Chapter 42 - Psychological Vivise

  Isabel ughed and grabbed Idris’s hand. “e on! We have to help Eamon!” she called out as they both joihe fray.

  I darted behind a rge oak tree to catch my breath and peeked around its trunk just in time to see Fenris tag Eamon with a swift tap on his back. “Tag! You’re it!” he shouted triumphantly. “Not again!” Eamon groaned dramatically before turning to chase after Isabel with renewed vigor. “Good luck catg her!” Daleyza called out from her vantage poihe piic spread. “She’s too quick!” I couldn’t help but ugh as I zigzagged through the trees and dodged low-hanging branches. My heart raced with exhiration as I gnced back to see Helios gaining on me, determinatioched across his fabsp;“e back here!” Eamon yelled pyfully at Isabel. Just then, Eamon spotted an openiween two trees and made a break for it. “Tag! You’re it!” he excimed as he dashed past Isabel. “Catch me if you , Isabel!” Idris suggested, ughing as he stumbled slightly over a root but quickly regained his footing. As I ran deeper into the woods, I could hear Fenris shouting dires to Eamon. “Go left! She’s heading toward that clearing!” But just as Eamon turo follow Fenris’s advice, he collided with Helios instead. “Whoa!” Eamon excimed as they both stumbled bato a patch of wildflowers. “Sorry, Father.” Eamon ughed as he helped him up. “You okay?” “Just fine,” Helios replied with a grin before tagging Eamon and taking off in the opposite dire. In that moment of distra, Fenris tagged Lily as she tried to sneak around him. “Tag! You’re it!” he decred triumphantly. “Oh no!” Lily gasped pyfully before turnitention bae. “You better run fast!” With ughter eg through the trees and adrenaline c through our veins, everyone joined in on this delightful chaos—eaearking fresh bursts of ughter and pyful banter. “Don’t let her get away!” Helios shouted at Lily as she sprinted after me with surprising speed for someone sal. “I won’t!” Lily called back fidently, determination lighting up her fabsp;As I dashed through the underbrush, I could hear Lily and Eamon strategizing behind me. “Let’s er her hat big rock!” Fenris suggested, pointing toward a rge boulder that jutted out from the ground like a throne for nature’s royalty. With every step, the thrill of the chase intensified. The sun filtered through the leaves above, casting dappled shadows on the ground as ughter filled the air. I could feel my legs burning with exertion but refused to slow down; this was too much fun! Suddenly, I spotted an opportunity—a narrow path leading deeper into the woods. With a burst of speed, I veered off course and sprinted down it, hoping to lose my pursuers in the maze of trees. But just as I thought I had gained some distance, I heard footsteps pounding behind me. “Not so fast!” Eamon shouted pyfully, his voice eg through the trees. I gnced back to see her gaining ground alongside Lily. “You’ll have to be quicker than that!” I teased over my shoulder. As I rounded a er and ducked under a low branch, I nearly collided with a startled deer that bounded away into the underbrush. My heart raot only from running but from the sheer thrill of being so close to nature’s beauty amidst our pyful chaos. Just then, I heard Lily’s voice calling out from behind me. “I see you! You ’t hide forever!” With renewed determination, I picked up my pace again, weaviween trees and leaping over roots like an agile sprite. The sound of ughter and shouts filled my ears—this was more than just a game; it was a celebration of life and freedom in this enting pbsp;As I approached a small clearing bathed in sunlight, I could see Helios waiting there with an amused smile on his face. He raised an eyebrow at me as if dario make my move. “Tag! You’re it!” Lily shouted breathlessly as she dashed past me before I could reabsp;Suddenly, I found myself as one of the catchers alongside Eamon. We exged a quid nodded, silently agreeing on our argets. Our eyes locked onto Idris, Isabel, and Lilith, who were now scattering in different dires. "After them!" I called out to Eamon, pointing towards Idris who was making a break for a dehicket.Eamon grinned and took off after Isabel, who was dartiweerees with surprising agility. "You 't outrun me forever, Isabel!" he shouted pyfully. I set my sights on Lilith, who was moving with grace despite the uerrain. Her royal posure seemed momentarily fotten as she zigzagged through the forest, occasionally gng back with a mischievous smile."Trying to escape, Yhness?" I called