Avelon had found herself drifting in total darkness- a feeling akin to floating in the water.

Was she dead?

She had willed herself awake, but had somehow managed to fall into a darkness so deep she worried she would not be able to get back to the light.

The faint hum of energy, almost like electricity, surrounded her as she floated. She cocked her head with a frown.

What is that sound?

Shortly after yelling at herself to wake up, she slammed back into her body- dragged by a force stronger than anything she had ever felt before.

Returning back to her body after her outer body experience was nothing short of disorienting. She had felt like a foreigner when she re-entered her body. At first, she had thought she had imagined everything, then the burning had raged on. She was unable to move as the burning ravaged her and silent screams erupted inside her head.

The sensation was so intense, she willed herself to escape it again.

Darkness enveloped her soon after the burning. Then she was floating, falling, and standing still all simultaneously. Struggling to grasp what exactly was happening, she had tried yelling into the void. Her voice had been flat, no echo resounding as though the vastness of the darkness was never-ending.

"Wake up!" She yelled into the void, the familiarity of her words rousing nausea. She could feel her body and soul tug back at the request- yanking her towards reality.

Her senses returned slowly- too slowly. First, and most importantly, she regained the ability to feel her own limbs. Inch by inch her skin prickled as her nerve endings woke. She grappled with the weight of the new blood coursing through her veins.

She felt different. A stranger in her own body.

The power that rumbled from the foreign blood within her, raged against the confines of her body, testing the limits of her resilience. The faint hum of power that she had heard, ringed in her ears as she woke. The hum of sound was the new blood enveloping and infusing with her own.

She could feel it, the new blood, thrumming with power. It felt as though it whispered control of distant shores and stormy skies. She almost smiled as it resembled Uisce so perfectly. It pulsed against her own blood like a wave, a rhythm out of sync, a dance of two souls uneasily tethered. Her heart laboured against her chest, each throb a battle between old and new. Her body was still fighting against the new intrusion.

With every anxious breath, Avelon fought valiantly- defying each attempt at her body succumbing back into darkness. The burning had faded, so she could tolerate the rest. Revulsion flooded her mind—how could something so frowned upon go so unnoticed? Someone had to notice Balor's strange hobby.

Her body convulsed once- twice, trying and failing to reject the blood that promised both salvation and destruction. Reluctantly her body settled, accepting the fact that she was now embedded with someone else's life essence. Her eyelids fluttered as she struggled to wake herself. Nausea churned and overruled as she turned her head sideways- baring all the contents of her stomach. To her utter surprise and dismay, the colour red did not splatter along with the other fluids being expelled by her body. Which had only meant that whatever Balor and Elha had planned- worked. Her waking up meant that her body did not reject the blood.

"It seems as though Avelon's body accepted the change in essence." Elha whispered, surprise evident in her tone, confirming Avelon's suspicions.

You better seem surprised. Avelon's subconscious growled as she tugged at the straps holding her down and narrowed her eyes at Elha, standing in the corner of the room.

"And she has some fight left in her." Chuckling, Elha walked from the corner to stand directly in front of Avelon.

"Think we should go ahead with Goath?" Elha cocked her head to the side, a curious smile plastered on her face. Gods, another? No way would her body be able to handle another blood bending exercise.

"Though she seems to be in good health, we must wait and test the effectiveness of the experiment." Balor gruff voice sounds from behind her. Visibly, Avelon relaxes onto the table. Thankful for Balor's decision against another intrusion of her very existence.

"Pity," Elha clicks her tongue and shoves the sleeves of her lilac blouse up her arms, "But, you are right. No use in killing her when her body clearly houses the strength we need for this to work."

A grunt is Balor's only reply, his gaze locked on Avelon with unwavering intensity. "Regrettably," he starts, the casual roll of his shoulder belying the gravity of his words. Avelon's muscles tense, sensing the shift in his tone.

"We weren't able to convince one of the mind benders in Anam to join our cause," he states, sending a wave of cold fear down Avelon's spine.

A mind bender? Gods they were into some deep illegal things.

Avelon subtly, though urgently tugs at her bindings, desperate to free herself from whatever came out of Balor's mouth next, "and that unfortunate lack of resource, makes you a liability that we cannot afford." Fear grapples at Avelon's throat. He wouldn't kill her, but the alternatives were vast.

