Chapter 21
Isoar through the stars on wings of raw energy.
I gaze down at my body to see the celestial night sky adorning my skin, outlined by my markings of brilliant gold.
Galaxies swirl on my flesh; nebulas churn, creation humming inside my marrow.
I glide through the cosmos, witnessing the birth of worlds, the collapse of ancient stars, and the blooming of supernovas.
Clouds of stardust trail in their wake, the echoes of their stories ready to be woven into new ones.
An eerie shiver whips down my spine, lashing me in place.
In the distance, there’s a darkness. Its black draining tendrils reaching for me, growing stronger as I journey closer.
All the light is swallowed whole by it, nothing escaping its clutches.
A chilling fear grasps at my soul. I recoil, whirling to fly in the other direction.
Faster and faster I fly. Light unravels, wisping into ribbons all around me. A blur of endless color.
I’m released from the beams of light into a beautiful nebula. I watch as stardust swirls all around me. My breath is stolen by the beauty of new stars born within the chaos of collisions, each one glowing with newborn hunger.
Then that eerie feeling prickles along my skin—the darkness catching up.
I take flight again, leaping from galaxy to galaxy in an instant.
I am searching for something amongst the stars twinkling around me—though what, I cannot be sure.
My heart is leading the way. She longs for something. No. Someone…
“It is not your time, Starborne,” booms a cutting voice. And I awake.
The light burns my eyes as I adjust from the darkness of my dreams. A warmth drops from my hand, its absence leaving an aching pain in my chest. I lift my weary hand, rubbing the pain away.
“Ah, good. You’re awake,” a familiar voice hums.
“You heal remarkably quick. It is likely the only reason you did not die from your wound before S?las found you.” She pauses thoughtfully, looking me over from the foot of the bed. The blurry figure of Kivi takes shape.
“Please, move slowly. You have a concussion, and although your wounds have healed, your body will still take some more time to replace the blood you lost. I tried to heal the concussion as much as I could, but even my power has limits.” She inspects me once more before continuing, “We voted to keep what happened a secret.”
Kivi then displays her mushroom-covered arm, moving it across the room. “Welcome to my chambers.”
I struggle to sit up, bracing my arms underneath me as I will my body to conform and listen despite the nausea that whirls inside me.
“How long have I been out for?” I ask, a shakiness to my voice I’m unaccustomed to.
“Two days,” a silky-smooth voice replies. It’s so close, I startle, rubbing my eyes to reveal S?las sitting in a chair pulled beside the bed. A brief memory of a warm hand laced in mine flashes through my mind before I shove it away. Out the window you go.
Then the realization of how long I have been out for hits me like a brick.
“I’ve missed two days of class? I am so screwed,” I groan.
“Don’t worry, we all vouched for you. I informed the council you had a nasty stomach bug, and you were too stubborn to let me heal you.
It seems none were too surprised by your stubbornness.
As soon as you’re well, Chancellor Ashfel has summoned your presence,” Kivi says calmly, without any hindrance of emotion in her voice.
“Guess I’m dead after all,” I grumble with a sigh.
“It would rather displease me if you died after all the work we put into saving you. Now I must get to the library to meet Atlas. I imagine you two have much to discuss. Celestials Blessings to you both,” Kivi says as she turns, heading for the door.
“He and I have much to discuss? Oh no, no, no.” I try to stand to follow Kivi leaving the room. I wobble, struggling to catch my bearings. Before I can take a step, a trail of spores shuts the door behind her.
S?las’ arms brace my shoulders, a steadying force gently guiding me back down to safety.
“You’re barely alive, and you’re already raring to go. Nothing stops you, does it?” he inquires with a cocked brow. I’ve forgotten just how beautiful his face is. I will the thought from my mind.
I definitely don’t want to be left alone with him.
“No. And I don’t need you in my way, either,” I snap, but my threat falls flat with the tremble in my voice.
“I will get out of your way once you can walk without falling over. And once you answer two questions.”
“I am making no such deal. I’m fine,” I growl as I stagger, trying to stand again. This time, the world spins before I’m tumbling back to my seat.
“Let me know when you’re done being stubborn. I’ll wait.” He sits back in the chair, crossing his rippling tattooed arms across his chest.
“You’ll be here a long time then.” I scowl, rubbing the sore spot on the back of my head.
“I’ll wait. I’ve got time. I’ve already been here for two days. What’s a few hours more?”
