There was a thought churning to life inside her head, breaking through the strange fog that had settled over her mind. The Tomias she’d followed into the temple was nowhere to be seen. He was beaten, surely, but the dying man she’d seen outside didn’t exist. He never had. He’d been nothing more than an illusion, meant to lure her away from safety.
“You led me here,” she growled, glaring at Nyson.
“It was easy enough,” he said smugly, waving away her anger with a dismissive flick of the wrist. “You may have some skill but you’re still young. Your powers have barely developed. Imagine what they could have been with time and guidance, with what I could have offered you.” His words were almost seductive, as if her were offering her all the secrets the world had to offer. It disgusted her.
She shook her head. “The only thing you ever had to offer was more lies.”
Nyson sighed, leaning forward so his elbows rested on his knees. “Did you see the world outside, Kirheen? Did you get a taste of the barbarism that happens to our kind, what happens simply because we exist?”
Her mind flashed back to bodies swaying in the wind, the creak of the rope around their necks. A bloody club and a wicked smile. A girl broken simply for having powers. She shook the memories away, tried to stay focused on Nyson. “I did and it was terrible, I won’t deny that, but I’ve seen the same from you. I saw the village. I saw all the people you had Herzin break so you could control them. Those people trusted you, they believed in your lies. All this time we thought you were keeping us safe from the Darkness when we should have been keeping ourselves safe from you.”
“So misguided,” Nyson cooed, his lips splitting into an amused grin. “The Darkness was a necessary lie and it has kept you safe. Do you really believe you could survive on the outside, that any of your fellow Bonded could? We are murdered, burned, tortured and beaten for what we are out. They hunt us like dogs. Here, you’ve been safe, you’ve been able to freely practice your powers, just as the Allseer intended.”
Kirheen’s fingers curled inwards, nails digging into her palms. “Then why even lie? Why unbind all of those people?”
“Sooner of later, human nature takes over. Curiosity becomes a damning thing that causes nothing but pain. Everything I have strived to create would be undone because of people like you, people who believe freedom and choice is more important than reclaiming our place in the world. The worshippers of Zekar would have us wiped from the history books. They’d pretend we never existed,” he explained, his words rising with his anger. “All of that could change. They can be infiltrated, destroyed from the inside. We could make a world that is better for our kind, that is safe so that the freedom you so crave could be found for all of us.”
There was truth to his words and Kirheen knew it, loathe as she was to admit it. The situation beyond Sanctuary was unstable and she’d seen it with her own eyes. People were dying because they had powers, and she knew that beyond the small town she’d seen, things were even worse. At some point something would have to be done, but they were already hated and feared enough without a man like Nyson there to stir the pot.
The man was insane, so bent on keeping control and getting vengeance for his kind that he couldn’t see the damage he’d caused his own people. “You already tried to create that world and look where we are. You’ve raised us all as your pawns, matched us together for power. You stripped us of our childhood, and we were never given a choice. You took everything from us so you could start a war and you need to be stopped.”
Nyson’s face grew dark, his eyes rippling pools of malice. His calm façade was cracking, anger slipping through the gaps. “It was a war we would have won. If you had all just stood by my side, if you’d stayed loyal to the cause, you would have had your precious freedom long ago. My brother corrupted this place, corrupted it with a useless desire to have answers, to live his own life. And now you do the same. Your selfish actions have caused nothing but death and despair for your fellow Bonded. Their blood is on your hands. They’ll spit on you, girl. They’ll forever curse you for the suffering you’ve created.”
Kirheen did not look away, did not back down. “None of this would have happened if it weren’t for you. I pushed over your precious tower of lies, and it has caused terrible things to happen to the people that I care about, but I will right that wrong. I will save them from your corruption.”
“A shame there is so little to save,” he sneered, rising from his chair and stretching to his full height. His dark robes blended with the shadows, making him look like a harbinger of death. “Did you know, while unbinding puts a person fully under my control, it also strips them significantly of their powers. I have access to just a fraction of the ability they possessed when they were whole. However, if you take control of a person when their mind is still whole, you get the full extent of their powers.” With a flourish of his hand, Tomias and Fenir raised their heads in unison. “It is more taxing, but infinitely more enjoyable. They are fully aware of what they are doing, but incapable of stopping themselves. Tell me, Kirheen, what would be more painful for you?”
