Chapter 5 Avilyna #2
"You planning to take a picture, Princess? That thing had friends, and if you don’t move, you’ll be dead before the flash.
" Gritting my teeth, I step forward, pushing the image out of my head.
Painfully climbing the stairs two at a time toward the bathroom.
His heavy footsteps follow behind, annoyingly steady.
The second I step inside, I slam the door in his smug face, hearing him chuckle from the other side.
“Hurry up. We’ve got fifty minutes left,” Kai calls out, his voice muffled.
And I can’t help but mutter, “ferme ta gueule.”
Shut the fuck up.
Miss. Lavoie would be proud, I think.
I turn around, and my reflection in the mirror strikes me like a slap to the face.
A rush of panic seizes my chest as I take in the sight.
My hair is a mess of tangled, dead leaves.
Face smudged with dirt, streaked mascara, scratches and smeared blood.
My clothes are torn and caked with mud. I look and feel like shit.
I hiss through my teeth as I peel off my shirt, every movement tugging at raw, stinging skin.
The acid burns on my shoulder, and my hands are angry and blistered, pulsing with heat.
I rummage through the cabinet with trembling fingers until I find the basics: rubbing alcohol, gauze, and medical tape.
The burn screams as I clean it, the sting sinking deep into my nerves.
I bite back a whimper and press the gauze to my skin, wrapping it tight.
Every tug of tape feels like punishment, but I keep going, forcing myself through it.
Bandaged and breathless, I stare in the mirror at the girl in her pitiful black camisole. She doesn’t look like a fighter; she looks like the ghost of someone she knew.
Memories crash down with brutal clarity.
Flashes of the grotesque creature flood my mind.
The way it loomed over me. Its eyes are empty and inhuman.
Its breath is thick with the stench of decay.
My pulse spikes as the fear from that moment clamps down on my chest, tight enough to steal my breath.
The images blur, but the truth remains, clear and cold.
I went on a date with a fucking pig, and I didn’t even see it coming.
What a shitty night.
But it’s the memory of my father, bleeding, that breaks me. Barely hanging on. That image knocks the air out of me. The grief comes fast, brutal.
I can’t breathe.
My chest rises and falls in shallow gasps as everything crashes down on me. Tears well up, hot and unstoppable, but I don’t bother wiping them away. What would be the point?
They fall silently, unnoticed.
I crumble to the floor, my body shaking with sobs that tear through me like a storm. This isn’t a nightmare. It’s real, and there’s no waking up from it.
I am drowning.
I can’t breathe.
I can’t breathe.
I can’t breathe.
I can’t—
A sudden bang on the bathroom door slices through the haze, snapping me back to the present.
“Hey! You okay in there?” Kai’s voice calls out, his tone sharp with irritation, like he doesn’t have the patience for any of this but can’t quite ignore it either.
I draw in a deep, shaky breath. “Yeah, I’m good,” I rasp, my voice hoarse and heavy with everything I’m trying to bury. “Almost done,” I add quickly, before he can remind me the clock’s still ticking.
I force myself up. There’s no time for a proper shower, so I settle for a hot cloth to wash my face. My scorched skin makes every movement slow and clumsy, but I welcome the sting. The pain is sharp, grounding. Something real to hold on to, killing the numbness.
In a hurry, I gather my toiletries. Some might call it trivial, but I couldn’t care less.
I need something familiar, a routine to distract me before I'm thrown into whatever hell is waiting for me.
And besides, finding the right products for my hair isn't exactly easy.
A flicker of determination sparks to life inside me.
With a shaky breath, I open the door and apprehend whatever comes next.
I find myself face-to-face with Kai. He’s standing in the dim hallway, his presence swallowing up the space around him.
His body radiates a wall of tension, one that hums in the air and sends a ripple down my spine.
His eyes find mine, and for a heartbeat, something flickers.
Etched beneath the surface, it stirs something in me, a strange pull of déjà vu I can’t quite name.
But before I can grasp it, the moment vanishes, buried by the return of what I figure is his trademark arrogance.
Kai crosses his arms over his chest, posture sharp with his hard exterior.
