Chapter 12
Chapter Twelve
WOLFE
Darkness stretched endlessly around me.
The Void had no sky. No ground. No beginning nor end.
Only shadows and the pathways between them.
I moved through the darkness as quickly as I could, changing direction every few moments, suppressing every trace of magic I could manage.
I didn't know if Zyrra could track me. And I wasn't about to find out.
The only thing that mattered was getting far enough away. Far enough that no one could follow.
I’d portaled Alaric and the others back to Vyrenth Hollow. They were no match for Zyrra. I couldn’t risk her hurting them, and I couldn’t worry about them and fight her at the same time.
I would have gone back to Vyrenth Hollow with them. The house was protected, so Zyrra wouldn’t have been able to get in. But I knew she would have followed us through the portal and wreaked havoc along the way, slaughtering my friends and family.
This way, creating distance, gave us all a chance.
A chance to live to fight another day.
My gaze dropped to the woman cradled in my arms.
Elariya had passed out from my magic, and she hadn't stirred. I was already using all my energy to suppress the full effects of my magic so it wouldn’t rot away her flesh. But it was still too much.
She was still too close to me.
What the fuck did I expect?
I was Death.
Mage magic was pure. In this raw state, I was draining her life with every breath.
This wasn’t like the past, like in the Land of the Dead, or when I’d killed the Ruskiel, when I’d tapped into my powers. That had just been a taste.
Strands of blood red hair had come loose from her bun and fallen across her cheek.
She’d come for me.
Gods. They all had.
Alaric.
Bastian.
Garrick.
Arielle.
Kaem.
And my wife.
They'd risked everything to save me. I should be back there at the Citadel, rotting with worry in my cage as I counted down the hours until my dissolvement.
I’d been going over memories, memories of Elariya, when everything froze.
I sensed the idea to break me out was hers. My Deathwalker abilities allowed me to pick up strong time magic in the air. Stronger than I’d known from her. My guess was she’d frozen time, and everything within it. The others did the rest.
The plan—whatever they came up with to break me out—would have succeeded if not for Zyrra. She’d resisted the spell. No surprise there.
A growl rumbled low in my chest.
I tightened my hold on Elariya and forced myself to keep moving.
I didn’t know where the hells I was going. My only goal was to keep Elariya safe.
Zyrra wanted her, and almost got her.
And she wanted me dead. The fact that I’d escaped my demise again thwarted her plans. She would come back for me stronger, and Elariya would pay the price.
I forced the thought from my mind and tried to focus.
Getting off the radar was the best thing to do now. If I tapped too much into my Deathwalker powers, it would feed on what little was left of my Fae essence.
Through the Void I went, moving faster than I normally would. Honestly, I’d lost my bearings and didn’t even know where the hells I was.
Then, in the dark, a sparkle of light caught my attention.
The sparkle multiplied, becoming more and more, and my weary heart rejoiced when I realized what I was seeing.
Nyzith strands.
Gods be good. The ring was helping me.
The strands of silver surrounded us, pulsing over my form—guiding me.
I allowed them to.
They took over my movements, directing me faster, then slower, then down.
I simply followed, clutching Elariya’s body as close as I could to my heart.
We pierced through more darkness, and I slowed completely, my feet touching the ground. Then the darkness began to clear, brightening around the strands, and I realized where I was.
The Interstice.
A pocket within the spatial realm. A place that was disconnected from main sources of magic.
Only creatures who belonged here could use the realm’s magic. Everything else would…
My mind stalled when I noticed parts of my actual arms reappearing around Elariya’s body. It wasn’t completely solid flesh and bone, but there.
At that moment, I realized why the Nyzith strands had brought me here.
My Deathwalker magic wouldn’t work here. Neither would the full effect of the curse. The neutral magic in the realm would separate my Fae abilities from everything else.
Merciless gods.
I looked towards the strands and bid them thanks with a dip of my head, although I was never sure if they could hear me.
If they could, they responded with a twist and twirl, then a sword fluttered down toward my hand. I caught it. It was Elariya’s sword. It had fallen out of her hand during our getaway.
The magic imbued within the sleek blade stirred at my touch. Then the Nyzith strands disappeared, going out one by one like someone switched them off.
A strange silvery-green glow took their place. It was still fairly dark but lighter than moonlight.
I looked around for somewhere to lay Elariya. We needed shelter. Somewhere safe and hidden.
The last time I’d been here, I’d bargained with the demon Erethis for Elariya’s soul.
We’d been in a cave. This place was…
My gaze drifted over the macabre surroundings of gnarled, leafless trees that had never seen the sun, and what may have been the sky was a gathering of fog and mist.
