Chapter 21
CHAPTER
The air felt heavy around us.
Lionel had not uttered a word to me since I told him I wanted to continue this plan. He had simply nodded, bewildered by my words, and kept close by my side. All his hate for the mages came from what he learned about them in Crowrun and from them murdering my parents.
Fog began to crawl around us in the forest, obscuring our surroundings. I heard Mey take a deep breath, her face focused. What was she doing?
“Relax, you’ll learn with time,” Nate interrupted as he patted her head.
“I want to be of use,” Mey murmured. “If I could manipulate the water in the fog, we could use it to our advantage.”
“Small steps,” Nate snickered.
Eve snorted, unimpressed and her grip around her rifle tightened.
“Easy there, being upset all the time will give you wrinkles,” Ashley teased with a taunting smile.
“I thought you hated mages,” Lionel whispered next to me, using the opportunity of their small talk to avoid having them eavesdrop.
“I…” I stuttered. The line had become blurred over the last couple of days.
I hated mages, sure, the ones who were driven mad by the power and desires to become a tyrant, anyway.
I glanced back at Mey; she hadn’t really changed at all since finding out what she was, and it helped change my perspective.
I had been harsh towards myself, rejecting my abilities, hating myself for being one of them.
But really, I was the one who determined how I’d use my gift.
If I only used it to protect my friends and fight against demons, was I really a bad person for simply having powers?
“I hate those who kill for fun, those who look down on people without powers and ignore the real threat,” I continued. “That being said, there are people without powers who do the same towards the mages.”
“They call us ungifted, Ethalyn, they all hate us,” Lionel scoffed slightly.
“We’re humans. Them. Us. We’re all humans,” I corrected firmly, trying to make him see reason.
He pressed his lips together, brows furrowing deep until a sharp line was formed between them.
“So, what’s the real threat, miss got-it-all-figured-out?” Lionel asked, a hint of mockery in his voice.
“Demons… but also humans.”
“What?”
“Not all humans without magic are good, just like not all mages are bad. We’ve already seen it in the villages,” I sighed, glancing over at him.
His face changed, from stern to… something I wasn’t able to name; he looked distant, almost broken.
We had both been through a lot, we knew the true colors of mankind.
Once, his house had been attacked by scavengers.
Lionel and I had hidden away, but what we witnessed scarred us for life.
His dad had been beaten up, trying to protect us and his mother.
Lionel’s father was not a fighter, he was a merchant.
With no ability to defend himself, the scavengers beat him unconscious during the assault.
But that wasn’t all. When they were done, they moved on to his mother.
And what followed… well, I would prefer to wipe it clean from my memory.
“Those weren’t humans,” Lionel said low, knowing very well what I meant. “They were demons, cloaked as men.”
Was it my memory that was wrong, or was it simply how he had portrayed it to cope with it?
“I don’t remem—”
“Well, you were young,” Lionel said firmly, his hands curled into fists.
He had beaten himself up ever since, for being too small, weak, for not being able to defend them.
What he failed to remember was that he hadn’t acted because he was too scared of them finding me.
I remember how he held me tightly, I had barely been able to breathe, because he wanted to silence all of our sounds.
And he had continued to protect me ever since, following me everywhere, not letting me move around alone in that village.
That was how we began training together, vowing to protect what mattered.
At least, that was how it was, before the last couple of months before the trials.
He disappeared without a word, and if I had to guess, he had probably snuck away to train with some Ashen Corps soldiers, before even being allowed, to improve his chances of being accepted.
How was I ever going to tell him that I’d been the real danger all along? One wrong move and I could’ve incinerated their house into nothing but cinders.
I was one of the beings he hated.
“Lionel,” I said, caressing his name in my mouth as I reached my hand out towards him.
“Ethalyn.”
But it wasn’t Lionel’s voice.
A shiver went through my body, electric and unfamiliar at the same time. My eyes darted to the front of the group, where Malakai turned to look at me. He had called me by my name? Malakai never used my name, he called me stupid things, like kitten or sweetie, mocking my mere existence.
“I need you to scout ahead,” He instructed, pointing in the direction. “If you see a mage, you know what to do.”
My mouth opened, but no words came, resulting in me nodding before grabbing my gun and jogging towards the mark.
