Hey hey! I'm back for two chapters in one week hehe. Unfortunately, I won't be able to update this Tuesday so I'll be giving you this chapter a couple days earlier hehe. Also while I have the time today I will be answering some much-requested reviews!
Skylar - omg it's like I read your wish and answered it ;) But seriously thank you for your support I had an absolute cackle reading your comment Monday night being like a mild threat AHAHAH. Stellie do be under a lot of pressure i hope this chappie makes everything a bit clearer.
urmom0220 - His scenes with Stella are to DIE FOR RAAH, altho i hate him too rip. Every time I write a scene of him being a dickward I have to console myself by reading my notes for this story and telling myself everything will be ok in the end *cries while rocking and cradling myself*
winx - Absolutely not fufu i have enough trouble writing him in 3rd person without wanting to stab him, I can't imagine seeing it from his pov too. *shivers*
rhaein - Im excited for stellie to get control of her powers too. I love writing abt character development. I realised I spent the last couple of chappies making Brandon hateable I forgot abt the big bad high lord himself, gotta jump on that hate wagon soon!
Aisha - Thank you so so much! Unfortunately, HE is kinda on a hiatus at the moment I've hit a crossroad and am not sure where I want to go with it *sad author noises* but luckily I have a clear notion of where this one is going so some more chappies will be here soon!
Thank you everyone who reviewed! Your reviews are legit what keeps me going teehee!
Oh before I forget, after the second horizontal line, it was written to Love Story by Indila hehe
It had been a week since the attack on the rebellion grounds and Stella had spent every waking moment being tortured mentally and physically at the palace she used to call home.
Stella lay on the bed in her prison room, staring at the nostalgic ceiling with a blank look. She barely had time to even mourn the loss of her former life as a rebellion lieutenant much less think about how she lost the one precious thing left in her life on the night of the ambush.
For the last couple of days, High Commander Brandon Silver had forced her to fight, to duel against him till she went blind with rage and passed out from the sceptre draining her power dry. She never managed to land a single hit on him and every day he seems to keep breaking her and putting her back together again.
Every time she would fall to her hands and knees, choking on the blood that continued to splatter on the illusion floor. He would stand over her, a cold dark look in his eyes that lacked a shred of sympathy as he forced her to get up again.
If not for the sceptre healing her gashing wounds when she transforms, she would be buried 6 feet over the amount and intensity of damage he manages to land on her every time.
Among the various ways of torture of a prisoner, this was one of the most gruesome.
Her transformation was able to last a full minute yesterday, but the after-effects left her in a dismantled and weak state where she could barely stay on her feet. The last thing she remembered was Brandon's leather boots walking towards her before she collapsed.
She'd end up in her guest bed every morning, slightly sore and drained when he'd walk in just after the servants left her breakfast on the dresser.
She could barely eat, she could barely sleep and it had been a full week since she bathed herself. Someone would leave fresh clothes and towels on the dresser but Stella never even glanced at it. The former light of determination that resonated in her gaze was voided, replaced with a dull, lifeless stare.
She couldn't take much more of this anymore.
She wanted to beg him to kill her today during training, maybe he was kind enough to grant her that mercy.
"Get up," Brandon's cold voice sounded from the door. She didn't even hear him throw it open, nor did she register his presence as he stood at the threshold.
Stella forced herself up, a tired look over her usually bright gaze. There were bags under her eyes and tattered tears in her clothes from taking hit after hit. She wasn't getting much sleep overnight, knowing what was waiting for her every time the second sun rose.
Brandon's emotionless gaze flickered from the husk of the former princess sitting on her bed to the fresh assortment of food, clothes and refreshments that had been brought in this morning. She hadn't touched most of it except for the one or two pastries she was allowing herself to eat to stay conscious.
"Let's go," He commanded, stepping to the side as Stella forced herself out of bed. She walked out without so much as a glance his way as she dragged her feet ahead of him. She had trodden the path back and forth from Tecna's lab for the past week and it was where her body naturally took her.
