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queenpiranhadon · 3 months

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A/N: UGHH IM SO SORRY I'VE BEEN SO CAUGHT UP WITH EXAMS I COMPLETELY FORGOT TO POSTTT. Anyways here's chapter nine :D. This chapter is written by the lovely Nyota (@labaguetteisdabest). You can find the masterlist here

Warning(s): Apex gets panic attacks (kinda), mentions of death

Pairing(s): Kaepex

Three Days Later...

I snack on an apple I discovered I had, at some point, packed in my bag, and flip the pages of one of my favorite books.

But the excitement flowing through my veins keeps me from focusing all the way.

Clip clop.

The rhythmic clopping of the horses’ hooves had become reassuring by now. It tells me that we’re on track and that everything is fine.

Totally fine.

But there’s still something nagging at me. It feels... weird that there’s no other carriages traveling this route. This one isn’t the most popular, but it’s commonly used.

So, then, why is there no one here?

The carriage begins slowing down. I peek out the window, delighted to see the lush gardens and pristine pathways that surround the palace I call home.

Burgunjax Palace.

The carriage stops moving, and I hear Avior jump down to open the door for me. I grab my bag, sling it over my shoulder, and adjust the red vest I’m wearing.

Once the blond knight opens the door, I hop down, my black boots thumping against the cobblestone.

I look ahead and I feel a smile spread across my face.

Home, I think. Finally.

The palace looks just like when I left. The same white bricks, the same colorful mosaic window on the largest tower that shows the Pyracent crest (a golden crown with a flame in the center; simple, I know), the same red-roofed towers...

But it’s eerily quiet.

Too quiet for a wild 11-year-old boy who’s probably overly excited to receive his Reya.

What shocks me the most is that the drawbridge is open. … My parents would never leave it open.

Something’s not right.

Avior says something I don’t hear and walks off. I begin to walk towards the palace.

Something rustles in the bushes behind me. I whip my head towards the noise, but there isn’t anything there.

I step in the palace warily.

“Hello?” I call, uncertainty lacing my voice.

My footsteps echo through the halls as I make my way to the throne room.

No one.

The kitchen?

No one.

The maids’ quarters?

No one.

The stables?

No one.

I rush up the stairs, worry flooding my veins, my heart racing.

“Is anyone up here?” I try to disguise the shakiness of my voice, but it doesn’t work too well. My voice is still noticeably shaky.

Covyn’s room?

No one.

It's messy, as if someone trashed it and bolted away so they weren’t caught in the act.

And while the Covyn I knew was young, I feel like he would never mess up his room this badly.

Daxton’s room?

It's a long shot, but maybe he came back for a visit while I was gone?

No one.

My parents’ room?

No one.

“Where is everyone?” I ask aloud. My eyes begin to water.

It feels like I’ve been abandoned.

They all knew I was returning soon.

The letters I exchanged with my parents and Covyn said that he was counting down the days.

So why is no one here?

Is this a cruel joke?

I hate feeling like I've been abandoned, thanks to my older brother, Dax.

I rub at my eyes gently, careful not to irritate my burn.

But the emotions overwhelm me, take control of me, and I fall to my knees, trying my best not to cry.

A sudden crash comes from outside.

I jump, startled, and leap to check out the window.

I clap my hands over my mouth in horror.

A reddish-brown wild animal – but not an animal, somehow? - had jumped at the carriage. It tears the wood apart, splintering each piece and throwing them around. Then it stops, suddenly. It sniffs the air and turns in the direction of the palace, so I can finally see what animal it is.

It's a bear – but at the same time, it isn’t. It has the body of an espyn, but bear attributes are all over its body. Reddish-brown fur, sharp claws and teeth, fuzzy ears. ...

Its eyes.

Its eyes are teal.

The same shade as my father’s.

The same shade as Daxton’s.

And when I look closer, it’s clear that the bear-espyn-thing is Dax. I don’t know how I can tell – the behavior of the creature that used to be my brother, maybe?

The creature that used to be my brother.

Those are the words that throw me over the edge. My body is racked with quiet sobs and hot tears stream down my face.

Someone screams from outside, and I hear a loud snarl.

I whip my head towards the sound.

The bear-creature had attacked Avior.

“No!” I shout, disregarding my own safety.

I want to run down there, to save Avior, but I’m frozen in place.

I watch the animal slash its sharp claws at my friend, deep red lines appearing in their stead.

“No, no, no, no, no,” I mutter under my breath.

My eyes continue to widen to levels I didn’t even know were possible as I watch the scene play out below me.

Avior shrieks in pain when the bear-espyn-thing knocks him off his feet.

The animal pins Avior down.

And slices at his face.

The tears only keep streaming from my eyes as I switch to thermodynamic vision and watch the heat gradually fade out of my friend.

The bear-espyn-thing – whatever it is – clambers off into the gardens farther away from the palace, sensing that its job is done.

I want to run down and... save Avior? I don’t know.

But what I do know is that it’s not safe yet. And I don’t know if it ever will be.

My stomach growls and I realize that I desperately need to find food.

There's no way I’m surviving off a singular apple.

I've scoured the entire palace – and for the record, this place is huge. And I haven’t found a single scrap.

So, either my family escaped and took everything, or my newly-turned-bear-brother ate everything before I arrived.

The latter seems more likely, considering I have no idea how long Dax has been here.

Panic begins to pulse through my body.

I have no food, for one.

Two, my brother is half bear.

Three, I don’t know why he’s half bear.

And four, I have no way of communicating with other survivors – namely Cari and, ugh, Kaeda.

Even worse: Kaeda’s my best bet on surviving. She lives closest to Asraxvale and is probably having the same thoughts as me.

Now, I hate Little Miss Flawless with my whole soul, but if she’s my only way of survival, I must accept my fate, right?

Or she’s already been attacked by some other wild animal and is unfortunately (read: fortunately) bleeding to her death.

I don’t know which I prefer.

But my preference on whether Kaeda survives or not shouldn’t be my greatest concern right now.

I should be worrying about my survival.

As I walk back to the immaculate staircase, I hear a low growl come from far behind me.

I freeze, then slowly turn my head.

The Daxton-bear-espyn-thing is in the entryway.

Crap, I think.

Crap, crap, crap, crap, crap.

I need to run.

I sprint up the stairs, two or three steps at a time, and run into the first room I see.

It’s Covyn’s room.

Where can I hide here? I think. Panic clouds my mind and I can barely think straight (not that I could in the first place).

I scan the room frantically, then realize:

The closet.

I dash across the room, dodging the disarray on the floor. Hopping into the dark closet, I gently shut the door behind me.

Then it hits me.

Oh, how cliche.

I quiet my breathing so that, if my brother comes in here, I don’t get caught.

One minute passes.

Then two.

Then three.

Heavy footsteps come from the hallway, and I bite my lip so I don’t shriek.

Just don’t die, Adrienne.

Just don’t die.

#adrienne “apex” pyracent #kaeda leona cynet #kaepex #star crossed haters #kaeda x apex #my writing #creative writing #writer #writing #writers on tumblr #writeblr #writers and poets #writerscommunity

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queenpiranhadon · 4 months

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A/N: Woah chapter five already ( ˃o˂ ). Help last day of the year- This chapter is written by the lovely Nyota <3 @labaguetteisdabest and is from Apex's perspective. You can find the masterlist here Warning(s): Slight mentions of abuse, romantic rejection, Apex does some snooping, enemies to lovers, fantasy + royal universe, both MCs are cisgender females, and gay. Homophobes stay away!!

Pairing(s): Kaepex

I sit on my bed, quietly flipping through the pages of my favorite book, when Cari suddenly says, “Are our chambermaids gonna go help out other kids, or will they follow us home?”

I feel my face heat slightly when I think of Eudora. Imagining her helping another student lights a small flame of fury within me, and I don’t understand why.

“I have no idea,” I respond.

Footsteps echo through the small room as Cari strolls over to sit beside me.

“Are you blushing?”

My face burns hotter. “No!”

“You definitely are,” she teases. “I wonder why… do you have a cr-”

“NO!” I shout, embarrassment lacing my voice.

Cari smirks knowingly.

“…Okay, maybe I have a small crush,” I admit reluctantly.

“HA! There’s no way,” Cari laughs. “Apex Flaeren Pyracent, the cold-hearted heir of the fire kingdom, has a crush!”

“Not so loud!” I hiss.

Someone’s voice drifts down from upstairs:

“Okay, we’re releasing the anchors now. I pray you know what you’re doing, Cap’n.”

“I guess that’s my cue,” the water princess says enthusiastically.

“Get out,” I tell her, shoving Cari out of my room.

Once she exits the room, I continue to read, yet I can’t focus.

The sailor’s words circle through my mind.

“‘I pray you know what you’re doing, Cap’n.’”

What... what’s happening? I... if we don’t make it back safely, our parents (or brother, in Cari’s case) will order the crew dead – although Little Miss Flawless’ parents are a bit more merciful, so they may only order them to be solidly punished.

Eran should have sent a letter out, giving the captain the okay, no? If he hasn’t, there’s no telling if we can leave yet. And Eran always sends a letter.

The rhythmic thumping of waves on the hull is making me slightly nauseous, as is the rocking of the ship.

Groaning, I flop backwards on the soft bed, and I shut the book I was reading.

I lay in silence for a moment or two when I notice a slightly yellowing scroll peeking out of the bedside table.

What in the world? I think. Reaching over, I run through my mind what it could possibly be, but nothing significant comes to mind immediately.

I unfurl the scroll, careful not to tear any of it, and begin to read it.

Dear Prince Dyor,

Hey, it’s me. I know, I get it that I’m not using any formalities, but I figured given the circumstances - it’s not required of me. But I wanted to apologize. For ignoring you. I miss you, old friend, and I hate that my own weakness over the situation is tearing our friendship apart. I just don’t think of you that way. There are plenty of girls who would want to marry you – and I truly do hope these feelings don’t change anything. It’s probably too late to fix things now – but I think we both need closure. My dad will probably be infuriated with me when I see him again, he may seem merciful to others, but we both know how he is in the palace… I think I still have the marks from last time. Anyways I hope this letter finds you in good health, old friend. It was fun while it lasted.

