Chapter 40 The null stone shackles

Chapter 40 The null stone shackles

“It has, Alpha.” a councilor replied, “but boyce, he keeps talking about the witches voice. He says, the diamonds on her face were laughing at him.”

“Boyce is a fool whose spirit was broken by the cold wind, of the north.”Jaxon spat, turning around, his eyes were bloodshot.

“A witch, that's all she is. Some Northern sorceress, fenris brought out of the ice to intimidate us. She thinks a few broken glasses and a loud voice makes her a god.”

“And if she brings the tributes,” the councilor asked.

“She won't bring it willingly,” a sharp voice interrupted. Verena entered the room, leaning heavily on a cane. Her pregnancy was advanced, but she looked more like a corpse, her skin sallow.

“She will bring the iron only because she has no choice,” Verena said, sinking into a velvet chair.

“Jaxon, we've discussed this. The moment she enters into the neutral zone, she's away from Fenris’s strongest guards. We take her, when we now have her under us, she can then take us to where the iron is to harvest it.”

Jaxon walked over to his mate, placing a hand over her belly, he felt a faint kick. “You think you can tame a woman who can make a beta’s ear bleed?”

“Every dog has a collar, Jaxon,” Verena said, her fingers holding her skirts. “She is a woman, probably some low born girl Fenris made powerful by giving her northern relics.”

“We have the Null stone shackle. Once we put them on her, her witchcraft will be nothing but a distant memory. She'll crawl on the floor just like Astraea used to.”

Jaxon's expression darkened at the mention of the name. “Don't speak of the dead. Astraea was a defect. This witch is a weapon.”

“Exactly,” Verena said. “And weapons can be stolen. Imagine this, Jaxon. We strip her of her veil.”

“We break her spirit in front of the other Alpha. And we force her to use her power to heal our lands. She will be our new toy, a better one.”

Jaxon paced the length of the room, the idea taking root in his mind. “The summit is on sacred ground. No shifting is allowed. No violence.”

“It is not violence if she's a criminal apprehended for blighting the south,” Verena countered.

“We say that she is a rogue element. The other alphas are already scared of the north, they will support us.”

“We'll put her in a cage. I want to see, what is hidden behind those diamonds? I want to see those eyes when I tell her she belongs to the shadow fang pack now.”

Jaxon let out a dry laugh. “You want her diamonds don't you?”

“I want her soul,” Verena corrected. “I want the world to see that the north is nothing but a collection of pallor tricks, and once she's broken, Fenris will have nothing, he will just be another lonely madman in a cave.”

Jaxon turned to the councilor.

“The summit is in three days. Tell the blacksmith to finish the null stone. We are not going to talk, there. We are going to collect a tribute… and a new slave.”

Back in the citadel, Astraea watched the sky her eyes glowing silver. She could feel the sound through the bones of the earth. She could feel Jackson's greed and Verena's malice.

“They are planning to cage me,” Astraea said softly.

Fenris came up behind her, his large hand resting on her shoulder. “I know. I can smell their desperation from here. They think the summit is their territory. They think the sacred ground will protect them from your wrath.”

Astraea turned in his arms. “They want a tribute, Fenris. They want a show of submission.”

“Will you give it to them?” Fenris asked, a playful light in his eyes.

“Oh, I will give them a tribute. I will give them exactly what they asked for. But I don't think that Jaxon realizes that when you invite a storm to a party, you shouldn't be surprised when the house blows down.”

“I will burn the south until there's nothing left to burn. If they try to lay a finger on you,” Fenris replied.

“No,” Astraea said. “Let them try to cage me. I want to see Jaxon's face when he realises. That's the witch he's trying to catch is a girl he sent to die. I want to see the moment his world shatters.”

Fenris smirked, leaning down to kiss her. “Then we go to the summit and we show the world that the North doesn't pay tribute, we collect them.”

#. #. #. #. #.

The eve of the Great Summit brought a silence to the Citadel that was different from the usual Northern chill. It was heavy, expectant.

Astraea stood by the balcony, wearing a robe of heavy white fur. She turned as the heavy oak doors creaked open. Fenris entered, unbuckling his sword belt and keeping it on the table.

"The Wolves are ready for the ice-run. We leave at dawn." Fenris said, his voice a low, tired rumble.

“You look like you’re carrying the weight of the entire world on your shoulders, Fenris," Astraea said, stepping toward him.

Fenris stopped, his gaze dropping to the floor. "I’ve carried it for a thousand years, Astraea. It’s a heavy habit to break."

"Sit," she commanded softly. "No King. No Mad King. Just you."

Fenris hesitated, then sat on the edge of the bed. He began to pull at the lacings of his leather tunic, his fingers clumsy.

Astraea pushed his hands away gently and took over the task. As the leather parted, she felt his breath hitch.

When the tunic fell away, Astraea froze.

Fenris’s chest and back were scarred, long lines ran from his shoulders to his waist marks that didn't look like they came from blades or claws. They looked like frostbite.

"The God Gate," she whispered, her fingers hovering above a particularly deep mark over his heart.

"Every time the Blight tries to push through from the Void, I have to hold the seal," Fenris said, his voice tight. "I am the anchor.”

“The magic doesn't just flow through me; it carves me. Each of those silver lines is a year I spent pouring my own life force into the ice to keep the world from turning into a graveyard."

Astraea touched the mark over his heart. "Why didn't you tell me it cost you this much?"

Fenris looked up at her, his eyes raw. "Because Alphas don't show their wounds, Astraea. Especially not to the woman they’re trying to convince to stay. I thought if you saw the price of the North, you’d run”

"You think I’m that shallow?" Astraea asked, her voice rising with a spark of anger. "After everything I’ve been through?”

“I spent twenty years being 'perfect' for a man who hated me. I don't want a King who has no scars, Fenris. I want a man who survived."