“All freshened up, Princess? Gotta say, the grunge look doesn’t quite suit you.” His tone is clipped, almost dismissive. “Let’s not linger.” I shoulder past him, but he barely moves, and the impact sends a jolt of pain through my shoulder. I wince inwardly.
Note to self: don’t try that again.
“Funny, I was just thinking the same thing about your attitude,” I fire back as I step into my room. “But hey, everyone’s got their flaws.”
My eyes land on the gym bag resting on the bed, a neat stack of folded clothes beside it. I pause, a silent question in my gaze as I glance back at Kai.
“In a rush, remember?” he mutters without looking at me, his voice carrying a hint of impatience as he makes a ‘hurry up’ motion with his gloved hand.
I roll my eyes.
Fucking control freak.
Guess that’s what comes from being in the army or whatever the hell he's a part of. What surprises me, though, is the choice he made for my attire. Comfortable, almost too comfortable, which makes me unsure whether I should be offended or impressed. It’s exactly what I would’ve chosen for myself.
Throwing a few last-minute things into my bag, including my e-reader.
Kai leans in the doorway, arms crossed over his broad chest, a few strands of his dirty blond hair slipping from his bun and falling into his eyes.
He watches me, bored, the black mask covering the rest of his face.
“I doubt that thing will work where we’re heading,” he comments indifferently, voice deep enough not to come out muffled.
“Do you even know what it is?” I ask, raising an eyebrow as I zip up my bag.
“A reading device.”
“So, how can it not work? Are we about to venture into the multiverse or something?”
“Or something,” Kai replies, a note of exasperation creeping into his voice. He rubs his eyes. “You may have the sight, but you truly know nothing of our world.”
My curiosity is now piqued.
But the way he says it, like I’m some na?ve child, only serves to frustrate me more. “Our world? You mean your world. Are we seriously talking about a multiverse?” Kai exhales through his nose like he can’t believe he’s stuck explaining this to me.
“No, Princess. Not multiverse. Try to follow. We’re crossing the veil. It separates your world, the mundane one, from the actual important ones. Elgar. Netherworld. Heard of them? No? Shocking.”
I narrow my eyes. “Wait… what?”
He rolls his. “The universe isn’t just one. It’s fractured into realms. Each with their own Gods, rules, and physics. But they all echo each other, bleed into one and another.”
“Is that where those norr-somethings are from?”
“The norous and yes, they’re from Netherworld, but there are worse creatures than those. More terrifying demons are in the service of Nekros. You’re lucky. The strength of those demons is in their number; it’s strange that it was alone.”
“Lucky me.”
“Anyway, when you enter the realm, the magnetic field from passing through the veil messes with technology from the Mundane World,” he continues, like I’m supposed to soak up all that info-dump. Kai pushes off the doorframe, and his eyes frown at my half-packed bag as if it personally offended him.
“What are you doing? We’re not going on a vacation. You’ve got two minutes, move it.”
I mutter under my breath, “You move it,” mimicking his stupid tone as I finish packing. Just as I’m about to zip the bag shut, Kai snatches it from my hands in one swift motion.
“Hey!” I snap, reaching for it, but he pulls it over his shoulder, out of my grasp.
My irritation flares, “You’re not in charge here.” He raises an eyebrow, eyes twinkling with challenge.
“We’ll see about that.”
Who am I kidding? I’m definitely not in charge.
He strides out of the room without a glance back, “We need to leave. Now.” My mouth pops open. Kai shouts over his shoulder as if anticipating it, “Save your questions for later.”
In black leggings and a dark grey sweater, I dart down the stairs, struggling to slip on my boots as anxiety floods me. I rush outside to find him waiting by a bike, helmet in hand.
“I’m not getting on that,” I say firmly.
“Suit yourself, Princess, but I’m your only way out of here.” Both of us lock eyes in defiance, the air charged with unspoken tension.
“Fine, but I swear if you do anything stupid, you’ll regret it,” I warn him. Reluctantly, I grab the helmet and slide onto the bike.
“Hold on tight,” he calls over his shoulder, amusement slightly lighting his voice.
“Yeah, in your dr—,” but before I can finish, he revs the engine, forcing me to cling to him for dear life, swallowing down my scream.