Hey guys, just a reminder, I don't have a regular updating schedule and only post chapters when I have time to write- which always varies. So don't expect these updates so frequently.

       The pic above just goes so well with this chappy!

       Sorry for any grammar and editing mistakes!

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Enjoy!

-&-

Chapter 30

       One glance over the side of the Cliffs had my stomach churning anxiously. "That is terrifying." I muttered more to myself than Mae, but she nodded in agreement anyway. The sharp, pointed rocks, that seemed to rest thousands of feet below, gleamed as proud as bloody daggers up at us.

       I gulped.

       "Yes, but the Elders were cowards, and frail. They built a passage long ago that leads easily down the cliff and into the cave."

       I embraced the meager relief her words gave me, if only because I knew that would be the only comfort I would feel for a while.

       I followed her carefully around the edge of the cliff, my steps a good three or four feet away from its drop. My stomach seemed to flutter at its height. Maybe this wasn't such a good idea...

       It wasn't long before she had climbed carefully over a large boulder just at the edge of the cliff, and eased herself down the other side. She made the action look so smooth and effortless, like stepping over a pebble. I frowned but climbed reluctantly after her, though it took twice as long.

       This didn't seem safe at all. But, sure enough, there appeared to be stairs chiseled down the edge of the precipice that led down to its treacherous depths.

       I paused on the top step, my fingers clenching tightly into the edge of my cloak. This was really happening. I was really going to risk the bottom of the Cliffs for some cave I had supposedly been stuck in once.

       My breath caught in my throat, and my eyes grew wide as I scanned the large expanse of the bottom of the cliff. For hundreds of years, I had been trapped here. In this ridiculously cold, dark, deadly place.

       Alone.

       Maybe- maybe I didn't want to know about my past. Maybe I didn't want to remember. I knew the tale of Adranus and his star, knew the heartbreak and turmoil they had both experienced. If that story was real, if I truly was the star, did I really want to remember all that pain?

       I staggered backward uneasily.

       "Emrie?" Mae called a few steps down the cliff, her dark eyes curious as she glanced over her shoulder. "Are you okay?"

       Was I okay? Not really. I was relatively numb in my ignorance, or at least, I thought I was. I could be content like that for a while more. Just believing that I grew up with Mae and Lei, that the King and I were mates and he kept secrets to keep me safe. Believe that one day he would confess he loved me and we would have an actual life together.

       I could be happy with that.

       But if none of it were real, if everything I knew was fake, there would be no point in believing in a happy ending. My life would forever be a lie.

       "I'm okay." I heard myself answer before I lifted my cloak enough to not trip over. I followed her down the small stone steps slowly, my eyes adjusting to the thick fog rolling through the air the further down we traveled.

       A chill ran down my spine and caused the hairs on my arms to stand on end. This place was beyond eerie. It took us both a good half hour to climb down the steep steps, our fingers dragging along the rocky surface of the cliff to keep our balance.

       It was insane believing anyone traveled to this desolate piece of land on purpose, and it was little relief when we finally reached the bottom. The floor was littered with small pebbles and sharp, jagged rocks that were hard to maneuver through. The fog that coated the expanse of the earthy floor only made matters worse.

       "This way." She called softly over her shoulder, her voice as shaky as I felt. "I've only been down here once before." She whispered softly, as if the fog would grow angry if she spoke any louder. It actually might. I doubted either one of us knew what truly lurked inside the thick gray cloud.

       "The Elders took Lei and I here the day they woke you. I didn't remember before, until they started the interrogations, but I had been terrified."

       "I can imagine." I murmured just as softly as she pulled us both to a stop just outside a small, dark opening against the side of the cliff.

       It was rather tiny, barley as tall as either us, and only wide enough for one body to enter at a time. But it was dark, far darker than anywhere I had seen before. It made ice settle in my veins. This was not a place for the light.

       She gave me a sad smile before bending down and lifting a discarded torch into the air. "I didn't understand why they would take us to some girl's grave at the bottom of the cliffs, or why anyone would bury someone down here."

       I watched as she used the small fire starter stone to light the torch before putting it back in her pack. "But then I saw them chanting over you, twisting your thoughts and feelings into a life that had never existed."

       She walked carefully into the small opening of the cave, her head ducking so she wouldn't hit its ceiling. I gulped, and clasped my arms securely over my chest before I followed her. My breath felt like ice as it entered my lungs.

       "Then the turned to us," She continued as the light of the torch lit our way. "And did the same. We both woke in our beds the next day, with you in yours, as a family. Just as they had wanted."

       The further we walked, the larger the cave became. We no longer had to crouch, and the damp walls on either side stretched away as the light from the torch covered a larger area.

       "I haven't been awake very long, have I?"

       The most insane part of all of this, was that I was slowly starting to believe it- and trust in the anxious fear settling my gut. This cave did not hold warm intent.

       "No."

       "How long, Mae?"

       The panic that filled my stomach was unexpected, and so was the fear that slowly clogged my throat. Panic and fear of what though? The fact that my life really wasn't real, or that I had just begun to start walking the world? That I truly was a star?

