Darkness followed him as he paced through his study, a heavy weight had rested on his shoulders. The wooden floorboards groaned as his steps turned heavier. Books were scattered around his table as his search eluded him. Some books were open, laying idly, where other books had been crumpled due to frustration. He had stopped pacing for a split second and silently leaned onto his table to study the maps that lay open before him. Vexar- his world, the world of elements. Ruled by magical beings - The fae.

Built around five continents, each defined by a different element: fire, earth, water, air, and spirit. Otherwise known as Teine, Talamh, Uisce, Gaoth and Anam.

His gaze had lingered on the continents, studying them. Absentmindedly he traced the continents one by one. With a snarl of disgust he started with the Teine-fire continent, the continent that did not want him for his lack of fire. Images of volcanoes, deserts, and blistering sunny days ran through his mind. However dull it had seemed, the continent itself had a beauty to it that was underestimated. Power seemed to radiate form the map itself as he outlined the lines.

Forcing himself to look away he trailed the drawn mountains of the earth continent. Mountains that were filled with forests, greenery and caves. The exact opposite from what he had known of the fire continent. Talamh, had by far been the most beautiful apart from Anam- the spiritual continent.

Struggling to contain his lingering rage, he distracted himself by briefly studying the water continent, a place of oceans, islands, and rivers. Darkness peered around his shoulder, as if wanting to know what had distracted him from perusing the reason behind the books scattered around his table.

Forcing himself to look at the maps and not give into the darkness that seemed to consume his aura, he followed the patterns and lines of the air continent. His continent, a land of endless blue skies, puffy clouds, and sweet-scented winds. He huffed an irritated breath. Weaklings. He thought idly.

Shrugging uncomfortably at the tug in his mind, he lastly settled his gaze on the spirit continent, a land of dreams, magic, and mysteries. Anam, more powerful than even the fire continent, however so innocently portrayed. He noted nothing on the map indicating the power that lay hidden beneath the surface. Turning away from the maps, he peered at the chaos in front of him.

"There should be something in these damned books!" He slammed his fist down onto the table. Pages flew from the table, stopping midair before starting a slow spiral around him. He had liked to think of himself as a master of wind, though somehow a consuming fire had burned in his soul. He was contained by none, however, ruled by a need to master everything. This need had surpassed all of his innermost thoughts; it had made him cruel. Cruel enough that he did not care about his family, friends, or the continent. Caring had made him weak, and he did not tolerate weakness. Power was power- simply put.

His sons had seemed as though they understood the darkness, surprisingly, however his wife did not. He thought he could tolerate her, deal with her later, though she could not tolerate him. The bitterness of her death lingered on his lips. He tasted the hatred and the loveless words she yelled at him before she took her own life.

A growl rumbled low in his throat. He knew that when he had finally found what he was looking for, every single fae would grovel at his feet. Earthborns- pure mortals, would have no choice but bow. Though they were almost impossible to find, he would herd them all and make them bow. Unfortunately for now, only his frustration had lingered at his empty hands. Today he had not succeeded in his task. He clenched his jaw in disapproval, feeling the tension rolling off his shoulders in thick plumes.

His black eyes were fixated on the hearth in front of him. The flames were attracted to him, leaning slightly out of the hearth- reaching toward him as though they were greeting an old friend. His jaw clenched as he urged the flame toward him- straining slightly. The flames slowly spread from the hearth and licked the pages that lay on the floor, almost igniting the floorboards. He would not allow it though.

With one swift thought, all of the scattered books were lit ablaze- erasing evidence of his planning. A power rarely seen from a wind fae, however Teine, the fire continent, had not recognized his fire affinity for what it was.

If they did not aid him in his conquest, they were useless. The same applied to any other fae, earthborn and everyone else who would stand in his way.

You're frustration makes you weak as well, minion.

A snarl escaped his lips as he acknowledged the voice. The darkness that taunted him- with a cold voice that only he could hear. Sombre, he stood straighter, and the fires in front of him instantly died out. He would not fail, he would ensure it. His plan for his experiments had to start sooner rather than later.

