Which meant I knew what I had to do.
I looked up at him apologetically as my blue ethereal chains ensnared him and he dropped to the ground. He looked at me in utter confusion, but I turned my face away to speak. “Very well. I will go willingly, so long as you swear not to hurt them. However, you should know that the moment I die, these chains go away. If you knock me unconscious, these chains go away. And if you do kill any of them, including trying to kill him, these chains go away.”
The black panther gave me a toothy smirk and agreed with a nod. “You have my word, on the name of our goddess Alabast. We are only here for you.” Something stirred inside of me when he spoke the name of a goddess I had never heard before, but I quickly pushed it aside.
The panther immediately had his elderfel men lower their hostages to the ground. I cringed when the three guys were knocked unconscious too. The black panther then looked at me expectantly.
I took a step away from Eli, and then another, putting some distance between the two of us. I knew they were going to kill me, but I needed to make sure they understood that they would have to do it far away from here. Otherwise, Eli would kill them.
The half-dragon was struggling ferociously against my chains, but my ethereal bonds sealed magic so there was nothing he could do. I heard him begin pleading with me, but I used every ounce of my concentration to ignore him.
I reached down to unstrap my sword, only to remember I had left it in the wagon. So instead, I held up my hands to show them I didn’t have any weapons. The large panther walked up to me, towering over me far higher than any of the guys. He reached down, a look of disgust on his face when his furry humanoid paws touched my body, and he hoisted me up, throwing me over his shoulder.
I grunted as all my weigh was supported on my stomach and I looked down at Eli, who was still pleading with me. His expression was pained, and it shattered my heart all over again, bringing tears to my eyes. My tail was limp and lifeless.
“Riel! No! Don’t do this! Let me go!”
I used every ounce of my strength to send him one last message using the magic connecting us, hoping he would forgive me for not saying it out loud.
‘I’m sorry. Please live for me. I love you.’
Eli’s eyes widened, and he immediately struggled even more, grunting from the effort. I kept my gaze averted, unable to look at him, unable to watch his tormented expression. It was going to be the last thing I remembered, already burned into my thoughts, and it was even more devastating than my imminent death. I couldn’t look at Mira either, because seeing her standing there helpless would just make it worse.
True to his word, the panther had all his men retreat so that I could see they were going to leave them alone. Part of me feared they would kill them once I couldn’t see anymore, but there was nothing else I could do. I just had to trust that swearing to this goddess meant something to these beasts.
The large panther began to run with me on his shoulder, although it was so smooth and quiet that the only reason I noticed was because the terrain began to pass by much more quickly. We rapidly entered the forest, and I saw that there were elderfel on all sides, running just as fast and silently. There was every variety imaginable – anthropoid leopards, tigers, cheetahs, lions, and jaguar all in shades of gray, brown, blue, black, and even a few that were white, yellow, and orange. I would have found them beautiful if not for the threat they posed to my life.
I paid close attention to my connection with Eli, trying to sense any indication that he was being harmed, but as far as I could tell he was physically fine. Emotionally, I sensed a much different state.
I knew that distance made it more difficult to use magic, so as the distance between us grew I felt my grip on Eli weaken. However, our magical bond didn’t weaken. If anything, it seemed to become more powerful with the distance, causing me to be much more aware of his presence. He kept demanding I let him go. Kept demanding I allow him to come save me. Kept telling me…that he loved me too…
And I could feel that he really meant it. Even though we hadn’t known each other for very long, he really did feel that way, just like me.
But I couldn’t release him, because I would always be a danger to my friends as long as I lived. To the ones I loved. The elderfel might not be so merciful next time. They might kill them all before killing me. And so, it was time for me to accept my fate, so that they could live.
I didn’t regret not going with Regulus though, even if it meant I might live longer. Because to live without love really was to not live at all. And by risking my life, I had finally obtained all of my deepest desires, only to discover I had new desires – desires to protect what I loved, even at the cost of my own life.
Nevertheless, despite my attempts to hold Eli as long as possible, my chains that bound him were slowly becoming more fragile, soon to disappear and set him free.
The elderfel carrying me seemed to know this about magic, even though almost no elderfel were capable of using it, because he spoke up as we ran. “Is that dragon free yet?” He spoke in a tone that contained just as much disdain as Eli had used when he spoke the word elderfel.
I scoffed at the panther. “Trust me, you’ll know it when he’s free.” The elderfel immediately tightened his grip on my legs, causing them to hurt from the pressure, nonverbally communicating his displeasure with my tone. I quickly rephrased. “No, he’s not free, but he will be soon.” The panther loosened his grip and I sucked in a sharp breath as the release hurt almost as much as the initial squeeze.
A few minutes later and I lost my grip on Eli. I quickly let the panther know, not wanting him to make my death any more painful than it had to be. “He’s free,” I quickly informed him. But then that fact was immediately confirmed when the air erupted with the sound of a bestial roar so loud that I had to cover my ears, even at this distance.
