Belladonna
The flames licked at my skin.All around me, bright orange and red flames danced and flickered, casting an eerie glow on everything they touched. My skin felt as if it were being licked by tongues of fire, searing and blistering with each touch. The acrid and pungent scent of burning hair and flesh filled the air as the flames consumed everything in their path. I could hear the sizzle and crackle of the flames, like an untamed fire spreading rapidly through dry brush. The sound intensified as the flames approached me, like a roar of fury and destruction. It soon became deafening, crackling, and hissing as they devoured everything in their path.
It felt like a frenzied dance of a thousand tiny tongues, hot and prickling, leaving trails of heat in their wake.
"Serket!" I yelled in a frenzy, my eyes scanning the fire-engulfed longhouse as I tried to breathe through the smoke.
No one answered me.
"Serket!"
I saw a shadow cross my periphery and seconds after I heard the screams as a silhouette bathed in flames as high as the longhouse's door came running straight at the door, but not even the momentum of his movement made the door sliver open. His screams got worse, piercing my eardrums as he started to hit and pound and kick at the door in front of him, trying to break through at any cost. The smell of burned flesh struck me hard, making my stomach convulse until I heaved on the floor at my feet. It took maybe another thirty seconds before his screams turned into wails and he crumbled by the door, the flames licking his body completely.
Dear Gods, save us.
Through the blood suddenly rushing through my ears, I could hear more people screaming, but the words — if there were any — sounded muffled by the sound of the fire sizzling.
I needed to get out of here.
"Serket!" I yelled again, my voice strained and hoarse from the smoke filling my lungs.
"Get out of here, Kaja!"
I whipped my head at the sound.
I would have missed the words if not for the name.
No one called me that but her.
Where was she?
Through the flames, I could see Serket's silhouette across the longhouse. Her hair, skin, and clothes were covered in smoke and dirt, but she was alive, kneeling by the side of another body, just outside her room, trapped and surrounded by a ring of fire that was quickly closing in. For the half a second it took me to process where she stood, my brain decided of its own accord that I had to reach her, to save her from this inferno somehow, before the entire longhouse fell on our heads.
I need to get to her.
I looked around my feet, looking for a sturdy piece of cloth I could use to hide my skin from the flames.
A few feet to my right, a man was lying face down on the floor. He had what looked like a heavy wool blanket strewn over his back and he wasn't moving. Feeling a moment of indecision, I slowly made my way closer to him, watching for the flames nearly licking my skin as I crossed underneath a fallen wood-beam from the longhouse's second story above me. As I knelt by his side, I pulled the blanket off him and rolled him so I could see his face, his wide, glassy eyes meeting mine as soon as his back hit the ground.
A gasp escaped me as I reared back like the body had slapped me.
No. No. No. No.
Tightening my fingers around the blanket, I pressed it around my face, rising to my feet before I vomited again.
The body that lay before me was none other than Tarek. He was older than me, but he'd been kind. Kinder than anyone else here. His lifeless eyes seemed to accuse me, even in death, for not being able to save him. Tears welled up in my eyes as I tried to push back the overwhelming guilt and grief threatening to engulf me.
I didn't have time to mourn him.
Serket was still trapped inside and I needed to get to her before it was too late.
I wrapped the blanket around my head, leaving only a small space for me to see through, and charged in Serket's direction. The flames were getting hotter and closer each passing second, but I refused to let them stop me. The heat was nearly unbearable, searing my skin through my clothes, yet I kept walking. Wood creaked above me and wooden debris fell somewhere to my left, but I kept walking, stumbling through cracked tables, half-burned seats, and glowing kitchenware.
I pushed through the pain and the smoke, blinking back tears from the smoke stinging my eyes.
"Serket!" I called out.
Stumbling over smoldering debris, I fought my way to her side.
She turned towards my voice, relief washing over her face. Her eyes were wide, her mouth opening with what I guessed were a million questions and even more harsher opinions. "How are you alive and what are you doing here?" She rasped in a less annoyed tone than I thought she'd have. "I told you to leave."
I pressed my hands on her shoulders, pushing her to stand. "And I didn't."
"Kaja, you need to —"
Her words were interrupted by a beam groaning above us.
I rolled out of the way, dragging Serket along with me just in time as the burning beam crashed down, missing us by inches. We both landed barely one foot to the side of the burning chunk of wood, breathing hard. I could feel the flames kissing my arms and legs, but I ignored the sensation and the pain exploding along my entire body. The fire was spreading faster now, completely engulfing the longhouse.
We had to get out, and fast.
"This way!" I shouted over the roar of the flames, leading Serket to the back of the longhouse, where I hoped the back door wouldn't be closed as well.
As quickly as we could, we got to our feet and scrambled over debris, dodging falling embers, the smoke making it hard to see and breathe. My heart pounded with fear and adrenaline. My eyes scanned the small dais at the back of the longhouse, where Serket usually held her ceremonies to the Old Gods. All the ancient symbols carved on the wood were now invisible, the fire consuming centuries of lore and devotion, leaving only ashes in their stead. My soul ached to see the richness of our culture and the beauty of Serket's life's work — and Thorneval — burning before my eyes.
But saving her was more important, right now.
Just as we reached the doorway behind the dais, part of the ceiling collapsed behind us with a deafening crash. We threw ourselves through the door, tumbling out into a hallway clear of fire.
I slammed the door shut behind us, cutting off some of the smoke and heat, feeling my limbs suddenly burning in exhaustion. "Are you okay?" I asked Serket between coughs.
She nodded, her eyes wide.
"We need to keep moving before the fire spreads here, too," I said.
The hallway led toward the back of the building.
I hoped we could find a way out.
Serket and I ran down the hall, the building creaking and groaning around us. We turned a corner and I could see moonlight streaming in through a doorway up ahead.
Our way out.
Just a little further…
"Stay close!" I shouted.
We burst out the doorway into open air.
The longhouse crumbled behind us, consumed fully now by the ravenous flames. But Serket was safe, and that was all that mattered. We both coughed desperately, gasping for breath, singed but alive —
Something wheezed past my shoulder.
I heard a body drop.
I whipped my head at Serket on the floor, blood pooling around her from the arrow sticking from her chest. Her mouth moved, but no sound came out as her eyes found me with ease, standing frozen before her, paralyzed by the sight of the life draining out of her body.
Ghosts of memories from a past not that long ago flashed before my eyes, making my stomach revolve uneasily.
No… not again.
The arrow was lodged deep in her chest, blood seeping out and staining her clothes as it dripped to the ground beneath her. As she stared back at me with the same amount of shock in her eyes that I felt in mine, her gaze glazed over with pain. The flickering light of the flames revealed the paleness of her skin and the sight of her body growing weaker by the second. The sound of Serket's gasping breaths mixed with the crackling of the flames and the distant sounds of destruction.
Please, not again… not again… not again.
The silence around us was deafening as I watched her struggle to speak, only to find that she couldn't.
I can't move. I can't breathe. I can't think.
Her eyes seemed to beg for help, but all I could hear was my own heart pounding in my ears.
No. No. No.
No, no, no, no.
She was a painting of pain, a canvas of crimson and despair as the arrow pierced through her chest and her eyes pleaded for help that would never come, and I was frozen, my feet rooted to the ground as I watched the life slowly slip away from the woman I loved.
