Chapter 27
Chapter
“Nerissa, listen to me. I will explain everything, but not now. Palace is overrun with rats, Plague is everywhere. Take your father and servants, find a safe place and stay there. I must help at the court.”
I sat there, numb. Aidenar took a step toward me, but I recoiled once more. Pain crossed his face before he turned and left my chambers.
Mirabel entered soon after and helped me dress in my leather outfit. I rose to my feet, plunged my face into a basin of cold water, trying to wash away the grime of that dream. But I knew it would take more than water to cleanse me.
My father burst into the salon. His face was confused when he saw the shattered mirror and glass everywhere. But there was no time for questions.
“Nerissa, the palace is overrun with rats. They carry the Plague, do not go near them. There are too many. We must move to the upper floors. They’re coming from the cellars. Kael, Brenn, take her and bring her to the other Lords and Ladies.”
Everyone moved in chaos. I stood silent as Mirabel tied my hair back, then pulled me toward the stairway that led deeper into the palace. Beneath the arcades, people screamed and fled, some bore the marks of bites.
Then one of the rats lunged from the shadows. It was massive, the size of a hound, yellow teeth bared, froth dripping from its maw. It hurled itself at us. Kael swung his sword, cleaving the beast in two at the last moment.
That sight jolted me back to life. My mind cleared amidst the panic.
“No. Go without me,” I said coldly.
“My Lady, your father commanded it. You must flee!” Mirabel pleaded.
“Take Mirabel and find somewhere safe,” I ordered Brenn, no longer listening to their protests. He tried to seize my hand, but I wrenched it free.
I moved through the Inner Court, where guards and servants battled the swarm.
The rats poured from beneath stones, from grates and drains, as if the underworld itself had split open.
I carried only two daggers, knowing they were poor defense.
I needed reach, not speed. The long sword would have served me better.
The world seemed to slow down for a moment. The air thickened with stench and screams. I realized I could not control the rats; their bodies were poisoned, their blood corrupted. And if I summoned the water from fountains, the flood might sweep away both rats and men.
They were coming from somewhere.
The catacombs.
The fifth bowl.
It had to be here, beneath the palace. I needed to find Dricus.
I ran to the Cineris quarters, but they were empty. I shouted to the guards along the way, asking after Lord Cineris.
“They’re defending the stables!” someone cried. “The rats are everywhere!”
I turned toward the stables. Panic raged through the courtyards. Then I saw it, a pack of rats chasing a young maid, just a girl. If they reached her, she would die. Just like Cedric. There was no cure.
I leapt forward, cutting and kicking through the swarm, my blades flashing.
But there were too many of them. I was moments away from being bitten.
I had no water anywhere, my movements were fast, but there were too many rats.
Suddenly, the figure next to me sliced open the skull of a rat that had jumped at my face.
“Dricus!” I shouted.
We danced with swords and daggers, back-to-back and cleared the space of rats. The girl escaped.
Dricus stopped short, eyes wide. “Nerissa, what are you doing here? You must run!”
“They’re coming from the catacombs,” I said in a rush. “The vases, there must be a fifth one beneath us. It’s poisoning them.”
For a moment, he stared, mind racing as if tracing a map through the tunnels. Then he asked, terse and sharp, “What do you propose?”
“We go to the elements temple,” I answered. “I’ll need your help but you won’t like it.”
Doubt flickered in his gaze, yet he followed. We ran through the corridors, the same path as before. The number of rats grew. We did not fight them, only darted between the swarming bodies.
In one of the halls, Aidenar appeared, sword flashing, fighting beside his men.
“Nerissa!” he called.
I ignored him and kept running. He followed. I snatched a torch from its sconce as we neared the temple, the air thick with shrieking, the rats spilling from its doors like a living tide. They seemed possessed, heedless of pain, driven only to scatter the Plague through the palace.
“Dricus, you know what I will ask you to do,” I said, handing him the torch. “Only you can stop this.”
“I don’t need this,” he looked at me without any emotions and turned to the entrance.
I faced Aidenar, who had caught up to us.