All of the elderfel covered their ears too, even the panther holding me – he had one of his hands over his other ear and was squeezing my hip tight against the one next to me. I supposed even his disgust at having to touch my pantherian body wasn’t enough to prevent him from using me as an earmuff.
I looked up at the beasts surrounding us, seeing that many of them had a look of fear in their eyes before quickly composing themselves. I couldn’t blame them. I certainly wouldn’t want a dragon for an enemy, even if Eli was only half-dragon. But clearly, these were hardened warriors, and within less than a second their fierce expressions had returned.
I doubted the elderfel knew about my bond with Eli, and I began to wonder if he might reach me in time. However, just when I allowed a sliver of hope to creep into my chest, it was instantly crushed when we stopped.
Several of the elderfel were removing brush from something I couldn’t see from my vantage point. However, as we began to descend down a set of stone steps into the darkness below, I quickly realized it was the entrance to some kind of ancient ruin. My elderfel eyes allowed me to see fairly well in the dark, although since my pupils were circular instead of slits, I suspected the cat-beasts around me could see much clearer.
They hurried down a series of large hallways, and I caught glimpses of hieroglyphics that combined images of animals with strange symbols I had never seen before. There were also a lot of larger images of monstrosities that were mostly feral and feline in nature. I couldn’t believe that the elderfel had some sort of tunnel system that extended all the way out here, unless this was one of many ancient ruins they had excavated and modified for their own needs. That seemed to make the most sense.
I also didn’t understand why I wasn’t dead yet. By this point, it would be easier for them to just dump my corpse and make their escape. Why go through the trouble of taking me this far? Were they trying to make sure they had collateral in case Eli did catch up to them? Technically, that would be a smart move, but at the same time it wasn’t like his dragon form could make its way down here.
The longer we ran, the more hopeless I felt. We had already m
ade so many turns that the ancient ruin was beginning to feel like a maze, and I knew Eli would never find me in time – if ever. My body would be left down here to decay all alone, never buried, never seen again.
After a while, I ended up closing my eyes and tried not to cry as the realization that I was really going to die began to truly sink in.
I didn’t want to die. I wanted to live.
‘Goddess Freya, please help me.’
But there was no response.
Of course there was no response. What did she care of me? I was on my own. No one was going to save me.
And yet, I still couldn’t help but continue to plead anyway.
‘Ephraim, Edith, someone please help me.’
Yet still, there was no response. I was alone, as I always had been. I had been alone most of my life, and I would face death alone just the same. But that realization only made it worse. I didn’t want to be alone.
‘Please save me!’
Unexpectedly, the magic tugging gently on my neck caused me to look up in shock. We had just made another turn, and a barely visible ethereal chain connected to my neck hovered in the air, remaining where the tattoo had just passed. I glanced up at the elderfel following us, surprised that they didn’t notice it. But then I realized the blue chain gave off no light. It was visible only to me, connected to Eli’s right arm, leading him right to me around every twist and turn like a trail of breadcrumbs.
Eli’s voice spoke then. The power of the magic connecting us was still rapidly increasing with the distance, and his voice was so clear in my mind that it felt like he was right beside me whispering into my ear. His tone was demanding and unforgiving, telling me exactly what I needed to hear.
‘You are mine. And I will protect what is mine.’
A sob erupted from my chest, and I started to cry without reservation. The panther holding me demanded I shut up, but I couldn’t, nor did I care to anymore. I cried and cried, unable to stop myself, sounding like a wounded animal. I half expected one of the elderfel to knock me out to shut me up, but surprisingly they didn’t. They continued to run for at least another half hour, listening to my sobbing.
Before long, I found myself speaking without reservation too, barely able to make coherent sentences.
“I didn’t ask for this,” I sobbed. “I don’t know why you want me dead, but it wasn’t my choice to be born.”
“Shut up!” The panther demanded.
“I haven’t done anything to any of you, or your people. All I’ve done is exist. How can that be a crime?”
“Shut up!” He snapped again. “Whether you like it or not, you stole from us, and we’ve come to get it back!”
My sobbing cut short, surprised by this sudden revelation.
Stole? Stole what? Was it what my mother had traded to allow me entrance into the elvish kingdom? “I haven’t stolen anything,” I whispered in disbelief. “I haven’t even stepped a foot out of elvish territory since I was two weeks old. How can an infant steal?”
“You stole from us by being born!” He sneered. “And we will get back what is ours by taking your life! I swear it, in the name of goddess Alabast!”
‘You are mine. And I will protect what is mine.’
A sarcastic voice spoke in my head, echoing Eli’s words, sending a chill down my spine. Because it wasn’t Eli’s voice…
But then, whose voice?
My thoughts became frantic as I feared I was hallucinating. Had I just imagined it? Was it my own thoughts speaking? Unfortunately, I didn’t have time to figure it out. Because we had arrived.
We entered a massive room lit up brightly with flaming torches. It was full of elderfel of every shape, size, and color, basked in an orange glow. And they all roared when they saw me, a bloodthirst filling their cries as they cheered for my imminent death. Their collective shrieks and roars were terrifying.
