Chapter Twenty-Nine
The Caged
We are all silent as we make the trek through the woods.
They are dense, blocking most of the sunlight.
While I spent a lot of time in the Chatisian woods, my time in Noterra didn’t include a lot of exploring.
But these woods, they feel…haunted. I feel this presence pushing down on me, making it hard to take a deep breath.
Something is burrowing into my skin, begging to break through and take over.
Neither of them acts as if anything is amiss, but I feel it. I feel him.
Nithe stays quite a bit ahead, saying that his magical ears can hear better than we can.
Enzo started by walking behind me but has decided to stay directly next to me.
I can feel his warmth and my sweaty hands ache to push him away, to keep distance.
But I keep telling myself they are here to protect me.
But didn’t Tobias say the same thing?
“Can I ask you something?” My voice is quiet, an underlying fear of talking too loud keeps me from raising it. Who knows who is out here, lurking behind the crowded tree trunks.
“Of course. ”
“Nithe, is he a witch too?”
“No, he’s not.” He snorts as if the ide a is comical.
“His eyes…and that weird glow. I remember a beast—I don’t know what I saw.”
“Nithe is—he’s not human. But neither are you and I.” His avoidance at answering the question just piques my interest even more.
My eyes fix on Nithe’s back, sweat soaking into his already dark tunic, making it nearly black.
My bare feet constantly trip and slip on the forest floor, and I know I’ll have a few more cuts marring my body after this walk.
My legs aren’t cold, though, which I appreciate, but every brush of the cloak and every strained step makes my leg cramp.
I can feel the burnt flesh, feel the heat rippling off of it.
I don’t know what they used to cauterize the wound, but I only hope they didn’t cause more damage.
Though, that isn’t what’s making me nervous.
These woods just don’t feel safe.
“What are you ?” I ask, trying to distract myself.
“I am a seer, or a prophet as most say, but I am also a shifter.” My eyes widen and stop, memories flicking through my head one by one. Silky black feathers with a green sheen.
The pot of lip stain.
“A raven. You came to me as a raven.” He smiles, his eyes twinkling as he continues to walk.
“Yes, I did.” Shock barrels through me. I remember the lip stain, the way he looked at me. But I didn’t believe—I couldn’t believe that was him.
“Can you only shift into a raven?” I start walking again, catching up to him quickly. “Or could you shift into something else?” I ask softly.
“I can shift into anything I can see. I have to know what something looks like in great detail prior, otherwise I can turn into something that lacks the ability to breathe, thus killing me.” He explains.
“Could you shift into a horse and make this journey quicker?” I ask. Nithe snorts up ahead and I fight the urge to smile in satisfaction .
“I could, but Nithe would break my back if he tried to mount me.” He replies, a laugh bubbling on his lips.
“There is no chance in hell I would try to mount you, brother.” I snort this time and Enzo gives me a sheepish grin.
“How you can even smile is beyond me, Elaenor.” The small twist of my lips melts away, and I look at the ground, fixating on my desire to not slice my feet up any more than they already are.
I don’t comment.
I don’t respond.
I stay silent the rest of the walk.
There are a lot of ways I can look at my life.
I can feel sad about the childhood that was ruined.
I can feel broken by the husband who thought torture was a good outlet for his rage.
I can remember every moment he touched me, both with love and with anger.
I can think about how I don’t want to be alive, how my only goal and desire in life right now is to watch the light fade from Tobias’s eyes.
All I want is vengeance. And I will stay alive until I get it. After that, I have no desire to breathe longer than needed. I’m too tired.
Whatever plans they have for me, they don’t matter. I have spent the better part of a year acting, and I can do it for a few moments longer.
I have to.
My heart nearly stops when we crest the last remaining hill and break through the treeline, approaching a cliff. What lies in front of me is The Delaquar, shining brightly in the early morning sun, but that isn’t what stops me in my tracks.
Just beyond the edge of the lake below us, the remnants of the bridge between Chatis and Noterra poke out of the surface.
Burnt stone and rubble can be seen through the crystal-clear waters, marring what was probably a perfect lakebed.
But even that isn’t what makes me want to collapse into a pile on the dirty ground .
It's the sight of my home.
Rubble and smoke fill the open plain between the mountains. How there is still smoke, I have no idea, but it’s there. White and billowy, more suffocating than the ever-present fog and mist.
