Chapter 26
Ara
I waited near the cave,behind a large shrub that mostly shielded me from view. Between the smell coming from the cave, and the fact that cyclops are rarely challenged, I hoped he wouldn’t be able to detect me until I was ready.
It felt like forever waiting there. I was getting restless, moving from foot to foot, while giving myself the occasional break to close my eyes so I could have a reprieve from the spinning. My stomach churned and I was starting to sweat. The poison was getting worse. I wasn’t sure how much time I had.
Several times, I wanted to leave my spot and check on Ryvin and Vanth, but I couldn’t risk giving any of us away. Finally, I heard the unmistakable sound of a lumbering creature. As I hoped, the cyclops didn’t care if anyone knew it was coming. At least that meant he was probably the worst monster around. Hopefully, he was the only one guarding the sorceress.
Heavy footsteps came closer, and I prepared to be caught. Swallowing hard, I tried to convince myself that I was going to be fine. That the waves of nausea weren’t distracting. That I didn’t need the ground to be still to complete my task.
The monster stopped in front of his fire, dropping some wood on it before stoking it. Then he headed toward his cave.
I moved, making the shrub rustle. I shifted so more of me was uncovered, then ducked behind again, as if desperate to stay out of sight.
I couldn’t watch the monster anymore, but I heard the steps getting closer.
“Who dares come to my home? Are you here for your friends? I was hoping I’d get a few more of you for my dinner,” the cyclops called.
I balled my hands into fists and prepared myself. I knew it was possible this was it for me, but I was already on borrowed time.
Making what I hoped was a believable startled scream, I ran. The monster laughed, giving chase.
I ran until I was positioned in the correct place, then stopped and stared at the cyclops. The fear in my expression wasn’t false. He towered over me, his fists larger than my head. The giant eye was locked on me and he grinned at me, his expression full of hungry malice. He was already drooling and I could see the sharp points of his rotting teeth.
“Please,” I begged. “Please don’t eat me.”
He reached a massive hand toward me, and I tensed, preparing to be captured. Instead, he roared and flung his hands away from me, flailing wildly as he tried to get the two men off his back.
Ryvin and Vanth were holding on with everything they had as Vanth climbed on top of the monster’s shoulders. He leaned forward, preparing to strike while Ryvin used a blade to poke at the cyclops every time his hands came too close to the shifter.
I turned away just as Vanth shoved the bone in the monster’s eye. When I looked back, I caught him slicing his sword through the already injured eye. The bone stuck out, looking impossibly small in the massive eyeball, but the blade had sliced all the way across.
The cyclops screamed, the sound making me cover my ears. Ryvin and Vanth were now attacking the monster, going for his neck while the cyclops was trying to cover his injured eye.
I couldn’t watch. I’d killed people, but this was brutal. The monster was so large, it dragged on. It felt cruel, but then I reminded myself he planned to eat me.
When I opened my eyes, I saw that the cyclops’ mouth had gone slack. He swayed, then began to fall like a tree that had been hacked down with an axe.
Rvyin and Vanth leaped from his shoulders, landing in the dirt nearby. We all stared at the monster, as if waiting for him to rise and charge us again.
“I think he’s dead,” Vanth said.
Ryvin returned his weapon to its sheath, then bypassed the fallen monster to reach me. He pulled me into his arms and I relaxed into him, feeling nothing but relief that I’d saved him. It didn’t matter if it cost me my own life. He’d get to keep living, and that was enough.
Thunder rumbled overhead, and I felt the first drop of rain on my arm. Instinctively, I looked to the sky, but with the incoming storm, there were no stars. Raindrops hit with more frequency, making the fire flicker and sizzle.
“We should get inside,” Vanth suggested.
Ryvin kept his arm around me as we entered the cave, which helped me appear steadier than I was. My hands were shaking, though, and I felt both too hot and too cold. But he was alive, even if I wasn’t going to be for much longer.
“Do you think the entrance is in here somewhere?” Vanth asked, already searching the walls.
“It might be.” Ryvin moved away from me and sent several fae lights into the space, brightening it as if we were outdoors under the midday sun.
