Stark pov
I walk through the castle gates as the sun rises.
The guards see me immediately, and their eyes go wide. One of them actually drops his spear.
"Prince Stark!" the captain of the guard stammers. "We've been searching for you all night, where have you been?"
"Take me to my father," My voice sounds dead even to my own ears.
"But Your Highness, you're covered in blood. You're injured. Let us call the healers—"
"Take me to my father," I repeat. "Now."
The captain swallows hard. "Yes, Your Highness."
They escort me through the castle, servants gasp when they see me, I don't blame them though, my clothes were torn in several places, claw and bite wounds scattered on my body.
We reach the throne room, and the guards push the massive doors open, revealing my father sitting on his throne and my mother standing beside him. They are not alone, though; behind them are at least a dozen elders and council members.
They were expecting me.
"Stark," my father says, his voice is chilly. "Where have you been?"
"I need to confess something," I say. "Something important."
"We know where you've been," Mother says. Her voice is shaking. "The werewolf scouts saw the blood moon. They know what happened at the river."
My stomach drops. "How do you know about the river?"
"Because the dog Alpha sent a message an hour ago," Father says. He holds up a rolled parchment.
"He is demanding an emergency council meeting; he accuses one of our kind of violating the treaty and crossing into their territory, triggering an ancient prophecy in the process."
I'm at a loss for words.
"Tell me it wasn't you," Mother whispers. "Please, Stark. Tell me you weren't at the forbidden river last night."
I meet her eyes. "I was there."
She gasps. Her hand flies to her mouth.
"Tell me you didn't cross into werewolf territory," Father says. His voice is deadly quiet now.
"I crossed," I admit.
"Tell me you didn't touch one of their wolves," he continues.
"I did more than touch her," I say. "I fell in love with her, I've been meeting her for months. Last night, we... we were together intimately. All of a sudden her wolf woke up and attacked me. I had to fight back, you know the rest of the incident.
The room explodes into chaos.
"He admits it!" one elder shouts.
"Treason!" another yells.
"He's doomed us all!" a third screams.
"SILENCE!" Father roars. His voice echoes off the stone walls. The room died instantly. "Everyone out. Except the queen and the prince. Go out now."
The elders and council members file out reluctantly. The doors close behind them with a heavy thud.
Now it's just the three of us.
Father rises from his throne. He approaches me slowly.
"Explain," he says. "Explain how my son, my heir, the future king of the vampire realm, could be so monumentally stupid."
"I met her six months ago," I say. "At the river. She was bleeding, I should have walked away. But I didn't."
"Why not?" Mother asks.
"Because she looked at me like I was a person instead of a monster," I say simply. "For the first time in my life, someone saw me for me and not as the prince, or vampire."
"And that was worth betraying your entire kingdom?" Father asks.
"Yes," I say without hesitation.
His fist connects with my jaw and I go down hard. The taste of blood fills my mouth.
"Aldric!" Mother cries out.
"Stay out of this, Seraphina," Father says. He looks down at me. "Get up."
I stand slowly. My jaw throbs but I don't care.
"Do you have any idea what you've done?" Father asks. "Any idea at all?"
"I triggered a prophecy," I say. "I know."
"Not just any prophecy," he says. "It was the one that's been passed down for a thousand years, the one that says the continent will burn in eternal night."
"I don't believe in prophecies," I say.
"Well, you'd better start believing," Father snaps. "Because the blood moon was real. The werewolves saw it. We also saw it, in fact, everyone on the continent saw it, and now they're all terrified."
"What does the full prophecy say?" I ask.
Mother pulls out a scroll from her robes. Her hands are shaking as she unrolls it. "When the wolfless one finds love in the fangs of darkness, the blood moon shall rise, and the continent shall burn in eternal night. Only death can break the curse."
"Roselyn," I say softly. "The wolfless one is Roselyn."
"And the fangs of darkness are you," Father says. "A vampire. The prophecy is about the two of you."
"What's the curse?" I ask. "What happens if we don't die?"
"No one knows," Mother admits. "The prophecy doesn't say anything about that, just that the continent will burn, and eternal night will come. Everything will be destroyed."
"That's vague," I point out.
"That's prophecy," Father counters. "Always vague until it's too late."
I take a deep breath. "What are you going to do?"
"What am I going to do?" Father repeats. " I'm going to attend the emergency council meeting tomorrow night. I'm going to listen to what the werewolves have to say. And then I'm going to decide whether to hand you over to them for execution or execute you myself."
"Aldric, no!" Mother steps between us. "You can't kill our son!"
"Our son just doomed the entire continent!" Father roars. "For a werewolf! Those overgrown dogs, Seraphina! The very creatures we've been at war with for centuries!"
"She's not like them," I say. "She's different. She's kind and brave and–"
"I don't care if she's the moon goddess herself!" Father interrupts. "You betrayed your kingdom and triggered the end of the world. For what? For some servant girl who couldn't even summon her wolf?"