The stone palace, nestled into the mountainside, is gone. Parts of it jut out into the open air, staircases leading nowhere. Glass from the windows sparkle in the sunlight. The town square that used to house merchants and festivals is buried under homes and shops.
Everything is just gone.
“I saw it right after it happened.” I whisper, my voice hoarse.
Nithe and Enzo both stop to look at me, and I don’t miss the surprise crossing their faces.
“He brought me here right after he cut Theo’s head off in the throne room.
Barefoot and half-naked, exactly how I am right now.
He pulled me through the rubble with a collar around my neck.
” My hand raises and my cold fingertips brush the circular wounds on my neck.
“He sat up high on his horse, holding a metal leash as if I was a hound. I could feel the glass and rubble slice through my feet to the bone. It hurt so bad I almost begged him, begged him to make it stop. But I didn’t.
I endured the pain. I let the blood drip from my wounds and soak into the grass, mixing with the blood of those who used to live there. ”
I take a breath, my pulse decreasing as I enter a deep numbness, a calm I only felt when Nylah left me.
“It was my fault. I angered him. He did this out of retaliation for what he believed was insubordination. Five hundred people lived here and every single one of them died. There isn’t a single night I don’t picture their faces.
Faces I saw burnt beyond recognition. Faces that were just rotting skulls as the fire melted away their flesh.
Glass and bone. I dreamt of it every night for ten years, and I never believed it was real.
I believed I was going crazy, a child with an imagination.
But I wasn’t. I predicted their deaths and did nothing to stop it. ”
Enzo steps forward, but I don’t acknowledge him. I push past the both of them and turn to start the small trek down the cliff edge to the lake, where a small, wooden boat sits.
I only make it a few steps before we hear it. I freeze as I listen, as do they. Pounding. Rhythmic pounding that sounds so familiar. I look at Nithe, his head cocking to the side as he listens with whatever magic flows in his veins.
“What is that?” I whisper. His eyes flash to mine and widen. Enzo grabs my arm and pushes me towards the cliff. Panic ensues as I nearly topple over the edge. “What are you doing?” I scream and try to pry his fingers off of me before I fall.
“Those are horses, Elaenor.” Horses . He holds me steady near the edge, where I can feel the crumbling dirt falling.
“What do we do?” I step closer to Enzo, and away from the drop, his eyes staring at Nithe, who’s staring back. “What do we do?” I repeat. Nithe nods and I look up at Enzo. “Enzo?” Nithe’s hand grabs my wrist as he pulls me to him.
“You need to trust me.” I pull against his hand.
“Tell me what is happening!” I demand. He grabs my face, his palms encompassing my cheeks as he forces me to look at him.
“You have to jump.” My eyes widen and I try to shake my head, but his grip prevents it. “You have to trust me and jump.” I glance to my left, right over the cliff edge to the rocks and lake below.
“No.” I grab his wrists. “Please, I can’t swim.” He leans in, his forehead pressed against mine as he takes a long deep breath. The hoof beats grow in volume, and I start to hear the branches cracking beneath their feet.
They are close.
“ Trust me, Elaenor.” Tingles erupt from his touch, shooting through my veins and straight to my heart.
His amethyst eyes bore into mine and I nod, inhaling the citrusy scent of him.
I trust him. I don’t know why, or what it is, but I trust him.
He releases my face but keeps ahold of my hand, lacing his fingers through mine.
I turn to Enzo, whose skin is rippling black.
He nods once before a black cloud explodes from him, leaving behind a tiny raven.
My heart pounds in my chest as Nithe drags me back from the edge of the cliff, towards the trees .
“Wait, no! What are you doing?” I stammer as my feet slip over the rocks. His eyes are focused on the cliff edge.
“We have to run to clear the rocks.” He says softly.
I can hear the beasts crashing through the underbrush.
Just as I see the first snout, Nithe starts to run, dragging me along.
Right as I am pulled over the edge, a scream lodged in my throat, I see Tobias’s face.
His eyes are wide, his lips parted in shock.
He pulls the reins, stopping Wyclif before he can go over the edge with us.
My eyes stay locked on his as I fall through the air. Wind whips through my hair, snapping me in the face. I can’t scream. I can’t even breathe.
I just fall.