Yours,

Kae

Prince Dyor? The crown prince of Akameen? It makes sense; Dyor never seemed interested in his fangirl club. He always ignored them. But falling for Kaeda, of all people?

Her perfect appearance never seemed like his type. But what do I know; I can’t interact with a man for my life.

My brain whirs with the prospect of gossip. This singular letter has opened my eyes to a whole new realm of possibility.

Although, at the same time, some lines worry me in a way I hate. I shouldn’t be worried about my competitor, my rival, my enemy. But...

“I think I still have the marks from last time.”

Marks... from what?

No matter; I should not be concerned.

The ship lurches forward, and I lunge for a grip, not wanting to risk anything.

Ugh, and I have to deal with a week of this? Never again.

It strikes me that there’s most likely a messenger pigeon on this ship. I could send Covyn a letter...

I dig around the drawer of the bedside table to find a scroll. It takes a minute, but I find one, and reach for my bag to grab a quill and ink.

I begin to write.

Dearest Covyn,

Hey! I miss you so much. I've been so bored lately, and incredibly desperate to get back home. Alas, that won’t be happening too soon, but in about a week, if all goes well, you’ll see me back home!

I understand that this letter may not arrive on time, but I at least want you to read it. So much chaos has happened lately, and I feel that you need to know about it.

Firstly, Princess Kaeda hasn’t gotten any better. She's still the annoying Little Miss Flawless I rant to you about all the time. Then she just HAS to stop Cari and I from goofing off. But~ I happened to find this letter of hers in my room on this cursed boat. And oh. My. Gods. There is a TREASURE TROVE of rumors right there!!

It admits Prince Dyor of Akameen to having a crush on Kaeda, for one. And I see it. What princes ~ other than Fujimura’s princes, of course ~ HAVEN’T fallen for her? I mean~ like I said earlier, she’s Little Miss Flawless.

It seems that Kaeda never sent that letter to Prince Dyor, so obviously they never spoke again. Unless my room is Dyor’s and she DID send it; Dyor just never took it with him. Either way, I’ve gained quite the amount of knowledge, and I will be putting it to good use.

With love,

Adri

I sign the letter with the nickname Covyn calls me, and race to clean the inky quill. I search for the lid to the ink, worried it disappeared, but luckily, I find it on the floor.

And now to find the messenger pigeons, I think. Slowly, I stand up, careful not to trip, and I exit the room.

When Kaeda finds out – and I know she will – she’ll be so mad. The very thought of that brings me glee, and I hurry down the hall, desperate to send the letter before I run into the ice princess.

I take a few turns and run up a flight of stairs, when I find myself on the deck, the salty scent of the sea filling my nose.

Glancing around, a slight panic rushes through me. Not only do I get seasick, but I get panicked on ships as well. It’s not fun, especially when the only way to get back home is this damned boat.

I take a deep breath, not that I think it’ll help, and go to one of the crew members.

“Excuse me?” I say. The dark-haired man turns towards me. “Do you, by any chance, know where the messenger pigeons are?”

He motions somewhere to my left and returns to... whatever he was doing.

I follow his gesture and turn left, listening for the chirping of birds that was now audible.

A minute or two later, I spot the pigeons. They cheerfully warble as if they have no care in the world, and the birds probably don’t.

As I walk closer, their chirping gets louder, almost to an insufferable volume. And as their trilling gets louder, my frustration grows. I desperately want to incinerate them, but I can’t; we need them for messages and such.

Carefully unlocking their cage, I look for the one bird who has a white splotch on her left wing. Whenever I send a letter, I tend to use her.

Aha! I think triumphantly. I reach in and she hops onto my hand. Once I pull her out, I stroke her feathers, and she trills happily.

“Hey, Culver,” I say softly. “How’ve you been?”

Culver is the Old English word for pigeon, and while we Espyns don’t speak English, I thought it was a fitting name for such a pretty bird.

“Can you bring this to Covyn? In Asraxvale?”

Asraxvale is the capital of Fujimura, and it sounds like a cool name, but it's really just a play on words. It comes from the word “astra,” meaning “star,” which are very clearly seen in Asraxvale. The “x” and “vale” were just added to make it sound cool. That’s all according to my history lessons, anyway.

Culver lets out a shrill chirp, which by now I’ve learned to mean that she understands.

I take a piece of string and tie my letter to her ankle.

And it’s just my luck that Little Miss Flawless herself comes up behind me.

I sigh. “Go on, Culver. Leave so I can deal with her.” As I finish the sentence, I shoot Kaeda a glare.

Culver flies off into the distance, and she looks... peaceful, in a way.

“What do you want?” I ask Kaeda. She’s just been standing behind me for a few minutes.

“Well, I was going to ask the captain something, but you’ve rudely interrupted me,” she replies unkindly. Kaeda tosses her shimmering, curly black hair over her shoulder, and her grey-blue eyes feel like they’re piercing my soul.

“Be my guest,” I tell her. “You’re the one who literally stopped behind me.”

I look at the princess, a smug look crossing my face. Kaeda lets out a huff and stalks past me, and as she walks by, the air around her turns a few degrees colder.

I trudge back into my room and collapse on my bed.

How in the world did I just manage to not empty my guts out onto the deck? I wonder.

My nausea finally gets to me.

“This is fine. Everything is fine,” I repeat to myself quietly. “Just a few more days of this torture and I’ll be back home.”

#star crossed haters #kaeda leona cynet #adrienne “apex” pyracent #kaeda x apex #kaepex #writing #writer #writers block #creative writing #my writing #writers on tumblr #writeblr #writers and poets #writerscommunity

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queenpiranhadon · 3 months

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A/N: Yay okay FINALLY I'm back to normal updates. Honestly, just a big hug to our moots who decided to take an interest in this- we love writing this so much and other people getting interested in it just makes me so happy. This chapter is written by me ;). My cowriter is the lovely Nyota (@labaguetteisdabest). You can find the masterlist here

Warning(s): Cursing, technical self harm, poor explanations of how Kaeda's Reya works, blood, gore, dismembered koalas, passing out, burning.

Pairing(s): Kaepex

Huff...huff...huff...

Damnit. I thought I was making some good progress, but as I made the final stretch, sunlight peeked through the clusters of trees in front of me – but behind it was the next infuriating obstacle the gods had decided I so desperately needed.

As I finally enter the light, the wide expanse of a river is in my way of moving forward.

The Thappu River is probably one of the most famous rivers in all of Dodomi – the water boiling, but frozen platforms of pure ice so cold that it floated on the river’s surface with no intention of melting.

The whole river itself defied the laws of science – but the collision of varying temperatures shrouded the whole border in steam, separating the two nations. And now I had to cross it. The extreme heat of the water would most definitely melt my flesh off if I even touched a droplet of it – so that wasn’t an option.

Damnit.

Maybe if I pool my strength together and channel my Reya through my feet, I could freeze the water underneath me as I walk.

But if it doesn’t work... Wait. I have a freaking ice Reya - I’m an idiot.

I could jump onto one of the ice platforms and control the ice molecules to drift across the river. Usually though – around the summertime – my Reya’s full potential gets stunted by the heat- infuriatingly so- meaning I’d have to drain a little bit of my life energy to even gain control of a few molecules of ice to make it across.

Better than dying.

Taking a deep breath, I spotted the nearest ice platform, thankfully big enough to bear my weight. Here goes nothing. Crouching down, I get a running start before propelling myself off the grass, landing on the platform with a thud – the momentum causing the water to splash up onto my skin.

Damnit!

Furiously rubbing at the spots where the water made contact, my eyes threaten to water in pain, scalding droplets of river water feeling like pure magma.

But I had to keep moving. With some difficulty, I manage to stretch my hands, flexing my fingers, as I draw power from my core, from my life source, already feeling it being drained as the ice platform starts moving across the river, water churning, and my heat beating. It was exhausting, and the pace was painstakingly slow, my lungs burning as if I was running out of breath, desperately trying to gulp in fresh air but I had to keep going.

Halfway there... Damnit.

My head starts to spin slightly as black spots start dancing across my vision. My thoughts begin to lose some clarity – but I know if I rest soon, my life energy will replenish.

Must...get to...Princess Apex...

Come on- only 4 feet left...

My mind in a haze, I’m jolted back to reality at the sound of the ice platform bumping the edge of the other side of the river. Too tired to do anything, I stumble onto the soft grass, and fall asleep.

***

Shit.

Shit. Shit. Shit.

My head spins as I sit up far too quickly for my brain to process, but I don’t care. The sky is an inky black, stars twinkling above. How long was I asleep for?!

Thankfully, my life energy feels replenished, along with newfound adrenaline coursing through my veins. Standing up, I look back at the ice platform I had used to get over – not too far from where I left it – meaning I’ve only been asleep for a few hours – if I had slept longer then the platform would’ve been further, the river’s current taking the ice with it.

Right now, I was in Fujimura, home of the Pyracents. This was going to be interesting. An ice princess in a fire kingdom.

As I step closer to the new forest that led to Asraxvale, I regretted my decision to pursue Apex instead of Cari. Speaking of Apex...was she safe? She better be. If she didn’t, then this trip would be for nothing. And I did not drain my own life energy for nothing.

As much as I hate to admit it though, she’s strong. And I know she can fend for herself, as irritating as it is. But as my mind continues to wander, I picture the princess of Fujimura lifeless on the ground, flesh and muscles torn to pieces just as my driver was. The few bites of the apple I ate earlier threaten to resurface and I painfully swallow down the bile that rises in my throat. I can’t think like that.

Entering the thicker and humid forest ahead of me, the sounds of animals and wildlife start to pick up nearby.

Damnit.

I can’t take shelter again; I’ve already wasted too much time. I need to be quiet. In the corner of my eye, I see an animal carcass, rotting with dried blood everywhere. I wanted to throw up again, but at this point, I’d gotten used to it. Didn’t make it any less gross though.

This virus...could it affect espyns too? It would explain why the main trading route was barren. But the thought of that was terrifying... My mother, my friends, shit even Dyor would’ve all been infected by now.

The gravity of the situation finally registers in my mind as harsh reality fully hitting me, like a slap in the face. At first, I thought everyone was dead, but if all the espyns on Dodomi are just like that leopard... I feel sick again.

I don’t want to do this. Damnit Damnit Damnit.

