Thessara barged into the room, the door squeaking loudly behind her. Her eyes landed on Jocelyn, who sat by her vanity, surrounded by five maids. Some were brushing her hair, some were painting her nails, and some were kneeling with a glass of juice.

Thessara scoffed, shaking her head at the barbaric display of power happening.

Jocelyn turned to face her sister, her brows raised lazily as she laid eyes on her. She let out a sigh, clearly showing how unimpressed she was.

"Out," Jocelyn said to the maids, waving them off with a single lazy hand. Her voice was calm, casual, and unbearably smug.

The maids bowed quickly and scurried past Thessara, their eyes filled with fear.

Once they were gone, Jocelyn returned her attention to her reflection, brushing her recently dyed black hair back into place. "To what do I owe the pleasure, sister?"

Thessara didn't answer immediately. She stepped forward slowly, her boots dragging on the floor as if trying to hold back the rage boiling inside her.

"You think this is a game?" Thessara snapped. "He's dying, Jocelyn. Thorne is dying."

"And?" Jocelyn asked, brows raised as she stared at Thessara through the mirror, unfazed.

"And?" Thessara scoffed, "And?"

Thessara's hands clenched into fists at her sides. "What did you do?"

That made Jocelyn pause. Her jaw clenched tightly, eyes narrowed. "What?"

Thessara walked around the vanity until she was standing directly in front of her sister. "Don't play dumb with me, Jocelyn. There is only one person in here that was desperate and stupid enough to dabble in black magic. It was you." She paused, eyeing Jocelyn nastily. "You've always been so desperate, wanting things that were out of your reach. A greedy, desperate person. I don't know how you did it or what you sacrificed to have the powers you do now, but you and I both know…" she leaned closer to Jocelyn. "…You've only been able to stay this fake because of those demonic powers you hold."

"Thessara!" Jocelyn snapped.

Thessara leaned back, smirking as she hit a nerve. "Only you are stupid enough to use black magic. Tell me, what have you done?"

Jocelyn stared at her for a moment, then turned away, taking a deep breath. She turned to Thessara again.

"You'll have to be more specific, dear sister."

"More specific?" Thessara snarled, grabbing Jocelyn's arm tightly, her eyes blazing with anger. "You've had Elara under your wings. There is only one person in this whole palace, hell, in the whole of Obsidian that uses black magic, and that's you. Which brings me to my question again, what have you done, Jocelyn?"

"You know nothing of what you speak. I suggest you go back and—"

"Did Elara come to you? Did she get on her knees and beg that you help her out? Did you give her this spell that's been cast on Thorne? How despicable can you—"

Jocelyn yanked her arm away, her face darkening. "Careful, Thessara. You don't want to test me." She paused, schooling her features back into place. "I didn't do a thing to Thorne, nor did Elara. You are barking up the wrong tree here, Thessara. The one who is responsible for his condition is locked in the dungeon, but you'd rather harass your own sister? I must say, Thessara, you really cannot change."

"Oh, shut up! You know very well that Adina had nothing to do with this. That girl is as pure as a dove. Thorne is her mate. She'll never do that. But you, on the other hand…" Thessara stepped closer. "I know the lengths you can go to just to win."

Jocelyn smirked at this. "If you know, then why are you here? Shouldn't you be concocting more ways to save Thorne? To save his beloved? Ah, you can't." She smirked evilly. "You don't have the powers it takes to break a spell like this, can you?"

Thessara's jaw clenched. "I know what you did, Jocelyn, and I promise you, I'll save Thorne. I will bring him back even if it takes every bit of blood in my body. Even if I have to crawl through the deepest parts of hell to undo whatever it is you and Elara have done. I will save him. And when I do, when he's back, you and Elara will be the first to feel it." She gritted out through clenched teeth just as the door opened, and Elara stepped in with furrowed brows as her gaze landed on the two sisters.

Thessara pushed past Jocelyn and walked to the door where Elara stood. She paused slightly at her side, glaring at the younger woman before storming out.

Jocelyn's loud laughter echoed through the door even as she stormed off.

_________

Adina sat in the corner of her cell, legs tucked under her, wrapped in a thin, blood-stained blanket. Her body trembled from the cold, from the pain.

Thessara had given her the blanket against all of the warriors' wishes. Somehow, they thought she was going to escape with the blanket, which was highly stupid considering she could barely walk without falling.