And then, just as quickly as the arrow had come, a faint wheeze left her as she took her final breath.
I dropped to the ground on my knees, my hands trembling as I reached for her. My screams echoed through the empty forest as I was too weak to even pull her lifeless body into my arms and instead could only stare and feel my soul shatter, piece by piece, my hands landing on her chest as if I was expecting it to still be moving against the proof my eyes were giving me that it wasn't. Tears streamed down my face as a sound I hardly recognized left my raw throat.
"Get her."
The voice didn't snap me out of my grief.
Death itself wouldn't be able to break me out of the ache corroding me from the inside out, killing my soul before it consumed my body.
Hands grabbed me around the waist, lifting me off Serket's body.
I screamed wildly, kicking and fighting with everything I had in me to get back to Serket. Hands held me, but I scratched like a maddened animal at any part of flesh I could touch, bucking wildly as I fought the grip holding me. I fought against the arms dragging me away from Serket with a ferocity I didn't know I possessed. Her name tore from my throat in agonized cries as my fingers clawed at skin and hair, struggling to return to her side. But the merciless hands only pulled harder, indifferent to my anguish.
As I stared at her unmoving body, though, the reality of her death pierced my heart like an icy dagger.
She's gone.
I gave up, all fight draining from my limbs. Sobs wracked my body as I finally came to grips with the loss.
She was gone.
Gone.
The pain was a gaping abyss threatening to swallow me whole.
Somewhere in the recesses of my mind, I knew her murderers still surrounded me. But I no longer cared if they took me too. My will to live had fled with the last rise and fall of Serket's chest.
Let them do what they would.
I didn't care anymore. Without her, I had nothing else. No one else. It didn't matter if I was alive or not. If I stayed or went. Without her, there was nothing else.
I was alone.
I surrendered fully to my grief, welcoming the black wave of oblivion rising to meet me. If I couldn't be with my family in life, then I'd make sure I joined them in death.
As my captors dragged my limp body away, I retreated deep inside myself, like a turtle going into her shell.
Hiding. Preserving. Protecting.
"Don't touch her skin."
At the words, a wave of rage possessed me, so potent and violent, I whipped around, coming face to face with a woman, not much taller than I was, with hair and eyes so black they were nearly indistinguishable in the darkness. My movement surprised whoever was still holding me, making the grip flush the tiniest bit. My feet hit the ground and I found that, despite the ache destroying from the inside out, they were steady enough to hold me.
Lifting my chin, I took her in.
Her frame was delicate, but there was a wariness to her stance that made a fine shiver course through me in warning. Her lips were heart-shaped and they moved gracefully as she smiled at me, her voice sugary sweet as she kept giving orders to the hands holding me. Her eyes were truly black and they gazed at me with an avid interest that made my stomach cramp.
I couldn't speak.
I could only stare.
And I wanted to rip her into two right where she stood.
"Someone get her to shut up, please." She waved a hand in the air as she tilted her face away, nose scrunched up in disgust.
Her words were a knife twisting in my heart.
I hadn't realized I was still screaming.
A hand flew at my face —
The blow landed somewhere over my cheekbone, strong enough to make tears immediately sprout in my eyes. Breathing hard, I closed my eyes, trying to process what was happening.
I whirled —
Pain consumed my every fiber.
Screams tore out of my mouth, vibrant with the timber of the forest and the sizzling of the fire echoing my pain. My back arched back and my shoulder burned like someone was charring my skin with the very flames that'd burned down the longhouse behind us. I couldn't move, but even as I tried to fight back with all my might, I could still feel something draining — sucking — from me.
I'd never felt anything like it before.
And I knew what she was.
Through the haze of pain, I saw her. Her hair was a deep red under the glow of the flames, her eyes closed as her lips moved, her small shoulders and plump hips hidden under layers of clothing to thwart the cold.
A fucking Vefari.
My captors held me down, pinning me to the ground as this woman — this dark and twisted woman — brought her face closer to mine. Her eyes remained closed, but when she stopped murmuring, her voice sounded perfectly clear. "Stop fighting," she commanded in a voice that sounded like straight, undistilled venom.
I ignored her, thrashing against my captors even as they tightened their grip on me.
The pain was overwhelming, blinding, all-consuming.
It was a raging fire, hot and unbearably intense, coursing through every inch of the body like a torrential flood, drowning out all other senses and leaving only the raw, primal sensation of agony. It was a physical and emotional tsunami, threatening to engulf and destroy everything in its path.
Gods, have mercy on me.
I twisted in the grip of my captors, the rage still boiling in my veins, so strong it could have brought down entire kingdoms. Like seconds before, it was a power I'd never known before. It burned through my veins like the fire that'd licked through my skin moments before. It was a raw, primal force, pulsing with the intensity of a thousand suns and the destructive power of an apocalyptic storm. It was a frenzy of rage and fury, searing through every inch of my being like a scorching inferno, ready to unleash chaos and destruction upon anyone who dared stand in its way.
For a moment, I saw red.
With a feral snarl, I slammed my head back into the face of the man holding me. He grunted in pain, but held on, his grip tight. I ground my teeth, preparing for another head-slam, when he whimpered as if I'd burned him —
His grip loosened.
Without stopping to think or second-guess myself, I tore free, and through the red haze clouding my vision, I saw the red-haired woman recoil in surprise.
"Don't just stand there, stop her!" The black-haired woman shrieked.
More hands grabbed at me but I was too fast, fueled by grief and rage. I launched myself at the woman, slamming into her slender frame. We tumbled to the ground in a tangle of limbs. My hands found her throat and I squeezed with all my might. Her eyes bulged, nails raking at my arms, but I would not relent.
"Let her go!" A voice bellowed.
Strong arms wrapped around me, prying my fingers from the woman's neck, but one jab of my elbow backward sent someone grunting, releasing me. As more hands landed on my body, I fought with all I had, but it was no use. Working together, keeping their hands carefully placed around my waist and arms, they dragged me away once more as I thrashed and cursed them all.
The woman lay gasping on the ground, massaging her bruised throat.
The black-haired one stared at me, her cold eyes so black they were like soulless pits of Helheim. "You'll pay for that," she rasped.
I bared my teeth, unrepentant.
They could do their worst, but I would never break.
Serket was gone. My parents were gone. My home was gone.
I might have lost everyone I cared about, but I was not going down without a fight.
"You're coming with me, Belladona," the black-haired woman sweetly announced, smiling at me. "Now that I found you, you'll be mine for as long as your lungs draw breath."
Held immobile by multiple hands, I could only scream when the Vefari's hands landed on me again and this time she didn't suck the life force out of me. Instead, my neck and clavicle started burning and I knew, despite never having seen a Vefari before, I knew what she was doing.
She was branding me.
Right here. Right now.
My screams only stopped when I realized no one was coming to save me.
***
My body jerked as a shrill, primal scream erupted from my throat.
My eyes flew open, and I frantically scanned the darkness of my cell like I was scared I would find my nightmares hidden there, lying in wait for the perfect moment to pounce. My heart raced as I struggled to catch my breath and calm my racing thoughts.
It had all been a dream.
