The Smell Of Blood Is All Around, Bodies Laying At His Feet, Scattered Across The Field. Metal On Metal

the smell of blood is all around, bodies laying at his feet, scattered across the field. metal on metal clinks, cassian at the fore front, syphons blasting through the endless sea of hybern's men. rhys can feel his own magic draining, every lash of shadows becoming more & more tiresome. there's no time to think. he quickly draws his sword, saving whatever he has left for the worst that's still to come. ensanguined hands grip the hilt, slicing through the wall of fae storming him without hesitation. one by one, they fall — a mastered dance of death.

his gaze only rips away from his targets to glance to the area where feyre had been. where the bulk of hybern's army is now pushing in. & suddenly, his vision is momentarily blackened, his body seizing in sheer pain. a soldier took the opportunity to lodge a knife of ash dripping in faebane into his side, skewering flesh & sinew. rhysand barely has time to react, pure adrenaline taking over, as he rips the blade from himself. his body twists to use whatever strength he has left to shred the fae into ribbons. with a heave, he takes to the skies, the panic finally settling in as he scans the battlefield for his mate.

where are you?

it's sent into a void, echoing back to him. their bond gone. he doesn't allow himself to think the worst, tells himself it's just the faebane — even as he soars over where she once was ... where she was supposed to be.

feyre.

he tries again, only to be met with darkness on the other side. rage runs over his whole body, consuming his dread, as his wings fan furiously against the whipping winds. even with his powers exhausted, fleeting by the second, he contemplates raining hellfire onto the whole field, turning it into nothing but red mist. it isn't until her screams meet his ears, that relief finds him. he rips himself from the sky, landing where it had came from. frantically, he scans his surroundings: pure bloodshed & carnage. but amongst it all, there is feyre. his heart pounds, as he runs towards her, engulfing her in his arms. before he can speak, he summons whatever magic he has left to winnow them back to camp, to safety.

" what happened — " his voice breaks, fear finally catching up to him. he only pulls away from her to look her over, eyes catching on her wounded shoulder. crimson stained fingers meet her cheeks, grounding him, even as panic still lingers in his gaze. " i'm fine. i'm fine — what happened? are you okay? "

@rhysie said: (aftermath): after a battle/war, sender and receiver reunite thinking the other was dead.

it all happened at once — an ash arrow pierced my shoulder, embedded with faebane and nullifying my powers, just as the massive cloud of darkness across the clearing disappeared and the bond went taut. RHYS??? i tried screaming down the bond, only to be met with deafening silence. the blood draining from my face was not because of my throbbing shoulder, but the pure panic and dread welling up inside of me. i stared across the clearing, waiting — no, praying to see another wave of darkness engulf the sky and rain hell down on our enemies, but nothing ever erupted.

no, no, no. it couldn’t be. no.

paralyzed by crippling fear, i was barely able to dodge the next arrow flying towards me. a thunderous cry, i didn’t recognize as my own, ripped through me as i used my own bow to shoot my attacker down. breaking off the end of the arrow buried in my shoulder, i took off running as fast as i could towards the other side of the clearing — faster than i ever had before, too fast for anyone to catch me. past bloodied illyrians and hybern’s army alike. i needed him, we all did. there was no life for me without him. nothing else mattered if he — no, i wouldn’t allow myself to entertain that thought.

“ RHYS??? ” i screamed aloud this time, my heart thundering and face paling with desperation as i neared the edge of the clearing. my head began spinning and eyes started welling with tears as i searched frantically. no, no, no. the pit in my stomach and ache in my heart deepened, as a small part of me started to give up. i couldn’t find anyone i recognized amongst the hideous bloodshed. i fell to my knees — feeling the pain in my shoulder for the first time, that was still minuscule compared to the gaping wound that would be left by his absence. i waited for one of hybern’s soldiers to take advantage of my vulnerability and strike me down — please, it’d be less agonizing than this, but no one ever approached. only a lone, tall figure ran towards me, his stride still quick and powerful — a sob wracking through me as i recognized him through my flood of tears. he’s alive. he’s alive. scrambling to my feet, i crashed into him with force — my arms clinging to his neck, hands combing through his thick hair and cupping his cheek, making sure he was really there. “ i thought — ” i still couldn’t bare to say it out loud.

@feydarling : tilt. you take the sender's chin in your hand and make them meet your gaze.

fingers drum against the bar top impatiently, eyes darting over to the door at any sign of movement. such a feeling is one rhysand's never had to experience before ... anxiously awaiting, half expecting to be stood up. with every interaction, feyre's kept him on his toes, unwavering to whatever he throws her way. it seems today will be no different. it's somehow thrilling. ( he tells himself it's the fact that she's dating his enemy, though he knows — she is no pawn in this, truly. that aspect, however, is an added bonus. )

he jumps to his feet at the first sign of her, concealing his shock with a feline smirk. the bar he picked is ... unimpressive, to his standards. half empty, with only a few patrons taking notice of him, whispering quietly amongst themselves. a place he would never know about otherwise, just decided purely to spare him of any allegations of being a snob. as she approaches, he takes her in: how she still smells of coffee beans, how tousled her hair is, as if she had to rush here after her shift. even after working all day, she still manages to look beautiful, effortlessly so. he can't resist temptation, throwing any promise of behaving out the window, as his hand tilts her chin upward. " hello, feyre darling. you look ravishing. "

the archer's words hit their mark, impaling him with ice that he's left frozen in their wake. it could all be chalked up to just lashing out at how unfair the cauldron has been to her, if she weren't telling the truth. feyre has seen every side of him, past the mask down to his bare bones, unlike anyone else. his naive hope that maybe it wouldn't be enough for her to run away, that maybe they were two sides of the same coin ... he realizes now that it was foolish, some desperate attempt at escaping the fate that seems to be already cemented for him: he will die alone, with only himself to blame. he had plenty of time to come to terms with that under the mountain, even made peace with it. but the cauldron brought her to him, as if she were his saving grace. it turned out to be some twisted joke, dangling everything he's ever wanted right in arms reach — & that's where it'll stay.