The walls were splashed with dark dried blood and every bit of the floor was covered in bones. How long had people come here and ended up as a meal for this monster? I didn’t even know this sorceress existed before this, but she must have had a lot of people coming to her over the years. Had the Fae King done that? Come here and appease the cyclops somehow so he could meet with the sorceress? Or had she gone to him?
I carefully waded through the piles of bones, trying not to think too hard about how many had died to leave behind this many.
We scoured the walls, brushing fingertips over the stone, searching for any signs of expansion or secret passages. As I moved along, I noticed a breeze that didn’t belong. Like someone was blowing at me.
Kneeling, I found the source and passed my fingers in front of the small hole. Dirt fell as I brushed my fingers around it, trying to determine if it might be something of importance.
Suddenly, the room rumbled.
“What’s happening?” Vanth called.
“I think I did something,” I stood and stepped away from the wall, running into Ryvin who’d already come to where I was.
A gap appeared in the wall as a door slid open.
“Good find, Ara,” Ryvin said.
“Let’s hope she’s home,” I replied.
I braced myself for another tunnel but was surprised to find an open space enclosed by tall rocks. A hidden open cave of sorts, buried in the stones. The ground was covered in lush grasses and fragrant flowers. A warm breeze blew past, bringing the scent of salt to mingle with the strong florals.
“What is this place?” I looked around in awe. It was an oasis, a paradise hidden away from view.
It wasn’t a large space, but it was big enough for a small home, no larger than the shacks that lined the poorest areas in Athos. Outside the building, sitting on a bench, was a woman clothed in flowing white fabric. She had long, dark hair and a pale complexion that made me wonder if she was even actually here. She might as well be a phantom.
“None of you are supposed to be here.” The woman stood, the fabric of her dress moving in opposition to the wind. A phenomenon I’d seen once before.
“You’re the sorceress?” I asked in disbelief.
The Fate smiled, her mouth was full of black teeth. I shuddered and took a step back.
Morta had always been intimidating, but compared to this fate, she was a warm and welcoming presence. This fate radiated death and destruction. I could feel it and I knew it wasn’t just the fact that I was knocking on the door of the Underworld as we stood here.
“You’re not allowed to take sides, Nona. Why would you give my father something of such power?” Ryvin asked.
“Why did Morta help you all those times, Prince of Darkness?” The Fate took a step closer, setting her dark eyes on me. Though she didn’t appear to be blind like her sister, she had the same penetrating gaze, like she was looking through me.
“Morta has never aided one side over the other. She’s given me advice, mostly in the form of riddles, but never any gifts. Nothing that would sway my path.”
“Except for keeping this one alive.” She pointed a gnarled finger at me. “She was meant to die.”
“Is this your retribution for that, then?” Ryvin asked. “If it is, take it out on me, not on all of Athos and Drakous. My father doesn’t deserve the gifts you’ve given him.”
“None of that matters anymore,” Nona said. “Ara has tempted us for the last time. She’ll be in the Underworld before any of you leave this island.”
Ryvin pulled out his sword. “Threatening my mate was the wrong move.”
“No, wait.” I ran in front of him, stepping between Ryvin and Nona. “She’s not threatening me. She’s telling you the truth.”
Ryvin lowered his weapon. “What are you talking about?”
“Ara, what are you saying?” Vanth asked.
Nona watched us with a wicked smile on her lips. I looked away from her, not wanting to see her entertained expression. “It was the final challenge from Nyx. She poisoned me.”
Rvyin’s hands were on my cheeks in a heartbeat. He tilted my face up so I was looking into the swirling silver depths of his eyes. “No. That’s impossible. You’re fine. You’re here, you’re talking to us, you saved us in the cave.”
I set my hands on top of his and fought against the rising tears. “I made a choice. I could go for the antidote, or I could save you.”
“No.” Ryvin rested his forehead on mine and I could feel his warm breath on my face. “Please tell me this is some dark lie. Please tell me it’s not true.”
“I’m so sorry.” Tears rolled down my cheeks. “I couldn’t let you die.”
“I will die without you,” he said.
“No, you won’t. You promised me you’d look after my family. You promised you’d look after Athos,” I said, suddenly remembering what he’d told me. When I made my choice, none of that came to mind, but now that I was here, I remembered everything we ever said. All our stolen moments, all the times we’d been together. It had been far too short, but I wouldn’t trade it for anything.
