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#the empyrean
skyfallscotland · 2 days
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Putting out a feeler for numbers…how many of you would be interested in a fourth wing fic challenge?
@justallihere and I have noticed there’s still not that many fics for the size of the fandom and there are also a lot of people here who express that they’d like to write but they’re too nervous or haven’t before, so we thought a fun thing to do would be a fic challenge!
Basically we’d get it set up, you’d send in that you wanted to do it and whether you’d prefer angst or fluff, and we’d send you back a prompt for you to write a little piece—minimum 500 words, no maximum.
Please click on the poll if you’re interested :) would hate for it to just be us 😂
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fourthwingfan · 1 day
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Madness - Chapter 19
Surpriiisee. I'm done with the next chapter.
And thank you, you are all so supportive. ❤️
Enjoy! :)
In response to the Great War, dragons claimed the western lands and gryphons the central ones, abandoning the Barrens and the memory of General Daramor, who nearly destroyed the Continent with his army. Our allies sailed home and we began a period of peace and prosperity as the provinces of Navarre united for the first time behind the safety of our wards, under the protection of the first bonded riders.
—Navarre, an Unedited History by Colonel Lewis Markham
What. The. Hell.
It’s as if everyone in the room has turned to stone, but I know that can’t be true. I can see Violet as she moves away from the guy who holds her. I can feel the guy’s warm hand in my hair, his skin malleable under my fingers as I shove his hand away from me.
And…I just stand there. What the hell?!
„Quickly, we need to move!” I wince at Vi’s hoarse voice as she breaks the silence.
Complete, unearthly silence.
The clock on the desk isn’t tickin. No one breathes. Their gazes are frozen. To the left, the woman I sliced open is hunched over, and the man I stabbed is leaned against the wall on the right, staring in horror at his thigh.
I mark time in thunderous heartbeats as we stumble into the only open space in the room, but our path to the now-open door isn’t clear.
Xaden fills the doorway like some kind of dark, avenging angel, the messenger of the queen of the gods. He’s fully dressed, his face a mask of veritable rage as shadows curl from the walls on either side of him, hanging in midair.
For the first time since crossing the parapet, I’m so fucking relieved to see him that I could cry.
Violet gasps beside me – and chaos resumes.
„It’s about damned time.” Aon rumbles.
Xaden’s gaze snaps to mine, his onyx eyes flaring in shock for no longer than a millisecond before he strides forward, his shadows streaming before him as he stands at our side. He snaps his fingers and the room illuminates, mage lights hovering above us.
“You’re all fucking dead.” His voice is eerily calm and all the scarier for it.
Every head in the room turns.
“Riorson!” The man’s dagger clatters to the floor who held Violet.
“You think surrendering will save you?” Xaden’s lethally soft tone sends goose bumps up my arms. “It is against our code to attack another rider in their sleep.”
“But you know he never should have bonded her!” He puts his hands up, his palms facing us. “You of all people have reason enough to want the weakling dead. We’re just correcting a mistake.”
“Dragons don’t make mistakes.” Xaden’s shadows grab every assailant but that man by the throat, then constrict. They struggle, but it doesn’t matter. Their faces turn purple, the shadows holding tight as they sag to their knees, falling in an arc in front of me like lifeless puppets.
I can’t find it in my heart to pity them.
Xaden prowls forward as though he has all the time in the world and holds out his palm as yet another tendril of darkness lifts a discarded dagger from the floor.
“Let me explain.” The man eyes the dagger, and his hands tremble.
“I’ve heard everything I need to hear.” Xaden’s fingers curl around the hilt. “She should have killed, but she’s merciful. That’s not a flaw I possess.” He slashes forward so quickly that I barely catch the move, and his throat opens in a horizontal line, blood streaming down his neck and chest in a torrent.
He grabs for his throat, but it’s useless. He bleeds out in seconds, crumpling to the floor. A crimson puddle grows around him.
“Damn, Xaden.” Garrick walks in, sheathing his sword as his gaze rakes over the room. “No time for questioning?” His glance sweeps to us as if cataloging injuries, catching on my bloodied face.