he finally remembers how to breathe, though there is no sign of any mask. the prince of darkness, wrathful & cunning ... gone. there is only him, with a hurt in his eyes that he can't seem to have any control of. " i know what i am. do you? " he grasps at any piece of himself he can pick back up, attempting to compose himself. " it sounds like we aren't so different then. aren't you making those same choices, now? " his gaze hardens, fingers slicking back night kissed strands, before closing the book in front of him. a desperate attempt to dismiss her, this conversation. " you've had enough training for today. "

@rhysie said: “So this is your opinion of me? Thank you for explaining so fully.“

“ you dare have the nerve to act surprised? isn’t this what you wanted? the image of yourself that you’ve painted for the world to see? you’ve played your part so well. ” i almost laughed, harsh and bitterly, devoid of any humor. the wicked and biting beast buried deep within me lashed out, with unyielding vitriol, knowing exactly where to strike. i could not see past my fury — blinded by rage and the frightening and staggering reflection i saw mirrored back to me in his violet eyes. the girl with hate in her heart — rigid detestation for this cruel and unjust world that had taken so much from me, leaving me starving and begging on my calloused hands and knees. knuckles bloodied by force, with permanent welts and scars. pure loathing directed towards those that had secured my fate — the only countenance for the utter revulsion i felt towards myself. rhysand was the creeping shadow i couldn’t shake, always looming over me and casting back my own shame and devilry. the dark veil he enshrouded himself in, the same one i felt infecting my heart. both products of what we had been forced to do. we were the same and i hated him for it. “ you’re a coward, rhys. hiding behind a mask, because it’s easier than admitting what you truly are. alone. scared and alone, which is all you’ll ever be, because that is the choice you made. ”

@meaercies : ❛ be naked when i come home. ❜

he's unwavering with the command, all too casual as he picks invisible lint from his sleeve. as if he weren't just teasing the other seconds prior, adding fuel to his building desire — just to crush it with nothing more than a bored disposition, the fire in his gaze dying out, shoulders shrugging. he wouldn't make it easy for azriel, won't relinquish control without at least a challenge beforehand. " ah, that's cute. " he hums, tilting his head as a brow arches, amusement flickering onto his lips. " remind me, az ... since when do you make demands of your high lord? "

he can read cassian like a book, ( always has, there was little need for rhys to ever take a glimpse into his mind ) taking in the fear he tries to play off with laughter. he sometimes forgets: after everything he put them through in his absence, the pain & worry that came during that time ... he needs to be more careful now. leaving his court in the dark is no longer an option. " apologies. i got wrapped up in a rather — heated conversation with one of the war camp leaders. " both hands raise to show no harm was done, at least to him, before moving to give a reassuring squeeze to cass' shoulder, grounding him. " i'm fine. "

@rhysie liked ᶠᵒʳ ᵃ starter with 𝑐𝑎𝑠𝑠𝑖𝑎𝑛.

𝐢𝐭'𝐬  𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐝  𝐭𝐨  𝐥𝐚𝐮𝐠𝐡  𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧  𝐢𝐭  𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐥𝐬  𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞  his  heart  is  in  his  throat     ;     but  he  manages  to  get  the  sound  out.     it's  hoarse,     sounding  as  rough  as  he  felt.     his  brows  pinch  together,      contradicting  the  smile  that  curled  his  lips     &     showed  canines.     "  i  should  have  known  better.  "     they've  both  come  back  from  far  more  perilous  missions.     but  he  gets  in  his  head,     even  now,     blood  rushing  in  his  ears     &     his  massive  body  tense,     itching  for  action.     "  you  worried  me.     you  weren't  responding-  "

he spares a moment to survey her, the fire he so skillfully lit reflecting in his bright gaze — tempted to use whatever self preservation he has left to keep tauntingly stroke it, just to leave her wanting. but her lips on his becomes his undoing, the leash rhysand had on himself snapping, as he willingly leans down into her kiss with reckless abandon, completely giving into her. " ah? spreading such wicked lies, are we, feyre darling? what a terrible influence i have on you. " words are a sensuous purr on his tongue, as he swiftly lifts feyre to sit upon the vanity for better access, pushing the chair aside to settle between her thighs. " i'm afraid your hair was a lost cause, long before i got involved. " rhys smirks, before tilting her chin upward to capture her mouth fully, hungrily. he wastes no time, sliding his fingers to the back of her head to deepen the kiss, tangling into the hair he's clearly given up on.

my hair, which i’m certain had only become unrulier by the second, was long forgotten. tilting my head back, as i arched against the chair, my eyes fluttered shut with a sharp inhale. the sleeve of my dress continued to slip further down, pulling the bustier with it, but i made no move to pull it back up. slender digits pawed at the nape of his neck and tangled in his hair. each brush of his lips against my exposed flesh was like a match to a flame, igniting a sharp spark that rippled throughout my entire body, with an insatiable thirst for more. breathy gasps escaped me as he explored my bare neck and jawline, only to whimper and groan as he pulled away with cruel intention. “ good thing they like me. i’ll just blame it on you. ” i spun in the chair to face him better, the tulle skirt a twisted mess. my greedy hands pulled at the collar of his shirt, before i nipped at his bottom lip softly and kissed the corner of his mouth. “ i’ll tell them how you messed my hair up and wouldn’t let me leave. ”