Adria was locked up, accused of a half a dozen crimes that she didn't think she committed. She wasn't a terrorist, because despite the accusations the king and guards sent her way, she wasn't responsible for the black rocks that were destroying Corona.
She didn't kidnap the princess. She'd simply persuaded the Sundrop to accompany her. And yes, whole Adira had pulled out a sword when it seemed that Rapunzel was going to back out of using the incantation, she hadn't really had any intention of using it. So really, the accusation that she had tried to kill the princess wasn't true at all.
She had been accused of trespassing in Quirin's house, which was ridiculous. It was her home. She'd been living there for more than ten years. If they wanted to accuse her of trespassing, why didn't they say that she did it with the castle?
She was also accused of conspiracy, and nobody would bother to explain how that was a crime. And she certainly wasn't a traitor. She may have lived in Corona for a long time, but this wasn't her kingdom. This wasn't where her loyalties were. She was loyal to her family, not to any particular kingdom.
She would accept the accusation that she was a traitor to her family. She had deceived her brother for ten years, using her nephew in the process. Even before that she had left her family with every intention of finding the Sundrop to destroy the moonstone, which was what the Brotherhood had been dedicated to protecting.
Adira had known for years that she was a traitor, both to her kingdom and to her family, but she had reasoned with herself that she was doing what was best. She believed that she was far wiser than the rest of the Brotherhood.
She regretted many of the things she had done in the past, but she didn't regret what she had done to land in this dungeon. Hector was alive. He was freed from the amber. Quirin would keep an eye on him from there. Her family would be okay.
It didn't matter to Adira that she would probably be locked up for the rest of her life. As long as her family was okay she didn't really care what happened to her. This imprisonment was a small price to pay.
Adira was ready to accept that this was her lot in life. She was at peace with it. She sat on the ground, closed her eyes and meditated. She had only been here for a few hours so far. Some of the guards and other prisoners had tried to make comments to upset her or get under her skin, but she had no problem ignoring them. These Coronans had nothing on her.
She could have meditated well into the night, but she was distracted when she heard screams of agony and fear echo through the dungeons. She tried to ignore them, convinced that it was probably just someone who had a terrible nightmare, or cellmates who had gotten into a fight with each other. But the screams kept going, and they seemed to be coming closer.
Finally her curiosity got the best of her. Adira got to her feet and went to the bars of her cell. She peeked out and looked towards where the screams were coming from. She saw other prisoners doing the same.
"What's going on?" One of the prisoners muttered. He sounded scared and superstitious. Adira didn't answer, because she didn't want to bring attention to herself, but she was wondering the same thing.
They watched tensely, listening as the screams echoed around them. Adira saw a guard run down the stairs. He looked like he was fleeing from something. The look on his face was one of raw fear
"What's out there?" Another guard asked.
"Something not of this world." The guard said. He wielded his sword, but the blade was shaking. "It came right out of the shadows. All I saw was fur and darkness."
"A monster?" The superstitious prisoner asked The guard didn't answer him, but his silence spoke volumes.
The guard and prisoners fell silent after that as they stood waiting intently. The screams and cries from further up were still going. They didn't stop, but Adira noticed another sound. Footsteps. Someone was slowly coming down those steps. Adira narrowed her eyes and eyed the stairs.
She saw a shadow of whoever was approaching, but before she could get a better look all of the torches in the stairway went dark, blowing out because of a harsh, cold wind that Adira could feel from here.
The wind felt incredibly familiar to Adira. It was a chill that reminded her of the Dark Kingdom. It made her think of standing in the barren plateaus of home after yet another plague ravaged the kingdom. Adira didn't necessarily believe in the mercies of the Moon, not the way that Hector did, but as a child she could remember feeling peace and hope for the first time.
She had been just a little girl. Plagues and illness had been common in the kingdom, and a terrible one had nearly devastated her whole village. Adira's mother had gotten sick, and she was dying. Adira hadn't even been allowed to stay by her mother's side, because she was worried that she would get sick too. Adira had run away from her village. Away from the death that surrounded her. She went to a plateau of black rocks and snow. She had knelt on the ground and, for the first time in her life, she had prayed.