“Shit...” I mumble out loud, believing that thinking out loud would reprieve any of the thoughts racing through my head.

Note to self: It didn’t. But like I had told myself just a day ago, I had to do this. For me, for my mother, and for my people.

I look back at the animal. It seemed to be a koala, if I could even call it that anymore. It looked more like a disfigured rat. Countless creatures hunt by smell... but out of all the animals I’ve seen on the way here, infected animals never attack other animals, despite species... So that means this koala (I decided to name it Mabel – weird coping mechanism be quiet) was attacked by an espyn. Were there any Espyns in the forest right now? Gods I hope not.

But if I could make the animals around me think I wasn’t an espyn, my chances of survival would increase a lot more.

Kneeling at Mabel’s side, I brush my fingers through her fur, her blood coating my fingers. There was no possible way to ensure this would work, but if any animal smelled me, they would hopefully assume I was a carcass and move on. Given that Mabel wasn’t devoured entirely, these animals most likely only feed on the currently living. Did they feed off life energy? The thought of that was almost enough to for my apple to make a reappearance. Looking at the crimson that stained my fingertips, I reach up to my face, coating the skin underneath my eyes, just like war paint.

I’m not dying today.

#kaeda leona cynet #adrienne “apex” pyracent #star crossed haters #kaepex #kaeda x apex #my writing #creative writing #writers block #writer #writing #writers on tumblr #writeblr #writers and poets #writerscommunity

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queenpiranhadon · 4 months

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A/N: Ooooh only one chapter left before things get juicy 👀 Let's see what Apex is up to now heh. This chapter is written by the lovely Nyota (@labaguetteisdabest) :D. You can find the masterlist here

Warning(s): None worth mentioning

Pairing(s): Kaepex

5 days.

5 days I’ve been on this horrible boat.

5 miserable days avoiding Princess Kaeda.

5 miserable days...

And they’re almost over.

You would think, with the constant sound of waves hitting the hull of our ship, that I would be peaceful.

But no.

Worst time of my life.

The constant joy emanating from Cari as she gazed at the deep blue waters and reaching over (almost falling more on more than one occasion) to be closer almost gave me a heart attack.

The girl is reckless. I like that about her, but sometimes it’s too much.

Someone knocks on my door, and I reluctantly get up.

It's a member of the crew. He looks at me with piercing eyes, saying, “We’ll be docking in one hour, Princess.”

“Thank you,” I tell him. But I’m not really as thankful as I paint for the espyns on this ship.

Don’t get me wrong, I miss my brothers. But my parents are really hard on me – too hard.

I don’t even know if I really want to be queen in the first place!

After the crew member shuts the door, I go to my bag. I picked out a deep red dress with intricate golden details to wear at the dock.

Another knock comes from my door, and I groan quietly, but go to open it.

Cari stands before me, tanned hand in her brown hair and sea green eyes seeming to be lost in thought.

“Cari?” I ask. She whips her head over to me and manages a small smile.

“Ready to go home?” she questions.

“Never been more ready,” I reply instantly. “What about you?”

She pauses. “I... I’m not sure.”

And it’s just our luck that Little Miss Flawless walks behind the water princess.

“Have fun in your icy wasteland,” I call over to her.

Kaeda tosses her jet-black hair over her shoulder and shouts back, “Have fun in your fire-ravaged badlands!”

Cari pulls me into my room and slams the door. She lifts a hand and summons a ball of water from Vohona knows where and tosses it at me.

I create a blaze, careful not to let it touch the wooden walls, and evaporate the water instantly.

“What-” Cari exclaims.

I smirk. “I’ve gotten better, you know. Practice does that.”

Cari hesitates before replying. “...The boat’s slowing down.”

“What?”

“The boat’s slowing down,” she repeats. “I think we’re almost at Minsare.”

“Really?” I want to leap out to the deck, but I know I wouldn’t even make it halfway.

And the boat suddenly comes to a stop. Cari and I glance at each other, and she sprints out of the room to grab her stuff.

A wild grin spreads across my face as I gather my stuff and shove it in my bag. I ran out of the room and made my way to the deck. For once, I don’t mind the salty air.

The small white buildings of the seaside town of Mariport bring my bliss to a whole new level.

“I haven’t seen Dodomi in ages,” I breathe. Two pairs of footsteps come from behind me. I know they belong to Cari and Kaeda, but I don’t make a snarky comment. I just look at the mainland in longing.

“Princesses!” one of the crew members says. The three of us simultaneously turn to face him. “Come this way. Your carriages are waiting.”

We walk, Kaeda in front of me and Cari. We walk in silence, in awe of setting foot on the mainland after so long.

When the three of us walked off the ship, carrying our heavy bags, we all let out a small breath.

I’m almost home.

Three carriages, one adorned with snowflakes, one with water droplets, and the third with flames, pulled up in front of us on the road.

Kaeda walks up to her carriage and doesn’t look back.

Cari hesitates. She turns and hugs me, saying, “Bye. Write letters?”

I hugged her back. “I will. I promise.”

Cari Acquarone smiles at me, then, with a swish of her soft blue skirt, she steps inside her carriage.

I walk up to my carriage and climb in. I settle myself, putting my bag beside me.

“Are you ready, Princess?” a familiar voice says.

My teal eyes widen.

“Avior?”

“The one and only.”

Avior was not a noble, but his family was going to send him off to training to be a knight. Training started the day I left Dodomi, and I hadn’t seen him since. We tried to send letters, but he rarely had time to respond and mine took forever to deliver.

So, we gave up on contact, basically. But I don’t think either of us forgot.

“You’re an actual knight now?” I asked Avior.

“Yep!” I can hear the grin in his voice.