       His star?

       She didn't answer for a few, silent seconds, and the flickering snaps from the torch was the only sound that greeted our ears before she finally let out a small sigh.

       "A week before we traveled up the Mountain, and you met the King."

       The ringing in my ears was automatic, and it felt as if I could never take a breath no matter how hard I tried.

       "A week..."

       A week before I had met the King, before all of this had happened. That week was the one I heard the whispered rumors of him from those traveling from the Lower Kingdom. The unbelievable need I had to see him- at least once. To know his face.

       It had only been a week.

       Then a thought struck me, one that made my insides twist painfully. Perhaps, we truly weren't mates. If I was this star, one that yearned for Adranus, maybe the part of Eirik soul that belonged to the God is what tied us together- nothing else.

       That one thought caused an aching lurch in my chest. If we weren't mates, if there was nothing but that part of his soul that made me important- how long would it be until he realized that?

       Until I didn't matter to him at all?

       "Yes, which is what the Elders found surprising also. Barely a week on this mortal plane, and you had already found a part of Adranus. How much longer would it be until you found the actual god himself?"

       My heart seemed to ache, and my head throbbed at the new information. Everything between Eirik and I, all that I had held onto for these long months, hadn't been real- not really. My bond with him was as superficial as the life I thought I once lived.

       I wanted to cry, to just drop to the floor where I stood and cry into my knees. But I would not, no matter how tempting that sounded. I would not let sorrow slow me now, not when I was so close to the truth.

       And if everything Mae said was real, then I would deal with its consequences. Even if that meant Eirik truly wouldn't accept me anymore.

       "It isn't much farther now."

       I followed obediently behind her, my head bowed to the floor as I watched our shadows dance along the wall. What a week this has been.

       The air grew colder and damper the further we walked, until the walls gave way to a small room with water gleaming off the rocky floor. Another shiver ran down my spine as a hard feeling suddenly weighed down my stomach.

       "This is it." Mae whispered in front of me, her cloaked figure blocking my view. I stayed stock still as she stepped to the side to light another torch hanging against the wall, then placed the one she carried in a barren holster.

       My breath caught in my throat at the sight before me. It was the coffin, the very same one she had shown me in my mind, the one where I had been cast asleep for generations upon generations. The sight of it shot through my mind like a lightning bolt, and sent a wave of- of- I'm not sure what, but it shook through my entire body. And it wasn't pleasant.

       The coffin was real.

       My body moved towards it on its own accord, my eyes locked on the intricate glass lid. It sat atop a stone table, one raised on smooth rocky steps.

       The wall behind the coffin was solid, and strong, and acted as the perfect prison. My hand reached up, and my fingers traced the edges of the glass carefully. I gasped as a jolt shot up my arm.

       "I told you it was real." Mae murmured softly behind me, her tone sympathetic as I traced the edge of the lid.

       She was right. Even if she, or someone else had planted the coffin here, the reaction I had to it had no compare. Curiosity, awe, and fear. I drew my hand back, ready to be rid of the glass jail-cell image, when a flash of red caught my eye.

       My breath caught.

       "Mae," I muttered in the dark dampness of the cave. "Help me get this lid open."

       She was hesitant at first, her dark eyes uncertain, but she nodded anyway and walked slowly towards me. We were able to push the glass lid up easily enough, but the object laying inside of it caused my throat to clog.

       It was a large, ruby red precious stone. A cord ran through a thin hole in its top, and it shined in the dim light of the torches from its hidden spot in the corner of the coffin. Completely forgotten by the girl who once wore it.

       Mae watched with wide eyes as I leaned over the cold edge, and reached for the beautiful stone, my eyes locked on its deep, dark color. "It's beautiful..." I murmured just as my fingers curled around its smooth edges. Heat immediately surged into my palm and up my arm as the stone pulsed in my hand.

       "What in the world?" I murmured as I eased away from the coffin once again, the stone and its cord clutched firmly in my hand.

       "What is it?" Mae asked at my side, her dark hazel eyes peaking over my shoulder to look down at the stone.

       I ignored her and pulled my hand close to my chest before uncurling my fingers around the ruby. My heart jumped in my chest. The red from before seemed to practically glow, and the heat coming from the beautiful stone slowly crept up my arm.

       "Min måne..." The words slipped from my lips on their own, as if they were a long-lost whisper of a name I once held dear to my heart.

       The brilliant object pulsed in my hand, its color surging out across the entire room until all I saw was red- then black.

-&-

       "What are you doing?"

       Glowing, ruby, red eyes flashed to mine, and their owner's lips pulled into a sneaky smile as he drew his hand slowly away from the sky.

       "Making you a present."

       I frowned, but didn't approach him as his dark hair fell slowly over his forehead, and his eyes flashed in amusement.

       "You know how I feel about gifts."

       "Yes, that you can never have too many."

       A snicker past his lips and I couldn't help my own laugh from bubbling across my tongue as I stepped slowly towards him. "You give me too much already. I do not need anything else."

