Chapter 30

Again warning, mention of torture etc. This counts for several chapters

Azriel's POV

As we slammed into the ground of the townhouse, Amren was next to us immediately. Her hands-on mine and Cassians wounds. She tried to heal us, but it was only enough to stench the bleeding a bit. ''Where is she'' Amren demanded, ''Get the book out of here'' Rhysand ordered. Their voices distant the darkness was closing in. I groaned out ''Bri'' I needed my mate. Amren demanded again, "Where is she''. As Mor winnowed into the room, her hands on my chest, the wound gaping, as Amren did the same to Cassians back. Both of us in pain, bleeding out more and more, even us Illyrians would only survive for so long. ''Where is she'' Amren demanded, and finally, Rhys responded, but I didn't hear the response. Darkness finally claimed me, the pain numbed down. I spent was felt like an eternity floating in the nothingness that came with it. ''Az come on wake up'' someone said muffled by the fog of my mind. I was slowly regaining back control over my body, I squeezed my hand. ''Guys'' the same voice called. I slowly woke up, hearing some people enter the room. The bed underneath me felt familiar, but it wasn't mine, I think. ''What happened'' I croaked out, before opening my eyes. Mor was directly next to me, a worried look on her face, Amren and Rhysand stood at the end of my bed. I tried to sit up, and Rhysand and Mor shot forward as I groaned out at the sharp pain in my chest. They helped me up so I could lean against the backboard of the bed. Mor reached over a glass of water, all of them looking glum staying silent. It then dawned on me, Cassian where was he.

I looked around, ''wheres Cassian?''. ''He's over here'' Amren said pointing to the sheet hung from a rail, before pulling it to the side. He was laying on his stomach, his wings bound by lots of bandages. I pulled my own wings in tighter at the sight of his, feeling the phantom pain from just losing a little part of a wing. The look of his wings flashed before my eyes, they had been shredded by … ''His wings will heal maybe even fully, Madja had to reconstruct most of them, but he was lucky'' Mor said, ''It would have been so much worse if it weren't for Bri. She used the last bit of magic she had to make the stone wall, not even the faebane was able to block it''. I shot forward, eyes wide, Briar where was she I couldn't feel her. I began to panic almost scrambling to leave, even when sharp pains took my breath away. ''Az, calm down'' Mor said, trying to pull me back. Another realisation hit me, we had left her. What if Rhys shattered her mind. She's gone. My mate is gone, she's not here. I can't feel her, she's

'''Briar isn't dead'' Rhys said his voice hollow. They have her alive, mind intact. The panic I was feeling did not get less; instead, the statement made it worse. ''They have her alive'' I asked, almost losing my composure. She was back at the place which had haunted her, they had free reign to torture her, it's my fault. ''Don't think that'' Rhysand said, reading my thoughts. ''They are torturing her, she could be dead'' I exploded, the rage that I had felt in those moments at the palace, and at the thoughts of them torturing her coming out. Cassian stirred at that. ''Hybern has my mate, I don't feel her'' I all but yelled, losing my composure allowing a single tear to roll down my cheek. They didn't look all that shocked at the mating part, but my outburst was definitely something. ''You don't think I don't know how it feels, I left Feyre with them'' Rhysand roared back, ''She begged me to take her sisters and flee, she sacrificed herself for us''.

''Feyre won't be tortured on a daily. It's horrible that she is back there but she will and can come back, you should know what Hybern is capable of. Bri'' My voice broke I couldn't finish the sentence. I felt horrible for saying the things I said, we had seen how Feyre was when she first got to us, but she is powerful she can handle it. Rhysand went still at that. ''I'm sorry'' I croaked out. Mor jumped in between us before it got worse. ''Rhysand out, we already went over this I will explain'' She said deadly calm. I couldn't really think my mate was in their hands. ''Az'' Mor asked shaking me from my thoughts. I looked at her a bit dazed, Cassian had also joined us sitting up. ''Is Bri really your mate'' Cassian asked still a bit groggy from the medicine. I nodded '' does she know'' Mor asked carefully. Once again, I nodded, ''I don't know how long she has known''.

''When did it click?'' Mor asked. ''At the end of the attack on Velaris,'' I said, voice hollow and raw. I thought back at the moment it had all made sense, the pull towards her, the feelings I had sensed coming from her. ''Bri knew'' Mor said, ''she begged Rhysand to just go, to save you. She knew that if Rhys shattered her mind, we wouldn't be able to escape. Our high lady and Briar both knew they both sacrificed themselves for us, for you guys their mates.'' High lady, Feyre was a high lady. It confused me for a second before anger took hold once again.