Yes...

The voice had hissed, sounding not like a snake but rather somewhat demonic. Goosebumps had raised on his forearms at the sound. Shrugging uncomfortably, he gently tugged his shirt to smooth out the noticeable wrinkles, before making his way out of his study. A new day would bloom soon, and with it- destruction.

***

Avelon had not slept at all during the night. She could almost feel the puffiness of her eyes as she stared at her room door. Noises from outside had kept her heart pacing in anticipation and fear all throughout the night. Ever since her father had left her room, surprisingly, nobody had come by to check on her. Painful pangs of hunger pinched her stomach, causing her to roll over. She did not have enough courage to leave her room and hunt for something to eat.

A hunt, she chuckled sadly.

It would have been a hunt, though, she had felt like the deer- the hunted. Closing her burning eyes, she let out a soft huff of air. She could feel her chest tightening with defeat. Lingering thoughts had kept her wondering if she had made the right decision. Sighing, she rammed her face into the confines of her pillows, savouring the comfort.

She knew that she would end up regretting this entire situation and her decision, just not as soon.

Dawn approached sooner than she had thought, and the moment the light touched her home the news of her shunning had spread, no doubt. Silent whispers were noticeable outside her room, in the hallways.

She would be known as a Fae-leech.

The name fae were given when they had refused the awakening. Presumably leeching on the fortune of fae with affinities.

What a load of crap.

Avelon knew that the servants were most probably bickering about exactly that- the fact that she, as royalty, had refused the ritual. She could not fathom the bickering amongst them, as they had made the same choice given their occupation- unless they had been born into slavery.

Sighing with dread, Avelon slowly sat up. She relished the feel of her comfortable bed alongside her comfortable pillows before slowly peeling out of bed and padding over to her closet. With shaky fingers, most likely from lack of nourishment, she picked out a few simple clothing items and stuffed them into a small bag. Although the bag would not be travelling with her, she had still packed for a sense of comfort- A sense of control in the situation that lay before her. She would be moving to the farthest, deepest corners of the castle. Given nothing except for some unflattering piece of garment to wear. Frown lines formed on her face from the constant frown adorning her face.

How was it that the ritual had ensured that affinities were awakened? She had milled about the question more than she would like to admit. There had to be a way to go through the awakening without murder. Avelon had a crude sense that the ritual was more for amusement than it was to physically awaken ones affinity or affinities. That thought alone had Avelon's stomach flipping on itself.

Hearing the birds chirping happily outside had her from turning to a sad smile. Would she have had her mother's earth or her father's water? Maybe both? Rarely, fae had the ability to control more than one affinity, in fact the control over one affinity was limited itself. Fallon for instance had controlled both water and wind since the day of her awakening, however she had not made it known that she controlled two affinities due to the rarity of it- Fae with multiple affinities were taken away to be scrutinized. The thought had goosebumps raising on Avelon's arms.

Fallon could muster enough wind to create tornados, and her water affinity was mainly contained to healing. It was her water affinity that kept her in Uisce, and her wind affinity that she had kept locked away.

"Ave!" The urgent call of her name had her snapping out of her thoughts. Her eyebrows furrowed together with worry.

"Fallon?" Dumbfounded Avelon answered aloud, sprinting towards her window where the sound of her friends voice had come from.

Quickly, fiddling with the latch, she opened the window to reveal a smiling Fallon standing in the bushes directly below her. Malice and mischief shining in her eyes.

"What are you doing here?" Avelon whisper-yelled, worried that one of the guards roaming about the castle would spot her.

Since Avelon was not on the best terms with anybody in her home at that exact moment, she could not guarantee that Fallon would be welcome, or safe for that matter. Avelon cast a worried glance over the perimeter of the grounds, taking note of all the guards stationed around the castle.

She frowned. How had Fallon managed to get past them all?