Of all the places I’d ever visited in my life, I’d hated the spatial realm most. And within it the Interstice was the worse. No one knew exactly how far it reached. Only that troublesome demons like Erethis lived here.
If you lived your life without ever entering either of those places, you wouldn’t be missing out.
The spatial realm coexisted with Vaelthorne like the Void and the dead realms. And like those places, it had its rules. Ones I was not prepared for given the fact that my magic wouldn’t work here and I couldn’t change back to Fae.
Only the gods knew exactly where we were, but I had to believe the Nyzith strands would not have brought us here if we wouldn’t be safe. At least for the moment.
I drifted down the path, searching through the foggy gloom.
For a long while, I found nothing. Then the mist shifted and I saw more of the landscape.
A low hill of pale stone rose in the distance. I made my way there and found a narrow alcove carved into the rock face. I went inside and realized it marked the entrance to a much larger cavern hidden within the rock. There wasn't much to it, but it was perfect for what we needed.
Small winged creatures like fireflies moved lazily through the grayness, their bodies glowing with faint silver light that brightened the area.
Across from us was a bed of grass. It wasn’t green, more of a rustic, burnt-orange color.
I made my way over there and lay Elariya atop. I placed her sword next to her. The way I’d sleep with mine.
I was proud of her. This woman kept blowing my mind. Tonight, she’d exhibited a strength and courage I had not seen in her before.
But as her hands flopped to her sides like a ragdoll, limp and lifeless, I waved a hand over her body, checking her vitals. Just to be certain. I couldn’t live if anything happened to her.
If anything happened to her, I didn’t want to.
Everything was working as it should. Heart, pulse, breath, magic.
Her system was just overwhelmed from my magic. And being around me. I hoped she’d wake from her slumber soon.
But wake to what?
What plan did I have?
I sunk to the floor and leaned against the wall, testing my body and the surroundings.
Something had changed in me. Something was still changing. I could feel it within me—particles of dark magic separating and my Fae essence breathing.
Could I stay here and possibly strengthen enough of my Fae essence to change back?
Maybe.
But… there was a big caveat.
If it worked, it worked, but it would only work if I remained here. In this place.
The moment I surfaced outside this realm, the problem would return. Probably a hundredfold.
Death was always eager to take me. It wanted me to embrace the darkness and become one with it.
When I first received the curse, I fought back for the throne and my people. I suppressed and controlled the carnal desire to slip away and become the monster.
Now I did it for her.
My gaze drifted back to Elariya.
The fiery hair adorning her head looked stark beside everything else. Radiant red against a nightmare world devoid of hope. Even her pale, creamy cheeks provided more color and warmth than this barren realm.
Gods, I longed to touch her. Longed for my fingertips to caress her skin. Longed to see that look of love in her beautiful hazel eyes. Love for me.
I should have known something had changed in her, too, before she told me she broke her curse. I’d never seen so much love for me in her. It was as though everything had poured into that single moment and she was my mage again.
Finally, we were together.
But look at me.
Fate’s cruel hand had dealt me another wicked blow and laughed in my face, telling me I couldn’t have the woman I wanted.
But we were here now.
And as long as I stayed here, I’d have her. She made me selfish enough to become her Hades again and keep her. That part of me didn’t care about right or wrong.
Only that she was mine. Staying here kept her being mine.
Elariya stirred.
Did she hear my deranged thoughts?
She rolled her head from side to side and her eyes gently fluttered open, finding me.
Panic crawled across her features, and she bolted upright, clutching a hand to her chest.
“Wolfe,” she breathed my name. Though her voice stayed calm, the tremble in her hands showed her fear.
She was right to be afraid of me. I didn’t even know my limits.
I stood and tried to speak, but my words came out in a fierce growl that made her jump and her already pale skin become paler.
“Wolfe, please, it’s me.”
I know.
I moved closer, knowing I looked like her worst nightmare. I tried to speak again, but my efforts came out in a hollow wail.
Instantly, her eyes snapped wide and the tremble in her hands spread through her entire body. She scrambled to her knees and backed away, a quivering mess.
Fucking hells. I was doing this all wrong.
But what else could I do?
I hung my head down and took a raspy breath.
As I lifted my head, I spotted a weed in the corner with a dark mauve flower nestled amongst the briers.
It gave me an idea. A long shot.
I went over to it and picked the flower.
Elariya watched me carefully, as I made my way back to her.
I stopped before her and held out the flower.
Please don’t be afraid of me.
Her trembling stopped instantly and she took the flower, gazing at me longingly with those big beautiful eyes.
Her breath stuttered, and she placed the flower to her heart, then looked back at me. “It’s still you.”
Always.
For now, this moment was all I could give her.