Adira couldn't remember what exactly she had prayed for back then, she just remembered the peace of feeling heard. When she eventually went home she found that the illness had moved on and those that had survived it would recover.
Adira hadn't lost her mother that day, and that was when she swore to serve the Moon. She wanted to honor the goddess for sparing her mother, and she wanted to serve and help the people who weren't nearly as fortunate.
Adira had been so young back then. She had nearly forgotten all about that memory, but this chill and darkness brought those memories back all at once. She felt lonely, frightened, desperate, as well as hopeful. The moon was watching over her. She could feel it.
Nobody else seemed comforted the way she was. Through the darkness she could hear the other prisoners let out cries of alarm and fear. If she listened past it she heard the figure in the shadows coming closer.
"Stay back, beast!" The guard said. His attempt at sounding brave wasn't half bad, but Adira could hear the fear in his voice, and she knew she wasn't the only one. She heard a low growl in the darkness that made her freeze. She recognized that growl, but it was impossible. He wouldn't be here. Not now. Not for her.
Adira heard the tell-tale sound of a blade slicing through the air immediately followed by a cry of pain from the guard. There was a thud as he probably fell to the ground. It was so dark that Adira couldn't see anything, not even shadowy forms in the darkness. But then she saw two pinpricks of light piercing through the darkness. The familiar bright eyes that she knew all too well.
"...Brother." Adira breathed. Hector was here. He had come for her. Whether it was to free her or strike her down where she stood, it was more than what she had expected from him right now. She had thought that he would think she wasn't worth his time and effort. She had thought that he would have made his way back to the Great Tree by now, ready to forget about her completely.
Adira heard the sword again, and then the sound of something hitting metal. This happened a few more times, and then she heard the scraping of metal against metal. Adira jolted when she felt a hand grab her wrist. She had to fight to refrain from attacking whoever was touching her. She didn't appreciate it, but she didn't want to anger Hector more than he already had.
Hector didn't say a word. He pulled her out of the cell, past the bars that Adira realized he had cut through with her black rock sword. Unlike Adira, Hector wasn't impeded by the darkness. She didn't know if he'd been born with it, or if he'd been blessed by the Moon later in life, but Hector's unusual eyes were more than just a bright color. He could see through darkness as easily as in the light.
Adira didn't like to wander blindly, but she knew she wouldn't make it out of the unnatural darkness so easily without him. She didn't know why he had come for her. He was probably just doing a favor for Varian, and then he would want nothing to do with her again. She would take whatever he had to offer, whether good or bad. It was the very least she could do for him.
She let him pull her to the stairs and up to the next floor of the dungeons. She could still hear sobs and moans of pain around them. It was like something from a horrible dream. Wandering in darkness, surrounded by horrifying sounds from sources unseen. Adira wasn't a squeamish person, but she thought she would be having nightmares about tonight.
When they finally left the dungeons, unnoticed by those whose jobs were to keep people like Adira in, the unnatural darkness vanished. It was still very dark, as it was the middle of the night, but she could see vague glows from fires in distant halls, and through the windows she could see the glow of the moon.
Adira was finally able to see her brother. It was dark, and she couldn't make out the details, but it was still possibly one of the most beautiful sights she had ever seen.
"Hector." Adira said quietly. It was barely audible, but Hector reacted anyway. He growled and shot a glare over his shoulder. His eyes were so cold and harsh. It made Adira feel like he was glaring at an enemy rather than a sister.
"Stop talking." Hector said.
"Brother…" Adira reached for him. He hit her hand away.
"Shut up!" Hector shouted. His eyes were shining, and it was unclear if it was because of the moon's power. "I don't want to hear anything you have to say."
"Not even an apology?" Adira asked. He snarled at her.
"Especially not an apology." Hector snapped. "Because you're not sorry. You're never sorry for anything you ever do, because you're always right about everything, aren't you?" He smirked darkly and painfully. His posture was both defensive and offensive. He was ready to attack her if she said anything wrong.
"I didn't want to hurt you." Adira said. "I just wanted to protect you."
