No Food Wasted [ELARA] In order to get to Alec, I have to first get through breakfast with the royal family. The King is absent since he's off at war. It makes me realize that Caelondor is not exactly in a comfortable position and that the warriors from my pack could be summoned at any time to provide military assistance. I find it strange that King Eldric chose an independent pack, rather than any of the neutral werewolf kingdoms to marry Magnus into. It would support their cause and provide them with more benefits than could be gained from the Lunar Crest pack - although it is the largest and most powerful pack among the independent packs in the continent. Or maybe, I'm overestimating Caelondor's friendly status as a kingdom. Perhaps they're desperate to form any alliances they can and given the rumors surrounding Magnus' reputation, I'm the best they could find. While the dining table is long and narrow, spanning the entire dome shaped hallway overlooking the Cursed Gulf, most of the chairs are unoccupied. The members present are all sitting on one side that lets them watch the sea. Ruelle smiles the moment her eyes spots me. "Oh, come on. Sit with me. We were just getting started," she says merrily. I spare a glance at Magnus who was walking behind me, but he brushes past me and takes a seat at the head of the table. "That's the King's seat," a woman sitting close to him protests, her voice sharp with warning. Magnus picks up an apple slice kept in front of him. He watches it intently before he takes a bite. "I don't see him here, mother," he replies, tilting his head. "After all, it's just a seat, isn't it, Queen mother?" This question is directed at another woman sitting beside Ruelle. She's older than the woman who warned him, and her eyes are strange and unfocused. It takes me a moment to understand that she's blind. "Magnus can sit wherever he wants. Don't bother him, Celia," the blind woman replies, chuckling. Ruelle's smile grows wider. "Some might take that to heart, son," the woman he regarded as his mother remarks. Her eyes are blue, a hypnotic shade. It tells me not to trust her. Magnus' reply is dismissive, "I can take care of them, mother." Celia looks up at me, and her gaze seems to be sending daggers through my face. "Sit down, girl," she commands. I don't hesitate. I oblige. She seems like someone not to be messed with. Ruelle moves over and takes a seat beside me. A maid quickly replaces her and begins feeding the blind queen. "Here, try this bread. It's filled with cream," Ruelle encourages me. I nod and let her place it on the empty plate in front of me. Because I'm starving, I tear a piece of the warm bread and eat it. The royals really do eat better than anyone else. This is simply the best thing I've ever tasted and it's just bread. My mind is, however, too occupied to simply enjoy the meal. Has Alec eaten yet? What is he feeling like right now? Is he thinking about me? Are they torturing him? My eyes move to look at my husband and find him watching me. I'm sure I hate him, but I have to convince him otherwise. I have no power here. I could never have any power over any of them here. Magnus breaks the staring contest we maintained, smirking. He reaches out to a bowl filled with what looks like fruit pudding, before he asks, "Is the fruit custard any good, Queen mother?" The old woman nods, replying, "I tasted it and made sure it is just the way you like it." Magnus exhales, filling a spoonful before he serves himself. The servant beside him gets alerted and steps forward quickly to help him but he dismisses her with, "Not a child anymore." Celia passes him a look that I can't understand but it looks strangely pitiful. Magnus is his indifferent self for the rest of the meal. He picks at the food, carefully selecting what to eat. Ruelle tries to make conversation with me, attempting to involve her mother and the queen. It's quite obvious though that I'm unwelcome here. Even the servants stare at me with a disapproving look in their eyes. I don't end up eating much but just before I'm done, the queen calls out to me. "Elara, isn't it? I'm sorry. I couldn't make it to the wedding. "None of the family members did," I blurt out, my tone coming out much like a taunt. Celia practically stabs me with her glare, making me bite my tongue. "I'm sorry, I mean... It was rushed, I know that. I just feel like you all would've liked Mistral Hollow." The queen smiles but it doesn't reach her eyes. I just know that I can't be here for any longer. Ruelle puts a hand on my shoulder, frowning. "I had no idea the wedding was going to happen so soon. My brother decided to send me off to watch a theater play in Qaiven. I should've known it was one of his schemes." Magnus stands up all of a sudden, declaring, "There's nothing special about Mistral Hollow. And it was not fun, Rue. Elara got attacked by a hydralith on the way. Come with me, Elara." A gasp resounds in the room. Ruelle grabs my hand. "Goddess! That's awful, Elara." I'm distracted. I don't even respond to Ruelle's concern. Magnus begins walking and I follow him. I turn back only to see the maid emptying my leftover food into a large metal bucket. "You can eat later," Magnus says carelessly as he paces away from the dining room. I find it hard to keep up pace and have to jog. He's too tall - he should realize that his strides are much larger than mine. I sigh in frustration. "That's not my concern. I just don't like wasting food." "Why? They didn't have enough in your pack?" he says in a mocking voice. "Don't worry It's not going to be wasted," he assures me in a kinder voice, briefly turning back to glance at my face. He begins to walk quicker and I know he's only doing that to annoy me. I shake my head in confusion. "What do you mean?" Clutching the front of my gown gives me the confidence to walk quickly. Soon, we're descending a never-ending series of stone steps. "Watch your steps," Magnus says after I almost lose my balance trying to keep up with him. He's hopping down, skipping two steps and I know he's been here too many times to count. But this is not a garden. It's the dungeons of a castle. Where prisoners are held behind iron bars. Sometimes, silver, infused with wolfsbane if the prisoners are werewolves. The stench is overwhelming. It's blood, sweat and something more sinister and gut-wrenching. I close my nose, noticing the scant supervision of guards. I wonder what keeps the prisoners from fleeing. Only a second passes before I hear someone scream, followed by the sound of a whip. Then another scream. They're too broken to try to run. "Follow along," Magnus says,and I find that he has slowed down. I can't believe Alec has been kept here. For a moment I want to turn around and run back. I don't want to know what state he's in. But I can't do that. I have to see him. And I have to help him escape. There's a curve and my instincts tell me Alec is close. And I'm right. Magnus halts outside of a cell with silver bars. "There he is," he tells me, his voice a little serious now. TIU DUnus Alec is sitting on the floor, his head buried in his folded legs. I run towards him, but the moment my fingers touch the bars, I yelp. I take a few steps back, overcome with the burning sensation in my hands. I look down and find that the skin in contact has charred. Magnus clicks his tongue. "I thought you'd be smart enough to understand. But I should've told you anyway. Don't touch the bars, Elara. They're made of silver," he emphasizes. I ignore him, my eyes glued to the pitiful figure of Alec. "Hey, Alec. It's El. Look at me." Alec lifts his head to look at me, and his gaze makes me shudder. But he doesn't move, seeming too exhausted. He's too quiet. His face is covered with grime, his hair a mess. It looks like he's been held here for days when it has actually only been a few hours. "Have you eaten anything?" I make myself ask when all I really want to do is fall to the floor and cry my heart out. Magnus' voice cuts between us. "Here comes breakfast," he announces. I turn around and find the same maid holding the metal bucket with leftover food. Behind her a man pulls out a steel plate from a tray and the maid scoops out a spoonful of the food from the bucket before plopping it on the plate. She moves closer to Alec's cell, but I notice how she looks at me for a whole second. It's long enough to make me hate Magnus more than I already did. "Food," she mumbles before passing the plate through a narrow crevice above the stone floor. Discover our latest featured short drama reel. Watch now and enjoy the story!