Chapter 3
Three
Shaye
Begrudgingly Nyx follows me and Thrane through the palace and down the winding staircase deep into the dungeons.
I had mentally pictured the dungeons being dark and damp and smelling like sewers.
To my surprise, the dungeons don't look any different than the rest of Stelara.
Although it is much colder down here which causes my teeth to chatter.
I wrap my arms around myself but can't seem to find an ounce of warmth.
As if a thousand tiny needles are poking my skin.
I puff out a breath and see it floating in front of me.
I glance back at Nyx, sure he's also struggling, but I'm shocked he's not showing any signs of being cold. Thrane too shows no sign of discomfort.
"What is this his-s-story lesson you are s-s-so eager to t-t-teach me," I stutter.
Thrane ignores my question, motioning me forward. I roll my eyes and continue down the corridor.
As we come to a door at the very end of the hallway, there's a statue of a woman with her eyes closed and hands in a praying position.
I approach her and a warm familiarity hits me.
I know I've never seen her before, but I feel as if I know her.
With reverence, I reach up and touch her hand.
Suddenly, I see her. It's brief but I see her golden eyes and brown skin.
She smiles down at me. The light hits her gold adornments just enough for her to radiate like the sun itself.
As I smile up at her, her own smile fades, followed by darkness and screams.
Nyx grabs my shoulders and yanks me away from the statue. We fall to the cold floor in a heap.
"Kitarni, what the hell was that? Why did you scream?"
"I didn't scream," I insist, wiping sweat from my brow. How am I sweating? It's freezing down here. "She screamed."
I glance from Nyx up to Thrane who remains stoic but fascinated.
Thrane clasps his hands behind his back. "This type of encounter has happened before."
A statement.
"Yes," I admit. "But up until now, it's only pertained to my father."
"What about dreams?" Thrane presses. "Nightmares? Visions?"
"I seem to have more nightmares than dreams these days. And they all feel real. Like I can't escape them." The admission causes my throat to dry and my shoulders tense. "I fear they'll actually happen."
Thrane nods as if everything I just said is normal. "Seems your light magic isn't the only thing you inherited from your Sol bloodline. You have the gift of Celestial Sight."
"What is Celestial Sight?" I ask as Nyx helps me stand up.
"Certain Celestials can touch objects imbued with Holy Magic and get a glimpse of a memory," Thrane explains. "They even have visions while they sleep, glimpses of the future."
My mind races and my stomach flips. I start to remember all the incidents I've encountered Celestial Sight. It started back in Bava at the ruined temple. But again, all those instances were in relation to my father.
But it's the nightmares that make me sick. Darkness, suffering, torment. That's all I see when my eyes close. My friends are tortured. My throat is slit. In the end, I fail to save them and myself.
Tears prick my eyes. I fix my gaze on the woman's statue once more. "Who is she?" I need to purge the nightmares from my mind.
Thrane stands shoulder to shoulder with me and looks up at her. "Izara Sol. She is your aunt."
"Is she alive?"
"No one knows for sure. All that is known for certain is she fought alongside Oryn and Naya and was close with our ancestor, Bain Basilius.
" Thrane explains the history as if he's reliving it, drawing me in.
"There are multiple differing stories that Izara sacrificed herself to save her friends, or she was captured by the enemy and was never seen again and even reports that the Demon King drained her Holy Magic, so she wanders this realm as a wraith. "
"Did Bain not give an account after the war?" I ask, hoping Bain survived.
"From what I've heard over the years, when Bain returned from the war, he was never the same. He went slightly mad. All his free time was spent sculpting statues of her. Each one is erected throughout Stelara, and his favorite was placed in the Temple."
"He mourned her," I whisper.
"Yes," Thrane agrees. "He mourned her the rest of his days."
"What was she to him?" Nyx asks, finally invested in the story.
Thrane looks back at him and smiles. "Bain never said. But he loved her, that much is certain."
"And my father? Did he not know what happened to her?"
Thrane shakes his head. "As far as I am aware, he hasn't spoken of his sister. Then again, I was a child when Enver Sol walked these halls. It's nothing he would speak with me about."
But he might have told my mother. I lock the thought away for later, seeing a conversation with Sylvane is in order.
I swipe a tear from my eye. "Why put a statue of Izara down here in the dungeons?"
