Chapter 31 Jane
I tried my best to stay hidden, I really did, but the perpetual screams drew me out.
The roars of the monsters had transformed, replaced now by the tortured wailing of my companions.
I couldn’t resist peeking out from behind the stacked barrels, even though the fear plaguing my bones begged me not to.
Coward.
The word clung to me like a brand, burning hotter with every second I remained crouched like a terrified child. How could I help against these monstrosities? My combat training with Glade had been a disaster… Proof, if I needed any, of my complete uselessness.
And yet, every instinct in me screamed to do something, even as my body stayed frozen in place.
That was until I saw him.
Beaten and bloodied, Glade stumbled through the village square, his movements slowing with each second that passed.
The brilliant waves of Source Light that had once erupted from him were now dim, flickering, and sporadic.
He swung the ancient blade at an encroaching monster, his strikes still precise but weakening, each one costing him what little energy he had left.
A giant wound, as though carved by raking claws, tore through the back of his tunic, the fabric dark and wet with crimson.
Blood streamed down his forearms, trailing in his wake.
The eyes that had looked into mine moments ago with such tenderness now burned with something feral—a primal look of horror and defeat.
My breath caught in my throat as I realized the undeniable truth: he was running out of time. The strength that had carried him this far was nearly gone, and soon he would fall, just as many others had.
So many lives extinguished in this never-ending nightmare.
And if I didn’t do something—anything—he would be next.
Stepping out from behind the barrels, my heart hammered in my chest as I darted toward the confines of a nearby shop at the corner of the square.
The doorway became my sweet refuge, and I slipped inside, pressing my back against the wall.
The air was dense and coated with smoke and ash that burned my lungs.
Still, I crouched low, peering through the grimy, soot-covered window.
With each heave, my breath stung as I watched the fight unfold just meters away.
I needed a plan—something better than running blindly into a battle that I was in no means prepared to win with only a dagger.
Something that wouldn’t end with me dead.
But as I observed, something peculiar caught my eye.
The monsters were moving differently now. In unison, they paused, their grotesque snouts rising into the air as if tasting it. Their nostrils flared, twitching with a wild need. One by one, they tilted their heads, sniffing repeatedly.
And then, as if some silent signal had passed between them, all seven beasts abandoned their current targets. They shook their heads violently, growling low, and scattered, their massive forms prowling through the square with ferocious intent, their noses leading them toward…something.
Or someone.
From the moment I left my small cabin to our trek through the crowded alleyway, the monsters’ howls had surrounded me, echoing from every direction, as if they were circling closer with each passing second.
Predators hunting their prey.
They had been sent to hunt me.
An idea formed in my mind—a reckless, self-destructive, suicidal idea. One that would almost certainly cost me my life. But it was also the only option that could save countless others.
The only thing that could save Glade.
Without hesitation, I tore off the heavy winter jacket I had been wearing and bolted through the shop’s entryway, straight into the mayhem.
Fire and flames licked at the air around me as I charged into the heart of the battle.
Holding the jacket high above my head, I waved it hysterically, desperate to draw their attention.
One by one, the monsters’ heads turned toward me, their glowing eyes locking on my frame, which now felt as small and frail as ever. Low, guttural growls rumbled from their throats, growing louder as their claws tore into the cobblestones beneath their mangled feet.
I held the dagger to my forearm and cut. Blood pooled in the spot and dripped onto the ground below. Adrenaline coursed through my veins like liquid fire.
I felt no pain.
The elder Fae, battered and drained, faltered in their defensive stances. Some dropped to their knees, their exhaustion now an insurmountable burden as the reprieve from the attack came far too late to rally them.
Only Glade remained fully alert, far in the distance, bloodied and staggering.
His eyes met mine and flared wide with horror. His beautiful, crimson-stained face contorted in a mask of heartbreak and torment that I would never forget.
“Jane! What are you doing? JANE!”