The panther immediately brought me up to a stone platform in the middle of the massive chamber. He then set me down roughly, right in the center, and began wrapping my arms and legs in metal chains. Within seconds, I was bound tightly.
I looked up to see another panther-like elderfel, this one female, standing at the edge with a knife in her hands. I took in her fierce gaze, her purple eyes not much different from mine, and then glanced back down at the floor again.
I realized I was sitting on a large engraving of one of the feline monstrosities, and somehow I knew immediately this was their goddess, Alabast.
‘You are mine. And I will protect what is mine.’
That sarcastic voice again, so clear despite the noise bombarding my ears. I began looking around frantically, searching for the owner. It was female.
Was it her? Was it their goddess speaking to me? I was half-elderfel, wasn’t I? Would she answer my prayers for help? I had nothing to lose.
I looked down at the monstrosity below me again, and took a deep breath. Having no other options left, I screamed at the top of my lungs, silencing the room the moment I got the first word out. “Goddess Alabast, please save me!”
The male panther in front moved to hit me, and the female panther at the edge of the podium raised her knife, climbing onto the stone platform.
But they both froze.
Time froze.
And the world before my eyes vanished.
Chapter 13: Despair
I gasped as everything disappeared right before my eyes, replaced with an absolute darkness. Briefly, I feared I had died, but then I looked down at my hands and feet to see that I was alive. And I was no longer chained, standing up on a featureless black floor.
An indistinguishable whisper, like the sound of the wind, fluttered past my ear.
I instinctively turned around.
I gasped again as I looked up at a massive stone doorway more than ten times my height. It stood tall in the darkness, towering over me. I examined it with wide eyes, unable to comprehend its size.
Vibrant crimson chains created a colossal web over the stone door, sealing the structure shut. And right in the middle, where all the chains connected, was an enormous ethereal lock – an enormous blue ethereal lock.
The whisper fluttered across my ear again, except this time I could make out the words.
‘Release me.’
My eyes focused on the azure ethereal lock, knowing immediately that it was my magic, my seal, that held together the crimson chains covering the door. A seal that had existed since before I was born. A seal that now demanded to be unlocked.
‘Release me.’
I reached up with my right hand without hesitation, knowing I really had nothing to lose. Because whatever was behind that door, I was sure it was better than death…
At least, I hoped it was.
I didn’t actually have to use my magic to unseal it though – just the opposite. Similar to how ice magic was about slowing things down, and fire magic was about speeding things up, my binding spell was a dark magic inherently about control.
Control, which I now willingly gave up.
With the flick of my hand, the massive azure lock shattered, and the red ethereal chains receded. A gush of wind spewed forth as the doors opened, and a colossal ethereal feline like nothing I’d ever seen before stepped out of the depths on four paws. Goddess Alabast glowed the color of a ruby, shining as bright as the red moon Freya.
I didn’t even have time to react.
Immediately a crimson chain shot out from her to ensnare my neck. I barely intercepted it with my right wrist, wrapping it around my arm like Eli had done with me, and I willed this new ethereal chain to obey me.
But nothing happened.
Unexpectedly, the behemoth feline smirked at me, a disembodied whisper filling the space between us. I kept my guard up as I listened carefully to her words.
‘Very well, my child, you are worthy of me and my power. The seal that bound me inside of you is broken, and now you hold the reigns. Be free and determine your own destiny while you live. However, be forewar
ned. My power comes with a heavy price. The moment you pass me and my strength on to your offspring, your life will fade as well. Be wary of this truth, for your firstborn will steal both your power and your life, as all the firstborns before you have done.’
Dread crept into the pit of my stomach as I processed what she was saying, because that meant I couldn’t even sleep with a man without risking my death. I couldn’t sleep with Eli….
A lump formed in my throat as I considered that fate. “And what if I don’t have children?” I asked breathlessly.
Her reply was immediate. ‘Then when your time comes, I will devour your soul and be freed from my eternal imprisonment. A fate worse than death.’
That answer surprised me, despite the devastation in my heart. “Do you not desire to be free?” I whispered in response, stunned that she would portray it as so undesirable for me. If she wanted to be free, then why not lie and tell me something good would happen if I didn’t have kids? Because then she would have already had her wish granted by a previous elderfel.
Goddess Alabast leered at me then, a mischievous look in her cat-eyes. ‘You are wiser than you appear my child.’ Her grin widened, revealing her sharp dagger-like teeth. ‘I will devour your soul either way, whether you die by passing me on or by freeing me. I live eternally within the elderfel, so freeing me only allows me to choose my next elderfel victim, whereas passing me on hastens my inevitable meal. You are free to choose either option, knowing the full consequences of both. You, oh wise child, have earned that right.’
So then, that meant I really didn’t have a choice. Whether I used her power or not, she would devour my soul either way. It was either die now or die later, with the ‘fate worse than death’ part being inevitable. As I stared at those sharp teeth, I found that my racing thoughts couldn’t stay focused on my unavoidable demise. Instead, I could only think of one thing, no matter how hard I tried.
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