Chapter 24

                                    

                                          


                          
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Aelin rested her arms on the edges of the ship as she gazed out into the blue, gentle waves of the ocean.
                          
The ship rocked gently underneath her feet as gentle laps of water hit the side of it.
                          
They would be arriving to Terrasen soon, in mere hours. Terrasen, her kingdom, her birthright, her home.
                          
And she would make sure that it stayed that way, that it would never be taken over again.
                          
A cold, icy wind flew over the deck and pushed at the sails, and Aelin knew it wasn't Rowan's.
                          
Autumn had come, and soon the snow would too. 
                          
Three months, it had only been three months since she was taken. And yet for her it had felt as if she had been with Maeve for several years.
                          
Aelin shuddered at the thought of her wretched time with Maeve. She had been trying to just forget that part of her life, even if it she had escaped just weeks ago.
                          
But the nightmares that sometimes pursued her while sleeping made sure she could never forget.
                          
Sighing, Aelin turned away from the bow of the ship, and walked to the cabin she shared with Rowan.
                          
Rowan wasn't in the room when she walked in though, and Aelin just assumed that he was with his Cadre, planning. 
                          
Planning for her return in Ornyth. Aelin would take back her throne, her crown, her birthright.
                          
She had fought too hard and suffered too much without being offered enough.
                          
But giving up was not an option, no definitely not. No matter how much she gave, how little she got, she would continue on.
                          
But Darrow, he would be a problem. He was the one who controlled the Bane now, who now ruled Terrasen. 
                          
He had told her that if she entered Ornyth and took back her throne that it would be an act of treason.
                          
But... if she convinced the other lords, by proving her worth, then nothing could happen to her.
                          
Aelin felt a giant smirk appear on her face as a plan started to hatch in her mind. 
                          
It could work,  it would work. She would make sure of it.
                          
Sighing, Aelin collapsed onto the huge bed, and winced as pain shot up her spine.
                          
Gods, her back still ached, the wounds in it throbbing as she shifted onto her side. It wasn't that comfortable, but at least it didn't hurt.
                          
Slowly, Aelin let her eyes droop and close, and fell into what she hoped was a calm sleep.
                          
***
                          
It was late in the afternoon, and they were only a hour and a half away from the edges of Terrasen.
                          
Aelin could barely make out the coast of Terrasen, but it was there, decorated with pine trees and sandy cliffs.
                          
She was again outside, staring at the blue churning waters, and at the clear sky above her.
                          
The last time she had been in Terrasen, all of her plans had been shattered by a gods-damned piece of paper.
                          
And with only a few signatures she had been denied everything she had worked for these past few months.
                          
Aelin weaved a bit of flame through her fingers, marveling at the reds and golds that were flowing between her pale fingers.
                          
She was so pale now, any color being leeched away in the darkness of the cage in Doranelle.
                          
The string of flame turned into a dagger in her hand, then into a ball of fire, and finally into a crown.
                          
Aelin watched the flaming edges of the crown flicker and burn in her hand, and then extinguished it.
                          
She was surprised that her power had returned so quickly after being depleted in Doranelle. 
                          
It shouldn't have come back so fast, especially considering her injuries. The well of her power was deeper that ever before, it was not full yet, but it was still powerful.
                          
Aelin looked up again, her blue eyes widening as she saw what was now looming in front of her.
                          
Terrasen's coast now shone in front of her, beautiful and full of wildlife. Aelin smiled as she saw it, as she saw her home.
                          
But that was not what caught her eyes, it was the armada sitting near the edges of her kingdom.
                          
Wendlyn's armada was gleaming in front of her. Tears welled in Aelin's eyes as she saw who was at the mast of one of the ships.
                          
Aedion was there, Lysandra was there, but she couldn't see them.
                          
Her heart ached at the thought of seeing them both again, her court, her family.
                          
Aelin felt Rowan take her into his arms. She leaned into him as he hugged her close to him.
                          
"They all came," she whispered to him. 
                          
"Didn't I tell you that they did?" he said back to her, chuckling and nuzzling her neck.
                          
She faced him and smiled at him, "It didn't hit me until now."
                          
"I'm guessing that you're going to raise hell to get your crown back, or am I wrong?"
                          
Aelin let out a laugh, then grinned up at Rowan mischievously. "Oh, you have no idea." 
                          
Hi everyone, thanks for reading this chapter. I'm sorry if it was short and kind of boring, but I needed an easy transition chapter. THIS MAY BE THE FINAL CHAPTERS, but if I you all do not want me too, if you show any support, (which you all have, and thank you for that), I will definitely continue.