"I'll keep quiet, I won't say anything I swear!" Avelon's protest is swift, a desperate attempt to divert Balor from considering more extreme measures. Her voice echo's in the chamber as Balor seems to consider her outburst.

She survived the excruciating burn of blood bending, there was no way in Hell she going to try and survive a mind bender. Through all of the continents, mind benders were considered the most lethal of fae.

A mocking smile plays on Balor's lips as he circles the table, coming to a halt beside her. He slowly leans in, taking his time to survey her quivering form beneath him, before locking eyes with her.

"Fortunately," Balor's eyes shine with disturbing glee, "we've received word that a certain fae has been searching for you and just so happened upon my temple."

Dread lances through Avelon, her mind racing to the only fae foolish and caring enough to seek her out—Fallon.

Balor's gaze follows her realization, understanding dawning in his eyes that she would choose silence over endangering Fallon.

"Ah, you grasp the situation," Balor nods, approval lacing his voice. He sighs with boredom and interlaces his hands with each other, "Your friend, however, should have been more cautious about the lives she's willing to wager." Avelon instantly feels sick as Balor's words lead to a confirmation of her worst fears.

She tries to assess the other possibilities that his words might be implying, though she runs short. Balor was definitely the type of fae who would kill them in order to prove a point. Balor smiles as he notes yet another realization dawn on her.

"How could you do something like that!" Avelon's outcry pierces the chamber and bounces off the cold grey walls, her struggles against the restraints growing frantic.

"By removing all her loved ones and keeping you alive, we enabled the possibility of negotiating with her. She will not try to find you, and as long as that is the case she will live and so will you." Avelon's eyes sting with unshed tears at Balor's confession- his confirmation that he did in fact kill Fallon's family. Her chest constricts with a pain that threatens to tear her heart to pieces. They were as much Fallon's family as they were hers.

Balor's response is cold, devoid of empathy. "Why wouldn't I? Fae lives mean nothing to me. It's their cooperation—and what I gain from it—that matters." Avelon chokes on a sob as she feels her heart hallowing out.

Fallon was alone, because of her.

"And so, for the sake of your friend's safety, you will remain silent about whatever took place within this chamber. Speak of it to anyone, and she'll be joining the miserable fae who bore her." Avelon's bitter laughter is tinged with tears, the reality of her situation crashing down on her.

"How can I even be sure she's still alive? You expect me to just trust your word?" Avelon's voice is laced with pain and defiance. Balor clicks his tongue and frowns down at her in disgust.

"Elha." Balor calls out, gesturing to Elha who had retreated out of Avelon's sight.

"You will not talk Avelon." He commands stares her down, darkness threatening to taint her own heart, before he turns and walks away.

"I'm truly sorry, but you should heed his warning," Elha whispers regretfully, wheeling a trolley out from beneath the table. Avelon's heart plummeted as she caught sight of a dishevelled mop of black hair. Avelon's body constricted as her eyes locked onto the messy black hair. If that was her-

"I swear to all the Gods-" Avelon's threat was cut short as Fallon's ashen face came into view, a thin, bloodied line marking her arm. Elha moved the trolley away, leaving Avelon to connect the horrifying dots.

"I swear to fucking Brigh and all the other Gods, I will kill all of you!" Rage clouded Avelon's vision, making her see red as her body convulsed with nausea.

Avelon's desperate plea echoed into the dim chamber- slicing through the sudden silence. "Oh Gods, Fallon." She whimpered, her voice trembling as she strained against the biting restraints, her bruised skin protesting. Her futile attempt at reaching her friend. Warmth pooled in her palms as she continued to pull at the bonds despite the ache, sobs wracking her frame as she stared at her friend's seemingly lifeless body. This was her fault- unknowingly she placed Fallon in this position. Deep down she knew her friend would come looking for her.

Turning her tear-streaked face towards Elha, Avelon tried composing her emotions.

"How could you be part of this?" Her eyes, filled with the raw pain and anger she was feeling, bore into Elha's stoic face.

Elha's emotionless reactions had made Avelon's head spin. She had seemed entranced. The whole scenario had not affected her in the slightest. Unease rolled in Avelon's stomach, no matter how she confronted Elha, she would not care.

