67. Sie
SIXTY-SEVEN
SIE
Synder’s oily skin had a thick layer of sheen to it as sweat coated every inch of him. His hair had fallen over his face and was plastered across his forehead and down his cheek. It wasn’t like that when I first entered the room. Part of me rejoiced in seeing it—proof that he was fucking terrified—but the majority of me was just downright pissed. I wanted to soak in his features, the way his eyes widened as he took me in, the way his fingers trembled and his knees quivered as he took a noticeable step back.
“S-sie…” he half stuttered, his eyes finally landing on me after sweeping over what was left of the room.
I smiled, and for the first time since the broadcast, I was fucking elated. I could feel blood dripping from my lip and staining my teeth, but I embraced it. Every ache and cut and bruise across my body felt like it was lit on fire, but instead of feeling the heat from the flames, it gave me energy. It ignited me from the inside out. This feeling, this vengeance, this was what I needed, what I craved.
As soon as I teleported in, I went rampage. I didn’t give anyone a second to collect themselves as I murdered them. All twenty-eight members of the Council were now dead. Twenty-nine including my father, and I was about to make it an even thirty. I killed them all. I lost it, lost myself to it as I used everything I possessed to tear into them.
I twirled the blade in my hand as I took a step toward Synder. I knew blood was dripping from the tip, but it wasn’t nearly enough, wouldn’t be enough until I had his. The room around us was a blur. Bodies were limp and scattered, making it an obstacle to move through, but I didn’t care.
Synder and the Council had been hiding like cowards. They locked themselves in here, thinking we wouldn’t get past their guard.
“Let’s talk about this,” he said, his hands raising in the air.
“Sure. Let’s talk.” I flashed a bloody smile. “You are the reason Scotlind was sent to Lux,” I drawled slowly, my eyes never leaving his dark ones. It was the first time I spoke since I teleported in. I wanted Synder to be last. I wanted him to watch as I killed everyone else first, knowing he’d be next. “You’re the reason my father is dead. The reason Moli is gone.” I pointed the tip of my blade at him. “You took my mother and brother to Lux. They were beaten and tortured because of it. My mother didn’t make it. My brother lost his eye.” Synder kept retreating, slowly backing himself against the wall as I spoke, half tripping over body parts and corpses. I let him, holding my ground and letting my voice carry, not following him… not yet. “ You are the reason everything I ever fucking loved is now gone.”
“Th-this is just a misunderstanding. Let me explain. We can come to an agreement and work together—”
“No,” I spat, cutting him off. “You aren’t walking out of this room alive.” Distantly, I could hear banging on the door at my back and knew Savannah was pounding on the wood, trying to get in. I didn’t want to think about her right now, about what she must think of me. I was living up to my reputation. I was a murderer, but for once, I was glad.
“Sie. I mean, Prince Noren , you don’t understand. We were all forced by the Lux King. Everything that happened was because of him. I didn’t want to do any of it, but I didn’t have a choice. We can establish a new Council, we can work everything out, and together we can overthrow the Lux King. I’ll help you…”
I teleported to his side in a heartbeat, digging my free hand into his mouth and pulling out his tongue. My blade ran through the thick, slimy muscle as I cut it from his throat. He wailed, the sound distorted and more of a grunt now that the appendage was on the floor by his feet. “I don’t want to hear another lie from your mouth.”
I pointed my blood-soaked blade in his face and spoke my next words slowly, letting each syllable sink in, knowing full well that with his ability, he’d know I was telling the truth. “You will die today. By me. Right here. Right now. And I plan to make it slow and painful.”
Tears were pouring down his slimy face, mixing with the sweat that was spilling out of every orifice of his skin. The smell of urine filled my nostrils as his pants became drenched, and my only regret was that the entire world wasn’t privy to witness how much of a coward Synder truly was.
My hands were shaking, my adrenaline going haywire as I tried to collect myself. That should have made me feel better. I was glad he was gone, glad he was a pile of limbs on the floor, but I also felt like it wasn’t enough. I savored every moment of tearing him apart, but now that it was over, I came back to myself. The wound in my heart wasn’t healed like I thought it would be. I still felt hollow. I was still broken .
I had no idea how much time had passed before he took his last breath, but I was pretty certain I kept chopping into him long after he was dead. I inhaled, taking a moment for myself, before I got the courage to unlock the door.
Savannah stumbled forward, her fist fell into my chest instead of the wood as she pounded against it. She straightened, and I couldn’t help but notice her eyes bulge as she took in the room behind me.
I was drenched in blood. But the room was worse. I could already smell the stench of death taking over. I could still hear the screams coming from each of the men I just killed. I expected her to run away from me. I expected her to finally have the same fear that everyone in Brighta seemed to share.
Her hazel, lavender—whatever color they were—eyes finally landed on me. “Are you okay?”
I didn’t respond because who the fuck asks that after witnessing the horror behind me. I knew she heard everything. I knew she was aware of exactly what happened in this room because I heard her just as easily. I couldn’t block her out, not fully. Her pounding on the door and screaming my name was just as ingrained in my ears as their death wails were.
“Sie, are you hurt?”
“No.” I finally found my voice. I knew I was. I was covered in bruises. The blood coating me was just as much my own and every member of the Council. I just couldn’t feel the physical pain, not yet anyway, but I knew it would come.
“The fight is over,” she said softly. “Tezya… he came up to help you, but I told him…” She stopped abruptly. “When Tezya told the guards the Council was dead, most stopped fighting. The ones who didn’t are being escorted to the dungeons right now.” I nodded, only half paying attention to her words as she continued, “You should see a healer.”
“No,” I snapped before pushing her aside and walking down the hall. I wanted to be alone, and I didn’t need her getting into my head.
No matter how badly I was injured I wasn’t planning on seeing a healer. There was only one I cared about anyway, and she was dead.