“No need for it,” Xaden counters as Bodhi enters, doing the same quick assessment Garrick had. The similarity between the cousins still gives me pause. Bodhi has the same bronzed skin and strong brow line, but his features aren’t as angular as Xaden’s, and his eyes are a lighter shade of brown. He looks like a softer, more approachable version of his older cousin, but my body doesn’t heat at the sight of him the way it does around Xaden.
An illogical laugh bubbles up through Violet’s lips, and all three men look at her like she’ve hit her head.
“Let me guess,” Bodhi says, rubbing the back of his neck. “We’re on cleanup?”
“Call in help if you need it,” Xaden answers with a nod.
„Are you okay Vi?” I turn to her and gently grab her arms.
Oh my god. I have a terrible nasal voice. If that man wasn’t already dead I would kill him for breaking my nose.
„I’m alive. I’m alive. I’m alive.” She repeats it again and again.
„Yes. You’re alive.” Xaden says as he steps over the bodies toward Violet’s armoire with her daggers in his hand.
Garrick and Bodhi haul out the first bodies.
„I didn’t realize I’d said that out loud.” She says and starts shaking like a leaf.
„It’s the shock.” I say gently and move her toward her chair. „Sit. It’ll be better, just breathe.”
„Are you hurt?” Xaden asks while whipping Violet’s cloak from its hook and retrieving a pair of boots. His words are clipped.
Silence.
“Come on, Violence.” His cajoling words are at odds with his terse tone as he folds the cloak over his arm and brings the boots through the remaining bodies he’s left on the floor. “Pull your shit together and tell me where you’re hurt.”
That nickname again.
“You’re breathing like crap, so I’m guessing it has to do with—”
“My ribs,” she finishes before he can guess. “The one by the bed hit the side of my ribs with the sword, but I think they’re just bruised.”
“Must have been a dull sword.” He cocks a dark eyebrow. “Unless it has something to do with why both of you sleep in your leather vest.”
“Trust him,” Aon demands.
 “I have trust issues if you couldn’t tell. It’s not that easy.”
“It has to be for now. And I burn him alive if he ever hurts you.”
“It’s dragon-scale.” I say and move so that the light shines on it. “Mira made it for us.”
 He glances between our bodies, his mouth tensing before he nods once.
„And you, Sunshine?” He asks before moving in front of me. „That’s a lot of blood.”
„Yeah, well not all of it is mine,” I shrug. „And maybe I pissed one of them off a bit, and he broke my nose.”
„You and your big mouth, Sunshine.” He sighs in exasperation.
Before I can argue that point, his gaze shifts to my face and narrows at what I imagine has to be incipient brusing. “I should have killed him slower.”
„And your ribs? He hit you really hard.” Violet asks from her seat.
„Sunshine?” Xaden asks with a raised eyebrow.
I sigh. Fine. „It hurts a little but my face is worse than that. Not worth mentioning.”
“Never lie to me.” He says it with such ferocity, bit out through gritted teeth.
„I would promise, but there are secrets I can’t tell you.” I whisper and I can hear the sadness in my voice. „Sometimes I have to put my life first. Secrets can kill you in the wrong hands.”
He looks at me with an indecipherable look, then nods.
„Then be honest with me when you can.” He says quietly and his gazes softens.
My heart flutters.
“My nose hurts, and my ribs too.” I admit.
“Let me see.” I open and shut my mouth twice. I don’t know what to say and I simply nod. I’m tired of arguing. I let him do what he wants. At least tonight I don’t have to control everything.
Two other men walk in through the open door, Garrick and Bodhi following closely after. They’re all…dressed. Fully clothed at—I glance at the clock—two a.m.
“Take those two, and we’ll get the last ones,” Garrick orders, and the others get to work, carrying the last of the bodies out through the door. I can’t help but notice they all have rebellion relics shimmering up their arms, but I keep the observation to myself.
“Thank you,” Xaden says, then flicks his hand and the door shuts with a soft click. “Now, let me see your injuries. We’re wasting time.” He turns to Violet. „And you… go and get dressed.”
She must be quite shaken up because with a glance at me she goes to her armoire and does as he said.
 I swallow, then nod.
He cradles my face in his hands and tilts my head to observe my face. I flinch when he lightly touch my nose.
„Sorry, Sunshine. But it’s not that bad.” He slowly drops his hand. „Nolon can mend it in the morning. Now let me see your ribs.”
