Chapter 33 #2
Help him see the one who was capable of standing by his side. Help him see the one he’d refused.
The bride curse… the mist… the geas…
All of it had but one purpose. A purpose that meant she’d never intended for Ryn to break anything.
“I think I understand now,” she mused aloud. “You’re right, the curse did not choose me. The curse had nothing to do with any of this. This was all you.”
Silence answered her.
In fact, the solution to the curse had already revealed itself, and Ryn felt like a fool for not remembering the words written on the king’s resting place. For not realizing what they meant.
But if she was correct, then why the sham of the trials she and Xavi had faced? Why did the fae need so much power?
Whatever it was, it could not possibly be a good thing, but in order to stop her, Ryn had to get back to that chamber under the mountain. And she had to do so without stepping through the glowing doorway on the left.
“So this choice you’ve given me is simply another torment,” she observed. “Because no matter which path I choose, someone’s heart will be broken. Love will be poisoned, and no one will win. No one but you.”
A vengeful cackle resonated through the corridor. “You are no fool, human. I can see that you now understand the futility of opposing me, though it has been a genuine delight to watch your struggles. Now, before you choose, I should warn you that there is one final condition.”
Of course there was.
“A choice has also been granted to Xaviel ven Arazul. A choice between these same two paths. And if you do not make the same choice…”
“We all die?” Ryn said, crossing her arms and doing her best to appear bored. “Surely you can think of something more original than that.”
“I may decide to end your suffering,” the fae acknowledged. “And your deaths would provide me with sufficient power for my needs. But so will your pain when you confront the consequences of whatever choice you make.”
By those rules, the fae had ensured that she could not lose.
But there was always a way out. Ryn believed that with every fiber of her being.
Every curse had its solution, every construction had its flaws.
She only had to find it. Only had to find the place the fae had painted over with her words to disguise her weakness.
“Let me be sure that I understand correctly,” she said slowly. “If we make different choices, we die. That is our punishment for losing. But what if we win? You said this is a game, so there should be a prize for winning, shouldn’t there? Or what is even the point of playing?”
“I grow tired of your pedantry, human. Are not your lives prize enough? Should you make the same choice, you will both be free. Free of these trials and free of the curse. Free of my vengeance, and free to leave these lands behind if you so choose.”
“Will you bargain with me for one last condition?” Ryn asked boldly.
“I have already given you far more than required,” the fae answered. “What more do you dare ask for?”
“That if Xavi and I make the same choice, no matter what that is, you will reunite us with Kel. Give us all a chance to see each other one last time.”
The fae began to laugh. “You believe I would deny myself the opportunity to observe the pain of this choosing? Of course you will be reunited. The final chapter of this story will be played out, and you will see what your suffering has accomplished.”
She had promised.
They would be free, and they would be together. And even more importantly, they would be in the right place to stop the fae from achieving her true final ambition.
So Ryn smiled, because the enchantress had finally left an opening. She’d become too confident in her own cleverness and given Ryn and Xavi one final chance to change the ending.
“Very well,” she said calmly. “I am ready.”
She already knew exactly what Xavi would choose, because there was only one way for him to keep his promises. And Xaviel ven Arazul would never go back on his word.
“Which doorway do you choose, human?” The voice was sharp and trembling with anticipation.
“Neither.”
“No!” the voice thundered. “You must choose. Those are the terms, and there is no other way. Choose or be lost in this labyrinth until your flesh dries up and your bones crack. Until your bloodline has died out and the very memory of your name is lost to the world.”
That last was not really the hideous threat she thought it was.
“Yes, yes, you’re very dramatic. I’m still not doing it, because you left me a way out.”
Silence greeted her pronouncement—stunned and furious.
“Realized your mistake, haven’t you?” Ryn said softly.
“You did not say we had to choose one of the doorways in order to win. You only said we had to make the same choice. And we did. I don’t need you to tell me what Xavi chose, because I already know.
No matter what it cost him, he would never step through either of those doorways.
Never choose to betray either brotherhood or friendship, even if it cost him his life. ”
The silence turned dark and brittle.
“What is it that troubles you?” Ryn inquired mockingly. “Was the choice too easy? Did we not suffer enough for you in the process?”
But it was laughter that answered her, fading out as if receding into the distance.
“Does it please you, human, to know that your cleverness has bought you nothing but greater pain?”
“Yes, it does please me,” she replied staunchly.
“Because no matter what happens now, this is my choice, and I accept the consequences.
To you, pain is nothing but a source of power.
You cause it, you revel in it, but you avoid it for yourself, because you cannot understand why someone would willingly choose to endure it.
“But pain is not something that can always be avoided. Pain also means growth. It is how we learn and how we find wisdom, and it is an unavoidable part of loving anyone beyond yourself. Without it, you lock yourself away from many of the deepest, most meaningful parts of being alive. So if I must suffer in order to uphold my convictions or protect the life of a friend? I do not begrudge it.”
“You are a fool,” the fae hissed.
“Perhaps I am,” Ryn murmured, as much to herself as to whoever might be listening.
“I guess my aunt was right. She always said I read too much and would come to a bad end because of it. I doubt she ever considered this exact possibility, but I’m sure she would be gratified by it all the same.
Now, I believe you owe me what was promised? ”
A final whisper of laughter coiled through the air as the doorways melted into a golden vortex of fae magic. It tugged Ryn forward, pulled her in, and then there was nothing but fire.