A horrible nightmare that felt all too real.
And somehow I didn't find it surprising that what'd happened yesterday had somehow flushed out the memories of Serket's death.
In truth, I wasn't sure which nightmare would hurt more.
Wasn't irony a bitch?
The Vefari's hands on me, their cruel words, the pain of being branded. It was all still fresh in my mind. It had all happened, exactly as I'd dreamed it, and the reminder felt like a slap in the face, even after all this time. It'd never stop hurting how I'd come to be here, and the things I'd been forced to endure in the past months. The Keiserinne was ruthless, vicious, and cruel. She'd shown me countless times exactly how much. And her Vefari was powerful, so much so that her branding hadn't only bound me to the Keiserinne for the rest of my natural life as her slave, but it'd somehow worked as a protection against me.
How she'd done that?
I had no idea.
I sat up, wrapping my arms around myself as I tried to steady my breathing. It took several long minutes before I could calm down enough to take in my surroundings and realize the wolf was lying at my feet on my cot, exactly where I'd fallen asleep yesterday after the guards had brought us back to my cell. As I moved and looked at him more closely, though, I noticed that despite being immobile, he was lying at the foot of the old mattress, his amber eyes were open and centered on me almost as if he was standing watch over me.
"I'm okay. You can sleep," I told him, knowing he wouldn't understand, my voice raspy from what the night spent with my nightmares keeping me company. "I'm sorry for waking you up." I scoffed, leaning my head against my knees in shame, my voice sounding muffled against my skin. "Or rather for not letting you sleep."
One of his ears quirked up as he blinked very slowly, almost lazily, but stayed motionless at the foot of my cot, his amber eyes still staring intently. Despite his indifferent demeanor, I sensed a quiet understanding in his gaze. His steady gaze was comforting like he was trying to tell me that everything would be okay.
At that moment, a tiny flicker of hope awoke within me.
I let out a deep sigh, the panic from my nightmare slowly fading away. Absently, my fingers traced the raised, scarred flesh on my collarbone, an ever-present mark of the Keiserinne's ownership over me. She had stripped away my freedom, my dignity, and even my body, and she'd do it all over again just for the power it granted her.
I had no doubt of that.
But she was wrong if she thought I wouldn't try to escape.
The thought sent an unexpected spark through my veins.
I envisioned the Keiserinne's haughty smile transforming into a look of shock and outrage as I broke free of her control and the image brought the tiniest smile to my lips.
I reached out and stroked the wolf's soft fur, taking comfort in his presence.
He leaned into my touch, a low rumble emanating from his chest.
Though I was alone and captive in this dark cell, at least I had him by my side. He was an unlikely companion, a wild thing that by rights should have fled or attacked me. Yet since outside in the snow when the guard had tried to attack me, he had stayed, watching me with his intelligent eyes, fiercely loyal and protective even if quite more perceptive of when his boldness could be of gain or not than I'd have expected.
And through all that'd happened recently, I hadn't named him, I realized.
The wolf shifted, pressing against my leg.
I sighed, leaning back against the cold stone wall. "Why are you here? Why are you protecting me? Why are you by my side when you could be out there, out of this cell?" I wondered aloud, looking at the wolf as if expecting him to answer. "Why?"
There was no answer — not that I'd expected one.
Instead, the wolf simply chuffed, eyes closing lazily.
The cell was dank and as I looked outside I noticed that the sun was rising outside —
Footsteps echoed outside my cell, followed by the familiar creak of a door opening.
"Rise and shine, Belladona," a deep voice chuckled. "Time for breakfast."
The guard who entered was huge and burly with a thick mustache that only added to his intimidating appearance. He sneered at me before placing a metallic tray with a piece of stale bread and a canteen of water onto the floor near the door.
"I'll be back to take you to the pavilion," he warned before slamming the door shut behind him.
I waited until his heavy footsteps faded away before crawling over to grab the bread. My stomach grumbled hungrily but I couldn't bring myself to eat it, my stomach convulsing at the mere sight of the piece of bread. Instead, I curled my arms around my knees and waited until a scraping sound at the cell door snapped my eyes back to the threshold where I knew the guard would be waiting to escort me back to the pavilion. The wolf lifted his head, ears pricked.
Moments later, the door swung open and the same guard entered.
Wordlessly, he motioned for me to stand.
I did so warily, the wolf rising with me.
"Let's go," one guard grunted. "You're both needed." He grabbed my arm and propelled me forward.
What for?
My mind raced.
The guards led me through the gloomy stone corridors of the thrall quarters, onto the courtyard.
Just like yesterday morning, snow had fallen through the night. The world was now coated in a layer of fresh, powdery snow, blanketed like a glistening white veil. The air was thick with humidity, causing my curls to frizz and fly away with static. I gently smoothed them down, running my fingers through the tangled strands and wincing as they fought against me with resilience. A few fell onto my shoulder and as I ran my fingers through them, my eyes spotted my golden lock emerge in the sea of red curls.
Sighing, I gave up, pushing all my hair behind my back.
I did not want to see it.
Or think about it.
The ground was covered in a thin layer of powdery snow, making it look like a frosted wonderland. The air was misty and the snowflakes danced around in the wind, swirling and sparkling in the sunlight. Above, the sky was a pale grey, blending in with the looming stone walls of the fortress. The snow-covered landscape stretched out far into the horizon, giving off a serene yet eerie vibe. The air was crisp with a hint of dampness, carrying the subtle scent of fresh snow that had fallen overnight. The musty odor of stone and cold metal mingled with the earthy smell of wet branches and leaves, adding to the overall chill in the air.
The wolf padded silently beside me as the guards led us across the snowy courtyard toward the central pavilion. I kept my eyes downcast, watching my feet leave imprints in the fresh powder.
From afar, the fortress had never looked more threatening.
The keep stood tall and imposing, its gray stone walls towering high above us. Snow-covered turrets and spires stretched up towards the overcast sky. The air was chilly and damp, causing our breaths to create small clouds in front of us. As we made our way inside, torches and candles flickered, casting shadows across the dark hallways.
The old keep was weirdly shaped like an inverted U. On the western wing were the guard quarters, along with what I'd been told were rooms created purposefully for their occupation like armory, mess hall and entertainment rooms. On the northern wing were the Keiserinne's private quarters, as well as the thralls that serviced as her maids, and her Vefari. The pavilion stood on the eastern wing, the ground floor prepared for the entertaining of guests in the large oval room I'd been in yesterday and the top floor having the clients' rooms.
We took a right to reach the pavilion, as I'd expected.
My thoughts took me back to the Keiserinne's plans with Jarl Terosi and how she planned on taking down the Slayer and the King. I wanted to help right the mess she was trying to create, but I knew I was helpless. There was nothing I could do with the tight control the Keiserinne kept on me, and yet I couldn't stand by and watch her destroy the entire kingdom for whatever vendetta she had against the King.
I humorlessly wondered how someone could become a monster this way.
Serket had told me, on the morning of the exact day she died, that we are all born beautiful, but I wasn't sure I believed that anymore.
How could I, when the Keiserinne was the living proof of the contrary?
She was evil incarnate.
