The palace of Nox was not made for mortal flesh.
Elyria stood just inside the threshold of her new chambers, surrounded by silence. The walls, shimmered faintly in the low lights of hanging lanterns. The ceilings curved like the jaw of some ancient beast.
The bed was too soft. The room was far too large.
And everything felt different.
The scent of Kaelith lingered--she hadn't even realized how familiar his presence had become until she was without it. And then, like a cruel joke, the tether between them lit.
He was near. Not in the room, but close.
Her wedding gown clung to her in all the wrong places, heavy with expectation. She hadn't changed. She didn't want to, not into the sheer silk garments they had laid out for her. She wouldn't be dressed like some sacrificial virgin to please the devil.
She walked slowly across the chamber, dragging her fingertips along the obsidian table near the window. A sudden chill ran through her despite the warmth in the room. The magic was alive here—alive and watching.
A soft knock broke her thoughts.
Not loud. Not demanding.
The door opened without an invitation.
It was Kaelith but not in armor.
He still wore black pants, barefoot, and a sleeveless tunic that revealed scars tracing the length of his arms like ancient script. His long hair was unbound, brushing past his shoulders. And his eyes, those infernal eyes burned straight into her.
Elyria caught his eyes.
He looked less like a prince and more like a predator with manners
"I assume the room is to your liking?" he asked.
Elyria lifted her chin. "It's tolerable. A prison is still a prison, even if it has silk."
Kaelith's mouth twitched at the corner. "How dramatic."
"You know i expected chains, Maybe fire pits. Instead I'm greeted by... brocade and wine? You'll forgive me if I'm still getting used to it all."
His eyes darkened, and for a moment he looked every bit the predator she'd been taught to fear. "You are not a guest, Elyria. And this room is yours, but let it also be a reminder."
She arched a brow. "Of what?"
"That every breath you take here is given."
A pause stretched between them.
"Then maybe I should stop breathing," she said softly.
He moved. Fast. One moment across the room, the next a whisper away. She didn't flinch, though she felt her heart beat in her ear.
Kaelith leaned down, his voice humour and threat. "If you stopped breathing, little bride, I'd have to bring you back. The bond would demand it."
She stared at him, furious and flushed. "So you own my breath now?"
"Well, I own you."
"F*** you."
She surprised herself, aggravated.
He straightened slowly, laughter in his throat. "There she is."
Elyria turned from him and walked toward the window, needing distance.
Kaelith didn't press closer.
"Come." With a gentle gesture, he invited her down the hall. Reluctantly she trailed behind, her sigh lingering in the air as she followed.
He walked to the long blackwood table in the center of the hall. A feast had been laid out—exotic fruits that glowed unnaturally, meats glazed with iridescent herbs, and a wine that practically glowed.
"I'm not hungry," Elyria said flatly.
"You will be, the bond is sealed but its roots have only just begun to twist. You'll need strength."
She eyed the food warily. "I don't eat things that glow."
"Relax, it's not cursed," Kaelith said, pouring wine into a goblet for her. "But starvation would be a foolish choice. You'd be feeding the magic instead."
"What? it'll eat me if I don't eat"
"In a sense. Our magic doesn't take kindly to weakness. It will tighten around you until you yield. Or shatter."
She hesitated.
"You're not the first human bride in this realm," Kaelith said, voice calm. "But you might be the first to survive the first night."
Her head snapped toward him. "Is that a threat?"
He smiled slowly. "An observation."
Elyria stalked over to the table and took the goblet from his hand, draining half the wine in one defiant gulp. It burned down her throat like hot spice, bittersweet but rich. She set the goblet down hard.
"If I'm going to die, I may as well have dessert."
Kaelith chuckled, genuinely amused. He gestured for her to sit and took the seat across from her.
They ate in silence for a few moments, then elyria reluctantly nibbling at the fruit, Kaelith tearing into some dark meat with elegant efficiency. The food didn't taste poisoned, but it did taste... strange. Sweet and smoky. Foreign.
She caught him watching her.
"What now?" she asked.
"You eat like a bird."
"I eat like a prisoner trying not to be poisoned."
"You wound me," he said, placing a hand over his chest. "Would I go through the trouble of marrying you just to murder you at dinner?"
"I'm still waiting to discover the real motive."
Kaelith leaned back. "Peace, they say, unity between our realms,"
"But that's not why your father agreed."
She stilled. "You know nothing about my father."
"Maybe, but i know fear when I see it." Kaelith's tone sharpened. "He sold you to buy time. He saw what's coming, and he bartered with his daughter's life."
Elyria looked away. Her hands clenched on the table.
"He didn't have a choice," she whispered.
Kaelith's voice lowered. "Neither did you."
Their eyes met across the table again, she was enraged now.
"You think you understand me?" she said bitterly.
"No," Kaelith admitted. "But I will, Eventually."
"I've lost my appetite."
Elyria stood up and walked up the walls, towards her chambers. She knew he wasn't wrong but she just didn't want to hear that tonight.
---
Later That Night – Elyria's Quarters
Elyria stood alone at the window, watching the endless night stretch across the Demon Realm. Nox had no moon. Only flickers of red danced across the black skies, like veins pulsing through some cosmic wound.
Kaelith appeared behind her like a shadow. Silent, predatory.
She didn't turn. "Is that your thing? Stalking people from behind?"
"Sometimes."
"And what about appearing in women's chambers in the middle of the night? Is that protocol, or just part of the charm?"
"I find it... effective."
She finally turned to face him, arms crossed.
Kaelith held a folded robe and settled it gently on a side table.
"I thought you might prefer something to sleep in that reminds you of home," he said.
"How thoughtful."
"I think i'll just sleep in an armor," she muttered.
"You could," he said with amusement, "but even steel has a breaking point."
She didn't respond. He moved closer, then stopped deliberately at the threshold of the room.
"I'll be across the hall," Kaelith said.
She turned. "You expect gratitude for that?"
"No. But I expect you will feel it eventually."
The bond between them pulsed, she could feel his heartbeat when he was near, even when she didn't.
"Good night, little Bride," he said, and disappeared into shadow.