I sigh. Better to know now if they’re broken anyway. I turn my back on him, but I can see his face in the full-length mirror. “You’ll have to—”
“I know how to handle a corset.” His jaw flexes once, and something that reminds me of raw hunger flitters across his expression before he locks it down, drawing my hair over my shoulder with surprising gentleness.
His fingers skim my bare skin and I suppress a shiver, locking my muscles so I don’t arch into his touch.
What the hell is wrong with me? There’s still blood on the floor, on me and yet my breaths are tight for the entirely wrong reason as he makes quick work of the laces, starting at the bottom. He wasn’t lying. He absolutely knows his way around a corset.
“How the hell do you get yourself into this thing every morning?” he asks, clearing his throat as inch after inch of my back is exposed.
“I’m freakishly flexible.” I answer over my shoulder and laugh at him. Our eyes meet, and warmth flutters through my stomach. The moment is gone as quickly as it came, and he pulls my armor apart, inspecting my right side. Gentle fingers stroke over the abused ribs, then prod carefully. Then he repeats it on the other side.
“You have one hell of a bruise, but I don’t think they’re broken.”
“That’s what I thought. Thank you for checking.” It should be awkward, but somehow it isn’t, even as he laces me back up, securing the ends.
“You’ll live.” He says as I turn around to face him.
„I’m ready. Where are we going?” Violet asks, and I can feel myself blushing.
Oh my god. She saw it all.
„Well… I should go and get dressed to. I’m not exactly decent.” I look at my corset and short.
„We don’t have time.” Xaden shakes his head. „Here, put it on.” He says as he shrugs off his flight jacket and gives it to me.
Without a word I take it from him.
“Let’s go.” He helps me put it on, like I’m something precious. Now I know I’m hallucinating it because I’m anything but precious to Xaden Riorson. He grasps my hand and tugs me into the hallway, Violet following us. His fingers are strong as they curl around mine, his grip firm but not too tight.
He gave me his jacket. It’s huge, and it has such a nice smell. It’s his scent. Mint and leather.
Every other door is shut. The attack wasn’t even loud enough to rouse the neighbors. We’d be dead by now if Xaden hadn’t shown up, even if we managed to get out of their hold. But how did that happen?
“Where are we going?” The hallways are dimly lit by blue mage lights, the kind that signal it’s still night for those without windows.
“Keep talking loud enough for others to hear, and someone will stop us before we get anywhere.”
“Can’t you just hide us in shadows or something?” Violet asks.
“Sure, because a giant black cloud moving down the hallway isn’t going to look more suspicious than a couple sneaking around, and you’re so small Violet, that nobody will notice you if you stay behind us.” He shoots us a look that keeps us from countering.
Point taken.
Not that we’re a couple.
Not that I wouldn’t climb the man like a tree if presented with the right set of circumstances. I cringe as we make it to the main hallway of the dormitory. There will never, ever be a right set of circumstances when it comes to him.
But in my defense, and in a sick, twisted way, his rescue was pretty damned hot, even if he is hauling me down the hallway at an untenable speed. Even if he only did it because Violet’s life is tied to his. My chest screams for a break, but there’s none to be found as he leads us past the spiral staircase that leads up to the second- and third-year dorms and into the rotunda.
Our boots against the marble floor are the only sounds as we pass into the academic wing. Instead of turning left, toward the sparring gym, he takes us right, down a set of stairs that I know leads to storage.
Halfway down the steps, he pauses, and I nearly run into the sword strapped to his back. Then he gestures with his right hand, keeping mine in his left.
Click. Xaden pushes on the stones and a hidden door swings open.
“Holy shit,” I whisper at the expansive tunnel revealed before us.
“Hope you’re not afraid of the dark.” He pulls me inside, and suffocating darkness envelops us as the door closes.
This is fine. This is absolutely fine. Just breathe.
“But just in case you are,” Xaden says, his voice at full volume as he snaps. A mage light hovers above our head, illuminating our surroundings.
“Thanks.” The tunnel is supported by arches of stone and the floor is smooth, as though it’s been traveled more than its entrance lets on. It smells like earth but isn’t dank, and it goes on for what seems like an eternity.
He drops my hand and starts walking. “Keep up.”
“You could—” Violet winces. “Be a little more considerate.” We trudge after him.