"From what?" Hector tilted his head at her with a mock curiosity. "From my foolish duties to the Moon, because I'm just a mindless slave to the Brotherhood who can't even think for himself?" Adira's mouth thinned at the words. It wasn't at all how she would phrase it, but in a way that was how she saw his duties. She did think that he was loyal to the Moon out of habit, and he went too far just because he felt obligated to. But she would never call him a slave, and as much as she disagreed with his choices it wasn't what she had been trying to save him from.
Hector's eyes flashed and he leaned towards her, though still kept at arm's length. His posture was unnatural and an unnerving sight, and Adira felt ill seeing it. Hector didn't move and position himself like this naturally. He'd trained himself to do this when facing down an enemy. It was how he intimidated and frightened people, as it gave the idea of someone who was slightly supernatural.
Adira knew her brother was only human, but it broke her heart that he felt the need to put on this show for her.
"Or were you trying to protect me from the most dangerous monster you know?" Hector taunted. "You tried to save me from myself." Hector snorted. "It's cute that you think you can save me from my own mind."
"Do not mock me for caring about you!" Adira snapped. She hated getting angry and yelling. Hector always brought out this side of her that she hated so much.
"Then don't mock me by claiming that your years of deceit is because you care." Hector said. The mocking tone in his was gone, replaced by pure pain. "I trusted you, Adira."
"I know." She said quietly. "I just wanted you to be safe. I knew you would hate me if you knew the truth. I knew you would never trust anybody again. But at least you would be alive."
Hector stared at her for a long moment before he closed his eyes and scoffed. He turned his back on her. It was something she had never seen him do. He faced everybody, whether they be family or enemies, head-on. Adira didn't know what it meant for him to turn away like this.
"Alive." Hector's voice had a tone about it that she didn't like and didn't entirely understand. "If that's all you're worried about, I'll free you from that burden." He strode over to a window and looked up towards the moon. He held his arms out in a dramatic gesture that would usually make Adira roll her eyes, but not it just frightened her.
"I make an oath under the Moon's light." Hector said emotionlessly. "With her as my witness, I swear to never try to take my life, harm myself, or do anything that would put me in unnecessary danger."
Adira felt a shiver go down her spine. Part of it was because she could feel the Moon's power as it sealed his promise. Mostly though Adira was just horrified about this development.
Hector took his duty to the Moon more seriously than anything else. He was her most loyal and dedicated servant. He wouldn't make a promise in her name lightly. He would keep his word, and he wouldn't do something as disrespectful as to look for loopholes. For the rest of his life, or until he disavowed the moon, which just wasn't going to happen, Hector would be safe.
It should be exactly what Adira wanted, but it wasn't. Not like this. She had seen how much pain he went through just to live day-to-day. This oath was a promise to subject himself to all that pain and more, with no way out if it got too much for him. And he was doing this all because he was more afraid of being hurt by her than he was of his own mind.
"Now you don't have to worry anymore." Hector said. He didn't look her way. "I'll be safe, and you don't have to burden yourself with babysitting me."
"That's not what I was doing." Adira said, but he didn't listen to her.
"Now you can leave me alone." Hector said. "I won't hurt myself, and I won't ever have to listen to your lies again." He started to walk away.
"Wait-" Adira approached him.
"No." Hector said plainly. He stepped into the shadows and he was gone from her sight as he vanished into the darkness through the power of the moon. Even if Adira went exactly where he had gone she knew that she wouldn't find him. Hector was gone.
She hoped that he had just gone home to Old Corona, but she knew that it wouldn't be the case. Hector had left, and he had no intention of letting himself be found.
Adira didn't know why he had saved her from the dungeons, she wished he hadn't. She would enjoy her freedom, of course, She would take advantage of it and leave Corona while she could. But now that she was out he was going to get as far away from her as he could. He might go back to the Great Tree. He might return to the Dark Kingdom. He might go to the other side of the world and find another way to serve the Moon. But she knew he was going to do everything in his power to never see her again.
Adira had hurt her brother. Even if it was for his own good, she had made him feel like he needed to hurt himself in a sense, just to protect himself from getting hurt by her again. And Adira didn't know if she would ever get the chance to make things right.