Without thinking, he stumbled toward me. But the beasts were faster. Their twisted paws pounded against the square as they sprinted forward, their crooked forms hurtling closer to me by the second.
I ran faster than I ever had in my life. The frigid air burned in my lungs with each breath I could muster. Fear clawed at my insides, threatening to slow me, but I forced my legs to keep moving, refusing to look back.
Behind me, the ground trembled with every pounding step of the monsters in pursuit. Their snarls grew louder, the thudding of their feet a persistent booming, like the ticking of a clock counting down the seconds I had left to live.
And so, I pushed harder, my feet hustled on the rocky path as I ascended the hillside, the incline stealing what little strength remained in my body. Higher and higher, I climbed, desperate to reach the plateau.
It was a gamble… A drastic, wretched gamble.
With every step, I prayed silently to the Goddess. Please. Be there.
My life, and so many others, depended on it.
But as the plateau came into view, my stomach sank.
She wasn’t there.
The space where Mir should have been—our salvation—was empty. Instead of the majestic dragon perched and resting on the mountainside, I was met with a barren field littered with jagged boulders and loose stones.
I stumbled forward, my momentum only fuelled by my internal panic. My legs refused to stop, even as the realization struck me like a blow to the chest: there was no plan now. No hope.
The monstrous growls grew louder, their vibrations rattling through my bones. I could feel their claws scraping against the earth as they closed the gap.
Still, I ran. Into the plateau, past the scattered rocks, towards the very edge of the mountain.
The cliff’s edge appeared as a blur by my feet, skidding to a halt as loose pebbles tumbled over the precipice and disappeared into the abyss below.
My breath hitched, and for a fleeting moment, a wild thought crossed my mind: would it be better to jump?
Would the monsters still follow me, plunging to their deaths?
The sheer drop and terror that coiled in my chest stopped me cold.
I didn’t have the guts.
With no other choice, I turned to face them.
Seven monstrosities formed a jagged line before me, their mutated forms illuminated by the moonlight above.
Each one stood unnervingly still, their twisted bodies curled in excitement.
They were savouring the moment—the thrill of the hunt, the promise of their prey’s final breath.
Their maws dripped with goopy saliva, jagged teeth gleaming like shards of glass.
I was their prize, their meal, and they were ready to feast.
In one last, desperate effort, I dropped to my knees and pressed my palm against the frigid ground. With every ounce of strength I had left, I called upon Amantius to grant me her Light—to finally allow me to wield her power. There had never been a more urgent moment. It was my only hope.
My teeth ground together so hard I thought they might crack.
Please, I begged. Please, please, please… It was all I could manage as tears streamed down my cheeks.
But I felt absolutely nothing.
No surge of power.
No answering call.
Nothing.
I closed my eyes tightly, drawing in one last, shaky breath as my body shuddered. This was it—the end of my short, miserable life. Bracing myself, preparing to meet my final moments, I made my peace.
Then I heard a distant yell.
My eyes snapped open, and there he was.
Glade. Severely wounded and battered, he ran toward the monsters like an idiot… An incredible, brave idiot. He was barely standing, his body swaying as he moved, yet he still fought to draw their attention away from me.
“Hey!” Glade shouted at the monsters.
“No!” I screamed, but it was already too late.
The creatures turned. In that moment, Glade unleashed the remnants of his Light, sending it shooting toward the monsters with everything he had left.
The abominations hissed and shrieked in agony, writhing in pain. However, within seconds, they rose again, standing tall on their hind legs, poised to strike.
As the Tenebranian monsters stalked towards him, Glade struggled to muster any trace of Light, but it was futile. His reserves had been completely drained. With no other choice, he raised Eirander in his hand, contorting himself into a combat-ready stance.
I thought I knew what true fear felt like.
I thought it was the terror of being mugged when I was ten, or the brutal beating I endured in high school.
I thought fear was the crushing loneliness of being abandoned, kicked out of the foster care system at eighteen, with no family to call my own.
