Chapter 10 Through the Rift
Our horses were different to Acelin, which meant we could only get short gallops out of them, and they needed to rest more often than we would have liked. The delays only made my anxiety worse, not knowing what we would find when we crossed over into Aster’s world.
Would Atlas have already made it? Would he have succeeded in killing his brother before we could reach him or had Demetrios taken control of the kingdom with Atlas and Lazaros now lying dead at his feet?
Questions like this lived rent-free in my mind for the entire trip, ripping away any hopes of worthwhile conversation between Aster and me.
Along with any hopes of sleep at night. Though with the snores that escaped Aster and vibrated the earth below me, there wouldn’t be any chance of sleeping even if my mind was behaving itself.
The silence outside the tent, which took me back to my survival days, was broken every few seconds with these snores.
Something that only pushed my anxiety to even greater levels, not knowing what malicious creatures would hear them.
The thin mats we were sleeping on did nothing to ease the burn on my back, either.
It wasn’t until the second night of camping, and the anticipation of reaching the Rift, that Aster finally opened up.
“I know you’re worried about him, but Atlas was the leader of that army before he ever became king for a reason. He will be fine,” he said, preaching the same comforting lines that, at this point, were starting to sound rehearsed.
“Yeah, yeah, I know he was top of his class at General camp… but that’s not it, and you know it isn’t,” I bit out.
“Alex…” I was quick to cut him off before he could give me any more General of the year spiel.
“Look, I get it, he’s more than capable of leading his armies into battle.
But the thing that has me worried the most is if we get there too late and he’s already killed his brother.
When he then finds out that his parents’ death wasn’t Lazaros’s doing, but he’s already dead by his hand, then Atlas will never, and I mean never, forgive himself.
And as for douche bag Demetrios, we still don’t know what his end game is here. ”
Aster released a heavy sigh but didn’t say anything because, obviously, I wasn’t facing this fear alone.
In fact, I couldn’t recall Aster ever being lost for words, and that also concerned me.
It was like I could feel a darkness surrounding us and, at that moment, I knew behind that humor, behind his sarcasm, he was worried too.
Possibly even scared. For the man that I loved, that he loved too, and not just as his king but as a friend.
“He’s not just the King to you, is he?” I said gently after he passed me a flask of water.
We had already eaten the sandwiches and protein bars from the supplies that had been packed and carried on our saddles.
Which meant all that was left to do was sitting around the small fire Aster had made outside the tent, with nothing but the stars above and the worries below.
“You really do care about him,” I pushed again, waiting for him to speak, watching as the flames danced in his eyes, turning the amber golden.
“I may as well call him my brother,” Aster finally said, letting out a long sigh, and I wasn’t sure whether he appreciated talking about this or not.
But then the thought that anything bad could have happened to Atlas wasn’t something either one of us wanted to face.
And as for what would happen tomorrow once we made it through the rift, well, that…
That was the biggest question of all.
**********************
The next day I was happy that we made good time. My nerves were on edge as we got closer, but not enough to regret the decision to do this. I was both eager to get there and dreading it at the same time.
We had removed the tack from the horses, and Aster gave them a light tap on their backend. An action that sent them off down the path we had just come up, as it was now time to make the rest of the way on foot.
I reached the trench, jumped down, and continued on with Aster next to me.
The buzzing and the static told us that we were close.
Like something in the air was trying to cling to our skin.
But then as quickly as it came, it was gone again.
An eerie silence took its place as we finally arrived, standing there and staring at the near translucent wave of the Rift.
This was the third time I had stood in front of it, and each time, I had felt different toward it. The first time, I was nervous, dread filling my lungs with every breath. Because I hadn’t fully trusted Atlas then, I was always questioning his agenda, as if he was using me for this single purpose.
It was a time when I didn’t know I was the reason for all the mess to begin with.
The second time, I felt uneasy and worried, but I also felt the tug of selfishness within me. A piece of me that hadn’t wanted to open the Rift at all because that would have meant saying goodbye. Goodbye to the one I had fallen in love with.
As for the third time… this time… I felt an unwavering determination and an urgency to try and save him from his own actions. Save him from becoming just another puppet in evil hands.
When Aster asked me if I was ready, I thought back to all those years of what-ifs. Thought back to what my life could have been had the day the Rift opened never happened.
Then I took his hand and just as my scars were starting to respond to it, I told him,
“Fuck the picket fence.”
“What?”
Aster’s face was a picture, but I just shook my head with a grin and said, “Never mind.”
I reached out, and, as before, the hum of the Rift began to echo through the forest behind us. But this time, there was a weighted strain bearing down on me. As if it knew there was trouble on the other side and the unnerving feeling did little to settle my worries.
The scars itched and were lighting up as the static began to prick my skin. I closed my eyes as the magnetic pull drew in my hand. Bands of light settled on the back of my eyelids, and I picked up its urgent rhythm quickly.
