Bringer of Destruction (The Bringan saga 2)

Chapter 1

Aislin

Her gaze was turned to the landscape outside the carriage and, although the sun shone brightly illuminating the whole panorama around her, inside her she felt only an emptiness, a darkness that was slowly devouring her.

She felt weak, at the mercy of feelings and thoughts that only crowded her mind, that made her chest ache more and more, as if a part of herself had been torn away, as if part of her heart was no longer with her. And in a way, that's what happened to her.

She had given her heart, unwittingly, without realizing it, and now it had never come back. Now her heart had stayed with him while she was away. And it all hurt, an almost physical pain that wouldn't let her sleep at night.

There was nothing she wanted more in the world than to go to a place far away from everyone, or to see him again, at least one last time, even though she knew it would hurt her even more.

And yet there he was, in that carriage, heading back to Althea, for the last time. She would never go back to her home, she wouldn't go back to her brother's rooms, she wouldn't hear her mother's laugh or her fingers in her hair. She still remembered how much she loved to comb her hair at the time, even though she could do it.

In fact, she didn't even know if he would ever see them again. She did not know whether her father would allow the queen to visit her, or whether he would allow Athelstan to attend the wedding.

Marriage.

Her whole life had been prepared for the coming moment, ever since she was a child she had been trained, raised to be ready for what was going to happen, for what was looming over them. All her life she had done was perform and be what others wanted her to be, to become.

The perfect little girl, the perfect bride and, finally, the perfect weapon. The weapon to destroy the darkness, to destroy the power that wanted to subdue and annihilate them.

They had shaped her as they wanted, they had always told her how to behave, how to dress, what to eat, who she should marry and who she should love.

No one had ever asked her what she really wanted, who she really wanted, if not Elhiás

Elhiás her friend, the person for whom she would give everything, even her own life. The person who had done everything for her, who would set her free, if it really made her happy... But she couldn't be happy, no.

It wasn't what she was born for, that she existed and walked on that earth.

Ecbert had been telling her all the time since she was a child, he had done nothing but tell her what his purpose was, why he walked on this earth, why he lived. To become the weapon that would destroy the darkness.

Everyone was terrified of her, everyone was afraid of the darkness that was approaching, but she wasn't. Darkness didn't scare her, it intrigued her, it called her.

Darkness wasn't something you had to run away from or hide, it was something you could welcome. A part of it resided in every human being, and Aislin wasn't quite sure it was a bad thing. The darkness could always be overwhelmed by light, but she wasn't sure if she was that light, she wasn't sure if she was the weapon Ecbert had been waiting for. After all, she was Kyros Neyer's daughter, and she knew very well that there was no light in him... No goodness, nothing. Although her mother kept telling her, day after day, how different she was from her father.

But was it really?

There had been no goodness in the hatred she felt when Nathan had chosen his crown over her. And not even when, at the age of eight, she had disintegrated the skull of the murderer who had come to kill her.

There was no goodness in the dreams of blood and death that continued to haunt her night after night, that would not let her sleep.

They were only gone with him.

When she was with him her mind wasn't so crowded, so noisy, and all those voices that made her head ache disappeared just with his presence, because he was good, he represented the goodness that Aislin had never had inside her. He was that light that defeated the darkness inside her, he was able to lock her in a room, to make her disappear, as if that darkness was afraid of him.

But he was no longer with her, and Aislin was alone again. And she knew that Nathan's choice had been for the good of everyone, of his kingdom, because that's the way he was, he always put the good of others before his own, before what he wanted. And although she knew it was the right choice and admired him for it, she couldn't help but feel that emptiness inside her, which was slowly sucking her in and would disintegrate her.

In a few days she would be in Althea, marry Elhiás, and then be transformed into what they wanted: their weapon, their bringan, the bringer of light who would defeat the darkness and the Ucrie once and for all.

It was what she had been raised and prepared for, and in all likelihood, she would die because of what others had seen in her.

Maybe if she had saved everyone, if she had banished that threat, if she had defeated the Ucries, her father would have stopped hating her and perhaps even loved her. Although it seemed that Kyros Neyer was incapable of such feeling. But, as her mother always said, there was hope for everyone and maybe even for him.

She closed her eyes and sighed, resting her head on the wood of the carriage as it jerked with every movement.

"It'll be easier, princess," said Ser Blake in front of her, startling her.

She had become so immersed in his thoughts that she had almost forgotten his presence.

