as she fought the tears at bay.

"So you and Rhydderch would have... the life I could have," Jarek murmured softly, eyelids flickering heavily as he took shaky breaths. "Don't be sad, I'll be seeing Eria again-"

A harsh cough caused his body to wrack in shudders as blood pooled out of his mouth and from that action, more of the red sticky substance seeped out of the wound.

Her eyes turned glassy and she could feel Rhydderch's arms curl around her. "But not like this," she replied softly, brokenly, head shaking as she reached out to take his hands in hers.

"No," Jarek paused, his face turning horribly pale. "It was all I ever wanted... just to be with Eria again."

Gradually, his breaths got shorter and eventually, his chest stilled.

Adrastea could only stare at her friend as tears rolled down her cheeks. Beside her, Rhydderch was silent but she could feel his body trembling and she knew that he was in shock and grief.

Shakily, she reached out and her hand hovered over Jarek's open eyes and with the barest of movements, she closed them.

With that, she turned to Rhydderch and pressed her face into the crook of his neck to muffle her sobs as hot salty tears ran down her cheeks.

* * *

A/N: THIS IS IT. THE LAST CHAPTER Y'ALL! The epilogue will be posted tomorrow! AND I SEEM TO BE HITTING MY GOAL TO FINISH THIS BEFORE APRIL! Hope you guys enjoyed this! :)

Chapter dedicated to @zshee4 :)