Lord Veilrend led his daughter by the hand down the dark stone hallway, pulling her behind him and holding her up as her child-sized legs failed at keeping pace. His pale skin and long white hair braided down his back looked like a blur in the reflection of the polished black marble of the floor, his black and purple robes making it seem as though they were floating in the darkness. His daughter's wild black hair kept falling over her face, and she struggled to push it aside as they moved.
"Daddy, why are you pulling me?" his daughter asked, pulling against her father's hand. "And why were you and Mommy fighting this morning?"
He tugged harder on her arm as he moved, avoiding looking at her as he turned down another hallway. He did not answer her, only mumbling under his breath as he moved. His daughter pulled back again, slipping her hand free of her father's grasp. She took a few steps back before planting her feet.
"I'm not going anywhere until you talk to me," she yelled.
Lord Veilrend turned quickly and raised his hand as if to slap his daughter, his sleeve sliding down his arm as he did, revealing the inky black feather tattoos that covered it. Their matching ice-blue colored eyes locked, unblinking, as he closed the space now between them. He swung to slap her across her face, but his hand stopped just short of doing so. She remained still, unflinching, staring at her father.
They stood there for a moment, frozen. Their angular features making them seem more like statues. The hallways, now devoid of sound, created a deafening silence that hurt the young Veilrend's ears. After a few moments, Lord Veilrend lowered his hand and dropped to a knee in front of his daughter.
"I apologize, my little Larkspur," he said with a warm tone that the Shadowfell around them shuddered at. He reached out and touched her face gently. "Our family has been out of favor for some time now. I don't think this has escaped you. This is our opportunity to appease the council and take our rightful place yet again. And your mother... well, your mother doesn't think that's important. But you and I know that there's nothing more important than our family, right? So will you be a good girl now?"
He gave a little wink and made a silly face that made his daughter's straight face begin to bend and curl into a smile. She nodded and smiled and took his hand again.
"I'm sorry, Daddy!" she said. She looked up and smiled. She used her other hand to pull up the bottom of her formal, ceremonial cloak which was just a bit too big for her. "I'll be good, promise."
He smiled back and continued the walk at a slower pace until they got to a set of large black doors with large silver swirls decorating it. On the center of the doors was the symbol of the city of Nighthaven: a silver crescent moon cradling a glowing midnight-blue star, set above a city skyline silhouette, all framed by intertwined chains of silver and obsidian. The door opened slowly as they approached, and the smell of burning incense became overwhelming. A council of Shadar-Kai stood opposite the door, in front of them painted on the floor were two intricate patterns of symbols and runes one in front of the other. They were both contained with circles.
Lord Veilrend led his daughter forward silently, reaching into his cloak and taking out two ornamental swords, handing one to her and holding onto one for himself. He motioned her forward to the front circle while he remained in the other.
She looked back at her father who nodded.
"Just like we practiced," he said with a smile.
Both Lord Veilrend and his daughter began moving fluidly with their blades, almost like a dance. As they did, the runes began to glow with a blue hue that matched their eyes. The Council members began to chant, starting as a whisper but increasing in volume as the dance continued. Just as they were approaching the end of the ceremony, the bottom of her cloak slid underneath her foot, causing her to slip. As she hit the floor, she quickly looked up at her father to make sure he wasn't angry only to see him standing over her with the blade held high above his head ready to plunge it down into her.
"I'm sorry, Sawyn," he said as he swung it down. "This is for the good of our family."
Her eyes shut closed as all the sound was replaced by a ringing and the sounds of screams. Sawyn then realized one of the screams was her own.
"My lady, are you alright," a voice asked her.
Sawyn opened her eyes to find herself in a stone chamber sitting in a meditative position. She looked towards the door to see Zephyrial, the Yuan-Ti Pure-Blood sorcerer that has been here at Czen'ha Tower. Her olive-green skin and golden vertical slit eyes reflected the dim candlelight next to Sawyn.
"Yes, Zeph, thank you," Sawyn said to the serpentine advisor. "How are the preparations going?"
"Perfectly, my lady," Zephyrial said. "The ceremony will be ready once all the materials are gathered, which should be in the next week or so... if you would pardon my question, but you do not typically sleep. Is anything the matter?"
Sawyn looked downward for a second, remembering her childhood again as a few members of the council had her restrained with magic as her feet were still in a pool of her father's and others' blood.
"The Raven Queen gave me a vision," Sawyn said, flatly. "All is well."