Chapter 14 #3
The sex is a distraction he gladly gives me; understanding it silences my mind—a mind he shares with me after our bonding.
My thirst for knowledge is another path to keep me from the screaming hysteria that lingers inside me.
But eventually, the silence is a soundless scream, one that keeps reentering my mind the moment I allow my thoughts to wander.
“It’s getting worse, Emrys… All of it. I… I do my best to suppress it, but… It’s hard.”
I sigh deeply, and tears well up in my eyes.
“The longer I am away from either of them, the more my mind becomes a prison, one of derangement. Fynn… I just want to stab him to death; the desire to prolong his death is fading. Instead, a craving to finish him is anchored in me, to end it. And then there’s Elijah; he disgusts me, yet I feel this faint pull despite the distance, a constant in my mind, the curse trying to lure me to him. ”
I hoist myself up and look at Emrys, his beautiful features.
“What if I explain it all to Elijah, Emrys? Tell him his feelings are not real? Maybe it could work if he’s willing to listen to me?”
A pain crashes into my head, and I collapse onto Emrys’s hard chest. Worried, he examines me, holding his hand against my forehead.
“My love, are you alright? What can I do for you? I hate that I cannot protect you from this.”
“I’m fine. It’s the damn curse,” I groan. “It doesn’t like it when I try to defy it or speak badly about Elijah. It punishes me with these charged streaks of pain. It’s pretty intense.”
He drapes his arms around me as I breathe through the pain, holding me tightly and peppering me with soft kisses, our souls humming.
“I’ll never understand why it let us bond, Emrys; the minute I even think of getting rid of Elijah, it goes into this frenzy, causing me this soaring pain, but I am immensely grateful it allowed me to have you and the love you give me.
This is what I want and crave. You and this consuming love we share; it’s what I freely chose. You.”
“I’ve been mulling that over as well. Perhaps it was the purity of the Aurum that supported our bonding, Tempest; maybe the tugging you felt during that experience came from the curse, rather than supporting us—it tried to stop our bonding process.
After all, Aurum is pure, white magic in its origin.
It seems true love is thankfully stronger than that damned curse,” he muses.
I give his words thought. That does make more sense.
Aurum is made of white magic despite its impurity due to its binding with darkness.
It wants the curse destroyed; our bonding sabotages it, fights it.
Perhaps our souls' connection could even break it.
I need it to be able to break it; our love is stronger than this thing that tries to claw its way inside me. I lean into his loving touch.
“I need to talk to him, Emrys; try this. I refuse to suffer for my unchosen fate, and neither should he. It’s not fair to either of us,” I say.
“Please be mindful of yourself, Tempest. I don’t want you to cause yourself harm by doing this.
I understand you want to try, and you will, but your well-being is my main concern.
The boy… Elijah… could be unpredictable due to the curse.
He might not listen to you or might feel provoked.
His desperation could result in even more desperate actions. ”
I nod. Emrys presses his lips against mine, and I eagerly invite him in. Elijah is a problem I’ll think about tomorrow; tonight, it’s just the two of us, me and my monster, our love, one that was destiny, a choice, one that defied a laid-down fate.
He and I went against all odds, a bond between the two of us, rare in its nature, a human and an Umbra, a consensual choice.
One of free will, despite my cursed nature.
A choice I will fight for, that Emrys will fight for.
Despite that strange urge within me that pushes me to Elijah, I know deep down it’s Emrys I want.
I want him for eternity and beyond. Emrys completes me; the missing pieces within my soul, which I wasn’t aware of, were misplaced until I met him.
The moment I heard his voice in Valorya, I recognized a familiarity, awakening an absence I didn’t realize I was suffering from. My soul sensed him instantly.
As we make love in front of the fireplace, neither Elijah nor Fynn occupies my mind; Emrys is present solely in my maze of thoughts as his warm body is pressed against mine, his blood wetting my lips, his teeth in my neck. My worry disappears, replaced by bliss.
It's these moments that I live for, our souls fusing together, our bodies melting into one.
The blood splatters are everywhere, the murders are a mania; it’s on the street, the stones of the gate, on the walls of houses. Limbs brutally ripped from bodies, fractured bones thrown across the ground. This was personal, an attempt to inflict as much pain and terror as possible.
