From the Shadow

The powerful impact behind Liam awakened his senses. The thick wood had transformed into long ropes. Each time the ropes struck his body, pain erupted, blinding him and leaving him weak.

He didn't know if his body had grown accustomed to the pain or if he had lost his voice, but he could no longer hear his own screams.

Another whip, and Liam's breath hitched. He had no idea how long he had been tied up. The room was dark, and he couldn't see the sun or the moon.

He had no sense of day or night. No light or noise. Just him, alone with the endless pain.

Liam tried to stay awake, but he couldn't endure the pain and exhaustion. The people whipping him changed, but the pain never stopped. He was too weak to use his powers, and the ropes around his wrists prevented him from doing anything.

Although his body screamed with exhaustion and pain, nothing hurt more than what he had seen and heard before being brought to this dark, horrid room. He had been placed in a cage like an animal.

Liam couldn't use his powers because the cage was laced with magic. He was about to burn the cage with his fire when Mingway arrived, laughing and finding pleasure in Liam's state.

"This is where you belong, Dirty Blood," Mingway spat coldly. "I don't know what the Ministers were thinking, letting a Dirty Blood and that Nymph pest rule our lands. The Water Kingdom is for Water Faes. We deserve to be led by a king of our kind."

Mingway approached Liam's cage. Liam stayed silent, trying to analyze his surroundings while Mingway spoke. He needed to find a way out. Because it was dark, he could only see Mingway's face, which seemed delighted with his current state.

"I deserve to lead. I helped King Philippe accomplish his plans. I led the battle. Alone!" Now that Liam could clearly see Mingway, he looked different.

He had dark circles under his eyes and seemed thinner.

"He promised me that after Princess Amethyst married Ludwig, they would kill your monster of a cousin who carries the bloodline of the Dark Faes. And once Princess Amethyst got the Aureate Flame, we'd marry, and I'd lead the Fire Kingdom. I will stand alongside the royals, and everyone will bow to me!"

Liam wanted to laugh, not expecting to face another power-hungry individual willing to do anything for the throne.

"How pathetic," Liam managed to say. "You would sacrifice your life just for temporary power, and for what? A few years?"

Mingway kicked the cage, making it rattle. "You don't know anything. You didn't have to fight for the throne. It was given to you, even though you're not rightful. You're a Dirty Blood!"

Liam sighed. "What you don't understand is that the Ones would kill you if you possessed them. There's a reason only the Blue Bloods can endure and hold their power without dying."

"You're lying. You're just saying that to keep control of all the kingdoms. But the truth is, we can rule them too. We can hold the Ones. Amelia did, so we can too!"

"But Amelia died after she took…"

Mingway laughed. "Because you killed her."

Liam said, "The Ones feed on our blood, on our power. Yes, they make the carrier stronger, but they also drain their energy. But if a Blue Blood carries the Ones, it won't affect them…"

"That's bullshit." Mingway slipped his hand through the cracks of the cage. When he grabbed Liam, he pulled him against the cage, gripping his neck. The cage rattled again.

"Stop feeding us lies."

"But it's the truth. Ludwig's mother is proof. She died because of the Ones…"

Mingway was persistent. "We will rule this kingdom with or without Blue Bloods, Liam!"

There was no reasoning with Mingway. He was delusional.

Ludwig's mother wasn't Blue Blood, and she wasn't the Fate of Ludwig's father. She died so the Fire Kingdom could have a queen for a few years. To stop the kingdom's destruction, she sacrificed her life.

"You're pathetic, Mingway. You'll die for temporary power."

"Pathetic? Pathetic? You dare judge my dreams as pathetic? What's pathetic is answering to someone lower than us. You're nothing but a Dirty Blood, and you know what's dirtier?" Mingway smiled sinisterly. "Your whore of a mother."

"I'll kill you…" Liam clenched his jaw and tried to pounce on him, but the ropes binding him and the cage separating them made his attacks futile. Mingway stepped back, laughing hysterically, and kicked the cage, causing Liam to lose his balance.

"That's pathetic," Mingway said before finally leaving him alone.

Liam didn't know how many hours he was left alone when the door finally opened. Men wearing the Water Kingdom's logo entered and carried the cage.

Inside were Leonel, Ryle, and other knights Liam trusted the most. Like him, they were also tied and gagged.

"A gift from Mingway," said Rolo, the second in command, who appeared from the shadows. "So you won't get bored here. Isn't my master considerate?" He even had the audacity to smirk.

Liam tried to stand and do something, anything to help his men, but Rolo threw something at him. It began smoking, and before he knew it, he fell asleep.