The cell gates opened, and Adina froze, the hair on her nape standing as fear engulfed her body. She slowly looked up to see the warrior stepping in.

Her eyes widened with panic. "P-please," she stammered, her body still littered with bruises and injuries from the morning torture. Was she going to be tortured for the second time today?

The warrior said nothing as he grabbed her arm roughly, hauling her up to her feet.

"Please, let me have a break," she begged but knew it was of no use. These ones were deaf to her pleas.

She was dragged out of the cell to the torture place where her body went stiff with fear. This time, the usual chains made to hold her up as they whipped her were no longer there. Instead, there was a burning coal and some iron pipe.

Cold sweat broke out on her body as she was dragged to the iron chair in the middle and forced to sit down.

Adina's knees buckled as she was shoved into the iron chair, her wrists tied tightly to its arms with leather straps. The heat from the burning coals nearby licked at her skin, making sweat bead on her forehead almost instantly.

She swallowed, her heart thudding like a war drum. "Why… why are you doing this?"

The warrior opened his mouth to speak, but the doors to the dungeon opened, and they all stood up straight as if they had seen the goddess herself.

Adina managed to look in the direction and she too stiffened when she laid eyes on Elara, who had now stepped in.

Elara had leather pants on and a black leather jacket, hair braided, lips coated in red lipstick. She smirked as she saw Adina.

Seeing her strapped to the iron chair, pale, bruised beyond recognition, and broken, was everything and more to Elara.

"R-Regent Elara," the head warrior stammered awkwardly.

She paid him no mind, though. She walked straight to Adina and stood in front of her, eyes glinting with excitement the more she stared at her. Oh, this was what heaven would feel like. The happiness she felt could last a lifetime.

"G-General," Adina croaked out, but she was met with a hard slap on her face.

"Regent," Elara spat out angrily.

She then took the metal pipe from the burning coal and smiled, glancing at Adina again.

"You know, I still don't know what his majesty saw in you," she began. "You're… there." She spat. "There's nothing special about you. You're below average. Nothing extraordinary, nothing beautiful… at best, you're 'okay'. You have no special skills, nothing worth remembering, and yet… you have him wrapped around your fingers so much so, it…" she paused for a breath. "It angers me so much."

The warriors exchanged looks at her words.

"Do you have any idea what it feels like to watch the man you're in love with fall in love with another woman?" she asked.

Yes, Adina wanted to say. Yes, she knew exactly what it felt like.

"It's way worse than being tortured. I went through hell every single day watching him watch you. Notice what you liked, hated, how you walked, how you ate, how you smiled." Her hand twitched at her side, clenched tightly around the metal pipe.

"I could've handled him using you. Men always use pretty maids like you," she sniffed. "But no. He wanted you. He chose you. He gave you what was supposed to be mine."

"He's my mate," Adina said.

Elara's smile fell instantly like she was whipped. Anger clouded her eyes yet again, and in the blink of an eye, she pressed the burning metal into Adina's thigh, pressing down as the skin burnt.

Adina screamed, the pain excruciatingly intense, blinding.

"He's mine. The gods—they've never been more wrong. He belongs to me, and I to him. That's the way it should be… and… you took him from me. You poisoned him, and now he can't even open his eyes. You did this to me… to him."

"I didn't do this. I would never!" Adina all but screamed back at the woman.

"Then who would—"

"YOU!" Adina screamed so hard, the warriors had to block their ears. "You did this to him." She was so tired. So tired of being accused like this… especially by the one person who sent rogues after her.

"You used that spell on me and sent rogues after me. Who's to say this isn't another ploy of yours. So yes! You did this to—" she didn't get to finish her words.

Elara slapped her again—this time across the face, harder than before. Blood spilled from Adina's nose.

Elara was shaking now, her entire body trembling with fury, lips pulled back in a snarl.

"When I'm done with you, you'll beg for death." She turned to the head warrior. "Break her, burn her. No food, no water, no visitors. I want her broken. Mentally, physically, emotionally."

The head warrior blinked. "Regent?"

Elara didn't look away from Adina. "Break her." She snarled.

Her voice turned sharper, louder. "Break her bones. One by one. Start with her fingers. I want her to watch as they snap."

Adina's breath caught. The blood drained from her face.

Elara kept speaking, "By the time I'm done with you, Adina, there won't be a single inch of you left unbroken."

She straightened up to leave then paused. "She's a traitor. The one who betrayed his majesty and poisoned him. She deserves no mercy whatsoever."