Before she could make the left turn at the hall, Brandon's cold hand grabbed her bicep, reeling her out of her subconscious beeline to the training arena. "You're not going to the lab," He spoke lowly, not meeting her gaze as she stared up at him in confusion, "Tecna's busy and I won't be here today,"
Stella registered his outfit had changed this morning, from his usual training pants and compression top to his High Commander uniform. His energy blade was attached to the sheath at his hip and his long black cape brushed behind him, fastened with an emerald gem in the middle of his chest.
"Where're you going?" The words left her mouth before she could process his words and Brandon's voided eyes met hers.
"Out," He replied firmly, barely even noticing how monotonously she spoke, "As High Commander, I have…," a small pause where he averted his gaze, "…business to take care of,"
Stella didn't respond but continued to stare at his face. He was cleanly shaved, his hair perfectly tousled over his forehead and the woody scent he gave off was starting to mess with her senses.
She could barely get herself to move and take a bath so in comparison to her, he looked well put together. "Do whatever you like in the castle," His words seemed pleasant, but the brass nature he delivered them made it sound more like a threat.
"But I'm a prisoner here," she wheezed out confusedly.
Brandon's eyes narrowed into a glare, "Should you rather I chain you in the dungeon instead then?"
Now she was pushing it.
She glared back at him and he turned away from her, "The implant stops you from leaving beyond the castle courtyard without my permission, but the rest of the palace is free…with some restrictions," He murmured, turning to leave, "I won't be back till later. But do take a bath though princess," He smirked over his shoulder and Stella opened her mouth to snap something back but he had already started to walk away from her.
She watched his cape disappear around the corner of the hallway, leaving just her and her thoughts in the east wing of the castle.
Of her castle.
She turned her head, gazing out into the courtyard through the windows of the hall. Riven stood in front of the spooling ship, his red cutlass drawn and hanging in his grip. She watched his sharp violet eyes flicker up to meet her gaze at the 2nd level of the castle. There was something sinister in the way he narrowed his eyes at her but averted his gaze back to his high commander who walked into the ship's drawbridge. Brandon didn't glance back at her and Riven walked up behind him as the door sealed shut.
The ship hovered off of the courtyard within a minute, leaving Stella by herself in the hallway. The front of the castle faced the courtyard, its perimeters lined by the east and west wings of the palace, while the front of the courtyard was sealed off with glorious white walls converging at the palace gates. The front garden was towards the east side of the palace, expanding beyond the neatly trimmed hedges into the beautiful stream, gazebo and walkway through some of the rarest and regal plants to inhabit the planet.
From where she stood, she could see her tower on the westmost side of the building, the tall balcony that overlooked the side of the courtyard. It had been forever since she had seen her former room, she wondered if it remained like the rest of the castle – just like the day she left it.
Brandon had told her she had free reign over how she spent today, she didn't need to think twice about where she would be headed next. The east wing of the castle led to the main quarters in the middle where the ballroom and throne room lay connected to each other. She strolled past the mahogany gold-lined doors that led into the ballroom, continuing her walk up the stairs to her old bedroom.
Everything remained the same as Stella ran her fingers over the doors that led into her chambers. Her thumb glossed over the golden sun pattern that was etched into the white wood above the gold-plated handles. She pulled the handle down and was surprised to find it was unlocked, but the door wouldn't budge.
She rattled at it, trying to push her strength into it in the hope of it bursting open, but it didn't so much as even shake.
It was locked?
"Sorry, Your Highness," A soft voice sounded from beside her and Stella furrowed her eyebrows at the source of it. Her eyes widened at the small being floating beside her with big blue eyes and almost navy blue locks.
She had only heard of these magical beings from her mother's tales. Bonded pixies.
Sensing the obvious shock and confusion in the former princess's dropped jaw, the pixie spoke up, "I'm Digit," He introduced himself politely. From the way he was dressed, Stella could immediately guess who's bonded Pixie he was, "And I'm afraid you can't go in there, Your Highness."