“Force all the air toward the temple,” I ordered. “If Dricus loses control, we will cut his power off.”
I didn’t have any water nearby, I was useless. But if necessary, I would have to incapacitate Dricus, drown him for a moment in his own body.
“Dricus, we have no time,” I said.
He spread his arms and created flames in his hands. He stepped to the temple doors. I nodded to Aidenar.
“Push the rats inside. Hold them there.”
Aidenar thrust his hands forward, a fierce current of wind surged, driving the rats back. Dricus allowed the flames to grow and spread them towards the entrance.
The fire leapt like a living beast, swelling, devouring, until the entire temple was ablaze.
The heat struck me like a wave, the ground burned beneath my feet.
Dricus guided the inferno through the catacombs, down every corridor.
A torrent of flame poured from his body, consuming everything in its path.
The shrieks of dying rats filled the air, mingling with the stench of scorched fur and flesh.
The air thinned. My lungs burned. I seized Aidenar’s hand.
“Air,” I gasped.
He understood and shattered the stained glass window with a single, powerful blast. This gust only fed Dricus’s fire more. I felt Dricus’s strength weaken, his arms began to wobble, his muscles losing their tension. I wanted to reach him, but the heat seared my skin. I couldn’t do it.
“Aidenar, help me!” I cried.
He sent another rush of wind, pushing the flames aside for an instant. I reached over and touched Dricus’s face. He was hot and trembling with exhaustion.
“That is enough,” I whispered.
Something broke within him. His body slackened, the blaze receded, and Aidenar’s wind smothered what remained. We stood in the dim glow of ruin, the temple blackened with soot, the air thick with smoke.
I knelt beside Dricus, took his face in my hands.
“It’s alright. You saved everyone, you didn’t hurt anyone. You didn’t lose control,” I told him, looking into his eyes.
He stared back, barely conscious. I caught him as he sagged forward. He was heavy, too heavy, but I would not let him fall. Aidenar rushed in to help, and together we eased him to the ground. Dricus leaned against the cracked wall, his breath ragged, his arms trembling.
Then, in one swift motion, I drew my knife and pressed it to Aidenar’s throat.
“Who are you?” I demanded, my voice shaking with fury and betrayal.
He froze, eyes wide.
“Nerissa, what are you saying?”
“How did you know about my dream?! How did you know HE was there?” I shouted.
Dricus stirred weakly, his gaze lifting toward us.
Aidenar drew a breath, his shoulders sagging. “Nerissa, this isn’t the place for this conversation,” he began. “Let’s go somewhere safe.”
“No!” I blurted out. “I want to talk about this here and now. There are three of us. The chosen three, supposedly. If we’re to defeat this darkness, we have to start trusting each other.
And I just stopped trusting YOU. How did you know about my dream?
” I pressed the knife harder, a bead of blood appeared on his skin.
Aidenar hesitated for a moment, then his shoulders sagged. He took a deep breath, gently pushing my hand away. I let him just a little bit.
“I have dreams too,” he said finally. “Ever since we started training together. At first, I thought they were normal nightmares: darkness, screams, monsters. Then a figure started appearing, a woman dressed all in black, with long black hair and black eyes. And she started talking to me. I knew this wasn’t just a dream.
She existed and was trying to invade my mind.
But I always pushed her away. I...” he hesitated.
“I can control it. I can protect my thoughts. And I used that in my dreams. This woman appears every now and then, but usually before she finishes the first sentence, the dream fades. Except for that night. She told me about you.” He looked me straight in the eyes.
“I think she wanted to hold me as long as possible, distract me, but she said her brother would visit you. She called him Malric, the same name that Jasmine mentioned.” His voice shook.
“She said… she said that he will want to play with you.”
The knife slipped from my hand. Tears welled and spilled freely.
“When I woke, I ran,” he continued, voice raw.
“I ran through the palace as fast as I could. When I burst into your chambers, you were still asleep, but I knew something was wrong. There were black veins on your face. I started waking you up, screaming for you, drawing my power to your body. The rest… you remember.”