64. Haze
Haze
M y knees tremble as I take my first steps out of the inner sanctum. My body was not prepared for the power that pulses under my skin. My mind buzzes with voices, bouncing around in my throbbing skull.
I am barely here. Numb, but somehow still in control of my limbs.
I look down at Lina’s limp form, her soft skin and bronze curls, barely noticing the child on her knees beside her. I will not survive this, but maybe it was still worth it.
My death will be worth something. My sore heart swells at that thought.
Life could stand a chance in this world. She might stand a chance.
The blight will never come to pass if I can help it. The Drak’yn’s power may even bleed out, leaving them weaker and weaker.
All I have to do is die.
If I die, in the right place, at the right time, I will take this new power along with me into the ether and hope for humanity may yet live.
But first, I must save her. And that is going to be more difficult than I’m ready to face.
The girl, somehow, remained conscious against my rush of power. How? A puzzle to solve at another time.
Her body is small, her limbs so thin it’s a wonder she’s alive, yet her dark eyes are full of… something more. After a moment, her brow pinches.
Then, her lips fall open. “It was you.”
I tilt my head at the girl. Her darker complexion makes her lineage obvious. It’s no wonder she was directly taken to the dungeons. The Drak’yn do not like witches. What does she see, I wonder? Does she already know the secrets I hide?
“You’re the reason it changed,” the girl says.
I raise one brow. “What changed?”
“We were going to make it. We were going to survive. But then you crossed our path.”
I frown down at Lina, as I take in the witch-child’s words. Lina was going to survive without me. “I’m sorry,” I whisper. “I did not wish to take anything from her. I would have set her free, if I could have.”
The girl seems to consider this before her brow smooths out and she shrugs. “So you’re going to help us now?”
My lips twitch in amusement. We have only moments before the rest of the guards arrive. Before either Blythe wakes, or Moira learns what has happened and sends the entire army after us.
This new power is formidable, but I cannot fight them all. Not yet. And once I can—no one will be safe. Not even Lina.
I am now the key to their power and I will not know a moment of peace until I am in the ground, or back under the control of the Nihil priestesses.
I lean down and lift Lina into my arms. She is warm against my chest. “I will do what I can.” My body is pulsing with new magic, rushing through every vein. Yet I am calm. Somehow, the new beast inside has not yet arisen.
How long do I have before his power becomes limitless? How long do I have until I lose myself to the darkness?
“Come on,” I tell the girl, as I turn to carry Lina from this terrible place. I pray to gods I know would never bother to aid me, but perhaps they will be willing to aid her. I pray that she never need set foot in this place again. I pray for her life. Her freedom. Her hope.
I will happily trade my life for hers, knowing she will never know the depth of my devotion.
The child skitters behind me, following me from the sanctum.
Once outside the doors, the set of waiting soldiers pause. Ivar holds his sword out, but his eyes are wide in shock. Does he understand the significance? Can he feel the power coursing through my veins? Does he know I am now the Ancient he is sworn to serve?
“Bow,” I command. One by one the soldiers feel the call to their Nihilian souls and they drop to their knees. They do not yet know I am a thief, stealing their god from them.
Ivar is the last to fold. His fist tightens on the handle of the blade. He knows he would not live if he were to attack me now, the other soldiers would not allow it.
I walk freely from the sanctum, until I find my last true friend awaiting me.
His huff rattles the ground . What have you done? Mavros says.
I don’t answer, because even I don’t fully understand the depth of the consequences I’ll face for this. It was the only way to save her. It was needed.
But it will change everything.
The darkness inside my soul is quiet, but I can feel it’s purr of pleasure, ready for his new responsibility. Eager to prove himself worthy. He won’t make it easy for me to end our lives.
“No,” the child mutters behind me.
I turn to face her, Lina still in my arms. She stares up at Mavros, with more fear than she’s shown since I’ve known her. While that hasn’t been long, she’s had much to fear so it is impressive.
Somehow, Drak warriors, the golden priestess and Nihil himself did not scare her but a drakai is enough to shake her courage.
“He won’t hurt you,” I tell her, before I carefully carry the woman I love, unconscious in my arms, onto Mavros’ back and adjust her into a position where I can hold her in place as I ride.
“No,” the child says again, this time louder. “I’m not riding that.”
Mavros grunts and shivers. The witch better behave .
“Get on, or we don’t make it out of here.”
She crosses her arms. “I’m not riding a Drakai!”
“It is our only way to escape. Get on or I’ll leave you behind.”
“You have limitless power now! What are you even afraid of? Besides, what do you think Lina will say when she wakes.” She crosses her arms.
“I do not have limitless power yet, and when I do, I will not be the same. I have a matter of days to cross the desert into Arynth before that happens. I don’t care what she says when she wakes. She has many reasons to hate me. What’s one more? Your choice is the drakai or the dungeon. Choose now.”
The child grunts and stomps her foot. But finally, she reluctantly climbs onto Marvos behind me. She curls her arms around my waist. “Don’t drop her.”
Soldiers are shouting as we cross the bridge across the pit. The draken below screech and shout.
She is mine , Amora reminds me.
I ignore them all.
Ride fast, I tell Mavros. We must reach the desert before the blood moon.