"Why not?" The former princess questioned, rattling the door handle back and forth again.
Digit floated closer to her, "The High Commander's orders were to enchant the entrance into the tower,"
Why would he do that?
"Unlock it," Stella demanded firmly.
"I can't," Digit lowered his eyes, shaking his head and the former princess let out a huff.
"Please I just need to get my sketchbook and mannequin," She fibbed, giving the navy-haired pixie a pleading expression. Having her old designing items would be nice to pass the time but that wasn't the real reason she wanted to enter her old room.
Digit let out a defeated sigh, "No Your Highness, I physically can't. The spell is bound to your implant, there's nothing I can do to break it,"
Stella gazed down at the emblem etched against her skin. The pixie flew towards the door and pushed down on the handle. The door swung open, allowing his body to pass through the barrier, "See,"
She could see it slowly begin to materialise over the doors, a dark purple aura, almost black in colour that limited her from pushing her hand past it.
There was a magic barrier that was stopping her from entering.
"Why would he do this!?" Stella hissed in irritation. She couldn't see much into her former room from the way the barrier's colour limited her visibility.
Digit raised his hands, genuinely just as clueless as Stella was, "I'm not sure, Your Highness,"
The former princess let out a frustrated huff. So these were the restrictions he was talking about. "What else has he put this spell on?"
The pixie of nanotechnology pursed his lips in thought, "Well aside from the main gates, just the tower,"
Stella turned her gaze back to the stairs that led to the rest of the castle from her tower. Her room was the only place she wanted to see in the castle, and that demon of a high commander didn't even let her have that!
She directed her gaze at the pixie floating beside her, "Alright, fine. I'll go to the garden then,"
Digit flew beside her along her motion to walk into the hallway that led to the main doors of the castle, "Maybe you should eat something first, Your Highness, you haven't had much food in the last couple of days, your energy levels are very low,"
Stella blinked, continuing to walk as the pixie floated in front of her, "How do you know I haven't eaten?"
"You don't eat the food I leave in your room," He admitted. Stella never paid any attention to whoever was leaving the meals in her room. They never spoke to her either so she didn't feel the need to address them, "Do you not like it? Maybe I can ask the kitchen to make something you like?"
The pixie looked genuinely concerned over her lack of appetite that Stella felt bad, "No, it's not the food, I just don't like being here,"
She didn't like the crap getting kicked out of her every afternoon by a man she formerly had feelings for.
Digit furrowed his eyebrows in thought, "Perhaps you'd like to eat in the garden then?"
Stella nodded, forcing out a smile to make the pixie content with his suggestion, "Sure,"
A megawatt smile flashed across the pixie's face as he floated higher in excitement, "I will ask the kitchen to make their specials!"
The main doors of the Sun Palace soared high above and led right into the ballroom and banquet area. The courtyard beyond it was vast, allowing multiple ships at a time to land and for guests to make their way into the castle for celebrations. As much as she adored the ballroom back then, it brought back too many longing memories for her to go see just yet. Instead, she took the side door at the foot of her tower that led right into her favourite place in the whole palace.
The royal garden.
The warm suns gleamed against Stella's paled skin, restoring some of the light she had been drained of these last couple of days. Digit followed alongside her, watching intently as the former princess stood with her chin raised and a soft smile across her lips.
She hadn't smiled in days.
Lowering her gaze, Stella set her sights on the gorgeous marigolds that lined along the small stream that flowed through the palace garden. She remembered how much her mother used to adore them, and how her father had them planted in every spare flowerbed on the palace grounds for her to gaze upon from her window.
"Who maintains the garden?" She asked, crouching down to run her fingertips over the soft petals of the blooming orange flower. The glistening blue stream ran alongside it, clear and inhabiting some small fish and other critters.
"High Commander has staff that look specifically after the palace grounds," Digit replied, following Stella's movement as she straightened up again. She pursed her lips in thought.
