Chapter 8 Rhianelle #2
“This containment spell is granted by the Aeonians themselves,” Eamon says smugly.
His smile shatters when the demon barrels through the barrier.
Darkness envelopes me momentarily as the shield crumbles around us.
My vision returns to the sight of people running.
I barely have the time to calm the ringing in my ears when the creature lunges straight towards me.
Shade charges at the demon with both swords drawn to help. A cracking sound vibrates the air as the Ashmedai snaps its teeth on his body. I waste no time as I steal the Grimsbane’s fallen falchions. With a mighty heave, I dig them deep into the demon’s eye sockets.
“Elven bitch!” The monster hisses, blasting its foul-smelling breath at us.
It speaks…
The grating sound of that voice brings a new set of fears into my heart. I drape Shade’s arm over my shoulders to carry him with me. The Grimsbane doesn’t seem to care for the idea. “Leave me!”
I bite back the urge to scream as we limp our way into the dark forest. By the grace of the gods, we manage to outrun the menacing shadow of death on our tail. I drag Shade by the shoulders and hide with him in the bushes.
My hand trembles as I remove his hauberk carefully.
“Well, shit,” he curses, assessing the vicious cut on his abdomen.
I peer from the bushes to look at the Ashmedai. The demon’s forked tongue darts out between two rows of jagged teeth. “You can’t hide from me forever, elven whore!”
Beads of sweat gather over Shade’s temple, his breathing becoming labored. “You should go. I’m not going to make it.”
I ignore him and continue pressing down on his wound. It ceases bleeding, but the veins around the injury begin to darken. The Ashmedai’s bite has to be venomous. I try to patch it the best I can, but I am not as good as Lady Deirdre.
He makes another pained groan. “Listen, I have a poison capsule buried in my back tooth. If it gets too bad, I’ll just bite—”
“Don’t be stupid!” I snap at him.
“It’s better than being shredded to ribbons.” He sighs with a blank expression. This silly Grimsbane has the nerve to look bored while dying.
“I’ve marked your filthy scent, elven scum!” the demon screams madly. “I will have fun tearing you to fucking pieces!”
A dreadful weight sinks in my stomach. The creature can track me with its heightened senses.
I take one look at Shade, his face growing whiter by the second.
He doesn’t have enough strength to run again.
I slowly grasp his hand, the gesture surprising him a little.
“Don’t you dare give up and die. I promise I’ll come back for you. ”
I don’t wait for his reply when I dart into the forest.
“Come and get me,” I mutter weakly as I draw the demon’s attention away from the Grimsbane. Just as I thought, the beast immediately changes its course. I keep running until I reach the clearing. Jack suddenly jogs next to me.
“Why are you still here?” I ask the human.
“I think I have a better chance of surviving with you than the dying male,” he replies, wiping the tears and sweat from his face.
Bad choice, human. I’m trying to lure the demon into following me. The lullaby surrounds me once again, pulling me to safety.
“Over there!” I point ahead. We bolt straight towards the abandoned well.
The human hesitates for a second. But one look at the demon has him jumping headfirst into the hole.
I don’t think twice as I hurl my body into the dark.
It’s a long fall, thin floors crumbling one after the other under our weight.
Thank the heavens the landing isn’t too bad.
I rub my aching back, struggling to rise.
The ground is soft, littered with dried leaves, dirt and—brittle bones.
“Did we lose him?” Jack asks, groaning with agony.
“We better go,” I urge him, shoving my malachite crystal into his hands. “Just rub it and it will glow.”
The human protests but gradually gets up to his feet to walk into the tunnel. My instinct does not betray me. Several heartbeats later another crash resounds from behind us.
Jack finally finds it in him to run faster. I throw one look over my shoulder to the beast in pursuit. The Ashmedai’s skin peels away into a smaller body, a more terrifying form with needles of sharp teeth. It scuttles after us like a cockroach.
Oh god, oh god.
“They never told me it can shape shift!” Jack panics. I don’t have time to process his words as we race towards the diverging path ahead.
“I sense an escape,” I huff through ragged breaths. I concentrate on finding the flow of air. The route on the left leads to a bunch of narrow staircases that will get us out of this dark hole. We might just make it.
“Take the tunnel on the left!”
Jack veers to the pathway as instructed. He reaches the door first, scrambling to shove it open. I throw as many knives as I can to slow down the demon. All of them hit home but they can’t penetrate its exoskeleton.
The Ashmedai‘s laughter echoes in the passageway. “I’ll have fun dicing you to pieces, elfling!”
I summon whatever courage is left in my veins to push myself forward a little faster. But the human is already shutting the door behind him.
“Jack, wait—”
My heart lurches when I hear the lock click on the other side. I have no choice but to take the remaining path. It leads to a dead end. To my end.
A stone slab falls behind me, sealing the chamber.
The ground feels firm beneath my feet, but I can’t see anything—not beyond me or behind me.
It’s like someone draped a blanket over my head.
The cavern reverberates as something massive crashes, clawing to get in.
I don’t know what else to do. I settle on the floor, hugging my knees in the dark, praying for the wall to hold.
Each rumble of the Ashmedai’s assault is like a hammer to my heart.
After a while, the rumbling stops. The demon may be gone now, but I know it’s searching for a way to get in.
I let myself fall back, sprawling to the floor. There’s nowhere else to go, not when my eyes fail to penetrate through this pitch-black doom.
A depressing aura envelopes the place. I can feel the despair slowly settling into my bones. I will die in this filthy tomb, alone and forgotten. There will be no grave, no marker for the elfling who tried to be queen.
Get up, Rhianelle Wiolant, the Un whispers.
I hear their distant call but I’m already drifting into the emptiness. The dark feeling washes over me in violent waves claiming me into the ocean.
The silly guppies of Llewyn pond are not going to feed themselves. Who’s going to wake Miss Bernadette when winter is over?
Get up. Get up. Get up.
I slowly open my eyes.
That’s right. I can’t give up. I have so many things to look forward to. I want to read more books, hear more music and laughter, feel the sun on my skin. And there are people waiting for me.
Aelfric. Darstan. Garrett. Rainer. Lady Deirdre. Tallulla. Lenna.
Blaire… I need to get her back. I have also foolishly hidden that Grimsbane, Shade under the bushes. No one is going to find him if I’m dead.
Slowly, I begin to crawl until I hit a wall. There has to be a lantern nearby with this faint smell of dried oil. My hand fumbles on the cold marble stone until I feel the rough semblance of a torch.
I strike my dagger to initiate a spark.
“Grianna, please grant me light,” I pray to the Seventy-Seven. With the Goddess of Fire’s blessing, the flint burns into a glorious flame. I smile in triumph as my eyes adjust to the dim lighting.
It quickly falters the moment a breeze ruffles my hair. I’m not alone in this cavern.