“You’ve been here the whole time? Why?” I ask through gritted teeth. I certainly do not need a sitter.
“Someone had to stand guard since none of our Zenith know what happened to you. Luckily, everyone believes you gave me that stomach bug of yours.” He winks.
I roll my eyes before responding. “Okay, I guess guarding my unconscious body is a fair play,” I admit unhappily before I continue, “How did you even find me?”
“That brings me to the first of my questions. I believe you called him ‘Pip’ right before you passed out?”
As S?las says his name, Pip comes scurrying over his shoulder, straight into my arms. He’s gobbling down a piece of bacon that still partially hangs out of his mouth.
I squeeze him tightly, so relieved he isn’t harmed. Everything happened so fast, I didn’t even have time to check if he was okay. I hold him up, giving him a once over. Not a scratch on him.
He chirps in amusement. I swear, I can feel his happiness that I’m awake.
“I was asleep when this little orange thing found its way into my room. He bit my hand, trying to drag me out of bed. He got frantic when I refused to follow. The little critter stole one of my swords and teleported through my door. I chased him all the way to you. You were bleeding out at the edge of campus. By the Mysticwoods. I tried to pack your wound, but the bleeding wouldn’t stop, even after I placed a tourniquet.
Even my Sangre magic wasn’t strong enough.
As soon as I mentioned dragon fire, he seemed to know what to do and seared your wound shut.
He left a wild scar on your leg. I’ve never seen anything like it,” S?las explains.
“It was so bad, you couldn’t use fire magic combined with Sangre magic to seal the wound?” I inquire. We are taught all manner of healing. The wound would have been major for someone as strong as S?las not to be able to heal it.
“You were practically drowning in your own blood. I still don’t understand how you’re alive.” He looks me up and down. There’s subtle marvel in his face, as if I’m some kind of miracle.
“I’ve always been a quick healer.” I shrug. I’m not really sure how I’m alive either. I felt Death’s voice calling to me. I remember feeling ready for her to take me.
He gives me a suspicious look before he continues, “So. Let’s start with my first question: how have you been hiding a small dragon on campus?”
There’s no way I’m getting out of answering this question, and Pip clearly thinks S?las can be trusted. He’s the person he found to come save me.
I need to add giving Pip a stern talking-to to my list of things to do once I am up and about. Out of all the people in my Zenith, I can’t imagine why he found him. Surely Kivi would have been the most logical choice?
“He has… some really unique magic. I can’t explain it. Trust me, it’s better to just show you.” My eyes land on Pip, and I point to my neck. He gives me a side-eye before begrudgingly crawling up onto my neck, transforming into a scarf.
S?las’ arctic eyes widen, and I swear, the crimson dances within them. Then his gaze hardens, piercing me.
“Next question. Who the fuck did this to you? I want fucking names.”
“I don’t know,” I lie as I peer down at my toes, stroking Pip. He turns back into his natural form, curling up at my side.
“You’re lying to me. Don’t do it again,” he commands in a lethal tone.
“Is that a threat?” I growl as I lift my chin to him. He may have saved my life, but that doesn’t give him the right to boss me around.
“I saved your life. It’s the least you could do,” he purrs.
“I didn’t ask you to,” I hiss.
“You didn’t have to.” His words caress my skin.
“You’re infuriating!” I roar. Trying to rattle the sensation from my body.
“Birds of a feather…”
“They are not your battle to fight.”
“Names!”
“I am not some damsel in distress for you to save.”
“Damsels aren’t my type. And trust me, what I have planned for them will certainly make me no prince.”
“I can handle them myself.” I stare at my feet, fury seeping off me.
He takes the side of his knuckle to my chin, tilting my eyes to his. “I know. I have no doubt of that, you little savage.” He pauses. His eyes search mine, storming with shadows swirling into a vortex, almost lost completely to darkness.
“I want to fillet their flesh. Just slowly enough that they have time to heal. So I can do it all over again while I bathe in their screams for mercy. I want them to choke on the pain that bludgeoned me while I held you dying in my arms.” His voice is quiet. A deadly rasp.
I’ve never seen this dark side of him. He is the very essence of violence before me, yet he holds my face so delicately on his tattooed knuckle.
His menacing words slipping like liquid silk between my ribs, stirring my own darkness, waking the shadow dragon curled around my misshapen heart, her prize treasure deep within her glacial palace.