The day Serket had died was one of the saddest days of my entire life. I'd had my fair share of those, but I don't think any of them surpassed that particular one. As an orphan, my life wasn't the happiest one could imagine. I'd had more crappy days than happy ones, and sadness was, on most days, a constant company, but I don't remember any day being as bad as that one. Because, as an orphan, life had taught me how to detach myself from everything and everyone. I tried my darnedest every day to never care too much or sometimes at all. I didn't care for the pain or the sorrow, so my escape from it was to simply not let anything or anyone get too close, so I wouldn't have to mourn them once they left.
Serket was the exception to that rule.
I don't remember ever meeting or seeing anyone quite like her. For a seid-weaver, Serket was the brightest person I'd ever witnessed. Her walk was a breath of fresh air, her words a song of heavenly music, and her presence a shot of warm sunlight. She was the rare kind of person who could walk into a room and light it up in a way that made even the gloomiest of people smile if nothing else because her smile braved them to mimic it.
It was the most beautiful thing.
She wasn't a brutally beautiful woman, her features or body not of particular interest, but something made everyone naturally gravitate toward her. She wasn't the kind to be presumptuous or overly expressive. She did things in the exact measure. Never talked too much or laughed too hard or stared too long, but every time she talked, her words rang true, her laugh quenched foolish nerves, and her stare made souls feel warmer. She had this easiness and plainness to her in a way I hadn't seen in barely anyone in this world.
There was no facet or lie or mask to her. No deception. No make-believe.
No.
She was purely and merely herself. She could stand by your side and not say a thing and yet just by staring at her, your very being knew, deep down, exactly who she was. It was almost like when you looked at her, you saw her being in perfect detail like she could somehow have all her clothes on and with one look, still be naked in front of you, showing her bright soul to you with nothing but a silent kindness exuding off her.
And the day she died, the world became a little bit darker.
I remember it painfully clear, mostly because the day she died, a dimness installed in the world I lived in that never completely faded away. She'd been a unique soul and with her demise, the sun stopped shining so bright. Or maybe I somehow became somewhat blind to it, like maybe I never fully opened my eyes again after she passed away. After that day, everything seemed to change for me. Even the way I saw the world changed. With her gone, even though the sun shone in the sky every day, my world became shadowy and dangerous and forever tainted by a darkness I couldn't put into words. Shadows lurked everywhere now, in every edge or corner, staring back at me with soot covering its gnashing teeth, waiting for me to crawl into it and let it consume me the same way it tried to do with Serket — though I knew, even in her deathbed, as she was taken by forces stronger than either of us, she never relented to the darkness.
She'd taught me lessons I'd cherish to the end of my days.
'We are all born beautiful, my child.'
The moment I heard those words come out of her mouth, I believed them. More than a seid-weaver, she'd been practically a mother to me. She'd raised me. Taught me all that I knew. She'd been the only family I'd had after my parents died and the only one I'd ever really needed in their absence, and with her presence in my life, I'd grown healthy, strong, and capable the way any child should be. Though I'd thought our time together had already taught me all that it could, she still gave me another piece of her wisdom that day. Something I took to heart in all the moments I drew breath ever since. Even as I fought the very monster that'd taken her from me, I thought about those words and what they meant.
How all living beings are born beautiful.
And how some of them are so purely ugly it wounds to simply look at them.
So, in the end, I also learned — by the very happenings of that day —, after Serket passed away, that even though we are, indeed, all born beautiful, some of us become very ugly.
Maybe not willingly. Maybe not deliberately. Maybe not intentionally.
But something happened to turn us bad.
Dark. Evil. Dangerous. Murderous. Brutal. Corrupted. Nefarious.
Maybe it was the course of our wyrd. Or maybe it has nothing to do with the wyrd. Maybe it's really just all about us. About people. About Mankind. About living beings. Or maybe it is about the world. There is great power within the shadows and some of us are drawn to it more than others, so maybe it isn't about how we are born, but about the things we learn to feel comfortable in, so eventually they trick us into being just like them.
I really don't know for sure.
Though I'm sure Serket would probably know.
Nevertheless, my wyrd has shown me that the greatest tragedy of life is being born so beautiful only to somehow be forced to believe we are not and then see those around us become so very ugly as easily as in the blink of one eye.
I let my lashes fall closed.
We crossed into the pavilion, the place most of the kingdom recognized as 'The BellaDonna'. As expected, the floor was empty at this hour of the morning and I sighed in relief when I didn't see the thralls here either.
"The Keiserinne requested the Belladonna to be taken to upper bedchambers," a guard informed the one escorting me.
I took a deep breath, settling my gaze on the ground in front of me —
A toe-curling, blood-chilling scream interrupted my thoughts.
My ears ringed.
The guard startled at my back, his fear as thick in the air as a pungent smell as he whipped his head to look around the room. "What was that?"
I froze with my foot on the first step —
Panic ensued.
Guards rushed from the rooms, closing doors as clients and thralls alike were awakened by the scream echoing in the building. A shameful amount of skin was on display as the clients didn't waste time putting on clothes to cover their nudity. Shouts emerged as guards raced to contain the nobles startled by the sound.
My eyes lifted —
I'd never seen anything quite like it.
I recognized her from the nights I'd either been around helping in whichever way I was needed or sent into the bed chambers to use the powers I was enslaved for. In another life, she'd been one of the most coveted girls the Keiserinne had at her disposal, but the second I saw her darting down the stairs from one of the first-floor rooms, completely naked and covered in what I was sure was blood from head to toe, she didn't look beautiful at all.
She looked like something out of a nightmare — my nightmares.
That was human blood.
It had to be.
The blood was glistening like a second skin, making even her hair red instead of brown. It was concentrated on her chest and abdomen, dripping down her legs until her fragile, small feet left red footprints as she ran through the concrete floor. The sight of blood made my stomach convulse but when I caught the gashes of claws running down the center of her front body, I couldn't help the bile that rose to my mouth and nearly catapulted out of my mouth. Anyone with two eyes knew those weren't human-made wounds and it wasn't needed any fair leap of intelligence to assume what could've made those. It was one of the most disgusting things I'd ever seen in my entire life — and I'd seen plenty, I'm afraid. The skin was torn from her muscles, dangling as she moved, dancing to the frenetic rhythm of her running terror.
By the Gods.
I was going to vomit.
She tripped multiple times as she ran down the stairs right in my direction, her screams becoming shriller by the second as she looked back like she expected whatever had attacked her to come after her.
It didn't.
But her panic was so real, so fleshed-out, I swear I could swallow it from here.
The wolf stepped in front of me as she brushed past me and ran out into the center of the pavilion, rushing to shield me even though the girl offered me precisely no attention. The animal's eyes turned upward to me like amber diamonds in the split second I looked down after the girl had ran past me, and I wasn't sure what I saw there, mostly because I couldn't explain it.
Worry? Concern? Fear?
I wasn't sure either of those words were correctly applicable.
His ears moved, perking at sounds I couldn't hear over the sound of her screams, rounding me as I started to turn back to look at the still screaming girl, molding his body around the side and back of my legs, standing so close I could feel his fur through my clothes. His chest was vibrating menacingly and I knew I'd hear him growling if it wasn't for the confusion in the building.