For someone who brought on the onset of the Solarian massacre, Brandon Silver didn't seem like the type to care about maintaining the grounds. She had always assumed her former home would look something like Cloud Tower under his rule, but no. He maintained its former glory and Stella was unsure how she felt about that.
Pulling the fabric of her pant legs up, she slipped her feet out of her shoes and picked them up, letting her bare feet feel the lush grass. She would run around the garden barefoot when she was younger, dipping her feet in the stream and occasionally coming inside with cuts and bruises all over them.
She would get in heaps of trouble for those, but it never stopped her from doing it all again the next day.
Her favourite part of the garden was the beautiful white fountain that lay in the heart of it, just in front of the white wood gazebo where her mother often sat and enjoyed tea paired with a good book. It was there she often found herself after her mother's passing, trying to escape the overwhelming feeling of being crown princess.
The gazebo remained exactly the same, well polished and maintained just like the morning of her coronation when she last offered it a longing look.
"Did Your Highness come here often?" Digit asked, observing the yearning expression on Stella's face as her sight trained on the single stone seat beside the table in the gazebo.
"Yes, my father built this for my mother," She whispered quietly, remembering how her mother would tell the story of how she found the Solarian garden to be the dullest thing she'd ever seen when she first visited.
Lady Luna was betrothed to Prince Radius long before they met and she made sure to voice her distaste for him and his palace every chance she got. But alas, one comment about how dull his garden looked from his future wife and King Radius had an entire gazebo and fountain built for her to win her favour.
Stella gazed up at the crescent moon that donned the top of the white marble fountain. Her parents shared a love story she could only dream of having. A love story she longed to have.
"Surprise!" Digit called, breaking the former princess out of her thoughts once more as the pixie rushed to the table in the gazebo. Stella followed his being to the assortment of food that had magically appeared over the tabletop where her mother use to keep her books.
Various dishes of the most extravagant foods lay as she walked up the steps that led into the gazebo, "What's all this?"
"I wasn't sure what Your Highness liked, so I asked the kitchen for a bit of everything," Digit admitted abashedly, referring to the selection of meals. The pixie floated over the chair, gesturing for the princess to sit.
"You didn't have to do all this," Stella said with a small smile.
Digit shook his head with a puff of his little chest, "You haven't eaten, Your Highness, it's my job to make sure you are healthy,"
Stella sat down, gazing up at the smiling pixie. She had known Digit for a couple of hours, and yet he was doing his best to make her comfortable here. To make her last days alive worthwhile as she endured torture every day.
"You don't have to call me Your Highness, Digit," Stella whispered, eyes flickered to the food the pixie had made appear. He tilted his small head to the side, his smile vanishing when he gaged the look on her face, "I'm not a princess anymore,"
Little droplets of water splattered one after the other onto the white stone table as Stella forced out a smile through the tears she didn't even realise were staining her cheeks.
She didn't even know why she was crying but everything just overwhelmed her at once. She hadn't been given a moment since everything happened to mourn. To mourn her father, her kingdom and now her beloved Rebellion.
To mourn Noah. Her Noah.
Digit frowned, landing his feet on the table, "Please don't cry Your Highness, you are severely dehydrated," he attempted to console her, pushing the glass of fresh water towards her. Stella let out a soft laugh between her tears and shook her head.
She couldn't allow herself to cry just yet. She couldn't let out all the harrowing pain and hurt yet. She couldn't let herself break. She needed it all, she needed it to finally kill the Drakari and put an end to their reign of terror her people were under.
Then and only then could she cry for the ones she had loved and lost, knowing she had avenged them.
"It's alright, Digit," She dismissed the pixie, taking the glass he was offering, "I just felt reminiscent that's all, I haven't seen the castle in so long, so much has changed, but it also looks exactly the same,"
A small smile etched on the pixie's face. He wasn't sure what was making the former princess upset, was it the fact that the castle hadn't changed, or that it had? "Maybe after lunch, I can show you the renovations and the new things Tecna added?"