The carriage starts to move, and I stay quiet.

~~~

It’s barely been 10 minutes and I’m already bored out of my mind.

Gods help me, I think.

Maybe if I read it’ll be better.

I reach into my bulky bag and pull out the book on top. It’s some old mythology book my parents got me for my 10th birthday, back when my interest in the deities of our world was the highest.

May as well research them.

The first page I flip to starts the chapter on Thanirrh, the patron god of Hydeau. Thanirrh is the one who blessed Cari with her Reya – or however it works. I don’t remember anymore.

I begin to read.

Thanirrh has a twin brother, Glacon, who controls ice and snow.

Wait. Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait.

Glacon is the patron god of Khaenpanii. Little Miss Flawless is from Khaenpanii.

Cari and Kaeda probably would have gotten along...

What if they did?

What if Cari was merely faking hating Kaeda and they were really friends?

...What if my best friend was never really my best friend at all?

No.

Cari’s too sweet and honest to do that to me.

No.

I've told her too much, too many secrets, for her to do that to me.

No.

I shake the thoughts from my head.

And I only have three and a half days alone with my thoughts, I think miserably.

Three and a half days because Fujimura is on the other side of the continent.

We have to pass through Khaenpanii to reach Asraxvale. This fact is not loved by many of the citizens of Fujimura because the number of them that are extremely zealous over the two royal families’ feuds is... obnoxious. They physically cannot travel anywhere without going through the land of their greatest enemies.

It's funny, really, because my parents have a fairly decent relationship with the Cynets, the royal family of Khaenpanii. Key word – decent. It’s not anywhere near perfect, and there is still a noticeable dislike from my parents of the Cynets.

It's better than my hatred for Kaeda, though. That cannot be beaten.

Suddenly, the carriage wobbles.

It wobbles again.

Then, the back left side of the carriage plummets to the ground, and after a bit of insistent pulling from the horses pulling the carriage, we stop completely.

Avior steps off the front to go inspect the wheel. I open the door to assist.

And even though I haven’t seen him in years, it feels like he never changed at all.

He has the same messy blond hair, the same deep brown eyes, the same... everything, really.

His behavior hasn't changed, either.

He looks up at me, and for a split second, a look of shock crosses his face.

I realize that the news of my... accident must have never traveled to the commoners. Why else wouldn’t Avior know?

I self-consciously fiddle with my red hair.

“What happened?” he asks.

“I burned myself when I was eight,” I explain. He doesn’t look satisfied, but I think he can tell I’d rather not talk about it, because he nods and goes to the back of the carriage.

Once he comes back, he says, “So. The wheel loosened. But it also must have broken, or cracked, something similar to that, because I can’t put it back on. Luckily, I prepared for this.”

Avior heaves a new wheel up and sets it beside the broken one. He tries to balance it on the muddy ground while simultaneously trying to remove the broken wheel.

Obviously, he fails miserably.

I hop out and grab the new wheel from his hands. He looks up at me gratefully and, this time, successfully removes the broken wheel.

Placing the new wheel in its place, I tighten it to the carriage while Avior takes the broken wheel and throws it in the trees.

I climb back into the carriage and Avior sits in the front with the horses.

After a moment or two, we start moving again.

Three days...

#adrienne “apex” pyracent #star crossed haters #kaeda leona cynet #kaepex #kaeda x apex #cari floura acquarone #writing #writeblr #writers and poets #writers on tumblr #writerscommunity #writer #writers block #creative writing #my writing

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queenpiranhadon · 5 months

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A/N: Hey guys - me and Nyota (the lovely @labaguetteisdabest) decided we would post chapters of SCH weekly on here so you guys can read it! Each chapter alternates between the two MCs’ perspectives, but this one is from our character Apex's perspective. You can find the masterlist here

Warning(s) : Mentions of self-burning (not on purpose), enemies to lovers, fantasy + royal universe, both MCs are cisgender females, and gay. Homophobes stay away!!

Pairing(s): Kaeda x Apex (Kaepex)

“Miss Ape- Adrienne!”

“What is it?” I say, glancing in the mirror before me. Just my luck that I have some dumb appearance to make before I finally get to go home.

I adjust the dark red hair that covers the right side of my disfigured face. My fingers trace the edge of the scar that stretches across, and I shudder. Even after having it for nine years now, it never got more normal.

Perfect, I think. You could barely see my right eye.

My chambermaid, Eudora, waves a hand in front of my face.

“You realize that you need to practice your Reya more, yes?” she questions.

“Yes, I know,” I grumble. “And I need to practice my thermodynamic vision.”

“Stop taking your Reya for granted,” Eudora chides. “Your own brother rejected his and look how he’s turned out.”

A man who has nothing to worry about.

My voice lowers to a mumble. “And I’m starting to wonder if he made the right choice.”

Reyas are only granted to lucky children, each from a different patron god, which depended on your kingdom. Fujimura, my kingdom, has the patron goddess Vohona, the goddess of fire. Which I find mildly ironic, as Fujimura means “wisteria village.”

At this rate, I feel like I would’ve been better off rejecting my Reya. But after my brother – Daxton's – rejection, my parents (Queen Fiamma and King Adish Pyracent) were desperate. And my little brother, Covyn, was only one year old at the time- and according to my parents, another 5-year wait was far too long.

“Adrienne. The faster you get through this, the faster you get home. Your family back in Dodomi eagerly awaits you, I’m sure,” Eudora reminds me. I hate that she’s right.

I make the mistake of looking back at her. Her dark curls spill across her shoulders, and warm brown eyes stand out on her pale face. The bright red flower she keeps tucked behind her right ear falls a little bit, and I want to reach out and fix it. But she would find that weird because she’s not like me.

Eudora pushes her thin, round glasses back a bit and notices me staring at her.... I feel my cheeks warm, and to get out of the awkwardness, I abruptly stand up.

“I should, uh, probably head out to the training grounds for a few more minutes,” I blurt out and dash out of the room.

I walk outside into the bright sunshine, and even though I'm wearing a black turtleneck, I feel comfortable at this temperature.

The orientation of each element’s training area changes daily, so I scan my surroundings, activating my thermodynamic vision. The reds, greens, and blues that replace all other colors are comforting. My eyes are immediately drawn to the deep blues of the ice training area, and lo and behold, there she is.

Kaeda Cynet.

Her and her stupidly shimmering dark hair and her dumb ice-pale skin and sharp eyes.

I can’t stop looking.

Kaeda is the crown princess of Khaenpanii, Fujimura’s rival kingdom. My rival in our quest to become the Syla of our generation.

Power. Strength. Royalty.

The title of Syla bestows a great honor upon you and your kingdom.

And Kaeda’s stupid kingdom keeps stealing the chance away from any other!

Generation after generation, almost every single Syla has come from Khaenpanii. It’s absolutely outrageous. I can remember maybe twice when Fujimura held the title.

I snap myself out of my rant when I finally spot the small flames of the candles I’m well accustomed to training with. Jogging over to them, I switch back to regular vision, taking a moment to adjust to the onslaught of color.

The candles.

The small flame atop them.

It's disappointing, really, that they’re all I’ve been able to train with for ten years now.

A swish of my finger strengthens a flame. Then another. Then the third.

Feed me. Let the flames engulf you. Feed me. Feed me. FEED ME FEED ME FEED ME-

I take a deep breath, and slowly, the starved calls cease.

A triumphant smirk spreads across my face, and I turn my gaze to Kaeda, hoping to see less success over with her. Alas, she turns the cup of water before her into fragile ice.

My thermodynamic vision tells me that the ice is 32º Fahrenheit, which isn’t nearly as good as a typical day. Unfortunately for her, today is exceptionally warm.

I clear my mind and focus on the heated air surrounding me. Fast-moving molecules, as expected. The flames before me have the same result.

I tell myself I need more practice, but truly, I’m ready.

Wandering past Kaeda, I flick my index finger, heating the breeze blowing past her ice block. A frown decorates her typically joyful face when she notices it dripping, and she whips her head around. She sees that I’m the culprit and her frown becomes a sour look.

My face remains devoid of emotion. Her grey-blue eyes stare deep into my bright teal ones, and we maintain eye contact for a second too long. I feel my cheeks heat, and hers take on a slightly red tint.

Kaeda looks away from me and says, “What was that for?!”

I simply reply with, “Revenge.”

And I walk away.

When she’s out of my sight, reaching under my red hair, I touch my scar again. Revenge for giving me this thing.

I had been eight years old, practicing my fire control skills. Growing flames was easy but calming them was a different story.

I stared at the flame before me, struggling to keep my mind over the one of the fire.

Feed me. Feed me. FEED ME FEED ME FEED ME-

This time, I had succumbed to the calls.

The blaze towered before me, and I realized too late that I had set the candle far too close to me. Sparks spewing from the inferno flew onto my face, and to try to protect at least part of my face, I had turned to the left.

By then, the flames had been as tall as me, and the right side of my face exploded in pain. I cried out and focused as much as I could, but to no avail. I couldn’t muster enough focus. It hurt too much.

Why isn’t anyone helping me?

I squeezed my eyes shut, wishing for the pain to go away.

“Make it stop!” I wanted to shriek. It hurt too much for me to even utter a single word.

“Adrienne!” Kaeda’s voice filled the air. I heard the sound of the flames crackling to a stop. “Take your hand off your face.”

I gingerly lifted it, like she instructed.

Kaeda gasped, and I kept my eyes shut. If I opened them, it would hurt so much.

“Please, open your eyes. Can you see?” she asked.

“It’ll hurt too much. I don’t want to.” My voice was shaky, and I wasn’t about to start crying in front of Kaeda, with her perfect hair and face and perfect everything.

“Please!” she pleaded. I had reluctantly obeyed, and the shock of pain was less startling than I had expected.

When I looked at the crown princess of Khaenpanii, she almost had... tears in her eyes?

Was she worried about me? Her rival?

I watched as she painted a pained smile on her face, telling me thanks without saying a single word. She lifted her right hand and her fingertips turned paler than before, which was saying something. Kaeda flicked her hand towards the burned side of my face, tiny snowflakes flying out.

I grimaced when they hit my face, and Kaeda began spewing apologies when she saw she had made me hurt more.

My voice was even shakier than before when I said, “I don’t care. P-please just go get someone.”

She had nodded and run off.

I can barely remember what happened next.

I remember the vague sensation of hitting the solid concrete floor, and then darkness.

Waking up and feeling... different.

Feeling... changed.

Feeling... angry.

If Kaeda had been smarter, she would have run to get an adult almost immediately. But no. She just had to go and try to fix this problem herself. She may have only been seven, and slightly more advanced at her Reya than me (of course she was; just a Khaenpanii thing, I suppose), but she should have had enough logic to go and find an adult.

I hate when anyone sees me at my worst, too, and I was definitely at my worst then. Kaeda saw a private part of me that I try as hard as I can to keep to myself, and that alone warranted my loathing towards her.

When I surface from my deep thoughts, I find myself in my room. The pale red walls have been my home for the past 10 years, and I can’t imagine leaving them tomorrow.