Ser Blake was one of the knights of the crown, one of the most trusted in Locrang, and sometimes he had found himself accompanying her to Althea with Amris, the only one who knew how to defend the royals at any cost. But for that trip Amris was not there with her. Strangely enough her father had sent him on a mission and had not been able to accompany her, it had never happened before.

"Nothing is easy in life, Ser Blake," the princess replied, sighing.

Nothing was easy for anyone, although in the eyes of others it seemed the opposite.

The carriage came to a sudden stop, with a brake that almost pushed it into the rider's arms. Blake arched his eyebrows and opened the window to talk to the coachman.

"What's the matter?" the knight asked with a frown.

"A tree has fallen in the middle of the road, ser," replied the man.

Blake snorted as he approached the door that creaked as he opened it. Aislin sighed again, smoothing the folds of her dress as the sun's rays entered the carriage, illuminating the gold ring with her family's crest on her forefinger.

Blake leaned out the door, placing one foot on the outside step. Half of the body out and half in to be able to look better.

"You and you," Blake said, probably to the men of his escort.

"Keep a watch, let the others move the log!" ordered the knight in a mighty voice.

Aislin got up, she was tired of being inside that damn wooden box.

"Princess, you'd better stay here, you'll be safer," Blake said, blocking her way out.

"I need to breathe fresh air and stretch my legs a bit, I'm tired of sitting," the girl complained, looking straight into the man's dark eyes.

The knight sighed and went out, holding out his hand and helping her down the steps, as if she were a small, helpless little girl unable to descend on her own. She wasn't helpless, she didn't need help, but she took Blake's hand and got out of the carriage, like the good princess that she was.

She grasped the skirt of her dress with her free hand, lifting it slightly to keep her feet from tripping over it, as she stepped out of the carriage gracefully.

Always keep composure, smile and give thanks, you are a princess. The teachings of the ladies of Althea echoed in her mind.

She meekly thanked Blake and took a deep breath, closing her eyes and letting the sunlight warm her skin.

Her stomach was upside down, and that morning, before leaving, she had vomited all the dinner of the night before, although she had eaten little or nothing.

She let the fresh air fill her lungs and calm her down. Around her, the men were moving to move the fallen tree in the middle of the road. She frowned. It wasn't the season for thunderstorms and the night before there certainly hadn't been one, the land was dry and dry and the weather was hot, almost suffocating heat.

No plant would collapse out of the blue.

She opened her eyes and circled the carriage, going towards the trunk in front of them, though Blake protested and began to run after her.

The trunk occupied the entire passage and prevented his movements, the leaves were green and there was no trace of lightning burn.

The princess followed the figure of the plant from the frond to the roots. But there were no roots. The trunk had been cut clean and dropped on the road, as if it had been done on purpose, as if someone had wanted to prevent it from going any further.

She widened her eyes and turned to warn the men who were escorting her, when an arrow leapt out of the forest that surrounded the road and lodged itself in the neck of one of the soldiers who was mobilizing to move the obstacle. The arrow pierced the man's neck from side to side, as he fell to the ground groaning and holding his wound, blood gushed from his mouth.

Another soldier quickly approached Aislin, trying to protect her, but another arrow flew past her, sticking straight into the eye of the man who was just a few steps away from the princess. Blood splashed in her face, and she felt the metallic taste on her tongue as the red spray coated her face.

She took a step back and collided with someone's chest. Immediately an arm went around her waist and lifted her weight, turning her around, while another arrow, this time directed at her, was shot.

Blake pushed her toward the carriage, shielding her with his body. Chaos raged around them. Armed men emerged from the trees and attacked the soldiers, killing them one after the other.

Aislin looked up and saw the coachman slumped in his place, his head dangling to the side, his eyes still open as blood dripped from his lips. An arrow had hit him right in the chest, killing him instantly.

They reached the door of the carriage and Blake continued to shield her with his body. While the men shouted, she heard the sound of steel colliding, flesh torn.

Aislin didn't understand exactly what was going on around her, she didn't have time to process that Blake was thrown backwards by a man, tumbled to the ground kicking up a dust, while another pinned him to the ground and began to hit him without giving him a chance to respond to the attacks.

"Here's the king's bastard," said the man who had pushed Blake.

Aislin turned to defend herself. She wasn't a helpless little girl, she knew how to fight, she could have killed them in an instant, but she didn't have the time. The man struck her with the hilt of his sword at the temple, causing her to fall to the ground. Her vision blurred, and the sounds came muffled. She trudged to the ground as she tried to recover, shaking her head, rubbing on the ground, while a liquid ran down her face. Her temple throbbed painfully, and her breathing became labored.