I thought fear was the dread I felt when I woke up on the travelling vessel bound for Ornath, or the shock of learning I was betrothed to an alien man I had never met.
I thought fear was the horrific panic I felt in that alleyway—the last time we stood before a Tenebranian monster, when Glade was torn from my grasp and hurled against the cold stone ground.
But I was wrong.
Nothing could have prepared me for the sheer terror of watching the man I was falling in love with face seven Tenebranian monsters—choosing my life over his own.
Tears streamed down my cheeks as Glade looked past the monsters, locking eyes with mine. His voice, calm and steady as if nothing were wrong, cut through the chaos.
“It’s okay,” he tried to reassure me, though I knew at that moment, nothing would ever feel okay again.
The first monster to attack was one of the largest of the group.
It lunged toward Glade with inhumane speed.
Despite its massive size, Glade swiped at it with Eirander, cutting a deep gash across its chest. The creature screamed and collapsed to its side, but only for a moment.
Its strength was renewed, and it rose again.
Another beast leapt toward the prince, but this time, Glade couldn’t react fast enough. He tried to parry the attack, but the creature’s claws found their mark, ripping into his thigh.
A third monster charged, hurling itself at him. Glade was thrown backward, his body crashing down the sloping hillside as the creature’s claws raked through the air behind him. His body tumbled down the mountain.
The monsters didn’t just attack—they toyed with him. It was as if they understood the role Glade played in this war, savoring each moment, drawing out his suffering.
The abominations prepared to strike in unison. Their massive forms gathered ready to deliver one last, crushing blow to the broken man lying helpless on the gravel. I couldn’t bear to watch.
I closed my eyes, feeling the overwhelming weight of grief and helplessness crush me.
A scream tore from my throat, an agonized sound that could have shattered the mountains themselves.
My sorrow ripped through me, every ounce of my misery rising to the surface like a kettle of boiling water, ready to bubble over, scalding—no, burning everything in its path.
Burn.
As the crushing weight of despair consumed me, my heart felt as though it would break into a million irreparable pieces.
But instead of breaking, it burned.
A radiant and blinding fuchsia Light erupted from within my heart.
The illumination spread outward from my chest, spiralling down my limbs, climbing up my neck, and searing through my eyes.
My hair whipped around me, glowing unnaturally, as though it were alive with energy.
My body vibrated with the overwhelming burst of energy, an unknown force, an unknown entity, taking control.
I was no longer myself. I was a vessel, an instrument of raw Godly power.
The Light within me intensified, brighter than any star in the night sky, and I felt my feet lift from the ground.
The world below me blurred as unlimited and unmatched power propelled me upward.
I floated, weightless, higher and higher into the sky, surrounded by a crackling hum as electricity gathered and pulsed through my muscles and bones, flooding me like an open conduit, building like an atom bomb.
Glade, barely conscious on the ground, propped himself up on his forearms. His body was broken, but his eyes were fixed on me, wide with a contrasting mixture of horror and awe.
I, however, turned my attention to the monsters paused in their pursuit, momentarily still as they turned their gaze upwards, captivated by the strange blazing light hovering above them. Their putrid red eyes widened, their growls of confusion searing through the plateau.
Anger flamed in my core like a wildfire, scorching everything in its path. A scowl twisted my lips as I marked each of my targets.
For only a moment, the creatures stood frozen like statues awaiting their execution. The next, I released a harrowing roar that tore through the mountains, tore through Aurath, unleashing all the rage and Light that burned within me.
Seven bolts of pink lightning shot from my body, each one striking a Tenebranian monster perfectly in the chest like the attraction of a magnet to steel.
The foul scent of burning flesh reached my nostrils. The monsters convulsed on the ground, powerless against the blistering force of Amantius’ Light. Their insides boiled as their wretched skin melted away into nothingness, until they were no longer.
The edges of my vision blurred. The world dimmed into a thin tunnel as darkness began to swallow me whole.
Then I was gone.