I look at the ruined carcasses with a raised eyebrow and murmur to Emrys, “I'm glad I wasn’t on the receiving end.”
Instinctively, he pulls me closer, as if his scent covering me is not warning enough not to come near me for those who are willing to try to harm me.
The dwindling magic makes him more vigilant than usual.
He is afraid he might not be in time to protect me.
He rarely leaves my side. I find these protective and possessive characteristics extremely arousing and attractive.
Humans. Strange. I wonder why they roamed within these walls… Why would they stay?
Emrys looks at the gate opening, laces his long fingers with mine, and tugs me back to the entrance.
The gates are tall, the stone old and worn.
Regular ivy is climbing the walls, unhurriedly destroying them with its roots.
Emrys eyes something warily as he places a hand in the air.
A faint, glittering rippling occurs, barely noticeable, and my eyes widen as I see it happen.
Wards, my love. I heard about such magic before. No humans can enter or leave Valorya. The witches must have trapped them inside, leaving them vulnerable to attack.
Emrys takes me in his arms as he scouts the surroundings. As he glances around us, he reassures me.
I need to learn what happened here and whether there have been any sightings of the Dhampir, Tempest. I couldn't care less about these humans or the citizens of Valorya, for that matter, but I need to know whether the city is safe for you to explore, especially now that the magic protecting you is decreasing.
I nod at his words, aware that the effectiveness of the Aurum is less prominent each passing day.
I wonder if Fynn knows whether the creatures around him can smell it.
Would the waning magic put a target on his back?
An invite to attack him, that he, unaware, casts around, he and that girl of his, his spurious soulmate.
I hope they find their death without my interference, and this town becomes their tomb.
The peace of mind is something I welcome.
The imagery of Fynn and Jodelle torn to shreds comes to mind, their cries of agony, an imaginary sound that brings comfort.
My love… if the witches trapped these humans… and the wards are to keep humans out of the city, how was it possible for me to enter?
Our bonding most likely took away some part of your human nature, as in you are no longer entirely human… I never thought about that, Harlot; I'm so sorry for the effect. I never meant to take away your humanity.
I shush Emrys; the fact that his essence flows through me is comforting and something I welcome. Given that our bonding fused our eye colors, I am not entirely surprised that my being is somewhat altered, and I am no longer fully human. I can't help but smile, warmth filling my chest.
“Sunshine! Look at you, girl, still glued to that tick of yours, huh? When are you going to end that?”
A voice I’d recognize out of thousands; thrill and revulsion collide upon hearing the nickname he gave me.
I gyrate, and Emrys holds me firmly, his body stiffening from rage; rage at this petty human who dares to give me a nickname, to defy him.
Elijah is either incredibly brave or plain stupid; I'm betting on the latter, given he has most likely never encountered an Umbra before.
A pull from the curse, trying to force me toward Elijah, away from Emrys.
I can feel the pulse coursing through me, irritated with my resistance and disobedience.
It’s almost as if it’s trying to tell me I had fun, yet now it's time to fulfill my duties.
Despite the urge, I resist. I hold on firmly to my love for Emrys, pressing my teeth together as frustration simmers beneath the surface.
“I told you to stop calling me that, you moron,” I hiss.
“I’ll call you whatever I want if it gets your attention, Sunshine,” he retorts.
“Did you and bloodsucker over here already say your goodbyes? You know the time is nearing. I know you can feel it, too, this sizzling energy between us. Don’t you feel the need to explore?
Like I do? Look, Harlot, it seems we've lost the battle with the supernatural this time, so I’m unsure how long we'll stay. All I know is that you and I… we are meant to be together, and he… he can get lost somewhere in his woods for all I care.” Elijah speaks firmly as he waves dismissively at Emrys as if he doesn’t matter.
Elijah is challenging me as he crosses his arms and stares me down; he’s unable to enter the city.
I scoff. That explains his newfound confidence; he’s trying to convince himself he still holds the reins, but it’s all a hollow front.
I pry myself from Emrys’s arms and stomp over to Elijah.
I stop before the wards, ensuring I do not pass the magical barrier between us.