"Balor's plans may reshape the world." Elha's response was chillingly calm. She stared at Fallon and then back at Avelon with no remorse evident in her icy eyes.

"Shape the world? Does he honestly think he'll get away with what he's doing? Blood bending is illegal." Avelon breaths, stifling the urge to snap her wrists in an attempt to get to Elha and Fallon.

"EEH-LEE-GAL" Avelon spelled the word out, slowly, trying to emphasise the gravity of the situation that somehow escaped Elha and Balor.

Elha ignored Avelon's response and continued, "Fallon's blood, tied directly to you, holds the key to her water affinity. It's a calculated risk." Avelon's heart clenched- it's not possible. What did they think they could achieve out of this? Fallon was more than a mere experiment, she was Avelon's friend- her actual family.

"But we don't share the same blood!" Confusion lingers in Avelon's voice. "What exactly do you think you can accomplish from this? There is absolutely zero link between the two of us other than friendship." Avelon's confusion mingled with sorrow as she closed her eyes and took a steadying breath.

"You're lying. Whatever you are trying to do-" Avelon stammered, searching for some truth to the her own words.

"There's no guarantee that blood bending will succeed. You're gambling with our lives." She concluded with a steady shake of her head.

Elha's gaze remained unyielding as she nibbled at the inside of her cheek- assessing and contemplating. A moment of unnerving silence passes- driving Avelon close to insanity.

"What do you think you can get from this?" Avelon repeats her question slowly, as she locks her gaze with Elha.

"Your connection to Fallon somehow amplifies the adherence and success of our experiment. Trust me. I can't tell you more than that." Elha continued to evade the main question at hand, which infuriated Avelon more than she could bare. Avelon knew better than to trust anything coming out of Elha's mouth.

Avelon couldn't help but consider Elha's words and try to decipher them. What would they gain out of flushing her system with someone else's blood? What was the purpose?

And if by using someone familiar during blood bending somehow gave it more of a success rate- Avelon stifled a chuckle amidst her surroundings. They were definitely screwed for whatever affinity they used next- she wasn't close to anyone else except Fallon. Her parents briefly enter her mind, though the part of her that hated them didn't let the thought linger.

They were using specific affinities- why? Avelon's gaze dropped back to her unmoving friend- her anger surging anew. The weight of the emotion consuming any sadness and sorrow lingering on the surface of her heart.

"We both could've died!" Avelon's exclamation clung on the walls of the dim chamber, her voice swallowed by the stone walls. The memory of Fallon's blood pulsing within her—the very essence of her friend—ignited an unfathomable rage that was hard for her to contain. She had felt like combusting right on that table.

They could have died. Avelon might as well have undergone the Awakening herself.

Her widened eyes snapped back to Elha as she processed her thoughts.

"But you didn't." Elha nodded towards Fallon's still form.

Her voice was muffled by the ringing in Avelons ears. Her mouth went dry as she considered the possibility that Balor was attempting to jump-start the Awakening by using an unorthodox method.

"She might appear lifeless, but she isn't." Elha continued, noting Avelon's silence.

Avelon shook her head in disgust, restraining the urge to unleash her thoughts on Elha, but she couldn't afford to show her hand; feigning ignorance was her only chance at escaping the chamber.

She might have survived the blood bending exercise, but if she showed that she knew more than she was letting on Balor might reconsider the value of her life.

"Now, we move her." Panic surged through Avelon, snapping her out of her inner turmoil. Her heart raced, unwilling to surrender any more of what they had already taken.

"Untie me! You can't do this or take her away!" Avelon's screeching made Elha wince slightly as she gripped Fallon's trolley.

"Let's hope your body responds as needed. If not, may the Gods spare your soul." Elha's forced smile held no warmth as she retreated beyond Avelon's sight.

Something inside Avelon snapped when Fallon's body vanished. An ear-splitting scream erupted from her throat as she writhed against her unyielding bonds.

"No! You can't do this!" Her raw voice echoed through the empty chamber. Coldness clung to her aching body and tears streamed down her already streaked face.

Silently, and alone, she wept for Fallon, for herself, and for the family they had lost.