The twins turned towards each other, pulling a dagger from the pocket of their robes, their movements mirrored. They took exaggerated steps forward, looking like oversized dolls, their actions awkward and strained. They stopped within arm’s reach, daggers held in clenched fists.
“Is it them hurting each other?”
The question sank into her mind and processed, but it wasn’t until they stepped towards each other with daggers raised high that she truly believed what she’d heard. “No!” she screamed, her blood going cold. The daggers fell in unison, slicing through robes and across the tender flesh of their chests. Blood followed, seeping from the wounds, bright red against their pale skin.
Kirheen swayed, feeling a sudden wave of nausea. She squeezed her eyes shut, tried to convince herself it was an illusion. When she opened her eyes again, they still stood facing each other, daggers red with their blood. Pulling deep from her well of power, she gathered her strength and struck at Nyson with all she had left. She felt her power leave, felt it speeding towards his mind like an arrow. And then it was gone, like someone had flicked a switch inside her mind. She’d felt it before, a mental wall that wasn’t of her design. She tried to move her hand and realized with sudden terror that she couldn’t move at all. Nyson had her under his control, at least partially. When she went to speak, she was able to. He wants to be able to hear your fear, she thought bitterly. “Nyson, stop this. What are you trying to prove by hurting them?”
“This is power, Kirheen. This is what our kind could do, this is what we could be. We could create a better world, a world fit for our kind.”
“Not like this. You can’t possibly want this.”
“Perhaps you need a further demonstration of our abilities. Watching them slice each other to ribbons must be terrible for you, girl, but you’ve yet to feel true terror. Terror lies in betrayal, in having those you love turn against you.”
“Nyson, please stop!”
A wave of his hand and the twins turned towards her, daggers dripping crimson onto the floor. They marched forward, dark eyes haunted. Allseer, they know. They know and they can’t stop. It was a cruelty to know that after all her training, after all the struggles she’d faced, her powers were useless to her now. She tried desperately to push back against Nyson’s grip on her mind, but the harder she pushed, the tighter his hold became. She tried to turn and flee, to force her legs to move, but it was as if someone had glued her to the floor. She could only watch as her friends crept closer and closer, promising pain and death even as their eyes begged for forgiveness.
“Are you afraid, Kirheen?”
“Stop, stop. Please. Just stop,” she pleaded, but Nyson ignored her. She slipped into her mind but found that familiar space tainted, a hazy dream world filled with vague shapes she couldn’t comprehend. Whatever was left of her power was lost to her, untouchable.
“Tomias, lis
ten to me,” she begged. “Look at what you’re doing. Fight against it. Stop!”
And he did. His steps faltered, his face contorting with pain as he fought against the power that held him. “I…can’t…” It only halted his advance for a second before he was moving again, a white ghost carrying death in his hands. Fenir was just a few feet away, his fingers clenched tight around the hilt of his dagger. He raised it high, ready to strike.
I was such a fool. Trying to stand against Nyson had been a hopeless task, a death wish. She’d wanted to save her friends and instead she’d gotten them trapped in a terrible nightmare they could never escape from. They would be forced to cut her down, to feel the warmth of her blood on their hands, and they’d be forced to live with that guilt. She’d never get another moment with them. She’d never hear Tomias’ gentle laughter or see the rare warmth in Fenir’s eyes.
There was a swooshing noise just beyond the tip of her nose, a parting of the air as the dagger descended. Pain burst to life across her cheek, the cold steel biting into her flesh with intensity she hadn’t been prepared for. She felt the control over her body lighten and she stumbled back, raising a hand to her face. When she pulled her hand away, it was slick with blood.
Terror; pure and primal. Nyson was leaving her just enough control to fight back, to struggle against the death that was sure to come. He wanted to watch her fight for her life, wanted to see her fight against the inevitable. He meant to break her.