As soon as it brightened, I thrust my hand forward, not only touching the Rift, but entering it before it hardened around us both, holding us in a vice grip of pure magic.
After that, the world around us started to distort, stealing the breath right out of my body with a gasp that felt a million miles away and yet all around us.
The pain surged through me. Through every inch until my knees buckled from the burden of it all.
Yet despite the crushing feeling, I was unable to fall.
The Rift held me suspended like I was trapped in a wall.
I bared my teeth as the screams started to leave my body, and I could feel my energy being sucked out of me. Aster’s voice called to me, but it was distant, getting quieter as if moving away.
I could tell he was worried as my name was being echoed around me as if the Rift was mocking me by knowing my presence here was unwelcome.
I wondered if Aster knew that something wasn’t right.
That all of this felt wrong. That the Rift shouldn’t be holding me captive like this, because we both knew that we should have made it through by now.
But then a thought came to me. I wasn’t from this world, and I had to question whether or not that was the reason it was harder for me to get through.
Because I was just the key to unlocking it, not made for using it.
Well, despite what it did or didn’t want, I was getting through this thing, whether it liked it or not!
So, I forced myself to concentrate through the pain, allowing the Rift to take the energy it needed as it gave me no choice.
I then watched the bright lights on the back of my eyelids as they became brighter, dulling less, realizing that my energy was feeding that brightness.
I wasn’t able to release myself like I had last time when I had worked with the rhythm to pull myself free one digit at a time. No, I had to endure it and hope that it left me enough energy to get through the Rift and to the King.
To my Atlas.
The brightness grew, and suddenly the humming stopped. My body released. Aster reached his arm under me to stop me from hitting the ground hard. I felt incredibly weak, like I hadn’t slept in weeks, and all I wanted to do was curl up in the grass and sleep.
But I couldn’t.
Atlas needed me.
Hell, Lazaros needed me, and we hadn’t even exchanged pleasantries yet.
“Alex!” Aster cried out, and I tried to draw enough strength to reassure him,
“I’m… fine.”
“The hell you are! You’re too weak,” Aster snapped in alarm as I opened my heavy eyelids to find him kneeling over me.
“Did we make it? Is this Theikos?” I asked breathlessly, and I nearly screamed in frustration when he shook his head slowly, telling me no.
“That… no, we…” My words trailed off as I closed my eyes in pained frustration.
“We can’t go ahead with it, Alex. I am sorry, but we will need to think of another way.” Aster looked down at me, his hair falling in front of his face. He didn’t look disappointed, just concerned for me.
“No, we stick to the plan. Just give me… me a moment.” I lay there with my eyes closed and focused on my breathing.
Focused as my chest moved up and down, despite the discomfort burning in my back.
I thought about that moment, how Riley had dragged me across the floor with my hair like I weighed nothing.
How he had overpowered me and then disfigured me.
I had needed strength then, and I needed strength now.
But the difference this time was that I had a weapon. And not just any weapon, a weapon forged by the gods. I reached out for the dagger that lay by my side, attached to my belt in its matching scabbard of obsidian black.
I stroked my fingers up, feeling the ridges of the grip and wrapping my fingers around it. Instantly, I felt the energy through the hilt and readjusted my hand to make sure I didn’t let go.
“Bronte’s lightning,” I said through a heavy breath. “The dagger, it’s giving me energy from her lightning… I’ll not take too… too much… Just enough,” I pushed out, still trying to fill my lungs fully.
“Alex, no, it’s too dangerous, we don’t know what could happen,” Aster said, making me grip his hand tighter.
“It’s the only way. Last time, I always had Atlas to help me open the Rift. I need the extra power, Aster.”
He gritted his teeth, and I could see he was about to argue, but I only needed to say two words.
“For Atlas.”
His face twisted in frustration before he nodded, finally relenting. He then reached for the dagger and helped me do what I needed to.
The energy continued flowing through me, helped now by the weight of the dagger in my hand.
It felt like I was on an IV drip. I could feel the energy pouring into my veins, and as soon as the nauseating feeling of weakness subsided, I released the dagger.
Opening my eyes, I was met by Aster's reassuring expression.
“Let’s get you up, Sleeping Beauty.” He held out his hand, and I took it.
“I wasn’t sleeping,” I said, narrowing my eyes at him and his silly joke.
“Sleeping, lying down on the job, same thing.” He cocked his head to the side.
He lifted me to my feet as if I weighed nothing at all. I wanted to ask him how he knew who Sleeping Beauty was, but I knew it would take us down a rabbit hole so deep, we’d end up at Disney World instead of in The?kós.
He helped me get closer to the Rift once more, and with the power of the dagger running through me, this time when I raised my hand to the shimmering veil, my fingers eased right through. Our bodies were held suspended, but not for nearly as long as the last time.
So, we pushed through, each of us focusing on breathing as the odd mass seemed to clog our throats. We continued fighting our way through the mass until we finally reached the other side.
Which was when I gasped in horror…
Because death was all we found.