All children with Reyas should go to a special school, should they not? We all have abilities that are far too dangerous to be taught at a regular school, after all. The kingdom of Minsare has the patron god Elektras. Anyone who has a Reya and comes from there reigns over lightning and wind. These kids are awfully powerful, and they cannot be trusted around regular schools. Fujimura children also aren’t allowed to go to normal school after the Reya ceremony, as we can summon an inferno in the blink of an eye.

Watarumi is the island where the previously mentioned school is located. It’s not located near the schools back on Dodomi, the mainland, and only people that have been verified and have Reyas can travel there.

For ten years, since I’ve been six, I’ve lived on Watarumi, training every day. I rarely got to visit my family as studies are more important, meaning my little brother, Covyn, has barely seen me. Dax was always hidden away in his room, so I never saw him anyway. But Covyn gets his Reya soon, and I want to be there. Thankfully, I finally leave this isolated island tomorrow, just in time!

Knock knock!

I glance at the door. What do they want?! I think.

“Princess Adrienne?” Eudora’s soft voice strings into my room. My face immediately reddens, recalling what had happened earlier. “You should start packing for tomorrow now! Remember to take all your stuff. Oh, and, just so you know, your appearance has been cancelled because of weather concerns.”

“Oh- er- yes!” I reply awkwardly. I look out the window and find that she’s right. Huge dark clouds are coming this way, ready for a long, thunderous storm.

Packing. Right.

At least I don’t have to socialize more, I think with a hint of disgust at the mere thought that I would have been forced to do the appearance if not for the weather.

I need to stop rambling and start packing.

#star crossed haters #kaeda leona cynet #adrienne “apex” pyracent #kaepex #kaeda x apex #writer #writers on tumblr #writerscommunity #female writers #writer stuff #creative writing #writeblr #writing #writers and poets

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queenpiranhadon · 2 months

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A/N: Hehe chapter thirteen is here :). This chapter is written by the lovely Nyota (@labaguetteisdabest) . You can find the masterlist here

Warning(s): Cursing, nightmares, LOTS OF SCROLLING (Nyota's fault- I shortened it a bit tho bc Tumblr has limits), uhh any anything else I forgot, lmk

Pairing(s): Kaepex

Darkness.

A sea of it.

...

The black flashes red for a moment.

Bloodred.

Daxton’s bloodcurdling screams reverberate.

I don’t want to listen anymore.

...

... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... .... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ...

(A/N: that was fun to write :3 - Nyota)

***

I open my eyes slowly, the bright light blinding me for a moment.

When my eyesight focuses, the first things I see are Princess Kaeda Leona Cynet’s silver-blue eyes.

“What the-” I cut myself off as I scramble away from her.

That was a bad move.

My back flares up in pain as I wince, remembering what had happened... the previous day? I’m not too sure how long it’s been.

“Careful, you idiot!” Kaeda scolds. “You just almost died, just take a second to sit!”

I reluctantly settle myself, back leaning against the wall of Burgunjax Palace.

“I assume we had similar trains of thought?” I ask.

Little Miss Flawless rolls her eyes. “I can’t agree with you until I know your thoughts, and I can’t read minds.”

I sigh, then grimace as my back retorts with another wave of pain.

Kaeda looks around and spots a rather large leaf. She grabs it, creates a thin layer of ice on it, and gives it to me. “Put it on your back,” she instructs. Under her breath, she says, “Gods, do they not teach Fujimura royalty simple first-aid?”

“You know I can hear you, right?”

I place the leaf on my back, the cold shocking me for a moment until the pain fades to numbness.

“What the hell happened here?” Kaeda looks at the sky, probably trying to guess the time based off the sun’s position.

“Oh, you know, normal things. Came home. Killed my bear brother,” I reply nonchalantly.

“You what?!”

I glare at Kaeda. She lets out a breath of frustration.

“Look, I think we both know that our only chance of survival is helping each other. So maybe it would be nice to at least try to get along?”

I really hate that she’s right.

“Ugh, fine, if you insist.”

I stand up, leaning my hand against the wall to balance myself, and breathe a sigh of relief when my back doesn’t burn with pain.

“Oh, no, you don’t.” Kaeda pushes me back to the ground. “You were just out for around a whole day. You were exhausted. Therefore, you are not allowed to get up until tomorrow morning.”

“Well, that’s dumb,” I mutter under my breath.

“Do you want to survive?” Kaeda asks.

I don’t reply.

“That’s what I thought.” Kaeda goes back to whatever she was doing before I awoke.

An awkward silence fills the air for a few minutes before Kaeda breaks it.

“What were you doing with that infected animal?”

“That wasn’t an animal,” I murmur.

“What?”

“That wasn’t an animal,” I repeat, raising my voice a little higher than anticipated.

“What was it, then?” Kaeda’s voice sounds like a mix of frustration and confusion, which I understand.

I look down at my trembling hands. I can still make out faint bloodstains.

“What was it?”

“It was my brother.”

There’s a moment of silence before Kaeda says, “You killed your brother? The ex-crown prince?”

“Well, the bear-espyn carcass doesn’t look like a thirteen-year-old, does it?” I hate that Kaeda even suggested that I may have killed Covyn.

“I’m not an idiot,” Kaeda retorts. “Obviously you didn’t kill Prince Covyn.”

I look up at the sky, the sun in the middle now.

Kaeda brushes her silky black hair out of the way.

Somehow – it shouldn’t be possible – her skin looks pale as a ghost in the sun.

Little Miss Flawless mutters something under her breath.

“‘If you have something to say, share it with everyone around you,’” I quote my father, King Adish.

Kaeda rolls her eyes and repeats what she said. “I was saying that it seems like espyns can definitely be infected, too.”

“Infected?”

“Gods, you are so slow. What else could possibly explain the bloodthirsty animals I encountered on my way here? How else would Prince Daxton be partially bear? Why else would our carriage drivers seem perfectly fine when there’s nobody around?”

Kaeda makes several good points.

“Some... plague has ravaged Dodomi while we were safe on Watarumi,” I say quietly.

Kaeda’s expression crashes from frustration into guilt as the same emotion wrecks my body.

We sit in a melancholy sadness for a few minutes, our collective despair settling over us like a thick mist.

“Here.” Kaeda reaches her hand out, probably wanting me to grab it.

“What happened to ‘you are not allowed to get up until tomorrow morning’?” I mock Kaeda’s chilly tone.

“Just disregard that. You seem perfectly fine, now that you’ve had a while to sit. Come on.”

I take her icy hand and she heaves me up.

My back aches, and I stumble into Kaeda’s arms.

Kaeda yelps in surprise. I guess she hadn’t realized my back wasn’t ready to support my weight.

I voice my opinion, and she sighs for the millionth time.

“You’re heavier than you look.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?!”

She doesn’t respond.

Some of my weight on Kaeda, I lead her through the maze that is Burgunjax Palace.

“How do you not get lost in this place?” Kaeda asks, looking at the white wall that looks exactly like the others in the palace.

“I used to.” I had gotten lost so many times while I still lived here that I’ve learned my way around the castle. “It’s overwhelming the first few times you try.”

“Overwhelming’s right. The walls all look identical!”

“I’m assuming in Khaenpanii, the palace has actual flair and isn’t just... deeply intimidating?”

“Flair’s right,” Kaeda grumbles. “You can’t even walk three feet without seeing a mosaic or– hey, who’s that?”

I follow her gaze to my left and see a tall painting of a freckled boy – around seven – with messy strawberry blond hair and bright teal eyes that make me smile.

A painting of Covyn.

“That’s Co– er, Prince Covyn,” I tell Kaeda. “When he was seven.”

“So...” Kaeda thinks for a moment. “Six years ago?”

“Yeah. I got to visit him then and... I haven’t seen him since.”

I look away from the portrait as I remember how young he looked then. He’s only thirteen – far too young to have the trauma I know he will once we fix this.

The ice princess clears her throat. “Where are we headed?”

“My room. So I can rest, right?” I assume that’s the reason she made me get up in the first place.

Kaeda doesn’t respond with anything more than a short “yes.”

We walk the rest of the way in silence.

When we reach it, Kaeda opens the door, and we step inside my room.

It’s exactly how I left it ten years ago.

The mahogany bookshelf has my books barely shifted, each in the section I assigned them to years ago. My intricately flame-patterned blanket lay neatly folded upon my bed, probably due to my mother. The white desk decorated with burns stood in the corner it always was in, just as messy as it would be any other day.

I sit on my bed while Kaeda looks around.

She picks through my books and stops a few moments later.

“What’s this?” She shows me a history book. If I remember correctly, that one has anything and everything to do with the gods of our world.

“It’s a book about the gods. I’m pretty sure it’s a few centuries old,” I tell her.

“Damn.”

I don’t think I’ve ever actually finished reading it.

She flips to the first page and looks weirdly absorbed in the words woven like a tapestry.

“You’re actually reading that book? It’s so old and boring,” I remark. It’s quite boring, in my opinion.

Little Miss Flawless doesn’t respond.

I flop backwards and stare at the ceiling like it holds the answers to the secrets of the universe.

My body begins to feel the weight of my exhaustion. I guess walking up a flight of stairs and across a castle while weak from a fight doesn’t go too well.

My eyes flutter open and shut as I listen to Kaeda’s steady breathing while she reads.

Maybe she learned something from it when I didn’t.

Probably not.

She’s daft. She couldn’t possibly understand what it says where I couldn’t.

But some tiny hope beats within me anyways.

She understands, it tells me.

I know she does.

#adrienne “apex” pyracent #kaeda leona cynet #star crossed haters #kaepex #kaeda x apex #writing #writers block #writer #creative writing #my writing #writeblr #writers on tumblr #writers and poets

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queenpiranhadon · 2 months

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A/N: Hehe call me a hypocrite, but as much as I hate cliffhangers, I shall be benevolent and gift you all one. This chapter is written me :). My cowriter is the lovely Nyota (@labaguetteisdabest). You can find the masterlist here

Warning(s): cursing, animal murder, snakes, Kaeda has ✨daddy issues ✨, talks about committing murder, implications of death, blood, gore, the usual.

Pairing(s): Kaepex

Trudging through the forests of Fujimura, I hear crickets in the distance, along with the occasional growl of another infected animal. But they left me alone.

‘Thank you, Mabel,’ I think, as the smell of fresh fruits waft through the air. But I ignore it, knowing that I can’t be tempted by the gifts of the woods.

Who knows what’s safe out here.

I was already in my new set of clothes, thankfully I only had an hour left before I’d see the palace gates. My mother once told me the palace was so large, the forests I was in right now merely served as a backyard for them. Or it used to be- until savage beasts started prowling the lands.

To think only this morning I was still on the ship back to Dodomi.

Cari’s last words to me ring in the back of my mind - “Don’t be too hard on her, okay?”

The water princess’s pitifully striking blue eyes, ones that carried so much emotion.

She must really care for Apex.

Mabel’s blood still shone brightly against my skin, a reminder of what I still needed to do.

I’m almost there. Suddenly, pain flares up in my side, and I can’t walk any further.

Damnit!

Leaning against a tree, I slowly inch down, trying not to cause any more pain- even though whimpers occasionally leave my mouth. I gingerly life my shirt up- only to be met with ugly purples and angry reds that now adorned the side of my torso.

Dropping the fabric of my shirt again, I take a deep breath, getting up slowly.

Cooling my hand slightly, I keep it placed over my side. Just as the nursemaid back on Watarumi said; When in doubt, ice it.

