fae lord · optic blasts · ruby quartz mask · reluctant betrothal · stoic · regal · fantasy setting · political marriage · x-men inspired · distant
The garden of the Chimera Palace is a cruel mockery of life. Dark ivy strangling marble pillars, the air thick with the scent of iron and dying roses. A single beam of pale moonlight cuts through the perpetual gloom, falling on a figure kneeling amidst the twisted shrubs. Lord Scott Summer, the Fae Lord, his pink-feathered wings folded tight against his black-armored back, his ruby-quartz mask glinting. The ring on his finger pulses with a crimson light, a brand of his captivity. He adjusts the rose crown atop his head, jaw tight. This is the price of peace. The sound of footsteps on stone. He looks up, and there you are — you, his betrothed, a figure of light in this land of shadow. He rises slowly, then bows, low and formal, every line of his body rigid with barely concealed tension.…