out, closing the distaween us. Idris, hearing the otion, shouted to Isabel, "Quick! Over by the fallen log!" He poio a massive oak that had toppled some time ago, creating a natural barrier. Isabel dove behind the log, her ughter eg through the trees. "You'll have to be faster than that!" she challenged Eamon, who was hot on her heels. Suddenly, Lilith ged dire, darting towards a cluster e boulders. "Not so easy to catch!" she called back, her voice filled with pyful defianbsp;Eamon momentarily lost track of Isabel as he navigated around a thick patch of bushes. "Where did she go?" he muttered, spinning around. I was gaining on Lilith, my steps light and quick. The forest floor was a maze of roots, fallen leaves, and hidden dips, but we moved as if dang, each step calcuted yet wild. "Idris!" Isabel called out, "Help me!" Idris, caught between helping Isabel and avoiding being tagged, hesitated for a split sed. That moment of indecision was all I needed. With a burst of speed, I lunged forward. "Tag!" I shouted, my hand just grazing Lilith's sleeve. Lilith spun around, mock horror on her face. "Oh no!" she dramatically excimed, before quickly tagging Idris. "Your turn!" The game tinued, a whirlwind of motion and ughter. Eamon was still searg for Isabel, who had somehow mao find another hiding spot. Idris now became a catcher, his eyes sing the forest for potential targets. "This is getting intense!" Fenris called out from somewhere in the distance, clearly enjoying the spectacle. As Idris became a new catcher, his eyes sed the forest for potential targets. Isabel remained hidden, her breath trolled as she listened for any approag footsteps. "Queen Daleyza's !" Fenris shouted from a distance, adding another yer of excitement to the game. Idris, now hunting for Isabel, moved cautiously through the undergrowth. "I know you're around here somewhere," he called out, trying to draw her out of hiding. Suddenly, Daleyza ehe fray, her regal demeanor repced by a petitive spark. "Where's Isabel?" she asked Idris, sing the surrounding trees. "Haven't caught her yet," Idris replied, pointing towards a cluster of dense bushes. Isabel, hearing their versation, held her breath. She was crouched behind the bushes, her heart rag with anticipation of being discovered. Daleyza moved with surprising stealth, her eyes carefully examining each potential hiding spot. "e out, e out," she sang softly, a pyful challenge in her voibsp;Idris circled from the other side, effectively creating a pincer movement to flush out Isabel. The vibrant energy of the celebration suddenly shifted as I noticed Helios's absence. "Where'd he go?" I wondered, my eyes sing the crowd for his familiar face. Just as I turo sear another direy world spun, and I found myself forcefully pressed against the rough bark of a nearby tree. The impaocked the breath from my lungs, and before I could regain my posure, I felt my wrists pinned firmly above my head. My heart raced as I looked up into the fierce, pierg eyes of Fenris. His grip on my wrists tightened, causing a dull ache to spread through my arms. I could feel the heat radiating from his body, so close to mine, and the st of pine and something wild filled my nostrils. "What's your retionship with him?" Fenris growled, his voice low and threatening. His eyes bore into mine, searg for answers I wasn't sure I had. I fought to keep my expressioral, despite the fear and fusion swirling within me. "Whom might you be referring to?" I asked, my voice steadier than I felt. Fenris's jaw ched, his frustration palpable. "Who else besides, that Valentinian?" he spat, his words dripping with venom. "That son of a b*tch that keeps following you everywhere you go." The vulgarity of his words caught me off guard, but I refused to show it. Instead, I felt a spark of defiance ighin me. "Why does it you where he chooses to be?" I retorted, my voice taking on a mog tone. "Pnning to adopt him?" I saw a flicker of surprise in Fenris's eyes, quickly repced by anger. He opened his mouth to respond, his grip tightening even further, causio winvoluntarily. But before he could utter a word, a booming voice cut through the tension like a knife. "Fenris, what are you doing?" I felt Fenris stiffen, his head whipping around to face the source of the interruption. I peered around him to see the imposing figure of the King of Domino, his regal presenanding attention even in the dim light of the forest. Fenris's demeanor ged instantly. He released me so abruptly that I nearly lost my