The stage was several yards in front of her and the usual set-up of chairs and tables hadn't been prepared yet from the morning cleanings of the space. I could hear more people rushing into the hallways on the upper floor, doors opening and closing as the girls heard her screams and came outside to see what was happening. She tripped a few more times before collapsing completely on the floor, curling herself into a fetal position and I could clearly see darker spots marring her skin along with a few small clawing wounds through the blood on her face, neck, inner thighs, and shoulders, along with the brutal more-than-inch-deep wounds on her chest as if something had forced itself on her with considerable animalistic brutality and then had tried to hold her down when she started to struggle as it —
"Oh, my…"
The male voice that'd spoken interrupted herself by vomiting on the floor somewhere to my left.
Equal exclamations of disgust started all over the building, all around me, as they, too, understood all too well what the blood and the claw marks we were all seeing meant exactly like I did.
I swallowed the bile that roared up my windpipe like a shot of pure alcohol down my throat, bitter and burning.
"What's going on?" A feminine voice boomed.
The Keiserinne surfaced from the northern wing with four guards behind her.
I recognized two as her personal guards, the ones that escorted her wherever she needed to go here, probably because she'd gotten afraid that one of the girls was brave enough to try to kill her if she was alone. Her bronze hair contrasted weirdly against the blood on the girl's pale skin — mostly from the lack of sunlight — and even though she directed her entire focus to the weeping girl on the floor, it was clear the distress, annoyance, and anger in her face. She pointed at the girl lying on the floor, still screaming her voice off, and the guards circled her like prey.
A pool of blood had gathered around the girl, so they hesitated to move closer or touch her. Instead, they lingered nearby, one of them kneeling to inspect the wounds on the girl's body as if he could somehow dissect her with his eyes and learn what had happened to her.
The Keiserinne stopped about three feet from the girl, lifting the ends of her dress so it wouldn't get dirtied by the blood. I could see her waving her head and talking to the guards much more silently, ordering them. Two more knelt on the floor by the girl's head and feet and together they reached for her hands and feet.
She screamed, writhing against them, battling fiercely but also derangedly against the hands touching her.
"Stop it, now, Freyja!" The Keiserinne yelled, kneeling as well to inspect the damage to the maddened girl. "Secure her. I want to end this shit show."
With the help of a third guard, they managed to settle the girl, Freyja, on her back on the floor.
I was glad I was a few feet away or I would have vomited just as the guard beside me had done when I stared more closely into the wound on her chest and the bruises on her skin. I mean, even from here, I could see one clearly from the inner side of her right thigh to the pelvic bone and down to her perineum.
By Odin's beards.
What had done that?
The three guards tried to lift the girl, but she started screaming even further and writhing as if she couldn't bear to have their touch on her skin. When they tried to get her to get up, she kept slumping back to the floor, completely drained from her terror and probably the pain, as well.
Clearly, this girl was completely exhausted.
And terrified.
The sound of a slap echoed through the entire building.
The girl stopped screaming, turning her very wide and scared eyes to the Keiserinne and I realized — not for the first time — that this woman really had no limits. This girl was wounded, mutilated to near death, scared out of her mind and she'd slapped her as if she'd broken a dish.
How heartless could this monster really be?
The Keiserinne gesticulated furiously, frantic as her eyes searched the floors and saw all the girls perched on the banisters watching, and one of the guards ran off to the door leading into the Keiserinne's quarters, returning seconds later with something in his hand.
A syringe of sorts.
As they worked to get the girl in the right position, the Keiserinne's wide, angry eyes flew up from the scene of the screaming, weeping, writhing, covered-in-blood girl on the floor at her feet and found me a few feet beyond, still petrified by the sight of the similarly demented woman. "Sedate her!" She ordered in a growl. "And find whatever did this!"
I wanted to run or react in any way, but I couldn't.
I could barely breathe.
Did I really need to watch someone else die?
My body shivered at the grim thought, making my insides clench uncomfortably.
The image of the girl from last night burning in the pyre flashed before my eyes and my heart squeezed until I felt like I couldn't breathe. I wouldn't survive feeling another soul wither out, hearing another girl flush her llast breath.
I'd rather die than see that.
A growl erupted at my feet. I don't think they'll have to look very hard for the one responsible.
The world slowed down around me.
What —
The thought wasn't mine and the voice wasn't mine either.
But I'd heard it all the same.
I looked around but there was no one around me. The guard that'd been escorting me had rushed several feet forward at the Keiserinne's orders, rushing to help0 contain the nearly-dead girl.
Who could've —
I looked down as a low rumble sounded beside me, nails clipping the floor next to me as his head dipped to the side, his amber eyes glinting with fire as he centered them on me. His attention felt oddly different from all the other times he'd looked at me, with an intent that made me lose all my air.
I gaped —
The wolf? The wolf?!
My mouth dropped open.
Holy flying beasts.
I calculated with critical agility the probability that I was hallucinating. Or dreaming. Or just completely insane. The odds weren't in my favor, but then again, nothing in my life had ever truly been. That wasn't anything new.
But a wolf talking?
I'm trusting you right now, the same voice from moments before spoke in my mind.
I was losing my mind in this place.
As I stared, bewildered, at the wolf, a warmth I'd never felt before started to settle in my chest, heavy and extremely powerful just as a cord extended from me to the creature standing beside, connecting us in a way I both recognized and felt strange. It was as if a sun had risen within his chest, radiating outwards and extending toward me in a tangible cord, binding us together in a primal and inexplicable way until the warmth of his sun glowed within so brightly it was a wonder I'd ever been able to live without it.
What was happening?
He was still curled around my legs, now growling menacingly as he stared at the guards running in our direction, poised to attack and not daring to look at me, but I could still feel him, in the warmth settled deep into my chest, as strong as a golden lace stretched tight between us, such a powerful and unbreakable bond, my mind's eyes saw it like literal a golden thread woven between our hearts.
And I need you to trust me, as well, he continued, voice steady.
I shook my head, trying to clear it.
Maybe I had hit my head when I'd fallen in the snow. Maybe this was all just some bizarre dream. But deep down, I knew it wasn't. The wolf's presence felt too real, too tangible for it all to be a figment of my imagination.
Even though it was strange, I recognized this feeling.
It was like when I bonded my fire with another person's soul, only slightly different, as well.
Like he'd felt me staring, the wolf lifted his eyes to me.
I blinked rapidly, and his steady gaze remained fixed on me, patient and knowing. "Did you… did you just speak to me?" I whispered hesitantly.
The wolf huffed, a small growl rumbling in his throat and if that was possible, his voice turned impatient and aggravated. The simple answer is yes, he responded, the deep timbre of his voice resonating in my mind, but his tone hinted at a long explanation that he didn't have time or desire for right now. We'll save the longer answer for later.
I stared, stunned into silence.
The wolf came even more impossibly closer, his body almost merging with mine. He was massive up close, his head reaching above my waist and I could feel his muscles tensing as he prepared for whatever was going to happen.
It was real. He was real. This was no dream or hallucination.
I fell back a step — which he accompanied swiftly —, my mind reeling.
This was impossible. Animals didn't speak — at least not outside of children's tales. Yet the wolf's voice reverberated clearly in my mind.
The wolf growled, deep and menacing, the hair on his back bristling. Trust me, the voice spoke again. Do absolutely nothing. Stay here.