“I’m not going to baby you like Aetos does,” he says without turning around. “That’s only going to get you killed once we get out of Basgiath.”
“He doesn’t baby me.”
“He does and you know it. You hate it, too, if the vibe I’m picking up on is any indication.” He falls back to walk at our side. “Or did I read that wrong?”
“He thinks this place is too dangerous for someone…like me, and after what just happened, I’m not sure I can really argue with him. I was asleep. That’s the only time we’re supposed to be guaranteed safety around here. I don’t think I’ll bother sleeping again.” she shoots a look sideways at his profile. “And if you even think about suggesting that you sleep with me for safety from now on—”
He scoffs. “Hardly. I don’t fuck first-years—even when I was one—let alone…you.”
Ouch. There goes my fantasies. I’m a first-year after all. But deep in my heart I’m glad, that he is not attracted to Violet.
“Who said anything about fucking?” She fires back. “I’d have to be a masochist to sleep with you, and I can assure you, I’m not.”
“Masochist, huh?” A corner of his mouth quirks into a smirk.
“You hardly give off snuggly morning-after vibes.” A smile curves on her lips. “Unless you’re worried about me killing you while we sleep.” We round a corner, and the tunnel continues.
“I have zero concern about that. As violent as you are, and skilled with those daggers, I’m not even sure you could kill a fly. Don’t think I didn’t notice that you managed to wound them and never went for a kill shot.” He shoots a disapproving look her way.
“I’ve never killed anyone,” She whispers like it’s a secret.
“You’re going to have to get over that. All we are after graduation are weapons, and it’s best if we’re honed before leaving the gates.”
„That’s enough, both of you. You argue like children.” I roll my eyes. “Is that where we’re going? Are we leaving the gates?” I ask Xaden. I’ve lost all sense of direction in here.
“We’re going to ask Tairn what the hell just happened.” Xaden’s jaw flexes. “And I’m not talking about the attack. How the hell did they get past the locks?”
Violet shrugs but doesn’t explain.
“We’d better figure it out so it doesn’t happen again. I refuse to sleep on your fucking floor like some kind of guard dog.”
“Wait. This is another way to the flight field?” I do my best to mentally wall off the pain in my face. “Will you be there too?” I ask Aon.
“Naturally.”
“Are you going to tell me what that was in there?”
“I would if I knew.”
“Yes,” Xaden says, and the path curves again. “It’s not exactly common knowledge. And I’m going to ask you to tuck this little tunnel into the file of secrets you keep on my behalf.”
“Let me guess, and you’ll know if I tell?”
“Yes.” Another smirk appears, and I look away before he can catch me staring.
“Are you going to promise us another favor?” Violet asks. The path begins to climb, and the ascent is anything but gentle. Every breath reminds me of what happened less than an hour ago.
“Having one of my favors is more than enough, and we’ve already reached mutually assured destruction status, Sorrengail. Now, can you push through it, or do you need me to carry you?”
“That sounds like an insult, not an offer.”
“You’re catching on.” But his pace slows to match ours.
“What were you doing tonight anyway?” I ask curiously.
“What makes you ask?” His tone clearly insinuates that I shouldn’t. Too bad.
“You made it to Violet’s room within minutes, and you’re not exactly dressed for sleeping.” He’s strapped with a sword for crying out loud.
“Maybe I sleep in my armor, too.”
“Then you should pick more trustworthy bedmates.”
He snorts, a flash of a smile appearing for a heartbeat. A real one. Not the fake, forced sneer I’m used to seeing or the cocky little smirk. An honest, heart- stopping smile that I’m anything but immune to. It’s gone as fast as it appears, though.
“So you’re not going to tell me?” I ask. I’d be frustrated if I didn’t hurt so damned much. And I’m not even going to touch why he needed to haul us all the way to Tairn when obviously Violet can chat with him anytime she wants.
Unless he wants to talk to Tairn, which is…ballsy.
“Nope. Third-year business.” He lets go when we reach the stonewalled end of the tunnel. A few hand gestures and another click sounds before he pushes open the door.
We step out into crisp, freezingly cold November air.
“What the hell,” I whisper. The door is built into a stack of boulders on the eastern side of the field.
“It’s camouflaged.” Xaden waves a hand and the door closes, blending into the rock as if it’s a part of it.