       He ignored my words, and the exasperated look I shot him, as he reached for my hand with the one he did not hide behind him. "You shall need nor want for anything. That is what we agreed upon." He murmured softly as he raised the back of my hand to his waiting lips.

       "And I do not need nor want for anything. I am perfectly happy."

       "And happier yet, I plan to make you."

       Before I could argue further he pulled my hand away from his lips and turned it palm upwards. His dark eyes flashed against the fading light of the sun and I watched suspiciously as he placed a solid, warm rock-like object in my hand.

       "Oh, Adie... It's beautiful." I murmured in a daze as his hand fell away to reveal a stone as red as his eyes, and half the size of my palm.

       "A piece of my heart." He muttered softly and leaned down to press a kiss against the stone and my palm. "To hold with you always." He rose to his full, intimidating height once again, his strong fingers warm as they pulled the thin cord entwined through the top of the stone into the air.

       "Where this always, where ever you go, and I will be there."

       He stepped smoothly behind me, his free hand soft as it brushed my hair over my shoulder. The red of his eyes slowly fading away. My stomach filled with a pleasing warmth as he drew the cord over my head until the stone rested against my chest, the ruby color of it pulsing with heat.

       "You mean to track me, you sly devil." But there was no malice in my voice, only laughter as he bent over my shoulder to press a kiss against my neck.

       "You know me too well." He chuckled into my ear, as he eased his strong arms around the curve of my waist.

       "But you must keep it close to your heart." His voice grew serious then, that always-present chuckle sliding away as his lips brushed against my ear. "Otherwise it will not work."

       "And if I do not wish for you to know where I am?" I teased lightly and gripped onto the thick arm around me as his face buried into the crook of my shoulder.

       "I will always find you, my beautiful Emerense."

-&-

       "Emrie, don't step there!" Mae's voice suddenly drilled into my skull, and pulled me out of the vision I had so easily fallen into. But her warning had come too late, and I stepped onto the large stone beside the steps of the coffin.

       The response was automatic, and as the solid steel bars slammed heavily over the only entrance in and out of the room, dread filled my stomach. Mae let out a strangled cry.

       "What have you done?! That was the only way out!" She raced over to the bars, her breathing frantic as she pulled viciously against them. I stood frozen in my spot, my precious stone clutched to my chest.

       "I-I..." I didn't know what to say. How could I say anything to make that situation better? And my mind was still reeling from the vision the little stone had given me. A vision I knew must have been real once.

       The truth of it was something I had never felt before, and it made that feeble life the Elders had built for me seem like falling dominoes. I could feel the lie of them, could see its flaws and holes in my mind. I knew little of my life despite my little stone, but at least I knew the truth of the reality. It was all fake.

       "Emrie!" Mae's voice was a shrill shriek in my ears as I lifted the cord over my head and placed the stone beneath my tunic, right against my heart. "What are we going to do?!" She cried and fell back against the bars until her butt hit the dirt floor with a thud.

       The stone pulsed against my chest.

       "Let's not panic." I murmured softly as I sat down across from her and pulled my pack around.

       I wasn't sure if it was the thrill of finding the stone, or the warm calm it seemed to send through my body, but I did not fear being trapped here for long.

       Mae simply scoffed and rolled her eyes, but I, once again, ignored her as I reached for my water bag. "It will take days for the King to find us down here, that's if he decided to check the Cliffs at all!"

       I let her rant as I sipped at the water slowly before tucking it all away in my bag, the warmth from the stone like a warm caress.

       "We don't have enough food to last us long, and the water is already running out, and-" She paused, and her hazel eyes grew wide as her gaze flickered behind me. "E-Emrie..." She stammered as I traced the cord slowly around my neck.

       "What?" I asked as my eyes snapped up to hers, but her hand only gestured behind me.

       I turned my torso enough to glance at the coffin, only to come face-to-face with a dark pair of eyes. Eyes so red they out shown any ruby or fire that ever existed. Eyes as red as the stone resting against my chest.

       Not for the first time that day, my breathing failed me, but that did not stop my eyes from studying his intense gaze.

       The red orbs blinked, blinked and revealed nothing but the cave wall behind them. But then the air seemed to shift, and a dark shadow suddenly outlined the being those eyes belonged to. A being so large it even trumped that of the King's wolf.

       My heart hammered in my chest, and I could hear it beating in my ears, but I did not cower away from the apparition as Mae was. It wouldn't hurt me.

       Those eyes blinked again, and then the wolf's shadowy head tilted towards mine. I held my breath as the tip of its nose brushed along the top of my head, even though it felt only like a soft wisp of air.

       The wolf pulled back, its large shape appearing solid enough in the candle light that I could just barely make out the black of its fur. "Adie..." The name slipped softly from my lips, and pulled at my chest. A name I had not spoken in hundreds of years.

       His red eyes narrowed, and a dark snarl lifted the corners of his lips until a flash of bright white fangs reached my vision. He growled and pulled away, his shadow form disappearing until all that was left were those eyes. With a blink, they were gone.

       The stone pulsated against my chest, as my heart clenched. He was gone. 

-&-

Min måne.  - My Moon