I blinked in confusion but nodded hesitantly.
The wolf's body tensed, ready to spring into action. Do not move, the wolf roared.
I lifted my lashes —
He leapt before I could take in my next breath, fangs bared.
The wolf's attack was swift and brutal. His massive body crashed into a figure just as it turned the corner of the stairs, sending both of them sprawling to the ground. From the height and the shape, I was guessing it was a man, but I didn't think it was a guard. It wasn't wearing the typical uniform, for starters, nor did it move the way guards did. I watched as he lunged at the figure, growling and snarling, —
With a roar, the wolf went flying into the wall and the sound of his body crashing against the concrete made the hairs on my arms raise.
That's when I saw him.
It was a man, but by the look in his eyes and the devious smirk on his lips, I knew it wasn't only a man.
It was something more. Something dark. Something dangerous.
Something hungry.
His eyes were black and though a part of me didn't want to believe that was possible, he stared straight at me, not sparing the wolf much attention as he descended a gentle, silent step closer to me. His hair was as black as midnight, though it glowed in a myriad of reds under the pavilion lights. As I watched the smirk grow into a full grin, he started to change.
My legs faltered a few steps.
His skin, that'd been perfectly bronze seconds before, turned an ashen grey, his sclera turned completely black, merging with his pupils, two small horns protruded from his temples and spikes formed over his forearms and shoulders. All twenty of his fingers became spikes, elongated and so very pointy I knew they could slice through anything and everything.
Týr bless us.
What the hell was that?
I stood rooted to the spot, incapable of moving.
"Finally, we meet, Skår," he sang in an amused coo. "I've been waiting for this moment for some time."
My body must have finally snapped out of its slumber at the same time my mind did, because I found myself retreating two insignificant steps that he countered. "What?"
Behind him, the wolf shook his head, turning his massive body back to us with sharp fangs glinting in the light. A spot of blood reddened his fur on his right side, but I couldn't tell if the wound was bad.
Even injured, he moved with incredible agility, rushing at the beast standing between us.
The man-beast, or whatever he was, remained impassive as he followed my gaze over his shoulder to the now advancing wolf, seemingly unimpressed. His smirk turned devilish, and a malicious glimmer sparkled in his coal-black eyes. For a split second, he glanced down at the wolf rushing towards him, then back at me again.
His grin widened even more, if that was possible.
I felt my heart pounding against my ribcage, a wild drum echoing the rhythm of impending doom.
Almost casually, he held out one hand towards the wolf and a black force emanated from his palm. It hit the wolf mid-air like an unseen wall, flinging him away with even greater force than before. A whimper echoed around the pavilion as he was thrown back.
Every muscle in my body screamed at me to run, but my feet were rooted to the spot. My mind spun in furious circles.
Why was this thing here?
What did it want?
He started walking toward me with chilling nonchalance. The ground under his feet seemed to shift and tremble with each step he took.
And a horrifying realization hit me.
He was enjoying this.
"You have no idea how much time I've waited to see your face and have the pleasure of ripping you apart one inch at a time," he taunted with a wicked chuckle that echoed eerily around us. "But first, I wanna see it."
See 'it'?
Reflexes kicked in just in time as he lunged at me, those monstrous fingers stretched out towards my throat. I dove to one side and he missed by a hairbreadth. Scrambling to my feet, I got to my feet —
He was suddenly in front of me.
I skidded to a stop, backtracking. The sounds of the world around us suddenly trickled back in and I spied a look at where the Keiserinne had been, noticing she was still there, her right arm raised to stop her guards from intervening, her eyes narrowed in interest.
Clearly, she wasn't going to help.
She probably wanted to see where this would lead. What would happen. Or maybe she didn't want to risk the loss of her guards.
Either way, I was screwed.
I opened my mouth —
His hand closed around my throat, cutting off my air supply. I clawed at his hand, trying to make him back away, but his grip was too strong. He effortlessly lifted my chin, tipping it to the side the same way a butcher buying cattle for slaughter. He chuckled, a sound soft in his chest that rumbled through me, making the hairs on the nape of my neck raise, and then I felt a feather touch of his spikes at my throat, right over my thundering pulse. "I see your heart beats strong," he commented sweetly, raking a single spike down the side of my throat all the way to the center of my chest. "Did you enjoy Father's gift?"
Black spots swirled in my eyes.
I can't breathe.
I couldn't breathe.
I felt his breath tickling the hair on my neck. "We've left our mark on you, didn't we?" He whispered against my ear. "Look at these beautiful shadows." His spikes slithered over my collarbone and down my arm, probably seeing my shadows spring to life, even though it clearly didn't affect him at all.
In fact, though I could feel the shimmer springing to life, it seemed to be steadily rushing out of me, like the beast was absorbing it as I made it rush to the surface.
Which didn't feel possible.
Or was it?
His nostrils flared as he leaned in close, his eyes falling to my forehead. "And that scar…" A wave of rumbling pleasure rolled out of him. "His gift certainly made you beautiful, didn't it?"
A tremor coursed through me.
His words were a mockery, a cruel jest carved for his own twisted amusement and though it should have filled with anger and spite, instead it only made what felt like ice coat my veins and chill my entire body like he was burying me in the thickest ice cap of the North.
My body sagged in his grip.
The lack of oxygen was taking its toll. My fingers clawed desperately at his wrist, seeking any form of leverage that was not there. His laughter echoed in my ears — a harrowing reminder of my imminent end.
But I wasn't done fighting.
Not yet.
With every last bit of strength I had left, I raised my legs and rammed my knee into his midriff. The unexpected contact forced him to loosen his hold ever so slightly, and I seized the moment to wrench myself free from his grasp.
I gulped in air greedily, each breath bringing both pain and relief as I fell on my knees on the ground with a grunt and a shot of pain that glided all the way up my thighs. But I had no time to recover. As soon as I was free, I dashed away from him, taking whatever precious seconds I had before he caught up to me. All sound seemed to fade away as I got to my feet and sprinted across the room. The man's snarl of rage barely registered in my ears. The gasps and shouts of the spectators were but mere whispers amidst the pounding in my chest.
I was running out of time.
The Keiserinne's gaze followed me intently, her eyes widening ever so slightly —
A hand snagged my hair, pulling me back with so much force I felt my hair ripping off my scalp. With a yelp, I was pulled back against the beast's broad and strong chest. His hand circled my throat again as he adjusted my body comfortably into his side.
I heard him take a long inhale, sniffing me. "You even smell like him, you know?" He crooned. "It's amazing. It's like being with him all over again. Having him here by my side, demanding that I kill you and give him back what is rightfully —"
The crunch of the wolf's jaws closing around the beast's throat cut him off.
I fell on my knees again, my hands supporting my upper body as a buzzing filled my head, making the entire world swirl.
Almighty, help me.
I was very close to vomiting.
Or passing out.
But then the wolf was dragging the beast by the throat away from me, growling against the strain as the man fought him. His legs kicked and his hands launched blindly around him in search of the wolf's body to strike, but other than raking him over a shoulder blade, his dagger-like fingers made no dent on the wolf.
After the beast was nearly three feet away, the wolf let go of his neck, a black substance coming off the man's neck in rivulets of what seemed like tar from the open wound.
