Throne of Glass & A Court of Thorns and Roses: Two Worlds Collide

Chapter 38-Aelin

I stood just behind a circular pillar, praying to whatever gods were watching that one of the elite fae guards didn't see me. Everyone else was exactly where I'd told them to be, ready to do as I'd planned in the days before.

Aedion's armies should be mobilizing by now, getting ready to strike when the king's men realize what's going on. I saw the guard walk away through the corner of my eye and let out a breath of relief. I rested my head on the stone behind me and closed my eyes before taking a deep breath and darting to the next shadow.

The king was standing in front of the ominous cauldron, obviously entranced by some vision it was giving him. Both of his hands were braced on either side of it and his head was bowed low. There was no way he would know that I was killing his guards off one by one. There were two standing by the doors, one by the throne, and two more scattered along the walls of the throneroom. It was a good thing that there were so many shadows in this room, so many places for us to hide. I took out one of my daggers and crept up on the side of one of the men by the door. Just as I got close, I saw Rowan's eyes materialize out of the darkness across from me, ready to take out the other guard.

I nodded once and we moved in perfect unison, both taking the guards by the throat and sliding the dagger before they could make a noise. Rowan himself replaced the guard he'd taken out after he quietly placed him in the shadows. I was lying my guard on the ground when Aedion slipped around me and took his place beside the door. He winked at me and then turned forward, unmoving save for the rise and fall of his chest as he breathed.

I ducked into the nearest shadow, readying for the next kill. I hid behind another column, making sure no one was looking my way as I slit the next guard's throat and Dorian took his place without flaw. The next guard was across the room, then I would get the one by the throne. I rounded the room, sneaking around Aedion and Rowan then repeating my actions with this watchman; Cassian was the one to replace him this time.

I hid in the next shadow just as the king straightened himself and walked away from the cauldron and toward the throne. Shit, I thought. This was a predicament; I was going to have to kill the guard while he was nearly two feet away from him without the king noticing. This wasn't going to be easy, but I wasn't Adarlan's Assassin for nothing. Azriel was waiting to slip into place, all the other guards had been replaced, I could do this.

I hopped from shadow to shadow, blending in as the Silent Assassins of the Red Desert had taught me. When I rounded the room and snuck up behind the guard, I nodded at Azriel, who was in ready position. I noticed a slight grin growing on my face.

I took one deep breath and moved. I had my hand on his mouth and my dagger through his throat before I could let out the breath. Before I could take the next one, Azriel was standing at attention beside the king. The crowned man turned to the side to look directly at Azriel, a quizzical expression on his face, before he raised his eyebrows in indifference and turned back forward. I turned back to the soldier I'd just killed and when I saw his eyes, I knew immediately. This was Jurian. Supposedly so evil and cruel, and he'd bled and died just like the rest of them

Azriel nodded at Rowan across the room and I saw Rowan's hand move a slight inch as he knocked on the large doors. He hadn't even finished the second knock before Rhys came striding in, pure thick darkness rolling off his fingers, causing the entire room to go pitch black.

The king was on his feet in a second, growling, "you," to Rhysand. He didn't even have a chance to reply before bright blue beams shot out of the king's hands in several directions. One of them hit Aedion in the chest and he fell to his knees, convulsing as if he'd been electrocuted. I ran up behind the king and slammed my right foot into the back of his knee and he fell to the ground. I brought my other foot around and rammed it into his throat, causing him to fall to all fours. I faintly noticed Lysandra running from her place in the shadows and hitting her knees beside Aedion. I could see him nodding and starting to stand back up.

I unsheathed the sword strapped across my back and prowled in front of the king. I used the tip of Goldryn to nudge the king's chin up to look at me. I wanted him to see my face, the face of death.

"Who are you?" he spat, one hand clutching his throat and one bracing him on the ground.

"My name," I purred, "is Aelin Galathynius." I barely saw his sneer before I swiped my sword clean through his neck.