'' Don't bother we have already given him crap for that one'' Cassian said, referring to Rhysand. I shook my head, it was difficult to wrap my mind around it their sacrifice. ''Az, I promise you we will get her out'' Cassian said, anger in his eyes. ''I can't feel her anymore'' I answered, the message clear, what if she was already dead. ''She's still alive we have to believe that'' Cassian said, ''I won't leave her again, she has to be alive Bri has survived once before she will do it again''. Cassian was determined, one look at him showed that perfectly. I shook my head, trying to ban the thoughts of what she must be going through. ''I will leave you guys to rest, and Az Bri wouldn't want you to blame yourself. She knew the consequences and still wanted you to survive, to live more than the consequences''. With that, Mor walked out of the room after Rhysand and Amren. I still felt guilty the attack on Velaris, and our capture Hybern, but even more so about my words to Rhysand.

Briar's POV

I was relieved when they finally winnowed away, I could finally let go of the tether of consciousness. My entire body was in pain, it wasn't anything I hadn't had before, but after these months, it felt like the first time. I wanted to pass out so badly, to give in to the oblivion. I had used my last bit of magic to shield the Inner Circle, even with the collar on I had one final burst left before the faebane nullified it completely. My back was shredded, cuts were all along the rest of my body, no clothes remained, and I was bleeding between my legs. I vaguely heard Feyre try to demand Tamlin to take me with them, but he kept refusing. The king ordered them to take me away, at some point while I was being dragged away, I passed out.

When I woke up, I was in the same torture chamber that I called home for 450 years. I emptied my stomach in the same spot, feeling the familiar weakness seep into my bones. I could barely move without sharp pain shooting through me. I had no idea how long I had been unconscious, I doubt it had been very long, a few days at most. Looking at my wounds, they weren't healed, only scabbed over thanks to the faebane. The door banged open, two guards standing there in front of the king, he gave them the signal. No, please don't I tried to get away knowing what was going to happen next. The guards pulled me up and locked me onto the chair. I locked myself into my mind again while the torturer began pulling out my nails and breaking my fingers. At some point, I passed out to once again wake up in that room. But this time my nails were intact, and only one finger was bent the wrong way. The walls weren't as degraded, the pale stone more vibrant, not as dull as the first time I woke up.

''Well look who finally woke up'' a familiar voice drawled, a younger version of the torturer walked up. ''It's been a few days since our last session, the king even let the healers take you'' he said, walking up with a spiked bat, ''I can't rough you up to badly, Arlon has you tonight. Maybe just the back, or''. He was thinking out loud before motioning one of the guards to move me onto my stomach. The moment I was chained again, the male began beating my back, shredding it to ribbons at the same time. I wanted to scream, sob or anything but I kept quiet, I would not give them the satisfaction. I didn't know how many slashed he made, but when he finally stopped, I was close to blacking out again. He let healers into the room to patch my back before I was whisked away to Arlon's room.

I don't remember getting to the room, or at least not as clear as I should. When I woke up I couldn't move, my back in ribbons. Cuts and bruises all over my body, my stomach growled. How long had it been since I ate last, the hollow feeling in it told me a week maybe more? Laughter hit my ears, cackling mad laughter as the door swung open. The twins stood there, they looked the same as they had always done since maturing. ''Lock her in Brother'' Brennagh ordered Dagdan. My body went rigid, I was as stiff as a plank. Locked inside my own body, as they spun illusions in my mind. Spiders crawling over me, even into my ears and mouth. Poisonous snaked biting, anacondas squeezing and even mixing up the small illusions with real pain. I didn't know where the illusions pain ended and where the actual pain began. They visited me every day, made me eat moulded bread while thinking it was the best I had ever tasted. These small illusions were only the beginning, as they started to make me drown on air, feel like I was falling down before splatting on the ground and freezing alive for days on end. Locking my mind and body in each scenarios, every time it was worse than the time before.

I don't know when they stopped, or when they started again. I had nothing to hold onto, other than hoping my captains, my friends survived. I emptied my stomach; was lying in a pool of it, blood, vomit and other fluids. I couldn't move, I think an infection had set in. Another torturer walked into the room, another session. He ripped open my back, all the old scars. As well as, cutting through tendons, beating the right nerves. I couldn't breathe properly, I barely ate, and only got a minimal amount of water. His sessions weren't the worst, though. It was only when the twins showed up that I lost my grip on reality. They loved to lock me into false realities, memories of the past 500 years of torture.

I didn't know what time it as, whether I was in the past or the present. I was once again locked in some chair, in some bone-white room. I didn't know the time or the place that I was until the door opened. Shadows exploded into the room, the towering figure of an Illyrian doomed on the threshold. Azriel walked up to me, truthteller in his hands.