If I saw a gifted one, I’d need to prove myself…
I had to show that I was one of them to fool them into trusting us.
Was I ready for that? I swallowed hard, looking back at the others who waited for me to secure the area.
I took a deep breath, and began sneaking ahead.
This was what I excelled at; I proved as much during the first trial, yet I had never been trusted to do this until now.
I hunched down, keeping close to trees and bushes for concealment just in case. Each step was on my toes, trying to touch the ground as little as possible to avoid making sounds.
The only thing I heard was my treacherous heart beating. No matter how far I got, no matter how strong I made myself, the fear of revealing my powers to Lionel remained.
All possible outcomes and scenarios flashed before my eyes, almost blinding me in my mission. Would he be quiet and walk away from me, or he would get upset and scream at me? Which was worse?
‘I wish I never met you’… yes, those were probably the words I dreaded most.
“You should never have been born,” I heard Lionel’s voice clear as day and I jolted, my eyes wide. He stepped out from behind a tree to the side, his eyes glaring me down, jaw tensed. “I know what you are, filthy liar.”
“What?” I breathed, panic spreading.
In a swift movement, he lunged at me, his hands circling my throat and slammed me into a tree. I gasped and wriggled in his grip.
“Lionel, wait,” I pleaded. “Let me explain!”
“So you can tailor another lie?” He tilted his head, his impossible brown eyes filled with hatred, gleaming at me. “You lied… you’ve always lied.”
Tears pushed forward in the corners of my eyes. “Lionel, please!”
“I’ll kill you myself,” he said through his teeth, the grip tightening, choking me.
My legs kicked around wildly, but darkness lurked around the edges of my vision. The pain in my lungs pulsated from the lack of air, my throat ached from the pressure.
So this was how he’d react, killing me for what I was?
Red threads swirled by and in a flash, the grip around my throat slackened and Lionel stepped back, his arm severed. He hissed in pain, glaring towards the side where Malakai stepped forward.
I coughed, gasping for air, every inch of my body hurting and screaming in response, as my senses came back to me.
“What did you do!?” I screamed at Malakai, my voice breaking with every word.
Malakai looked over at me, tilting his head as if I was an interesting puzzle. “It’s a shapeshifter, kitten.”
Something cracked inside of me, as I turned back towards what I thought had been Lionel, but now I saw it, the vivid brown eyes and the jagged smile.
I had been fooled.
“There they are!” I heard behind Malakai, as I saw his red eyes losing the glow inside of them, forcing himself back to normal. The fake Lionel lunged for me, but Malakai stepped in and drove a dagger into its chest, twisting it until it choked on the black ichor that was its blood.
My body trembled, as I saw three additional shapes stepping out behind them, all of them looking like Lionel, all of them feeding off of my fear.
And I had let them.
“Ugh, not these types again,” Nate said with distaste.
“If you have any grudges against one another, this is the time to take it out,” Ashley snickered as she threw a bomb past us, making the ground quiver in response as one of the demons was caught in the blast, and the others wiped out the rest of them.
Malakai turned towards me again, slowly, inspecting me.
“Are you okay?” His voice was flat, like it always was whenever he played his role as a Lieutenant. Yet something in it made a tear slip from me as my chest vibrated with ragged breaths.
I saw him tense, eyes softening for the briefest moment, before another shape collided with me.
Arms grabbed me and I was pushed against the familiar scent of oakmoss and leather.
“You’re so stupid, that wasn’t me!” Lionel accused, his voice broken, as he hugged me tightly. Then he broke it off, his eyes locked on my throat. “Can you talk?”
“Y-yes,” I croaked, my voice fragile and weak from the choking and how I had broken it with my scream.
“Stupid,” he repeated. “Why would I ever hurt you? Why would you let me?”
Would he hurt me if he knew? Would he kill me and pretend I never existed?
“I-I’m… s-sorry,” I tried, though my voice was hoarse.
A wave of water pushed past us, soaking us, not harmful in any way. We all turned towards Mey, who awkwardly dropped her hands.
“Yeah… Sorry.” She smiled apologetic as she made herself look smaller, a faint blush painting her cheeks.
“Good job,” Ashley gave her a thumbs up. “You’re getting better!”
“At drowning us?” Eve complained, squeezing water out of her hair.
