Forever Entranced ~Book Two Of The Soul Bound Series

Chapter One ~ Webs

He stumbled forward, clutching to the trunk of a tree in a forest he had long since wandered into. The sun was rising in the distance, casting beams over the mountains of Ireland. He had been walking for what felt like forever to him, shuffling over rocks and roots. Her voice called to him, called him into the distance. Towards where? He did not know, but it didn't matter, not anymore.

Luis. Come to me. She called to him and he answered by pushing further. His feet ached and his legs felt like jelly, but what pain was that when his heart felt like it had broken in two? There was a flash of red light in front of him and his arm fled up to cover his eyes from the brightness. The light faded and he looked up. There, rippling in front of him was what looked like a window. It floated in the air between a grove of trees, beckoning to him, daring for him to take a step closer and he did.

Through the window he could see a dark room, torches hung on the walls, illuminating parts of the room, casting shadows that formed into haunting shapes on the stone floor. Though the torches flickered, as far as he could tell, there wasn't any apparent lifeform in the open space. His mind felt muddled, light and dizziness caused him to slightly sway.

Come to me. She whispered, inviting him, tempting him to step through the window. He reached out with his hand, allowing his fingers to slide through the smooth surface. A coldness enveloped them. It felt like ice was pricking at his skin and he allowed his entire hand to push through. He could see his hand entering the dark room through the window, see the shadows from the torches flickering on his skin.

He would go to her. Whether it was by his own free will or hers, he did not care. He wanted to see her again, her bright purple eyes and long, flowing black hair. Her strong features and elegant body. He almost craved it, like a worker bee drawn to his queen. His arm slipped through the slick surface and before he knew it he was standing on the stone floor of the dimly lit room. He flipped around, but the window-like portal had vanished.

His eyes slowly wandered the bare walls and landed on a medieval, wooden door. His fingers fumbled against the cold metal of the handle as he pushed the heavy door open. His eyes widened as they landed on the icy scene before him. A smoothly slick floor led up to a set of stairs draped with a royally purple rug that made way for the throne of ice positioned on the center of the platform. Shards of crystal ice shoved through the cold floor and spiked towards the ceiling that seemed to raise to an impossible height.

Candles hanging from an icy chandelier illuminated the grandeur of the throne room. It seemed unlikely that candles could burn in a handle of ice and not melt it into a puddle of liquid, but after everything he had seen thus far, it wasn't the most surprising.

"You came," Her voice was soft, slightly surprised and filled with a lilt of amusement. His eyes searched frantically around for her and landed on the throne as a black gown slid out from behind it, caressing the floor as she moved. It drooped low in the front only to make way for the collar of raven black feathers that adorned themselves around her long, slim neck. Her shoes clicked against the ice as she walked, descending the stairs, her vibrantly purple eyes glued tightly on him, her expression unreadable, "You are loyal." She observed as she gracefully crossed the distance between them, her pale hands - decorated with dark, purple polish - reached out towards him. They slid against the skin of his jaw, her fingers trailing down his neck, her hypnotic eyes gripping his with a fiery intensity, "Perhaps you are still useful after all." Her voice was like silk as it flew from between her plump lips.

He could look nowhere but those enchanting eyes, his mind became useless, he couldn't even form words as she coaxed him into her grasp. Her fingers seemed to grip around him until he was a puppet in the palm of her hand.