There’s a sound I now recognize as the steady beat of wings, and I look up to see the four dragons block out the stars as they descend. The earth shudders as they land in front of us.
 Tairn steps forward and Sgaeyl follows, her wings tucked in tight, her golden eyes narrowing on me.
„What have I done?” I ask Aon.
He stands next to Sgaeyl and snaps at her.
„Do not worry about it, little one. She’s always so grumpy.”
I try to disguise my laughter as a cough.
Andarna scurries between Sgaeyl’s claws, galloping toward us. She skids the last dozen feet, paws digging into the ground to stop just in front of Violet, bringing her nose to her ribs.
„What’s so funny?” Xaden looks at me.
„Aon. He said Sgaeyl is always grumpy. But so is he.” I smile at Aon. „They siblings after all.”
Sgaeyl turns her head and shots a menacing look toward Aon, before she lowers her head and stares at me.
She’s so close. I have never been so close to another dragon. But I keep eye contact with her. I’m not weak.
She huffs a breath in… approval?
“No broken bones,” I hear Violet, as she strokes her hand over the bumpy ridges of Andarna’s head. “They’re just bruised.”
“As sure as I can be.” She forces a smile.
“Yes, I want a word. What the hell kind of powers are you channeling to her?” Xaden demands, staring up at Tairn like he isn’t…Tairn.
Yep. Ballsy. Every muscle in my body locks, sure that Tairn is about to torch Xaden for impudence.
“He says—” Violet starts.
“I heard him,” Xaden counters, not sparing her a glance.
“You what?” My eyebrows hit my hairline, and Andarna retreats to stand with the others. Dragons only talk to their riders. That’s what I’ve always been taught.
“It’s absolutely my business when you expect me to protect her,” Xaden retorts, his voice rising.
Tairn’s head swivels in that snakelike motion that puts me on alert. He’s more than agitated.
“And I barely made it.” The words come out clipped through clenched teeth. “They would have been dead if I’d been thirty seconds later.”
Tairn’s chest rumbles with a growl.
“And I’d like to know what the fuck happened in there!”
I inhale sharply. „Xaden!” I shout and grab his arm. „Do you want to get yourself killed?”
I’ve never seen someone so much as dare to speak to another rider’s dragon, yet alone yell at one, especially not one as powerful as Tairn.
„Let him go. If Tairn wants to kill him, let him do it. I don’t want to look for another rider.” Aon steps closer to us.
„I knew that you love me.” I wink at him. „But I can’t watch it. All four are connected to each other. And Violet is important to me.”
„Just her?”
“We need to know what happened in that room.” Xaden’s dark gaze cuts through me like a knife for a millisecond before he glares back at Tairn.
Tairn’s mouth opens, his tongue curling in a motion I know all too well.
I pull on Xaden’s arm and I step in front of him.
„I’m so sorry that he’s rude to you, Tairn.” I say in my most polite voice. „He’s just a little freaked out. Don’t scorch him, please.”
In awe, Violet blinks up at the navy-blue daggertail as Xaden moves to my side. “She talked to me.”
“I know. I heard.” He folds his arms across his chest. “It’s because they’re mates. It’s the same reason I’m chained to you.”
What? They can…talk to each other? My chest hurts. Theoretically I knew it that they have a connection, but hearing it… it hurts.
I step away from them and I go over to Aon.
„Why am I here?” I ask him. „I mean I can’t hear half of the discussion.”
„I wanted to see you, to know that you’re all right.” He lowers his head and nudges me with his nose. „And unfortunately it seems the wingleader cares about you.”
„What? How do you know that?” I ask as I pet his nose.
„Sgaeyl likes to gossip. Now concentrate on the conversation, little one.”
I look at him in disbelief, but I nod and walk back to the others.
“You make it sound so pleasant.”
“It’s not.” Xaden turns to face Violet. “But you and I are exactly that, Violence. We’re chained. Tethered. You die, I die, so I damn well deserve to know how the hell you were under that man’s knife one second and across the room in another. Is that the signet power you’ve manifested with Tairn? Come clean. Now.” His eyes bore into her.
“I don’t know what happened,” She answers honestly.
Violet pivots to face the golden dragon, repeating what she said to us. „Nature likes all things in balance, that’s the first thing we’re taught.”