And then I kept moving.

I couldn’t waste any more time.

My thoughts wander again, as I think about what we’d have to do once I find Apex.

We’d have so find some way to heal all on Dodomi – but of course we were mildly inconvenienced by the fact that it was virtually impossible so that was wonderful.

Perhaps there was a way we could ask the gods for help.

I hear some ruslting in the distance – except this time, it was a lot closer.

Damnit.

I didn’t have any weapons, meaning no way to defend myself.

Unless I used my Reya.

But slowly freezing the blood of an animal driven by its sole instinct to survive was heartlessly cruel.

In the end though, it was all of Dodomi or one animal.

And so, letting energy course through my veins, I feel the air around my fingertips slowly become chilly – the humidity making it easier to freeze the water molecules in the oxygen around me, forcing it to take its solid form.

My entire arm was now enveloped in a frozen gauntlet – and with the right contact, it would freeze the bloodstream of the creature awaiting me.

But I couldn’t stray from the path.

So, I let the animal find me.

HIISSS!!

The robust serpent slithered out of the tree it was hiding in – its head probably the size of the sole of my foot.

Like the leopard from before, its eyes were bloodred, its scales reflecting the dull moonlight that peeked through the thing canopy of trees above.

But this time – the hungry and predatorial look in its eyes was only met by the icy stare I had mastered so many years ago.

Eyes devoid of emotion, soulless grey storms, churning pits of emptiness.

I learnt from the best, after all.

As it lunged to sink its fangs into my thigh, I lifted my foot, and bringing it down to what would be its neck, transferring the ice around my hand to create an icy boot, successfully freezing the snake’s airways shut.

The reptile – nothing more than a limp rag on the ground – started to ooze a disgusting blue acid-like liquid from its mouth, and the scent burned my nostrils, so I turned and moved on.

But my heart pounded in my ears, almost disbelieving how short that struggle was. I killed something with such natural ease...

I was just like him.

Tyrion Loki Cynet, King of Khaenpani and my birth father, eyes colder than the violent sea that smashed against the cliffs around our kingdom.

Just the thought of it built a sour taste in my mouth. As it always did when I thought about him. Only worried about how I behaved not how I felt. It was always about the outside with him.

He would always be a better king than father. Always concerned about his reputation his image, his legacy.

He was the youngest brother in his family – his hold on the throne was barely there. But then, after a brutal battle with a known gang of bandits in the area, he was given the nickname the Stained Prince – for the blood he spilt that stained our snowy fields of Khaenpanii. And with the fame it brought him – the people thought he would be the most fit to protect them – and they pushed for him to be crowned heir.

7 years later, he was crowned king.

His reputation.

After I was born, I realized I had not one father but two. One was a strict but well-meaning ruler who wanted the best for his people. The other only showed himself at home, creating a dictatorship within his own home.

HIs image.

The five years I had known him, he had only talked to me about one thing and one thing only. And that was how I had to become Syla for the Cynet family – how I born for that, and for that only. Every day of my childhood was filled with him forcing my deference to his every will and command. He had shaped my goals into his.

HIs legacy.

And now, I was becoming just like him, taking life without a single thought in my mind.

Damnit.

***

Crunch.

My feet ached as I neared the final stretch of my journey, begging me to stop, but I was almost there.

And as the gates of Asraxvale came into view, my heart leapt in my chest.

I did it.

Thank the gods.

The gates were chipped and rusted shut, but I had expected as much. It only confirmed my suspicions that Espyns could be affected by this virus as well.

So I climbed over it, my feet finding footholds in the wrought iron, before reaching the top. I swung my legs over the gate and jumped down – the smooth stone path underneath my feet thankfully lead me to the main entrance of the palace.

Everything felt off though, it just seemed...too easy.

But I could just be paranoid after the forest. So, pushing the twisting feeling in my gut away, I made my way to the palace gates, pushing the grand doors open just to hear the big thud reverberate through the empty halls.

And laying on the floor, in a pool of blood, was Princess Adrienne ‘Apex’ Pyracent.

#adrienne “apex” pyracent #kaeda leona cynet #kaepex #star crossed haters #kaeda x apex #my writing #creative writing #writers block #writer #writing #writers and poets #writers on tumblr #rising star writes #writeblr #writiers on tumblr

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queenpiranhadon · 4 months

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A/N: Hey! Chapter four is out :D This chapter is written by me :D My cowriter is the lovely Nyota (@labaguetteisdabest), so go follow her if you aren't already!! You can find the masterlist here

Warning(s): Talks of romantic rejection (not between Kaeda, Apex or Cari)(I mean... a little bit of Kaeda but you'll find out lol), really short chapter - I promise I make it up in another, irl ghosting(?)

Pairing(s): Kaeda x Apex (Kaepex)

I walk onto the ship, damp wood creaking underneath my boots, the pair of obnoxious princesses taking a toll on my patience. Obviously, I’m not proud of what I said, Prince Covyn honestly seems like a better ruler than his sister, despite his lineage, but Apex is just so INFURIATING.

I’m getting off track. I was told we would be travelling across the Rumé Sea, one known to border the most enjoyable beaches in Dodomi, but obviously that meant hot weather.

I hate hot weather.

It’s most definitely why my powers are much weaker, and why I preferred the chilly seas by my home kingdom, the waves of the Delyla Sea.

So obviously the gods wished for a painful trip as the sweltering heat and humidity of Watarumi’s beaches made the open breeze of the main deck feel so much stuffier.

Not to mention I had to be stuck with Princesses Cari and Apex for a week, the shark and her remora fish.

The princess of Hydeau wasn’t an heir, as her older brother King Aquian was coronated a year ago, gifted a Reya from not Thanirrh, but his nymph, Mist, or her ancient name, Tuumaan instead. Aquian isn’t eligible for becoming Syla as he wasn’t born during the year of the Choisi, the year where each generation is marked and the year each Syla was born. Cari is a year older than both Princess Apex and I, though not as diligent as the two of us in our studies, having to stay an extra year as punishment for a Reya training incident.

And obviously she and Princess Apex got along great, as they stuck together throughout the years.

Walking towards my room among the ship, I overhear two people arguing above.

“We haven’t heard anything from Eran. We need to stay here until we do.” a deep voice says, and I recognize the name of the man they were talking about – Eran, the owner of the docks back in Dodomi.

“Are you out of your mind?! We have three royals on board. If we’re even an hour late they’ll have our heads.”

“But-”

“I’m not risking it. Go and check the rigging while I go over to the wheel.”

I hear the heavy padding of footsteps above and my stomach churns with uncertainty.

Not sending a letter to signal departure was unlike Eran; he was one of the few people who received a Reya and wasn’t part of the nobility, using his electrical senses to alert ships on the weather overseas and whether or not it was safe to travel.

But no news is good news.

Right?

That’s what I tell myself as I enter the small room provided for me on the ship, the slow rocking putting my mind at ease, even though the humidity was unbearable at the moment.

I look around briefly, making sure no one is around, before I strip down to just my bodice and leggings, feeling less stuffy, thankfully, but very improper – a princess shouldn’t be seen lounging around in what it typically considered to be men’s clothing.

But whatever. I feel better at least.

Flopping down onto my bed, I sigh contentedly, as the sea breeze tickles my nose.

A it was nice, my heartbeat matching with the rocking of the boat. I hear more voices surface from above.

“That Kaeda girl is so annoying.”

“Oh, I know.”

I deadpan at that, rolling over to my side, as the creaks of the boat’s tether’s straining against the dock provided some, if any, comfort.

I wish I was home.

Watarumi was the place where I grew up, but Khaenpanii is where I belong.

Even if I had my fair share of bad memories there too.

Namely Prince Dyor.

Crown Prince Dyor of Akameen was a suitor of mine back at home, talks of marriage had been spurring since my mother was pregnant with me.

I remember when I first met him, I was 4, only 8 months before I would leave for Watarumi – Dyor left only 2 months after the encounter himself since he was a year or so older than me.

We both didn’t want to be married to each other – and that just made us closer.

We weren’t allowed to see each other during our studies here on Watarumi, those with Reyas that utilized powers gifted from the Ancients had to undergo special training as their powers were more unstable. The Ancients were the first two gods created from the Amma, also known as Allaida. Those two Ancients were the gods Elektras and Kuhlwen – one reigning over storm and the other of the earth.

We sent letters to each other when we could – studies being a priority and all, being able to send a letter to the other was a rarity.

Life was lonely on Watarumi, the letters I exchanged with the earth prince were the only form of interaction I could have. We were inseparable, I showed him sides of me that no one else saw – as did he. We told each other secrets that would fracture Dodomi’s economy as we knew it if they were released to the public. Things that were supposed to be buried six feet under. We were best friends.

Until one day, Dyor sent a letter saying that he didn’t want to be friends anymore.

He wanted to be more.

It was terrifying – stepping into something new – we were only 10, and the concept of romance was entirely foreign to me.

I didn’t understand my feelings about the situation – the crushing burden of knowing I’d have to respond in some way was nauseating.

And so, I did what my instincts told me to.

I stopped talking to him.

It plagued me for the next year or so – my only friend gone due to my own cowardice.

But as devastating as it was, I kept up appearances, as I always have.

The people only need to know what you want them to know.

Voices resurface upstairs.

“Okay, we’re releasing the anchors now. I pray you know what you’re doing, Cap’n.”

And only a deck below them, I prayed they knew what they were doing too.

#star crossed haters #kaeda leona cynet #kaeda x apex #kaepex #adrienne “apex” pyracent #cari floura acquarone #creative writing #my writing #writers block #writer #writing #writers on tumblr #writeblr #writers and poets #writerscommunity

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labaguetteisdabest · 3 months

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chapter 9!! from sunday!! (please kill me i'm so bad at updating)

#sch #star crossed haters #rising star writes #kaeda leona cynet #adrienne “apex” pyracent #kaeda x apex #kaepex

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labaguetteisdabest · 4 months

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chapter 7 is up!

#star crossed haters #sch #adrienne “apex” pyracent #kaeda leona cynet #cari floura acquarone #kaeda x apex #kaepex

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labaguetteisdabest · 4 months

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chapter 6 is up!

#sch #star crossed haters #adrienne “apex” pyracent #kaeda leona cynet #kaeda x apex #kaepex #cari acquarone

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queenpiranhadon · 1 month

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A/N: Hehe have some Kaepex bonding time :) This chapter is written by me 👀. My cowriter is the lovely Nyota (@labaguetteisdabest). You can find the masterlist here

Slight heads up: Mentions of Kaeda getting panic attacks (kinda), animal murder, hunting, blood, injuries, fighting, espyn-animal hybrids, death, cursing, flashbacks, inaccurate portrayals of archery (esypns are different than humans, their senses are enhanced) stuff like that lmao

