Chapter-17 Trial Of The Night

The chamber was silent.

Frederique stood in the center, the stone floor cold beneath her feet, the only sound her own breathing... shallow, controlled, but already strained. The Night Court King loomed above on his onyx throne, face impassive as his silver eyes glowed faintly in the shadows.

"You will endure," he said. "Or you will break."

The trial began.

A shimmering pulse rippled through the air, bending reality. Frederique's senses twisted. The walls seemed to stretch and blur, the torches flickering too slowly, as if burning in reverse. Time distorted.

At first, it felt like minutes.

She stood there, heart hammering but steady, her Hunger coiled deep in her chest. Frideria stirred inside, restless but silent, observing.

The first wave came.

A crawling sensation beneath her skin, like needles brushing along her spine. Her Hunger stirred, whispering, begging for release.

"You can stop this. Just eat."

' No. '

Frederique clenched her fists, nails digging into her palms. Pain was grounding.

The second wave.

It felt like hours.

The itching grew into burning. Her arms ached to move. Shadows danced along the edges of her vision, whispering things in languages she didn't understand.

Time dragged. Or sped up. She couldn't tell anymore.

The Hunger twisted tighter.

"Why? Why suffer? Bite. Feed. Feel."

' No,' Frederique thought back, teeth gritting.

Her legs shook.

Then the voice came. The king's voice, echoing softly but pressing into her mind like a blade.

"Why fight? You're nothing without me."

The Hunger surged, filling the void where her mind weakened.

The third wave hit.

Time folded.

A second passed. Or a day. Or a year.

She couldn't feel her body. Couldn't remember how long she'd stood there.

Everything hurt.

Frederique collapsed to her knees. The stone sliced into her skin, the blood sluggish and black.

"Give in. No one will know. No one will care."

"You're weak."

"They think you're a monster anyway."

The Hunger screamed.

Frederique's head snapped back, lips curling. Her jaw ached, her teeth sharpening against her will. Claws began sliding free, inch by inch.

"FEED."

"No," she whispered aloud this time, trembling violently.

The king remained silent, unmoving on his throne.

More time passed. Hours?

Her voice cracked.

"Is... that all... you can do?"

The king stirred. His expression darkened.

"You mock me?"

A single snap of his fingers.

The world shifted.

Frederique fell.

Not physically. But her mind... her being... plummeted into something deeper, darker.

The void consumed her.

She saw herself, standing alone. No Hunger. No Frideria. No shadows. Just... emptiness.

No sound.

No sensation.

Only herself.

Was she even real?

"If you cease to exist, what is left? What are you without power?"

The void pressed closer, a crushing pressure.

Frederique felt her knees buckle again.

No air.

No heartbeat.

No self.

' FEED. '

And yet...

Somewhere distant. A pulse.

Faint. Faint.

But hers.

Her own will.

"I... am... still... here."

The void shattered.

Frederique collapsed back into the chamber.

She was back on the cold stone, but her body was... different.

The hunger was quieter.

The shadows lighter.

Frideria's presence felt smaller, not weaker, but... cooperating. No longer gnawing for control.

Her skin tingled. Her hair felt heavier.

She didn't know how long she'd been standing there.

But she had endured.

The king rose from his throne.

He descended the steps slowly, his silver eyes narrowing in curiosity as he loomed above her, gaze searching.

"You lasted longer than I expected."

Frederique didn't answer. She couldn't.

The king crouched, fingers gently lifting her chin to force her gaze to his.

"You have changed," he whispered. "Hardened. Broken, perhaps, but reforged."

Frederique's lips barely moved.

"...Did I pass?"

The king's expression twisted into something almost pleased.

"You have proven...useful."

He straightened, lifting a hand. The shadows behind his throne shifted, revealing a crest... a dark sigil of blades and curling tendrils.

"The Shadow Corp," he announced. "You are worthy to stand among them."

The air seemed to hum as he marked her forehead with his thumb, the crest searing itself into her skin before fading.

"You belong to us now."

Frederique's heart pounded.

No longer just a Redcap.

No longer just a host.

But something more.

The King turned.

"Train her. Break her again if you must. But she will serve."

And with that, he left the chamber.

Frederique felt the weight of his words linger.

And somewhere deep inside her... Frideria stirred.

Not in hunger.

But pride.