“Stop being so dramatic!” Nate snapped. “This is new for all of us.”
Lionel’s grip of me loosened as he dragged his hands through his wet hair, trying to get the worst out of it.
“You’re lucky the Lieutenant had such sharp hearing,” Ashley said, as she snuck closer and hugged me. “Or we would’ve been too late.”
My eyes darted to Malakai, but he stared into the distance. I patted Ashley’s head. “I’m here.”
“I hope you don’t ever leave us,” Ashley said, flashing me a blushing smile. “I’d never forgive you.”
“You’re a bit too attached,” Lionel joked at her.
“Well,” her smile faded, her eyes still on me. “Ethalyn reminds me of my sister…”
“Really, where’s she now?” I chuckled low.
“She’s dead.”
Her words silenced us, my jaw hanging open.
“I’m sorry,” I stammered, my heart in my throat.
“It’s okay,” she said easily, her eyes lowering a bit, but her voice remained steady.
“What was she like?” Mey asked, carefully, as if to not break her.
“She was my twin,” Ashley sighed, seemingly unaffected by the memories.
“She was a lot like Ethalyn; brave, smart, careful of other’s feelings.
” She turned back to me, her eyes glimmering, arms squeezing me playfully.
“Then I got in trouble, stealing black powder and failing my trials. A group came to take revenge on me, but she stepped in… pretended to be me until they beat her to death.”
My eyes widened, before my arms swung around her, pressing her head against me, trying to shield her. She tensed, before she chuckled slightly. “See? Always so protective.”
“Ashley,” I whispered, my heart breaking for her.
A sibling was one thing, but a twin? I’d heard those relationships are on another level, almost like they’re a part of you, which meant a group of thugs stole a part of Ashley. It suddenly fell into place, the times she wanted to be close, that morning I woke up with her hugging me.
Mey stepped closer, hugging Ashley from the side and Nate sighed, before he stepped in and hugged us all.
“We’ve got you now,” Mey said, her voice soft.
“Mm.” Ashley smiled.
“We’ll take good care of her, Ashley’s sister,” I added with a confirming nod.
Slowly, darkness began to close around us. The tall looming trees blocked most of the light out during the day, so once the sun set, it became dark very quickly.
“How are we supposed to see anything in this gloom?” Eve asked, her steps slowing down.
“It’s not that bad, your eyes will get—” Ashley began, before a sound cracked in her direction.
“Ashley?” I asked, concerned.
“Yeah… okay it’s dark, I just made out with a tree.”
Mey chuckled at that, Ashley muttering a curse underneath her breath.
“Here, take my hand,” Nate offered, stretching out towards her.
“I’d much rather take Mey’s, nothing personal,” Ashley scoffed, glaring at the hand as if it was threatening her.
“I know, but this is what you get,” Nate shot back. A brief hesitation, before Ashley took Nate’s hand and continued muttering. He chuckled, pulling her close.
“Don’t braid our fingers like that!” Ashley hissed.
“What? Are you shy?” Nate teased, clearly enjoying this side of her.
“Stop teasing her,” Mey snapped, sending an elbow into her brother’s ribs.
“We’ll be demon snacks in no time with all this noise,” Eve murmured in the back.
“Should we make camp?” Lionel asked low.
“Fire will draw more attention,” I said without thinking.
“That’s what we’re hoping for,” I heard Malakai chuckle in response, and I knew he was thinking about a different kind of fire.
“What?” Eve snorted. “We want to be eaten now?”
“I think he’s talking about the mages’ attention?” Mey added, her voice telling us she was uncertain too.
“Perhaps not in the dark? It will be hard to tell friend from foe right now,” Lionel added his thoughts, with a slight bite to it. “Let’s at least rest, but closely together. Then, if we hear something further away, we know it’s not one of us.”
“I don’t want to be close to a mage,” Eve hissed.
“Well, it’s that or hugging a demon pretending to be us,” Ashley snickered mischievously.
Gods, if they only knew…
That silenced Eve. She shuddered and stepped closer to Lionel. We sat down on the dirt, our backs against a thick tree trunk, forming a circle around it.
“No cuddling this time?” Malakai whispered next to me, his breath tickling the shell of my ear.
I kicked him with my boot, earning a low chuckle from him.