"Don't talk about her like that," I say. My voice is dangerous now. "She's worth more than this entire kingdom."
Father stares at me for a long moment. Then he says, very quietly, "You really love her."
"With everything I am."
"Then you're a fool," he says. "Love doesn't save kingdoms, Stark. Power does. And right now, you've made us weak."
"I don't care," I say. "I'd do it again, in fact I'd do it a thousand times."
"You've doomed us all to a werewolf?" Father asks. "That's your final answer?"
"Yes," I say. "I'd doom the world a thousand times for her, and I'd never regret it."
Father's face goes cold. His face is colder than I've ever seen it. "Guards!"
The doors burst open, and six vampire-armed guards rush in.
"Take the prince to the dungeons," Father orders.
Maximum security. He's not to leave under any circumstances."
"Father, please," Mother begs. "Don't do this."
"He's given me no choice," Father says. "If I don't secure him, the werewolves will think we're not taking this seriously. They'll attack. And we can't afford a war right now."
The guards grab my arms. I don't resist. There's no point.
"What about Roselyn?" I ask as they drag me toward the door. "What will happen to her?"
"The werewolves have already captured her, she's in their dungeons right now. Probably being tortured for information."
My blood runs cold. "If they hurt her—"
"You'll what?" Father interrupts. "You'll be in chains. You can't even save yourself, how will you save her? And when the council meets tomorrow night, we'll decide whether to execute one of you, both of you, or neither. But I'll tell you right now, son. The odds aren't in your favor."
They pull me through the door. The last thing I see is Mother crying. Father is standing rigid and cold on his throne.
Then we're moving, down the corridors and the stairs, straight to the depths of the castle where the dungeons are.
They're specifically designed to hold our kind. Vervain is everywhere; the chain is laced with vervain, and even the bar was made from an ancient white oak tree. No light. No warmth. Just cold stone and metal.
They throw me into a cell, before I can stand, a vervain lace chain snaps around my wrists, my ankles, and my neck.
The vervain burns immediately. Pain shoots through every part of my body. I grit my teeth to keep from screaming.
"The king said maximum security," one guard says. He sounds almost apologetic. "We have to use all the restraints."
They attach the chains to the walls. I'm left standing in the center of the cell, unable to move more than a few inches in any direction.
"Someone will bring you blood later," another guard says. "Try to survive until then."
They leave, the door slams shut, and multiple locks click into place.
I'm alone in the darkness. My skin burns I'm not able to move. I wish I could help Roselyn. But I can't do anything except stand here and hurt.
But even through the pain, even through the knowledge that I might die tomorrow, I don't regret it.
I'd do it all again for her.
Every. Single. Time.
Hours pass, maybe days. It's hard to tell in the darkness. The vervain keeps burning. I'm still weak from the fight.
Then I hear something.
I hear a quiet footstep. I won't have noticed if not for superior hearing; the footsteps are coming down the stairs.
The door to my cell opens. And a figure steps inside. I can barely make it out in the darkness but I recognize the scent.
My mother.
"Stark," she whispers. "I don't have much time. Your father is in a council meeting. I came to tell you something."
"What?" My voice is rough from not speaking.
"The werewolves have demanded the execution of both of you, or one of you, they say it's the only way to stop the prophecy."
"When?" I ask.
"Tomorrow night," she says. "After the council meeting, they're going to vote on it."
"What does Father think?" I ask.
She's quiet for a moment. Then: "He thinks they're right. He's going to vote for execution."
My heart sinks. "And you?"
"I'm going to vote against it," she says. "But Stark, I'm only one vote. If the majority agrees... there's nothing I can do to stop it."
"I understand," I say.
She steps closer, and I can see tears on her face. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry I couldn't protect you."
"It's not your fault," I say. "I made my choice. I knew the risks."
"Did you?" she asks. "Did you really know this would happen?"
"No," I admit. "But I wouldn't change it anyway."
She reaches through the bars and touches my face. "You're so much like me, you think too much with your heart."
"Is that a bad thing?" I ask.
"In this world? Yes. But it's also what makes you a good person. And I'm proud of you for that, even if I can't say so publicly."
She turns to leave.
"Mother," I call out. "If they do execute us… Tell Roselyn something for me. Tell her I love her, tell her dying for her was the best thing I ever did."
"Tell her yourself," Mother says. "Because I'm going to do everything in my power to make sure you both survive this."
She leaves, and the door closes again.
And I'm alone with my thoughts and the burning chain again, but now I know that within the next 24 hours, I might die.
But even that doesn't scare me as much as one simple thought:
What if they kill Roselyn and let me live?
What if I have to exist in a world without her?
That's the only thing that truly terrifies me.
Because I don't know if I can survive that.