“What is that supposed to mean?” Xaden asks Violet, not her.
Guess that means he can hear Tairn, but not Andarna.
“Feathertails shouldn’t bond because they can accidentally gift their powers to humans,” Violet continues. “Dragons can’t channel—not really—until we’re…they’re big, but they’re all born with something special.”
She relays the message. “Like a signet?” She asks out loud so Xaden and I can hear.
“Sgaeyl said, that no,” Aon tells me. “A signet is a combination of our power with your own ability to channel. It reflects who you are at the core of your being.”
Andarna sits up and tilts her head proudly.
“But I gave my gift directly to you. Because I’m still a feathertail.” Violet repeats again, staring at the smaller dragon. Almost nothing is known about feathertails because they’re never seen outside the Vale.
They’re guarded. They’re… I swallow. Wait. What did she say?
“You’re still a feathertail?” I look at Andarna in desbelief.
She blinks slowly and then cracks a yawn, her forked tail curling.
“You’re…you’re a hatchling,” Violet whispers.
Oh. Gods.                       
“She’s a what?” Xaden’s gaze swings between Andarna and Violet.
“How much faster?” Violet gasps. “She’s two years old!”
Sgaeyl chuffs at Andarna in obvious disapproval.
What an interesting conversation. I can’t hear half of what they say. Whatever, I will ask Vi later.
“Hold on. Is Andarna yours?” Xaden walks a step toward Sgaeyl, and the tone in his voice is one I’ve never heard. He’s…hurt. “Have you hidden a hatchling away from me these last two years?”
Sgaeyl blows out a blast of air that ruffles Xaden’s hair.
I look at Aon questioningly.
„Her parents passed before hatching.” He answers.
Tairn grumbles.
“Unpredictable?” Xaden questions.
“Gods, no. I could barely control it as a first-year.” Xaden shakes his head.
It’s odd to imagine Xaden ever not being in control.
“I would never!” Violet shakes her head.
Andarna’s head flops against Tairn’s leg. How could I not see it before now? Her rounded eyes, her paws…
“Of course, you wouldn’t know. Feathertails aren’t supposed to be seen,” Aon says.
“If leadership knew riders could take her gifts for themselves, rather than depending on their own signets…” Xaden says, staring at Andarna as she blinks slower and slower.
“She’d be hunted,” Violet finishes quietly.
“I won’t,” Violet promises as she looks toward the dragons. “Andarna, thank you. Whatever you did saved our lives.”
Her mouth drops open into another jaw-cracking yawn.
Violet stares at her and wobbles.
“What did she say?” Xaden asks her.
Tarin grumbles.
“Tell me what she said. Please.” His mouth tightens and I know that last bit cost him.
“She can pause time,” She forces out, stumbling over her words. “Briefly.”
Xaden’s features slacken, and for the first time, he doesn’t look like the stalwart, lethal wingleader I met on the parapet. He’s flat-out shocked as his gaze swings to Andarna. “You can stop time?”
“In small increments,” Vi whispers.
“In small increments,” Xaden echoes slowly, like he’s absorbing the information.
“And if I use it too much, I can kill you,” Violet says softly to Andarna.        
Silence, then Violet breaks it.
“Is Professor Carr going to kill me, too?” Every gaze whips toward Violet.
“Why would you think that?” I ask her with concern.
“He killed Jeremiah.” She says in a trembling voice. “You saw him snap his neck like a twig right in front of the whole quadrant.”
“Jeremiah was an inntinnsic.” Xaden’s voice lowers. “A mind reader is a capital offense. You know that.”
“And what are they going to do if they find out I can stop time?”
Terror freezes the blood in my veins.  “They’re not going to find out,” I promise her.
“No one is going to tell them. Not you. Not me. Not Aelin. Not them.” Xaden motions with one hand toward our dragons. “Understand?”
„Be safe, little one.” Aon says as they all bend slightly, then launch, wind gusting against my face. Andarna struggles, her wings beating twice as hard, and Tairn flies up underneath her, taking her weight and continuing on to the Vale.
“Promise me you won’t tell anyone about the time-stopping,” Xaden asks Violet as we head back into the tunnel, but it feels an awful lot like a command. “It’s not just for your safety. Rare abilities, when kept secret, are the most valuable form of currency we possess.”
