Not planning on doing many more sex scenes, at least not as detailed as chapter 13's. I know I said that the story would be getting sadder, you'll be able to understand what I mean in these next two chapters. Once I've finished this story I'm going to completely re-edit the entire story, fixing all the inconsistencies and whatnot. I'll also try to incorporate more recognizable content and more descriptive scenes. Enjoy this chapter!

She refused to open her eyes to the morning sun shining through her bedroom window. Suddenly the light was blocked out. Opening her eyes, she could see a hand covering her vision. "You're still here?"

"Yes…?" Connor seemed confused and amused.

"No, it's just that you're never here when I wake up." She grabbed his hand covering her face. "You always leave to go do whatever way before I even wake up."

"I don't really sleep, Irelia. It's hard to just stay still with all the noise." As if on queue, he winced, letting go of her hand to rub his temples. "I just thought that, after last night… It'd be nice for you to wake up to me."

"It is nice to wake up to you, my love. And yes, I did have an amazing time with you last night." He breathed a sigh of relief at her answer to his unspoken question. "And I hope that you had just as good a time." He nodded in response.

"Irelia…"

"Yes…?" She smiled up at him.

"I think I would like to let you inside my mind. Fully inside my mind."

She gasped at the proposal. It had been months that they had known each other, but he had yet to allow her fully into his mind. "I would be honored, my love." She answered with a smile. "I believe we should get dressed first." He nodded as she stood up, immediately distracted by her whole body bare before him.

"You know, Irelia, you seemed so confident about what we did last night a few weeks ago." He joked with her. She snorted as she pulled her leggings on. "I just think it's funny how you don't hesitate to fight in a battle that could result in your death, but as soon as a guy's naked in front of you, you lose it." She slowly turned around, her blades rising around her as she did. He raised his hands in surrender, grinning up at her, only a little disappointed that she was now fully clothed.

After Connor had clothed himself, he sat upright on the bed, with Irelia leaning against his chest. "Okay, I know that I don't really show much pain, but I'm going to let you fully into my mind, so you will feel all that I do. Be prepared, because it will hurt. I will only keep you in there for a few moments. Do note that the noise level has been increasing… I believe it started after I left the king, but the noise is going to be more than what it usually is." She nodded, "I am going to begin." He slowly lowered the barriers to his mind, allowing her to cautiously enter.

Noise. Screaming. Shouting. Fear. Anger. She opened her eyes, seeing through his. Everything was tinted red, her head hurt more than any pain she had ever felt. Voices flashed through her mind, louder than the loudest person she had heard, directly in her ears on either side. The voices were undecipherable, and the snippets she heard screamed for blood and death. She tried to concentrate, allowing herself to fall deeper into the abyss of noise and pain that was Connor's mind. So you are Irelia… The voice was so quiet, she could have imagined it. Suddenly she was thrown into what seemed like a memory.

There she stood, Aurora. She was gorgeous, her sleek body covered in dark purple scales, darkening into a nearly black in color on her stomach. Looking up, her bright eyes looked dimmer than what they should be. Despite not being able to properly express human emotion, the dragon looked sad. She looked so tired, hurt, and in pain. Irelia looked down, seeing a blade in her hands. It wasn't the rider's blade that Connor carried, though, but another rider's blade, a brilliant blue blade. She couldn't help but watch from his perspective as he raised the sword. His vision swam, tears freely falling. He could only muster one word. "Please." The dragon in front of them shook her head. She could feel his body tense up, before blinking in front of the dragon, shoving the sword deep into her chest. She cried out in his mind, tears running down her face in reality. As she watched her mate's dragon die before her, she opened her mind to him, allowing to feel as her life drained away. Aurora's last words in her life were muttered. Don't cry… You're perfect.

As the memory ended, the noise and voices rushed back into her mind, feeling as if they were tearing through her mind, ripping holes in her very being. Her eyes saw out of his now, seeing the back of her own head, holding onto her tight as she cried at the pain that wasn't hers. He closed his eyes, the pain increasing even more. She had been stabbed and impaled, even tortured. No pain she had ever felt was as intense as the pain he was feeling in that moment. It felt as if every inch of her body had been used for years nonstop, and she had been beaten to death, revived and beaten to death again. Every inch of his body hurt, it hurt to walk, it hurt to breathe, it hurt to exist. Finally, after what felt like hours, she could feel herself being pushed out of his mind. As her mind left his, the same voice pierced through the noise and pain, piercing in her ears. We don't have much longe-. The voice was quickly consumed by an overpowering force. A demonic voice rang through his mind, screaming in pain, the voice deep and screeching, with a robotic echo.

Her vision returned to normal, tears fell freely from her eyes. She broke down, turning around and embracing him with all her might. She whispered between tears, "I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry…"

"I tried to hold it back for you, Irelia. You were only there for less than half a minute." He held onto her shaking body, afraid that he had shown her too much of himself. "I am sorry… This was a bad idea."

"No!" She pulled back to look up at him. "I just- I just never thought it could be that bad. Is that how you feel… Always?" He nodded. Fresh tears fell from her face, and she buried her head in his shoulder. "I'm so sorry."

"It's okay, Irelia. I'm used to it." He gently pulled her closer.

"Nobody gets used to that!" She shouted against his chest.

"I guess I'm nobody then." He planted a kiss on the top of her head. "Once you live every day in constant pain, you just become numb. I have experienced what many have not, and I can tell you with full confidence that life is nothing but pain. But I made a promise, I must keep going… For her. Life is pain, but you can always hope for a better future… Even if you know there isn't going to be one."

"I- I can't just let you deal with this forever, Connor. I will find something to help you." She held a finger up to his lips before he could say anything, "Shut up, okay? I am going to help you, I don't know how, but I will."

He nodded, pulling her finger away, gently holding her hand against his chest. "Irelia…? I think we need to go back to the forest." She felt a massive spike of pain through their lingering mental connection.

"Why? We have only been here for a day." She thought she was just imagining it.

"I- I'm getting weaker. He's winning, Irelia. And I can't stop what's going to happen. I need Karma.

"What?"

"She is a scientist of sorts, from Ionia." He looked up at the ceiling, "She has devoted her life to the study of shades and the mind. I am hoping that she has been able to come up with a solution to contain the main rebellious spirit in my mind."

"Okay, Connor. I- I trust you. When will we leave?"

"Today. I need you to tell Nasuada. I will run us there, I just hope we have enough time. I didn't expect them to bre-ak through so fast." His voice broke in the middle of his sentence, she could tell his pain was higher than he was used to. His voice was hoarse, "We need to leave now."

Just wanted to take a moment to thank y'all for reading! At the time of writing this, this story has over 500 views, which is just crazy to me. Anyways, onto the next chapter. It's going to be a bit longer than this one for sure!