“Touching, really,” a new voice said.
I looked over to see another woman standing near Nona. She had the same dark hair and deathly complexion. Her cool green eyes reminded me of the first sprouts of spring.
Ryvin grabbed me, shoving me behind him. “You can’t have her. This is Nyx’s doing. It’s not her time.”
“It was her time long ago, princeling.”
Vanth drew his weapon and stood next to Ryvin. “Morta cuts, not you, Decima.”
“Morta has been compromised,” Decima replied. “Ara was supposed to leave this world as soon as she entered it. She’s had more time than she should have already.”
“Where is Morta?” Ryvin demanded. “Call her here. I know you two can do that. Get her here now.”
I set my hand on Ryvin’s arm. “It’s going to be alright.”
“It will be once I ensure that your thread can’t be cut,” he said.
There was a popping sound and for a moment, the space next to Decima was blurry. I thought maybe I was imagining things until I saw Morta materialize next to her sister.
“So many calling my name,” she said as she floated toward us.
“You can’t have her,” Ryvin said protectively.
Morta frowned, and I got the sense she wanted to speak but was holding back.
Ryvin and Vanth both moved in front of me and I shoved my way through them.
“You can’t fight off the fates.” I turned and faced them, then reached for Ryvin’s hand. “I made my choice. You can’t tell me you wouldn’t have done the same thing.”
“I can’t do this without you,” he said.
“Yes, you can. You must.” I reached over and took Vanth’s hand. “You two are going to win this, then you’re both going to find happiness.”
A tear streamed down Ryvin’s cheek and he quickly brushed it away. I released their hands, then turned to face the fates, focusing my attention on Nona. “You will remove whatever extra power you bestowed on the Fae King.”
Nona’s sisters gaped at her. “What did you do?” Decima asked.
“What I had to,” Nona hissed. “I’m finished being a tool for the gods. I want to control my own fate, not just everyone else’s.”
“So you gave power to a madman?” Decima asked.
“You know more than us what that outcome will be,” Morta said.
“It’s the only path that might give us the power we deserve,” she shot back.
“You’re trading one master for another,” Decima snapped. “The Fae King does not share power.”
“He stole his own mate’s magic and buried her in an underground prison,” Morta explained. “He would gladly sacrifice his own children. And you think you’ll be the one to stand against him?”
“He’s using you, you idiot,” Decima spat.
“They all use us,” Nona snarled. “We can defeat him. Together.”
“Not with the power you gave him.” I pulled away from Ryvin. “We were there. We saw the control he has. What do you think will happen once he claims Athos? He’s turned everyone into an ally because they fear him.”
“And it won’t be long before they turn against him,” Decima said. “You know I speak the truth. You’ll gain your power, but over a world of corpses.”
“There will be nobody left but us and the gods,” Morta said.
I shivered at the chilling picture.
“You know we speak truth,” Decima said gently.
Nona’s lower lip was trembling, and I suddenly saw her more like a spoiled child than a grown woman. Let alone a deity who could control and command human lives.
“You’re certain?” she asked.
Decima and Morta simply stared at their sister.
I watched them, my breathing growing more difficult by the heartbeat. Fighting against the exhaustion and the desire to close my eyes, I waited.
Finally, Nona nodded. “Fine. I will revoke the gift.”
I let out a long breath. “Thank you.” Ryvin and Vanth echoed my gratitude, but their tones were muted.
“You will owe me a favor,” Nona replied.
“I’d be happy to give you one, but I’m afraid I won’t be here to repay it,” I said.
She scowled. “You are not meant to die yet.”
“I thought I didn’t have a path?” I asked.
“You do now,” Nona said. “You have changed the stars, Ara of Athos.”
“I hate when they do that,” Decima said. “I don’t like changes.”
“How?” I took a step closer to the fates, but my unsteady legs nearly gave way. Ryvin caught me.
“Does this mean she’ll pass the poison?” Ryvin asked.
“No, it means someone will have to save her,” Morta answered.
“The spring here,” Vanth suddenly said. “Are the stories true?”
Morta grinned, an unsettling sight. “I suppose you’ll have to find out.”