baumbling slightly as I regained my footing. "Oh, umhh......nothing at all," he stammered, his earlier bravado evaporating uhe King's stern gaze. The King's eyes narrowed, his voice ced with authority as he ordered, "If so, then be on your way." I watched as Fenris seemed to shrink before the monarch, his head bowing slightly. "Of-of course, Your Majesty," he mumbled, his voice barely above a whisper. Without ann my dire, he turned and fled, disappearing into the shadows of the surrounding trees. The King's eyes followed Fenris's retreating form, a knowing smirk pying on his lips. "He's still onto you, huh?" he remarked, his voice tinged with amusement. I rolled my eyes, brushing off my clothes with exaggerated motions. "Do I look like someone who cares?" I shot back, my tone dripping with venom. The King turo face me, his pierg gaze sending an involuntary shiver down my spine. "So, your questions?" he asked nontly, as if we were discussing the weather rather thaermath of a tense frontation. I gnced around at the bustling celebration, my nose wrinkling in distaste. "You wanna a in su open pce?" I questioned, iing as much disgust into my voice as I could muster. His eyebrow arched, a challenge glinting in his eyes. "Yes, why? Are your questions inappropriate?" he tered, his tone mogly sdalized. "No," I muttered, averting my gaze from his inteare. "Then go ahead," he insisted, his voice carrying a hint of impatienbsp;I hesitated, my heart pounding in my chest. The questions I'd been holding back for so long suddenly felt too heavy on my tongue. Finally, I blurted out, "Why- why do you have so many es?" My hands fidgeted nervously as I stared at the ground, uo meet his eyes. "What else do you want to ask?" he prompted, his voinervingly calm. fusion furrowed my brow as I looked up at him. "Hmm?" "What other questions do you have?" he crified, his patience wearing thin. The dam broke, and words tumbled out of me in a rush. "Did you ever like mother? Why did you choose to appear the day dad disappeared, I mean, the day I was born? Why did you use bck magic to begin with? Why-" Before I could tinue my barrage of questions, I found myself smmed back against the tree trunk, the King's hand gripping my throat. His left arm rested above my head, g me in. The sudden proximity was suffog, his presence overwhelming my senses. My mind reeled. When had he closed the distaween us? How had he moved so fast? Ohing ainfully clear: these me Fenris, Cillian or the King himself, seemed to know only one nguage - that of ford intimidation. The world around me faded into a blur as the King's grip on my throat tightened, his faing above mine like a storm cloud ready to unleash its fury. I could feel the rough bark of the tree digging into my back, a stark trast to the suffog pressure on my windpipe. The festive sounds of the celebration seemed to dim, repced by the thundering of my owbeat in my ears. "The ao all your questions," the King growled, his voice a low, menag rumble that sent chills down my spine, "is just one word. Manipution." His breath, hot and heavy, ghosted over my face as he leaned in closer, his forehead now resting against the tree bark above me. "It's what I've gohrough, from the moment I was in my mother's womb." I struggled to turn my face upward, desperate for air, my vision starting to blur at the edges. The exhaustion of the past few minutes bined with the ck of oxygen was making my head spin. "Man-man-ipution?" I choked out, my voice barely a whisper. My hands cwed frantically at his iron grip, finally managing to pry his fingers away from my throat. As his hand released me, I gasped loudly, gulping in air like a drowning man finally breaking the surface. "Hah... hah... hah..." My upper body sagged slightly, my legs trembling with the effort to keep me upright. The King sighed, a sound filled with turies of weariness. To my surprise, the same hand that had been choking me moments ago now gently cupped my jaw, tilting my face up to meet his gaze. The sudden tenderness was almost more terrifying than his violenbsp;His eyes—oh, those eyes—they weren't just looking at me. They were disseg me, peeling back yers of my existeh a gaze so peing it felt like psychological vivise. Each sed under his grip was ay of suffog revetion. The King's eyes, once abze with fury, now glimmered with a haunting sadhat seemed to stretch across eons. His voice, when he spoke, was barely above a whisper, yet it carried the weight of tless unspoken horrors.To be tinued...