After that, the two grappled on the ground for a few seconds which felt like an eternity, and I watched the wolf battle with an almost supernatural grace. He moved effortlessly around the beast, dodging its attacks and retaliating with fierce swipes of his powerful paws and jaws. His predatory eyes never left the threat as he rounded and lunged at the beast, his massive frame powerful and mighty.
I couldn't help but gape in awe at the scene unfolding before me.
I slumped to the ground, exhausted.
Wolves were supposed to be wild animals, yet this one seemed intelligent and purposeful in his actions.
The wolf backed away —
The beast was now covered in black goo, bites all over his arms, neck, and legs — the parts of him not covered in spikes. He also had claw wounds over his torso and sides.
Clearly, the wolf had won this round.
The beast roared in pain and frustration, struggling to sit.
The wolf assumed a position in front of me, lowering his snout menacingly, his entire body trembling as he growled. It doesn't know it yet, but this thing is meeting his maker today, the wolf growled at me, not directing any part of his physical attention to me, but I could feel the bond tightening as he was pulling at it, stretching to see beyond it. I intend to take it there personally.
I stared blankly at the wolf's protective form in front of me, still unable to process everything that was happening.
This wolf — this creature — had just protected me yet again, fighting off a freaking beast, and was currently speaking to my mind, protecting me.
Holy Helheim.
I took in a raspy breath.
Don't call that place holy, his voice scolded in a tone that told me he was offended. It's blasphemy.
Sweet ancient Gods.
Could he hear my thoughts?
That would probably be less shocking than him speaking to my mind, to be honest.
Yes, he sighed. Stay back. They recover very fast and though it's weakened, it's still the most dangerous predator in the world.
I swallowed, nodding numbly.
My eyes found the wolf. His fur was covered in the same black substance that seemed to bleed from the beast's veins, but he looked otherwise unharmed.
I should have been terrified.
This was a dangerous predator who had just violently nearly killed a beast right before my eyes. Yet somehow, I felt no fear looking into those intelligent eyes. In fact, I sensed this wolf was not a mindless beast, but a thinking, feeling creature.
I was terrified.
Just not… of him.
Voices rose around us, though, and I could hear the Keiserinne screaming behind us on the pavilion. I couldn't hear what she was saying and I was too shocked to actually care.
Something made me resort to the same channel of communication to question him, so I could somehow understand what was going on. How did you do that?
He didn't answer, turning his eyes to me for a few seconds before turning around himself, lowering his snout to the ground menacingly, and growling deep in his chest at the still struggling beast, the sound echoing around the hallway, nails clipping the floor. Tell them to prepare a fire. We need to burn the body of the beast. It won't die any other way.
Are you serious? I furrowed my brows. They won't listen to me.
They will, he assured me calmly. They don't have any other choice.
You —
Do as I say, blóma, the order was harsh but his tone was soft, making it more of a request than a demand.
Had he really just called me blóma?
Nobody called me that here.
How did he know these things?
You cannot fathom the depth of things I know about you.
My eyebrows rose. Well, that's not creepy… at all.
He snarled, whipping his head at me, golden eyes glowing fluorescent and snapping his jaws at me in a display of aggression that felt like aggravation. Stop pestering me with questions and do as I say, he ordered. Now.
"It needs to be burned!" I screamed, my voice breathless to my own ears. "It's the only way to kill it for good!"
Though reluctant, the guards looked at the Keiserinne, who nodded her consent, their eyes weary as they moved cautiously back from the room, their weapons drawn.
The wolf remained poised for attack, watching the beast in front of us intently, him too seeming to assess the threat. His ears moved restlessly as he picked up on sounds around us, but he remained quiet, still halfway between the beast and me.
"Keiserinne?" One of the guards asked.
She nodded wordlessly. Her eyes, however, fell to the wolf, who looked back at her over my head almost as if he'd felt her stare, his body curled around mine. "You have fully bonded, haven't you?" She asked.
Tell her yes, he said, turning back from the woman back to the beast — that still moved, though very slowly and haphazardly —, even though he spoke to me. And if she dares to touch a hair on your head again after this, I will put my teeth around her throat and free you of the brand she gave you myself, even if it kills me.
My eyes jumped to him. Do you want us to die?
He sighed loudly and then growled, tipping his snout to me with a raise of his snout over his teeth.
Fine.
I swallowed. "Yes," I managed to say, my voice shaking slightly. I looked at her over my shoulder. "We have bonded. And he wants you to know… he will protect me from now on."
That is not what I said, he scolded harshly.
I summarized, I quipped back. I don't particularly feel like dying today. Or any day. So, if you're going to be speaking through me for the foreseeable future, you shouldn't be too offended when I try to translate what you say without actually threatening anyone capable of killing us both.
The Keiserinne's eyes narrowed, her lips pressing into a thin line. For a long moment, she was silent, sizing up the wolf with her piercing gaze while he met her stare unflinchingly, his hackles raised in warning. "Will he?"
The wolf didn't move.
I didn't speak.
The entire room seemed to hold its breath.
"He killed a beast single-handedly," a guard to the Keiserinne's right commented in a low voice.
It's not dead yet, the wolf corrected. Then, he turned to face me, tipping his ears up and gently lifting his snout in a way that reminded me of how a human might lift his chin in pride. As for you, Kaja, you have to understand that you have me, now. He blinked, moving his glare to the Keiserinne behind me. And if nothing else, she'll remember that the next time she thinks about laying a hand on you.
"He's certainly proved his worth, didn't he?" She agreed, eyes assessing the wolf calmly.
Why risk her wrath? Why do you even care?
His right ear twitched, eyes growing darker. You are all I care about, blóma.
"It's not dead yet," I repeated his words brokenly.
"Oh, I know, but it will be, soon," she mused slowly, eyes moving between us. "Your wolf and Asta will both see to it soon enough."
Just as she'd finished talking, I noticed Asta moving to stand by her side, her eyes focused on the beast and suddenly, I realized why the Keiserinne had ordered the guards to keep from interfering in the fight between the wolf and the beast.
She'd had her most powerful weapon at work — on her way to deal with the threat.
I shivered.
Was that why the wolf had taken him down so easily? She'd helped?
Gods.
My entire body felt suddenly very weak.
I tensed, holding my breath as the Keiserinne and the Vefari locked eyes in a silent conversation. Though the wolf stood unmoving, a low rumble sounded in his chest, almost like a purr but more menacing. His fur bristled, his lips curling back to reveal his gleaming fangs. Still, he held himself in check, as if an invisible leash restrained him. I sensed his boiling frustration, the urge to attack straining against his self-control.
I took a sharp breath that went nowhere.
The wolf focused his knowing amber eyes on me with an intensity that defied logic. And my name is Kol, blóma, his snout morphed into an expression I felt oddly inclined to call a smile. So, you can stop calling me 'wolf'. It's insulting.
It was insulting?
I would've laughed if any of this was funny. Instead, I opened my mouth but closed it again.
I had no idea what just happened here.
I was beyond trying to understand, to be honest.
I kept my expression blank, hiding my churning fear and confusion. What was happening here? Why had this wolf bonded to me? Why could I hear his thoughts? And he could hear mine?