My brow furrows as I study the stark lines of the rebellion relic that winds up his neck, marking him as a traitor’s son, warning everyone that he’s not to be trusted. But so far he has proven to be more reliable than my own father.
“We need to figure out how unbonded cadets got in your room,” Xaden says.
“There was a rider there,” Violet tells us. “Someone who ran away before Aelin arrived. She must have unlocked it from the outside.”
“Who?” I halt, taking her elbow gently and turning her toward us.
She shakes her head.
“At some point, you and I are going to have to start trusting each other, Sorrengail. The rest of our lives depend on it.” Fury swims in Xaden’s eyes. “Now tell me who.”
„Tell us, Vi. You know I will always believe you.” I say softly. „Who else was there?”
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shadowdaddies · 3 months
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friendly competition among the shadow daddies
artwork by the amazing elenana.art on Instagram
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rosiethorns88 · 8 months
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Dropping the latest Sketch-a-Wish voted on by my lovely Patreons for July! Fourth Wing (by @rebeccayarros) making a quick reappearance as we reset our author list for Sketch-a-Wish! This time featuring a sparring scene between Violet and Xaden as the former snatches daggers away from the latter. This was such an odd perspective angle to tackle, I was chastising Past-Rosie for considering this a good idea throughout the entire process. But we got to the end! This piece is licensed and available as a print preorder in my shop via my bio link. ✨🧡
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cottagecoremom · 4 months
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~Iron Flame Spoilers~
I don't know what makes me want to cry more, that Andarna waited 650 years for Violet, or that she makes her scales black cause she wants to be like Tairn
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nenhuir · 5 months
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the way xaden makes sure she’s alive before fighting with her is actually so cute
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minxchester · 5 months
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Fourth Wing Foreshadow Re-Read~
...look there's something just so disarming and adorable about a tall, buff, shadow-wielding trauma boy with a war on his shoulders admitting that his favorite food is chocolate fucking cake.
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And then it's a gesture of love. 😭
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*goes off to cry quietly in bed for a bit*
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stormwvr · 5 months
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Xaden: Fuck AND marry Violet. I'll kill everyone else
Bodhi, exasperated: for the last time that's not how the game works
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spookyseasontime · 5 months
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THIS 👏🏻 CHARACTER 👏🏻 GROWTH👏🏻
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cornfield-chase · 5 months
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“Can you carry a luminary?”
“That question insults me.”
“Can you carry a luminary while insulted?”
for fuck’s sake im cracking up on the floor🤣
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lost-in-fictionn · 6 months
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No but the D jokes 😭😂
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~
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christopherherondale · 6 months
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I’m not fine 😭😭😭
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shreksniceboulder · 6 months
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"Apologize," Tairn demands, his voice low and sharp
"I'm sorry!" Varrish's voice breaks
"Apologize to the one Andarna deemed worthy of her bond."
......
"On your knees"
JAW? DROPPED. MIND? BLOWN. TRAJECTORY OF LIFE? CHANGED.
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wingedshadowfan · 6 months
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something that totally went over my head the first time i read fourth wing was the fact that when violet's squad barged in last with the huge up-to-date map of wings/outposts that they stole from general sorrengail's office, they essentially planted the seed in the riders' heads that what they're learning in battle brief is heavily censored, and this is how you start a riot - which is why the professors RAN to take it and put it back/hide it, and why xaden bowed to her: aside from being extremely strategical about the choice of object and method of stealing it, she aided the rebellion without even knowing
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loreruinedme · 6 months
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Iron Flame Spoilers//
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Xaden’s love confession has me weak, this man.
“I’m sorry if you expected me to do the noble thing. I warned you. I’m not sweet or soft or kind, and you fell anyway. This is what you get, Violet - me. The good, the bad, the unforgivable. All of it - I am yours. You want to know something true? Something real? I love you. I’m in love with you. I have been since the night the snow fell in your hair and you kissed me for the first time. I’m grateful my life is tied to yours because it means I won’t have to face a day without you in it. My heart beats as long as yours does, and when you die, I’ll meet Malek at your side. It’s a damned good thing that you love me, too, because you’re stuck with me in this life and every other that could possibly follow”
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ksenitaart · 5 months
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There’s nowhere in existence you could go that I wouldn’t find you, Violence
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