35. Chapter 34
35
Chapter 34
Julen
Julen lay cradled in the Multarmirus’s lap, several hands stroking his head, shoulders, and arms. His sense of dread subsided, leaving him with severe exhaustion.
The intensity of the stone’s energy had overwhelmed his senses and weakened Julen so much that he couldn’t even react to the fact that one of the monsters who had haunted his nightmares as a youth now stroked his sweat-damp hair. Looking up at the Multarmirus, Julen could see its kind eyes. He could feel the empathy radiating from its many hands as they caressed Julen’s temples.
“Thank you.”
The Multarmirus rumbled, and Julen couldn’t help but pet one of its hands in appreciation.
Anjular knelt beside Julen. She sat with her hands folded in her lap, staring at him intently as he recovered from the force of the stone. Julen turned from the monster taking care of him to the little fae.
He blushed with embarrassment as he spoke. “You must think me a damned fool for walking right up to that monstrosity of a crystal right after you warned me not to.”
Iacuora released a huff from across the dungeon.
Anjular looked back to give her a scolding glance, then turned to Julen. “It is only natural to try.”
Julen sat up abruptly. “This can’t be our fate. I won’t accept that this will be the rest of our lives. We have to do something.”
The stone called to him again. Like an energy force tugging at his consciousness, luring him to approach. Julen didn’t know how, but he had to figure out a way to make contact with the stone and fight whatever power it had. Power. He focused and lifted a hand to beckon the wind, but nothing manifested. He looked up and saw Anjular’s somber stare. “Why can you read my mind, but I can’t manifest wind?” Julen asked.
The fae was cautious as she spoke, “I truly don’t know—none of the powers that manifest themselves with any physicality function here. I cannot move objects with my mind, another one of my powers.
It’s odd. We can feel our body reacting to the command but cannot manifest to completion. It must be the magic that surrounds us. That’s my only guess. Even my ability to read thoughts has diminished. I’ve pushed my psychic skills to the brink, and I’ve never been able to see outside of this oozy prison. I can only see what is inside and faintly at that.”
Julen pulled his knees against his chest, wrapping his arms around them as he rocked slowly. What if trying to breach the crystal led to something worse ?
The vileness of the stone plagued his thoughts: the screaming, the feeling of suffering, his image morphing into that revolting thing. He had barely touched the stone and had felt all of that. What would have happened if he had held on longer?
Then he thought of Dacias and Souzie. They had been planning to sneak into the castle the night he nearly killed his father. Could Dacias and Souzie have been captured, too?
Rage began building inside of him again. Julen wanted to smash the window that hung before them, batter the glass with his fists. He hated himself for what he had done. Why not just defend his mother and be done with it? Rescue her from that monster and take her with him, or use his powers to lock his father in the chamber and flee.
He didn’t do that. Julen released a lifetime of wrath in one moment, reveling in his power over his father. He enjoyed watching Haligran cower to him. I’m just like him. All it took was one opportunity to be as vicious and severe as his father, and he sank his teeth in and savored every moment.
Julen fell to his side, still cradling his knees close to his chest, and released a low moan. The only thing worse than being in this place was knowing that behaving like the man he had so deeply feared for so long was what brought him here. He wanted to break into a thousand bits and reassemble himself differently. His greatest fear with Dacias was the possibility of showing even the slightest bit of cruelty that his father inflicted on him.
The sand creature began moaning in time with Julen. For a moment, he thought his grief was contagious, and soon, all the creatures trapped with him would lament for the freedom they’d never have. But the moaning intensified, and the creature grabbed its head, shaking it from side to side.
Julen sat up and saw the dread in the other creatures’ faces. They surrounded the sand creature, Anjular whispering calming words while Iacuora cursed at the window. Julen ran to the group and knelt near the beast.
“What is it? What’s happening?”
Anjular looked at Julen, her face a mix of rage and sadness. “Your father enters.”
Julen could hear the echo of his father’s voice reverberating off the blackness surrounding them. The light from the stone flashed brighter. It wasn’t beautiful or radiant. The colors seemed ominous and cruel, as if the light exposed something ugly from within.
The image in the window shifted, revealing the area in Vinculux where Carnufor stored the creatures and where Julen’s body was undoubtedly contained. Carnufor came into view.
Julen shook his fists at the image of the disgusting man. “I’ll get you! You hear me, you vicious, disgusting bastard! I’LL GET YOU!”
It became evident to Julen that they were observing the scene from someone’s perspective. The view shifted, mirroring the movement of one’s eyes as they navigated through life. Julen ran to the window. Is this a way out? He didn’t feel the same tug that he had with the crystal, but he could see the interior of Vinculux. Surely, this was a potential way out. He reached for the window while Iacuora screamed, “Don’t do it, human!”
Julen made contact before she finished and was shocked by a lightning bolt. It sent him sailing backward. He landed with a thud and coughed. However, the pain was short-lived, and he was soon steadying his breath. Iacuora slithered to his side. “I admire the tenacity, little human, but you are foolish to think we haven’t tried every possibility. The next time a stupid idea enters your brain, consult with us before acting on it.”
Haligran’s voice reverberated throughout the space once more. “Hmm. It is getting easier. Smoother. It’s less of a fight to enter them.”
Haligran’s voice was a mix of his own and the raspy sounds of the sand creature, which wailed as it clutched its head. The other monsters spoke to it in odd, guttural languages, trying to subdue the poor thing. Julen turned back to the window. The beast entered a chamber where a male prisoner stood. The man wore a gray one-piece uniform and looked malnourished. His bewildered eyes widened as the creature approached.
The prisoner backed up on all fours while screaming and wedged himself in a corner, crying for mercy. The image of the sand creature’s hand came into view. Its long arm stretched forward, growing unnaturally. It neared the prisoner, who shrieked at the sight. The sandy arm extended until it was just inches away from the prisoner. The fingers opened and began growing.
The prisoner’s eyes widened even more, and horror filled his gaze. Then, he fell into a trance as if something in the palm of the sandy hand had hypnotized him.
Suddenly, his mouth opened wider and wider until it became a gaping, unnatural hole. The creature’s powers controlled the man’s movements. Tears streamed down the prisoner’s face as his mouth stretched wider. Instantly, a stream of sand shot into him, filling his mouth. The prisoner’s body reacted, fighting the deprivation of air, convulsing as it sought relief. Slowly, he closed his eyes and fell to the ground, dead.
Carnufor’s voice blurted out, “Much improved, Sire. You’re nearing the stage when you can travel outside prison walls with one of these creatures.”
“What’s his status?” Haligran asked in response.
Carnufor no doubt knew who Haligran meant. “The prince is stable. You should be able to inhabit him without risk of fatality. Shall we give it a try, Your Majesty?”
The King released an amused huff. “Yes.”
The image in the window slowly went out of focus again, the grimy dust acting as a film covering the image.
The sand creature lay on the ground, wailing a pitiful, raspy moan. Slowly, the moan morphed into a whine. Haligran was gone.
Julen’s body shook. The sick feeling in his stomach rumbled, and rivulets of cold sweat slithered down his back. His father would channel it into his body soon. The crystal’s ominous purple glow tugged at him again. Bolts of lightning ripped through it. Julen closed his eyes but couldn’t stop the flow of tears.