None of it made any sense.
Clearly, the wolf of the wild I'd dreamed of my entire life had arrived, and he came not only with claws and teeth, but with a temper as well.
I wanted to laugh at the irony.
I'll refrain from taking that as an insult, he rumbled tiredly like he was too old to argue with me about something as futile as this.
I smiled, shaking my head. Thank you?
Save the sarcasm for after we get his vile animal burned to a crisp, he sighed again like a parent using all his patience to not snap at his child. Until then, keep behind me.
Huh.
This entire morning felt like a nightmare.
Suddenly, Kol's ears twitched, and his large body tensed. He advanced in a single jump, landing beside the beast just as his face morphed in pain and his eyes popped open. His jaw opened and closed in a second around the beast's shoulders just as it roared and attempted to lift to a sitting position. Kol's amber eyes moved to me and then beyond me over my shoulder as he held the beast back. I could see the strain his fangs were making on the beast's ashen skin, tearing the muscle beneath.
I trembled in revulsion.
Please, just die already.
Kol's fur bristled again, but this time not in a display of aggression.
No.
There was something else out there that had grabbed his attention.
A cold shiver ran down my spine, the air around us suddenly feeling much more dangerous than it had before. I could feel my heart pounding in my chest, each beat ricocheting through my entire body.
Kol's growl pulled me from my thoughts, the sound deep and threatening. He placed a paw on the beast's throat and bit down harder.
I swallowed hard, trying to keep my fear under control.
I felt the Vefari step forward —
The beast's screams nearly ripped my eardrums.
Childishly, I covered my ears with my hands but nothing could keep the sound from registering. I knew exactly what it felt like to be touched by Asta's power and I knew the agony this creature was experiencing. It was the type of pain one couldn't escape or ignore. The type of torture no creature should be forced to experience, no matter how fowl, like being flayed from the inside out.
Close your eyes, blóma.
I don't know why I did what he said, but at this point, I trusted this wolf more than I trusted myself. I closed my eyes just as the screams were smothered out by the rumbling sound that vibrated all around the room like electricity.
A shrill howl cut through the silence like a blade.
A sudden surge of electricity jolted through the air, crackling and sizzling with the sort of power that was both incredibly powerful and incredibly dangerous. It felt as if it were mere inches from my face, narrowly missing me by a hair's breadth. The atmosphere grew heavy and thick, muffled by the intense power charging through it at an unmatched speed and strength. My hair stood on end, lifted by the wild wind that whipped around me, cutting into my skin and biting at my parted lips, unmatched by anything I'd ever felt before.
A flash of light illuminated the pavilion —
The wolf was panting hard, his sides heaving, slightly limping as he dashed across the space separating us.
A loud rumble exploded in the room, echoing around the walls —
The beast's form let out one last howl of pain before it disintegrated into ashes before my very own eyes.
I held my breath.
How? How was this possible? What happened? How had the beast just… disintegrated? Into ash? What could possibly have done that?
I blinked in blind surprise, my eyes stinging as they refocused.
The ashes of the beast lay scattered all around us, the remnants of its existence now smeared across the pavilion floor. The whole room reeked of burnt fur and charred flesh and another scent I'd never felt before that was putrid and acid on my nostrils. It was a stark reminder of the danger that had lurked only moments before.
My head spun as I tried to absorb what just happened.
Unbelievable didn't begin to cover it.
I started to sit up again, but another flash of lightning zapped across the room —
Kol barreled towards me, a blur of fur and teeth. I braced myself for impact, but before I could even process what was happening, he was landing on top of me with a thud. The weight of his body pressed down on me, shielding me from whatever was happening, though it also took away my breath. My senses were overwhelmed by the chaos around us — the sound of shattering objects and the metallic sound of silverware toppling to the floor filled my ears. A sharp pain ignited on my side as the ground shook when something massive landed inches from us, and Kol's body straining above me told me whatever it had been, had partially fallen on top of him. A sudden gust of wind whipped through the room, followed by another deafening roar.
Lightning.
That sound, that static, that heaviness.
It was lightning bolts.
The adrenaline in my veins pulsed as I waited.
Until suddenly, the entire world quieted.
From beneath Kol's body, I spied what had landed on the pavilion floor and though I didn't want to admit it, I knew right away it could only be another beast.
Only this one had… wings? No. It had multiple wings? And a tail. A tail?
I watched, completely frozen, as the beast spread its wings wide just merely a few feet away from Kol, eyes focused on something far beyond either of us, lying at its feet. Magic of death and decay rolled around the beast's wandering body, skin a charcoal black, thoroughly infused with dead rot. As it stood under the sunlight, I could see that its flesh was covered by black scales that glinted off the light, the flesh darkened at spots, and the muscle flayed like an old cadaver where it'd been wounded. The flopping portions of flesh swung as it straightened and I noticed it was wobbling a little, probably from a wound on its right leg. Its wings — oddly shaped like a bat's — sprouted from its clavicles and abdomen on each side, opened as wide as they went, ready to take flight, though one of the smaller ones seemed torn, bleeding profusely, leaving a trail of what seemed like black tar on the soil. The beast was long, around maybe six feet long and its tail ended with a crescent-moon-shaped scythe that looked absolutely lethal from this distance. It'd body was, in shape, oddly resembling that of a dragon, except its mouth was shaped like a dragon flower, with teeth all around its opening, and it had four reptilian eyes on its face.
It's a Själlös, Kol's voice announced.
A what?
A Själlösbeast. They're remarkably known for their heightened eyesight and smell, which makes them extremely good trackers, though they lack the speed and agility to be good predators, he explained gently. They can chew on their prey, paralyze them with their tail and they can fly, hence the wings.
I couldn't believe it.
I really didn't think I wanted to know all of that.
How many more types of beasts were there? So far, I'd seen two. The beast that'd come after Freyja today and had, for some reason, attacked me, and this one. By the description, though, I found myself wondering if this was the same one the guards and that girl I've veiled over had mentioned? Had it returned to kill more of us? Were there any more types of beasts out there? Just as dangerous? Just as lethal?
Unfortunately, there are many species of beasts out in this world, Kol replied, reading the questions in my mind. Some of them are even more deadly than the Själlös. In fact, a Själlösis considered comparatively docile, if you can believe it.
My eyes flickered to the creature before us.
The beast roared, stabbing its wings through the air as his neck extended forward, mouth opening —
I closed my eyes just as the flash of blinding light flew above Kol, and after hearing a nearly eardrum-rupturing screech, I opened them again to see that the beast that'd stood before us had also disappeared into a pool of ash.
Gods take me.
Suddenly, silence blanketed us as the entire atmosphere around us stilled, almost as if the pavilion held its breath as it waited with bated breath for what was coming next.
My heartbeat echoed in my chest like a thunderous drumbeat, the rush of adrenaline coursing through my veins as I readied myself for what was about to unfold. My gaze darted to the Keiserinne, her regal figure standing beside her loyal Vefari with their eyes locked onto the creature that had just disintegrated into ashes before us.
And in that moment, a chilling realization washed over me, the cold reality settled upon me like a heavy cloak, suffocating the hope that had once burned within me the exact same way it'd happened 322 days ago.
No one was coming to save me.