"Thank all the Goddesses that you are still here! When I heard that someone from Uisce refused the ritual I knew it was you and had to come see if you are alright." Fallon had cupped her mouth, trying, but failing miserably, to carry the words over without shouting. In any other situation Avelon would mock her for being so obvious- this was not any other situation.

"Fal you can't be here, you need to leave now!" Avelon raised her voice slightly, panic steadily flooding her body. Her gaze snapped to the guards and back to Fallon.

"If my father finds you here..." Her voice trialled off. She had no idea what her father's reaction would be.

Would he blame Fallon for the situation Avelon had gotten herself into? Avelon had no doubt that he would find some other reasoning behind her own selfish planning.

Herself and her own fate she could handle- she could not risk Fallon getting involved.

Distracted by her own thoughts, Avelon did not hear the footsteps nearing her room until the moment her door had opened. She froze, before stiffly rising her index finger towards her lips as a warning to Fallon to keep quiet. Fallon instantly ducked into the bushes- hiding from whatever threat lay behind Avelon.

"Who are you talking to?" Avelon's shoulders relaxed slightly as her mother's voice carried over her shoulder. She could feel her presence directly behind her.

"Myself." Avelon shrugged and turned around, coming face to face with Helena. Her body was still stiff from anxiety as she regarded her mother.

Her lips were painted blood red, parting to reveal a cold calculating smile.

Of course, Helena did not believe Avelon, however she knew her mother did not particularly care about her friend roaming around in the bushes. She did not care for much, for that matter.

Her father would be less ignorant.

"I have arranged for a servant to tend to you." Helena's smile had not faltered.

With furrowed brows, Avelon slowly cast a look past her mother, taking note of the servant fidgeting in the doorway. She seemed young – new. Short dark hair framed her too thin face. The paleness of her skin brought out the pinkness in her lips.

Had she been born into slavery without the choice of the awakening, or had she chosen to not go through with murder? The thought made Avelon's head tingle.

"Tend to me?" Avelon Questioned, unsure of what the hell her mother was talking about.

"Tend. To. You." Helena emphasized each word as though Avelon was retarded. Before Avelon could snap a snarky response, her mother continued, waving a hand carelessly in the air.

"You need to be bathed, fed and dressed. We have some Royalty visiting this evening."

This evening? Royalty? Her thoughts were wild. More importantly, she wondered why she was being treated like a child- again.

"If we are having guests this evening why exactly do I need to get ready now, and why do I have a watchdog?" Avelon gestured to the servant, smiling apologetically for the harshness in her tone.

The servant did not flinch.

"You have a servant to ensure you do not leave your bedroom." Helena swiped her tongue over her teeth earning a lip curl of disgust from Avelon.

"In addition to that, we saw to it that you are tended to earlier. In case you were reluctant." Tended to. Avelon hated the fact that she felt like a bush that was about to be trimmed. She rolled her lips, refraining from saying exactly what was on her mind.

"Fine," She signed, swiping a hand over her face. "That still doesn't answer the fact that I need to be proper for this whole thing?" Was she not going to be cast out to live with the other servants?

"You are being sold."

Her mind drifted to Fallon, muffling her mother's words, but her body had locked up, nonetheless. Sold, had she heard Helena correctly?

"Sorry, what was that?" Avelon widened her eyes, turning her head to the side to ensure she heard every single word.

"You are being sold." Helena smacked her lips together, picking at one of her elongated fingernails as though she had not just told her own daughter that she was selling her.

"Excuse me?" Her ears rang. Sold? She expected she would be a servant- Assumed it would be for her own continent.

Inside her own home.

"Not such a smartass now, are we?" Helena deadpanned and clicked her fingers. The servant rushed into the room and darted for Avelon's walk-in closet. Avelon sucked in a breath, processing the bomb that had just gone off inside her room.

Distantly, Avelon was reminded that Fallon remained in hiding. Her mouth run dry, as Helena clicked her tongue and turned to leave the room.

She would be living with someone else entirely.

Avelon almost passed out.