Pairing(s): Kaepex

Thump.

Damnit. How could have I been so reckless?! After everything I had done to get to Burgunjax Palace safely, I had forgotten everything.

The leaves rustled again, closer this time, and my fingers gripped the sturdy wood of the bow I held until my knuckles turned white.

Mabel’s blood had been washed off from my skin after I reached the palace, deciding to freshen up for a long journey ahead.

Damnit! Now nothing is masking our scent.

Apex couldn’t do anything, clutching Sol’s small body to her chest, the poor thing shivering even though we were still in the sweltering heat of Fujimura.

Thump.

I’m not running this time. I made that mistake last time, and I’m not doing it again.

Breathe in.

Breathe out.

I let the instructions of my archery teacher flood my mind, and suddenly, I’m back on Watarumi, on the training fields, at the tender age of 12.

‘Focus on every single sound you hear. The wind whistling, the sounds of grass crunching, focus on the change in every single decibel.’ He’d say, wrapping a blindfold around my eyes, blacking out the world around me.

Crunch. The sound of the approaching animal grew louder.

‘Focus on what you feel. The slight shift of the air around you, the goosebumps that crawl up your skin. Feel every molecule surrounding you.’

Whoosh. I could feel Apex’s warm breath tickle my neck as I told her to get closer, short and quickened. She was just as tense as I was.

‘And when your heart starts to thump loudly in your chest, let your arrow fly. Follow your instincts, Princess Kaeda.’

Thump.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

I remember back then, when I was 12, my teacher had me spend the night in the wild, with my blindfold, and said I wasn’t allowed back until I had killed something.

I thought it would’ve been easy.

How stupid of me.

I had sat in that forest for hours, hating the way the dirt would brush against my clothes, dirtying it for sure. But that wasn’t the least of my troubles.

And finally, as my stomach rumbled in longing for Raeha’s special soup, I hear a rustle in the leaves. And then I felt the air shift around me.

Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump. Thump.

SCREECH!

I had let my arrow fly, without hesitation, just as I do now, my arrow impaling the small space between the collarbones of an eagle with blood-soaked feathers that matched the colors of its eyes.

Back then, I had killed a small bunny. I had cried for what seemed like forever when I found out what I had done, cradling its small form in my arms before sullenly returning to my mentor.

I had never held a bow after that.

That empty feeling I felt inside then was the same now, staring at the dead bird oozing a sickening brilliant blue liquid, just as the snake had.

Apex stared in shock; jaw locked in place but eyes slightly wide. She held Sol closer to her chest as I slowly put my arms down, releasing a breath I didn’t know I was holding.

That shot... that was luck. There would definitely be more to come.

“Come on.” I said, my voice cracking slightly, breaking the uncomfortable silence that had settled between us. “Let’s keep going and find a place to sleep on the way.”

We kept walking, the crunching of our boots now in sync with the pounding in my heart, trying not to flinch as each footfall resounded through the forest.

“Apex.” I said, stopping. “We need blood. Normal blood, I mean.” I say, after the red-haired girl stares at me in bewilderment.

“Whatever in the fuck do we need blood for?” she asks, clutching Sol even closer to her.

I roll my eyes. “Not in the way you’re thinking. The only way I made it here was by smearing red blood on my skin. That way, any infected animals won’t smell espyns and assume we’re just corpses.”

Apex groans, knowing where I was going with this. “We are not smearing Sol’s blood on us.”

I huff, searching for a suitable tree to scavenge leaves for. “We’re not taking Sol’s blood, idiot. We’ll take the leaves he has; the ones covered in blood and give him new ones.”

Finding a tree with soft leaves that I knew for sure weren’t going to cause irritation or infections, I pluck a bunch of leaves off and stuff them in my bag.

“We’ll change them when we find someplace to rest.” I say, and Apex hums in agreement.

Finally, Apex points out a small cave covered by a clump of trees, not too far from the path.

Thank the gods, I could feel the waves of overexertion rolling off me like it was a tangible thing.

Apex sit down, leaning against the wall and groans, Sol curling into her stomach and sticks his nose under her shirt, trying to smell the blood underneath her bandages.

My bag was stuffed; I tried to fit as much as possible into it before we left, and that included a blanket, a change of clothes, and as much food as possible.

As tired as I was, I knew Apex and I would need to take shifts as the night went on to ensure nothing would eat us in our sleep. And as much as my fatigued mind despised the idea, Apex needed more sleep than I did.

Grabbing the blanket and one of the pieces of bread I brought, I walked over to Apex, to see her eyes closed, but I knew she was awake.

“Hey.” I murmur, and her eyes flutter open, groggily looked at me in annoyance for interrupting her attempt at falling asleep. “Eat up and take the blanket. I’ll take first watch, just let me look at your bandages before you sleep.”

Apex just sighs, the idea of protesting left her as she sat up again, lifting Sol and placing him onto the folded blanket where he curled up and watched us with interest.

Gingerly, I lifted her shirt, relief filling me as I noticed the bruising had gone down. Unwrapping the cloth around her torso slowly, Apex sucks in a breath as her wound is suddenly exposed to the air, which probably seemed cold to her.

I take my ice, Apex heating it up as I messily do my best to clean them, cutting off the cloth covered in blood with her dagger before using the rest to wrap her torso up again, peeling some of the blood-soaked leaves off Sol and tucking them into the bandages to cover the smell over Apex’s blood. My cheeks grew slightly warm as the red-haired princess stared at me, but I brushed it off. I was just embarrassed because of the situation, obviously.

I finish with a final knot, securing the bandages in place and wipe off my hands, grabbing the piece of bread and handing it to Apex. She takes it wordlessly, raising it up to her lips and taking a tentative bite of it. She doesn’t say anything else, so I turn to Sol, picking him up and placing him on my lap, giving the blanket he was laying on to Apex.

I replace the remaining bloody leaves with the fresh ones I had picked earlier, tucking the now scarlet ones into the corset I had on.

Sol looked at me happily, and I rewarded him with a small chunk of dried meat I had in my bag. Best get rid of it now before my bag starts to stink.

He devours it immediately, before trotting back over to Apex, curing up next to her.

I stared at the two of them for a minute, as I notice the scarred pink skin underneath the hair that covered the right side of her face. I feel a stab of pain in my heart, knowing what it was. I’d never forget it. My fingers twitched, wanting to brush the hair out of her face and touch the scar, just to see how much had really changed from all those years ago. But that would obviously be creepy.

“If you touch my hair, I will fucking cut your hand off.” Apex grumbles, as if reading my mind. I completely forgot she was still awake.

I chuckle slightly, a sound I didn’t think I’d make in the presence of Apex Pyracent, but here we were.

“I can’t help it. Your hair is so messy that it’s physically ailing me to stare at it any longer without fixing it.” I snort, opting to release my hair from its ponytail in favor of a sloppy bun.

“Fuck off, Cikaeda.” is all she says before turning in the other direction, a confused Sol sleepily getting up to lay by her chest again.

I blink as the nickname registers in my mind. “Did you call me a damn bug?” I glare, irritating laced in my tone.

But the fire princess was asleep.

I get up to leave, grumbling as I opt to sit by the mouth of the cave to watch the world outside. But before I do, I hear a quiet “thank you.” mumbled out. Even if it was laced with contempt, I would take it.

I smile slowly, as my heart flutters with the possibility of me and Apex getting along.

Fuck.

Me and Apex were getting along.

The thought stayed with me, as I sat down, staring at the few stars littering the sheltered night sky.

I hear the soft purring of Sol, his own version of snoring I suppose. Apex’s light breathing in the mix, soft but slightly forced. The wind whistling through the trees, and the soft chirping of crickets in the night.

I feel the warm air of Fujimura envelop me in warmth instead of searing heat, an ethos of hope and chance filling my heart.

Thump.

#adrienne “apex” pyracent #kaeda leona cynet #kaepex #star crossed haters #kaeda x apex #sol the plygorathan #hehe they're in love your honor #creative writing #writers block #writer #writing #my writing #writers and poets #writers on tumblr #writeblr #writerscommunity #writer community #female writers

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queenpiranhadon · 2 months

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A/N: Teehee I actually love this chapter- it's so cute 🥰 This chapter is written by the lovely Nyota (@labaguetteisdabest). You can find the masterlist here

Warning(s): Injured animal, almost murder, blood, injuries, fighting, espyn-animal hybrids, cursing, the usual

Pairing(s): Kaepex

Good gods, those bandages are itchy.

How in the world did I wear that dress when I was younger?

I reach for my dagger and sheath it, forcing myself not to scratch my back

unless I want to feel ungodly levels of pain.

“Hey, Apex,” Kaeda says. I turn to her.

“What?” I didn’t mean for it to sound snarky, but it does, and Kaeda rolls her silver-blue eyes.

“Where’d you get that dagger?”

“Oh. Follow me.”

I stroll down the halls I’d been running down merely two days ago, dragging the ice princess behind me.

When we reach the armory, her breathing is heavy.

I realize it’s a day that would be hot for people not used to Fujimura weather... especially for people from Khaenpanii.

“Are you okay?”

She glares at me and tosses her frizzy hair behind her shoulder. “Fujimura weather is Khaenpanii summer on steroids. Does it seem like I’m good with this weather?”

“I’m sorry you’re comfortable with temperatures that would otherwise freeze an espyn. It’s not like I’d do much better in Khaenpanii’s wintry climate,” I retort.

“Gods, you are insufferable.” Kaeda sighs. “Let me get a weapon and we’ll be on our merry way.”

She turns away without another word.

How the hell are we supposed to try to get along if she keeps walking away like that?! I think exasperatedly.

I lean against the cold stone wall and wait as Kaeda picks out a weapon.

After waiting for what felt like ages, she comes back with a light brown bow and a darker brown quiver filled with silver-tipped arrows. The quiver has little runes carved into it, probably being written in the Ancient Script.

I wish I could read it. Then I could tell if the bow’s cursed and tell Kaeda the opposite and let her have the cursed bow.

I raise an eyebrow. “Long-range?”

Little Miss Flawless nods. “A bow is what I was trained with, so a bow is what I’ll use.”

I shrug. “You do you, I guess.” I don’t find bows practical, but for the sake of Dodomi, I’ll try to get along with her.

If she won’t, I will.

We walk through the halls of Burgunjax Palace together one last time before going off to save the continent.

“So, where are we going?” I ask, realizing we hadn’t talked about it.

Kaeda has a determined light in her sparkling eyes. “I was thinking about that earlier. Where in Dodomian history are problems solved or fixed with magic?”

It’s almost like a flame sparked on in my brain. “Cör! The place where all the gods have a shrine! Including the one who could heal all of Dodomi! Gods, I wouldn’t have thought of that.”

Kaeda’s cheeks turn rosy. “I figured it was the place that made the most sense.”

“But... Thanirrh is the god of healing, and we need to heal everyone who’s infected, right?” I point out. “So shouldn’t we go to Hydeau?”

“That’s true...” Kaeda muses. “We can go to Cör first and follow Guna River if the way to heal everyone isn’t in Cör.”

I nod in agreement. A sudden warmth spreads through my body as the two of us step outside the castle.

“Here, let me lead the way now. I know the way to the main road to get to Cör,” I say. Kaeda nods and lets me take charge.