"She guards the Sol Room." Thrane slides his hand up to a lever on the wall I failed to notice and tugs it forward.
The statue spins to reveal one more flight of steps and a door at the bottom.
"During the war, Izara imbued this room with her Holy Magic.
It binds demons, rendering them powerless.
We've not had to use this room in quite a long time. "
"That's why you said the Soul Eater wouldn't be able to harm me even if he wanted to," I put the pieces together. "He's down there?"
"Yes," Thrane bobs his head. "If you choose to speak to him, keep in mind he will do his best to get into your head. He will try to frighten you. He will look for a reaction. If he spots a weakness or senses fear in you, he will prey on it. Do you understand?"
I inhale deeply. "I understand. What do you want me to ask him?"
"She's not going in there alone, is she? You can't – " Nyx balks but before he can protest further, I wrap my hand around his wrist and squeeze, drawing his gaze.
"You won't be able to protect me from everything, Nyx. At some point, I will have to walk in my own power. And sometimes that means I have to walk alone."
"Sorry I'm late," a familiar voice from behind us calls and my stomach knots.
I turn around and find Finn bobbing down the corridor, hands buried deep in his pockets, shivering from the cold.
"What are you doing here?" I ask, only to be met with a tongue-tied Finn.
"Finn has graciously agreed to help us," Thrane inserts himself into the conversation, drawing our surprised gazes.
"And why would he be involved in this interrogation at all?" Nyx questions, eyes narrowed in protective warning.
"Your brother might try to hide what he is and what he is capable of, but I make it my business to know who I align myself with.
" Thrane leans against the wall, crossing his arms across his chest. "Finn and I agree, if Aurelia cannot persuade this demon to talk, perhaps your pain inflicting brother can. "
"No." Nyx growls, pointing a finger at Thrane. "Leave Finn out of this."
"Finn," I protest, "you can't – "
"It was my choice," Finn interrupts, a sorrowful determination written across his face. "We need information. No one is getting through to him and we're running out of time."
"Let me try on my own," I counter, desperation seeping through my tone. "I can convince him to tell us whatever it is you want to know."
"I admire your confidence, Cousin," Thrane shakes his head. "But this demon only asked to see you for nefarious intentions, not because he suddenly grew a conscious." Thrane and Finn exchange a loaded stare. "You know what to do."
Finn places his hand on my shoulder and smiles. "Let's go."
Nyx steps between us and the staircase. His concern focused solely on his brother. "Don't do this. I don't care what he promised or threatened you with but – "
"Threatened?" Thrane scoffs. "I believe Finn is capable of deciding if and when he lends his services."
Thrane's response irritates Nyx unlike I've ever seen before. Typically poised and not easily angered, Nyx looks ready to risk his freedom to land one solid punch across Thrane's jaw.
I slip my hand over Nyx's shoulder before squaring my shoulders with Finn's. "Nyx is right. You don't have to do this. You don't have to use your magic – "
Finn interrupts, "I know I don't have to but whether we like it or not, we're now at war. If I don't use my magic, people might die, and that's not something I can live with staining my conscious. Not while I can help."
I open my mouth to protest when he firmly wraps his hand around my bicep. "Let me do this."
I shoot Thrane a nasty look over Finn's shoulder. "You shouldn't have asked Finn – "
"He didn't ask me to do anything," Finn once again cuts me off. "I volunteered. I told you, this is my choice. Let me be of service to protect those I love."
What he's not saying is to protect Eris, to protect his brothers, to protect his people. I'm not sure what will happen if he uses his magic in there, but a small, fragmented part of me knows if I can't get the demon to talk, Finn might be our only hope in getting answers to aid our cause.
I lock eyes with Thrane. "What do you want me to ask the demon?"
If thought the hallway was cold, this windowless cell is downright freezing.
I grind my back teeth, attempting to keep myself poised for this interrogation.
There's only one thing Thrane wants me to unearth: the location of the portal to the underworld.
And if I don't want Finn being forced to use his magic, I'll need to procure the information on my own.
All we know about the portal so far is Bastian is obviously reconstructing it if all he needs is my blood to open it.
The demons have worked diligently in silence for years.
All they were truly missing, what Bastian and his Soul Eaters were searching for, was the heir of Enver Sol.
Me. They were searching for me, and I was right under their noses.