Stella smiled, "I'd like that,"
That afternoon Stella retired back into her guest room for the night. Digit had taken her on an entire tour of the castle, excited to show her the new rooms that had been added in the last 4 years. She had met some of the kind staff members in the kitchen and a few who maintained the castle along the way. They bowed their heads in respect of the former princess despite Stella stressing not to.
With the exception of the ballroom and great hall which Stella didn't feel ready to see again, Digit had guided her through everything else. It was nostalgic to see how regal everything had remained. The castle had almost all its original layouts except the training room and a few of the guest rooms on the west wing were being occupied by the High Commanders Platoon.
Brandon's bedroom was surprisingly close to the guest room she was staying in, just a couple of doors down at the end of the hall. The room she was staying at was in front of the king's former study, where she was told the High Commander had turned into his own study.
She hated the idea that he had just taken over her father's study like his own, but it was not like he could kill him for it just yet.
Digit had left her fresh clothes which she used to take a long warm bath. Despite taking multiple injuries over the last couple of days, her skin was clear with not a single mark to show for it. Even old scars from her days in the rebellion had been wiped clean.
Tecna was right, the sceptre was truly groundbreaking magic.
Gazing at her bare fingers Stella wondered what other things the sceptre was capable of. No wonder Andreas Silver was hell-bent on having it, not only was it the key to ultimate power during the solstice but it was also a devastating power that could overthrow him at any moment.
If she was just strong enough.
Letting out a sigh, she sank her face into the water, surrounding herself in the warmth of the bath and washing away all of the misery from the week of torture she endured.
It was quite late when she finally rose from the now cold water and changed into the clothes Digit had left her. It was a soft pink cotton nightgown with a gorgeous rose detail on the hem.
Stepping out of the attached bathroom in her guest room, she noticed she had left the door slightly ajar when Digit left her clothes. It was well past midnight and it seemed everyone had retired for the night. Her single magic lamp burned by her bedside giving the room a soft illuminating glow. She hadn't realised how long she had bathed for now that the third sun had well and truly set.
Stella stepped towards the door, hand on the wood to close when the sound of slow footsteps caught her attention. She froze, pressing herself behind the slightly ajar door and peering out.
The sound of armour plates clanking together with each step got louder, but the closer they got, the more staggered and dragged they sounded. Her eyes widened as the ominous black figure they belonged to appeared in her view of the hallway.
He was back late.
High Commander Brandon Silver had returned, his black paladin armour heavy with each step he took and his cape flowed behind him like a dark omen. There was something about the malicious look in his eyes that made her hair stand on end. He truly looked like a demon.
But he wasn't moving with his usual long strides.
He stopped at the door across the hall from hers that led into her father's study – his study. She noticed how tense he looked, eyes darkened and his cheek muscle clenched to form a streak. He reached for the door handle, a soft grunt escaping his lips as he lifted his hand from his hip.
He looked annoyed with how he glared in distaste at his black leather gloves. The moment his hand left his hip, Stella's eyes widened when she realised what he was glaring at.
Speckles of blood splattered the floor, dripping down his armour and forming a small pool by his foot. Now that her vision had adjusted to the low light, she could see he was covered in blood. His armour and cape were painted in the thick red liquid, but it was difficult to see how much from how dark his uniform was. She could see the streaks and splatters on his face, but it didn't look like that was his own blood.
Just what had he been doing all day?
He let out a soft hiss before kicking open his door with a loud bang. Stella remained silent, watching him force himself to stagger beyond the threshold with a considerable amount of strength. It seemed he hadn't noticed her in the dimly lit hallway.
The door slammed shut behind him aggressively and Stella slowly peered her head out. She stared at where he stood previously, a few splotches of blood tainting the regal gold runners in the hallway.
She didn't need to care. She shouldn't care. She won't care.
Before she could decide otherwise, Stella quickly shut her door and walked back to bed.
Editors note: Digit kinda reminds me of Dobby
Author's note: Yeah actually that was who I was imagining HAHA
Lots of love,
Star