A hand grabbed her hair and pulled her back, her back beating against someone's chest as she remained on her knees pinned by a powerful arm around her waist.

Slowly her vision was returning, and she could see the blade of a sword approaching her neck. "But I'll f**k you first," the man said in her ear.

His warm breath brushed against the skin behind her ear, sending shivers down her spine as a hand grabbed her breast, tearing the fabric of her dress that covered her; the skin exposed while the pendant with the blue stone was illuminated by the sun's rays. The man grabbed her throat with one hand while squeezing her breasts with the other, letting out a hiss of pain.

"We were paid to kill her, not f**k her," said another man behind him. The man holding her still left her neck and picked up the sword he had placed on the ground earlier, running the blade over her bare skin.

"She'll die anyway, I don't see why don't f**k her before," the man behind her replied, her chest vibrating at the sound of his voice and Aislin blinked several times as her vision returned.

The whistling sound in his mind began to fade and she shook her head, trying to recover.

"The orders were clear, kill the bastard and take the rest," the man repeated.

"Shut up, your turn will come," said the individual behind her as he brought his free hand to her skirt, lifting it up to her hips, ripping it off and exposing her nudity, she heard him fumbling with her pants and then violating it.

Aislin didn't have time to react when the man pushed violently into her, tearing her apart, a cry coming from her lips and a pain blazing all over her body, knocking her to her senses as the man continued to move and pinch her ears.

She widened her eyes and gathered her power, with all the strength she had left in her body, she pulled it out of her body, with a cry that burned her throat, as if a hot flame came from her chest and came out, devouring everything around her.

She felt the man let her go, and then several thuds as all her energy leaked out, affecting her surroundings.

She slumped to the ground breathing heavily, her palms facing the ground as he turned and sat on the ground; Her breathing had suddenly become heavy, her chest burned terribly, it seemed as if her throat had caught fire.

She touched her throbbing temple, felt a hot liquid on her fingers, and looked at it. Blood. She could hardly keep her eyes open, but she forced herself not to faint, she couldn't afford it. If she fainted, it would be over for her.

The men who were supposed to protect her were all dead. She had hurled them against the trees, breaking their backs, their bodies lying lifeless on the ground, their eyes wide and empty.

There was c*****e all around her. Blood everywhere, throats slit, pieces of bodies.

Blake coughed and turned, trying to pull himself up as he spat blood on the ground. His face was completely covered in cuts from which blood continued to gush out.

Aislin took the fabric of her dress and tried to cover her bare breasts, to no avail. Her chest ached, and her stomach twitched again, threatening to throw it all away. She slumped to the ground, breathing hard, her eyes and hands clenched into fists.

She threw her bile back, feeling a weight on her stomach, focused on her breath and her body. The bracelet that Docria had given her gave off slight vibrations, her power wanted to explode, come out and destroy everything around her, anyone who approached her or threatened her.

She breathed slowly, trying to control her power, to mold it to her will. He wasn't in control of her, she was in control. She hugged him and threw him back into her cage, the ardor that pervaded her slowly calmed down, and her body became colder. She stopped sweating.

She closed her eyes and continued to push him into her cage and then closed the cell again, even though this threatened to destroy him.

Slowly her heartbeat slowed and became calmer, it no longer ringed in her ears and she no longer heard the whistling sound that had encircled her just before. He slowly relaxed, taking deep breaths.

"Careful!" cried Blake.

Aislin looked up at him and didn't have time to notice a hand grabbing her hair and pulling her back, a blade tearing through her skin.

This time she reacted.

The door of the cage swung open, it was thrown away, tearing off its hinges, and the beast it had locked inside came out, its eyes bloodshot, its long fangs from which drool dried.

She didn't stop him, she didn't try to lock him up again. She set him free. The cage disintegrated along with the skin of the bracelet she was wearing. The object broke and fell to the ground, causing a thud as his beast was finally released.

A wave of fire erupted from her body and destroyed everything around her except Blake. The carriage was immediately incinerated, the horses groaned and burned, their carcasses fell to the ground lifeless, the trees disappeared completely as the flames engulfed them and quickly disintegrated them into ashes. Meanwhile, a cry came from her throat, almost like that of a beast.

Tongues of fire spread from her body, attacking anything around her, anything that could even threaten her: she could shape them to her liking, she could control them, they were like extensions of her body on fire. Her face burned as a stabbing pain in her chest swept through her.