Chapter 9 #4
A pang in my chest squeezed my throat shut, and a flurry of movement in the undulating darkness across the street drew both of our attentions.
The sound of shattered glass filled the street as one of the panes of stained glass high above the arched entrance exploded into a swarm of radiant shards that sprayed across the street.
A dark shadow was caught in the middle of the swarm, and my muscles coiled before I could even second-guess.
Suffusing myself with a bit of magic, I sprang from my spot, wincing from the angry bites of glass across my skin as I soared to collide with the human-shaped shadow.
Wrapping my arms around it, I braced for the landing, square in the middle of the street.
My knees threatened to buckle as we slammed into the ground, the extra weight of the body in my clutches throwing me off center, but I managed to stay upright as the force of gravity caught up.
With an exhale, I gently lowered the figure, the fabric concealing their face falling away.
My blood ran cold as I took in their features.
It was as if their entire being had been dipped in the darkest of inks, staining their flesh and hair alongside their clothing.
Their body was cold to the touch, and it seemed to sap the warmth from my own limbs the longer I held onto them.
Benji appeared at my side, breathless with excitement. “That was incredible! I’ve never seen someone move so fast—are they dead?”
Kneeling, I set the figure gingerly onto the ground, careful to avoid any of the larger shards of glass. Their head lolled to the side as I did so, and I held a finger beneath their nostrils, waiting for the warmth of their breath. But it didn’t come.
“I don’t know,” I said, digging through the folds of fabric that surrounded the figure in search of their arm. “Have you seen anyone around here that looks like this?”
Benji shook his head, prodding at the body with the toe of his shoe.
“Careful,” I warned him, looking up from the figure. “We don’t know what this thing is or what it’s capable of—”
Benji let out a yelp as the body lurched, a ragged, wet breath sounding in its lungs as it sucked in air like a drowning man. Hands shot out from the fabric, latching onto the front of my jacket and pulling me down till their colorless eyes held me in place.
“Run,” the figure croaked. “It knows you’re here.”
Before I could ask further, a pang in my chest and a cord of violet light burst into existence between me and the figure. The inky darkness peeled away from the spot where it connected to their chest, rippling like water.
“Cirian,” I breathed the name, that horrid ache in my gut lessening at the sight of him. “How did you escape?”
“Sancha,” he sputtered, the inky darkness bleeding into the air around him like a miasma. It stung my nostrils, causing the hair on the back of my neck to stand. “She’s still in there, with Bast. They’re all still inside—”
Behind us, a terrible groaning noise emanated from the Cradle, drowning out Cirian’s words. Benji slapped his hands over his ears, folding them down.
“What is that?” he shouted over the din, but Cirian was clawing at my arm.
“Move!”
The ground shook beneath our feet as I scooped Cirian up into my arms once more, more darkness squeezing from his skin, revealing ivory complexion and his vestments underneath.
Benji was already running as I regained my footing.
Glass splintered beneath my feet as I dug my heels into the pavement, taking off after the boy.
The groaning had evolved into a deafening roar from behind as we ran, clearing the opposite side of the street before turning in one direction and continuing away from the Cradle.
“This way!” Benji shouted as the sound of grinding metal and stone pursued. In my periphery, tendrils of that shadowy darkness had begun to move, and as we rounded the corner, I allowed myself a glance back at the Cradle.
“Azzy!”
The voice stopped me in my tracks. It was Tobias.
I believed it without a second thought. I spun around, facing the Cradle and following the direction of the outcry.
From every window and door of the towering building, more of the shadowy limbs emerged.
Stretching, reaching out to me as if to welcome me into an embrace.
“I’m here, Azzy. Hide and seek, just like we used to. Come find me, won’t you?”
I had to grind my boots into the pavement to keep from moving forward.
“Don’t listen,” croaked Cirian in my arms, the palm of his hand resting against my cheek. “Whatever it’s telling you. Don’t listen to it.”
“Rudderkin!”
Benji’s voice sounded leagues away.
I tried to turn. To complete our retreat. But it called to me again. Beneath us, the ground quaked. Windows vibrated, rippling like pondwater struck with a stone.
“You’re so close now. Don’t you want me, Azzy?”
Bursting from the front entrance of the cathedral, a surge of darkness poured into the street, moving like a wave racing towards the shore.
I strained with all of my might against the pull of the oncoming wave, but it was as if the pavement beneath me had turned to mire, and the harder I pulled against it, the faster the darkness came.
“It’s going to be alright,” Cirian said, his voice still hoarse.
I tore my gaze from the approaching swell, looking down at the man I cradled in my arms. His hand was still warm against my cheek, his dark eyes holding me steady.
“I’ll find you again,” he said. “Just remember that none of it is real.”
“What isn’t real?”
A small smile was his only answer as a wall of darkness crashed down, washing away all traces of light.