We walk in silence for around fifteen minutes until I hear a barely audible noise.

Mrrp!

I stop, Kaeda shooting me a weird look.

“Don’t. Move. A. Muscle,” I shoot back quietly. She rolls her eyes but obliges.

I hear it again, coming from my right, in the bushes.

Mrrp!

I creep towards the sound, motioning for a confused Kaeda to follow me.

Mrrr...

A baby-sized, golden yellow creature with bat-like wings and a catlike body and face whimpers softly.

A plygorthan.

It looks like it’s on the brink of death.

“Poor thing...” Kaeda murmurs. Who’d have thought the cold-hearted princess known for her icy glare wears her heart on her sleeve?

“I think it’s infected.” I unsheathe my knife, ready to end the poor creature’s misery.

“Wait!” Kaeda puts a cold hand on mine, and I feel a tad jittery all of a sudden.

“What?” I ask sharply. Is she as stony as I had originally thought?

“I don’t think it’s infected. Look, its eyes aren’t red.”

I take a closer look. She’s right. The little plygorthan has honey-brown eyes. It looks up at me, a deep pain stabbing me in the heart.

Now that I think about it, Dax’s eyes had had a hint of blood-red to them.

“I guess not. Do red eyes signify an animal being infected?”

“Yes. And the plygorthan seems like it’s just injured.” The princess leans down and looks closer. “Yeah, look. It’s got scratches all over its body.”

The scars look fresh – and pretty deep.

“Poor kit... I think we need to heal this guy now,” I say, sorrow leaking into my voice.

I crouch, reaching out my arms to pick up the kit. It hisses at me, and I notice the little wing-like ears are bigger than they would be if it were female.

“I think this is a boy,” I tell Kaeda, then switch my attention to the fluffy yellow kit before me.

“It’s okay, little guy,” Kaeda whispers reassuringly to the plygorthan.

I manage to pick up the little one, stroking its soft fur, and sit down in the grass. Kaeda sits beside me, making some ice. I create a flame above Kaeda’s cupped hands. When a life is at risk, the two of us can cooperate.

Kaeda carefully washes out the dried blood from the gashes in the kit’s fur, and he whimpers in pain. I continue to say reassuring things and warm my hands so he feels warm.

His eyes begin to flutter open and shut.

“The poor guy must be so sleepy...” I say, then purse my lips. “Kaeda... can we keep him?”

Kaeda groans. “Fine. I guess I’m attached to him too.”

I smile and exhale a breath when the kit’s eyes stay shut. His breathing slows, and his fluffy chest rises and falls.

“If we’re keeping him, we need to name him,” I say. “You can do that.”

“Uh, okay.” Kaeda thinks for a moment. “How about Sol?”

“Yeah, I like that.”

Kaeda gets up to get leaves to make makeshift bandages for Sol. I stroke his fur and breathe in the fresh air.

It’s peaceful.

Better savor it until there’s none left.

The ice princess returns, tossing her frizzy hair over her shoulder again. She gives me half the leaves, wets hers slightly, and gently places them over the scratches on Sol’s body. I follow her lead, and one by one, all of Sol’s scars are covered by leaves.

Kaeda may have packed a small bag, but I guess she either doesn’t want to waste our measly resources or she didn’t pack bandages.

She sits down beside me, and we’re sitting so close that I can feel the warmth radiating from her body.

Something flutters in my stomach.

Am I sick? What is happening?

We look at Sol’s small body for a few minutes together before we realize we need to keep moving. We’re short on time already, and I don’t want less time.

I carry Sol’s lightweight body and Kaeda slings her bag over her shoulder.

We follow the road for hours...

The light from the sky is fading.

Soon the infected will come out.

Sol begins to stir. He blearily blinks and looks up at me, yawning.

“Mrr?” he purrs.

“Hey, buddy,” I tell him.

“He’s awake?” Kaeda asks.

“Yeah, just woke up. Whoa, hey, careful, bud!” He tries to leap from my arms, ready to spread his wings and soar away. “You’re too weak for that. Stick around with us, we’ll make you feel better.”

Gods, what am I doing? It’s not like he can understand me.

But there’s a look on Sol’s face that makes me think that he can. He ponders something – my request, maybe? – for a moment before settling himself in my arms.

“Mrow...”

He perks up, ears twitching.

“What is it, Sol? What do you hear?” Kaeda looks around with narrowed eyes, hands ready to nock an arrow.

Then we hear it, too. The creature swiftly runs in the trees that line the path.

I step back behind Kaeda to protect Sol.

Kaeda whips out her bow and an arrow. She nocks it at the speed of light and pulls her elbow back.

Then silence.

#adrienne “apex” pyracent #kaeda leona cynet #star crossed haters #kaeda x apex #kaepex #sol the plygorathan #creative writing #writers block #my writing #writing #writer #writers and poets #writers on tumblr #writeblr #writerscommunity #writer community #female writers

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queenpiranhadon · 2 months

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A/N: This chapter is actually really funny because it took Ny (@labaguetteisdabest)like two weeks to write the last chapter and as soon as she finished, I wrote all of this in the span of two hours, and then proceeded to text Ny in the middle of the night about it. Needless to say, she wasn't very happy with me 😅. Anyways enjoy~. You can find the masterlist here Warning(s) : Cursing, blood, injuries, Kaeda channels her inner nurse, Kaeda (I say this lightly) snoops around Apex's stuff, mentions of fratricide, Kaeda's a gatekeeper👀.

Pairing(s): Kaepex

I’ve learned a lot these past few days. Especially about Apex and I.

Now obviously, we’re far from friends, the opposite in general. But the morning I spent in Burgunjax Palace made her a little more humane to me.

My heart throbs as I consider the pain she went through. She had killed her brother and had watched a close friend of hers die. I can only imagine the pain she’s suffering.

As much as I hate her, she doesn’t deserve that. Even I lost a bit of my humanity as I came to terms with what I had to do on the way here. But even though there’s blood on my hands, there’s blood on hers too. The only difference is that the blood on her hands was red.

I wondered how long I could go without having to kill another Espyn.

The thought rattled me to the core.

Last night, as Apex fell asleep in her room, I decided to read the book she had about the gods.

My mother used to tell me the myths about the gods growing up before I left to Watarumi, but the book had one that I wasn’t as familiar with.

Parako.

The Goddess of Nature, her ability to give Reyas turned dormant long ago. No one really knew what happened to her. I don’t really think anyone cared really. She was the patron goddess of Watarumi, but given that she hadn’t gifted Reyas to Espyns in millennia, most people just forgot about her.

And thus, Watarumi became distinguished as a neutral territory instead of a kingdom like the others. I guess since it lost its connection to the godly world, it lost its connection to the other kingdoms as well.

I’m not sure how long I was up reading last night. The sky turned a light rosy hue as the sun peeked out behind the large window by Apex’s bed.

My head throbbed a little, I guess I was a little tired, but I still had work to do.

Apex was still sound asleep, but the clothes she was in were still blood soaked from the previous day. So, as anything completely rational person would do, I went into her closet.

And damn. There was a lot.

You’d think the princess of Fujimura of all people would care less about what she’s wearing, but her closet had racks upon racks of pants, organized by material, and blouses that ranged from flowy and silky to sleek and tight. I guess they must’ve prepared clothes for Apex beforehand, because these obviously didn’t resemble the size of a 7-year-old.

Picking out a pair of black pants with a sizeable number of pockets (and gods there were a lot of them), and a nice long sleeved white shirt with buttons leading to the collar, I trudged back into the main bedchamber to see a very disgruntled Apex sitting up with a hilarious case of bedhead.��

I decided not to comment on it.

“Here.” I said, tossing the clothes to her. “Go change and call me back when you’re done. Then I’ll check up on your injuries.”

The redhead rolls her eyes and clicks her teeth. “Whatever. Why were you in my closet?” She glares, annoyed I was in her personal space.

I quirked my eyebrow. “Because I didn’t think you would want to leave this place in blood-soaked clothes. Unless I’m wrong and you want the infected animals outside to smell your blood.”

The princess just sighs, flipping me off before telling me to get out, which I happily oblige, taking the book I was reading last night with me.

Leaning against the door to Apex’s room outside, I sit on the floor and open the book again. This is where the book gets interesting.

Now obviously, this book may be centuries old, but it was still relatively the same ones that were read to me as a kid, pictures and all. Regardless, it was nice to refresh my brain after so many years.

The worn-out pages show the intricate painting of a looming tree, with bulbous fungi-like orbs that hang from its branches like glowing blue fruit.

I knew what this was.

I had grown up hearing about this tree, for every single waking moment of my 6 years in Khaenpanii. The Tree of Peremetri, known as the place where the connection between Dodomi and the godly world was the most eminent.

It was where Allaida, the mother of the gods, would crown the worthiest espyn Syla.

But there was something I had never noticed before. I wonder if Apex had too.

By underneath the tree were a series characters painted by its trunk, as if to imitate an engraving.

But I couldn’t read it. Out of the numerous symbols there, I could only make out a few, those of which were known to be from the Ancient Script.

And those who could read it were dead.

But the image of the tree make something click in my mind.

The virus spread through the continent was a task impossibly huge, and absurd for two espyns alone. Even if we had Reyas.

But the power of the gods... it might just work. If one of us could become Syla and use that power to purify the virus, not just everyone, but everything could be fixed. Back to normal.

For that to happen though, we’d had to decide who would become Syla.

And just like that, we were back to square one. But I can’t discount my idea yet. I just need to figure out a good time to tell Apex.

“Hey, I’m done.” I hear Apex’s voice emerge form her room, breaking me away from my train of thought. I'd tell her later.

I stand up, pushing the door open to see her sitting cross legged on her bed, looking at me with a bored but expectant expression.

I sigh, here comes the annoying part.

You know, out of all the people I thought I’d tend to, Apex was not one of them.

I ask her to lift up her shirt and roll my eyes when she tells me to not get used to it.

Her wounds haven’t been bandaged yet, which was kinda bad on my part, but at least the bleeding stopped. Three long angry gashes were splayed across her torso, and I wince, knowing it’ll leave a scar.

“Hey...you don’t mind if I tear up any of your other clothes for bandages, right?” I ask tentatively.

She rolls her eyes for the hundredth time; I swear they were going to fall out of her face. “Yeah, tear up the ones that don’t fit,” she mutters, lying back down to stare at the ceiling.

I go into her closet again, rifling through clothes upon clothes before my hands come across a small cotton dress that could only fit a 6 or 7-year-old. Returning to her, I grab the dagger on her nightstand, the same one she had used to kill her brother.

Note to self: Ask Apex where to get weapons.

Slicing the dress into a long strip, I cut off the excess to keep in my bag for future use, and then sit on the bed to wrap it around her.

It wasn’t too hard, other than the fact, that Apex would flinch slightly whenever my fingers met her bare skin, which made sense considering my hands were always cold. But other than that, it went smoothly, using some of my ice to clean up the crusted blood and now there were fresh bandages that would hopefully last a while.

After I finished, I cleaned up and we sat in silence before Apex broke the silence.

“So, when do we leave?”

#kaeda leona cynet #adrienne “apex” pyracent #kaepex #star crossed haters #kaeda x apex #my writing #creative writing #writers block #writing #writer #writers and poets #writers on tumblr #writeblr #writerscommunity

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