Tomias had fallen further behind, his hands shaking violently as he fought for control of his body. His brow was covered in sweat, his eyes wild. A low growl escaped his throat, giving voice to his struggle.
Fenir launched forward, the dagger slicing through her robes and scraping across her left ribcage. It was a shallow wound. He was toying with her. Nyson was going to drag out her torture, to make sure she died screaming. The pain on her cheek and across her ribs was a burning flame, the smell of blood in the air making her nauseous.
Fenir stood over her like a wild cat, his teeth bared. Kirheen saw the dagger sweeping down towards her again and out of instinct, she raised her right arm. The blade bit deep into her forearm at an angle, slicing through skin and muscle as if she were made of cloth. She expected there to be more pain, but adrenaline was coursing through her body, numbing her. It was a surreal feeling watching him wrench the dagger out of her arm, the amount of blood that followed.
The blow had forced her to the ground, and she scrambled back away from Fenir. She collided with the wall behind her and huddled against it, trying to make herself as small as possible. Strong fingers pushed past her shoulder, forcing her hair aside. Those same fingers curled around her neck with a strength she didn’t know they could possess and lifted her off her feet. She was slammed into the wall, a butterfly pinned to a board.
She couldn’t breathe, not with his fingers clamped down on her neck. She struggled and flailed, black spots swimming in her vision like insects. His cinnamon eyes were filled with despair, seen in brief flashes through her tears. The dagger slid forward and this time she felt the sickening slip of the blade as it was wedged into her abdomen. She thought briefly how lucky she’d be if the blade had missed her innards when she felt a new heat blossom, another strike of the dagger as it bit deep. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. Forgive me.
Kirheen squeezed her eyes shut, waiting for the attack that would end her life. A scream from behind Fenir forced her to open them again, and she saw a flash of Tomias, faced crazed as he ran forward with his dagger raised. The blade connected with flesh, driving through his brothers neck with enough force to knock his blade off course. The dagger that would have gone through her heart collided with the wall as she slipped from his grip and landed in a crumpled heap on the floor. Her wounds came alive, burning with a new intensity, as if she’d been doused in alcohol.
But there was a new wound, deeper and more painful than the rest. It tore at her heart and a cry ripped from her chest as she watched Fenir fall to the ground, his eyes wide with disbelief. His fingers fumbled at the hilt of the dagger jutting from his neck, but his brother was already at his side, pushing his hands away. “No, no, no, no,” she heard Tomias mumble frantically. “Brother. Oh, Allseer. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. Fenir, please. Don’t do this.”
Fenir raised a shaking hand and Tomias grabbed it, held it close to his chest. Tears streamed down his cheeks as he watched his brother fading away, the life leaving him. “No, no, no.” A cough sent a spray of bloody saliva floating into the air and Fenir went still. Kirheen winced as Tomias let loose a scream that seemed to tear at his throat, a cry of pain that Kirheen knew she could never fully understand the weight of. He had just lost a part of himself, his other half, his twin. She couldn’t fathom such pain. She didn’t want to.
The world was growing dark at the edges of her vision as her blood continued to seep out onto the floor. Every wound howled for attention, playing tug-o-war with her mind. Her head pounded, like someone hammering nails into her skull. It only grew worse as she laid flat on the floor, her chest barely rising and falling as she struggled to stay conscious. There was a flutter of movement, a streak of vibrant red hair. Another cry joined the chorus of sorrow and Kirheen shut her eyes, just wanting to drown out the world that had suddenly fallen apart around her.
CHAPTER 38
Therin felt like he’d stepped into a nightmare. There was a scream as they approached the Temple of Trials, something inhuman, so filled with pain and rage that it stopped him in his tracks. Trista had stopped walking too, her hand on his back, listening intently to the sounds coming from the temple. Therin waited for just a moment, listening to the sobs coming from the other side of the door. He burst through it a second later, bow drawn.
He almost slid through the entrance as his boots came in contact with something dark and sticky. The smell gave it away before his eyes could comprehend what he was seeing. There was no way to tell who had been injured, but there three bodies crowded around the door and all of them were covered in blood. Trista stumbled into the room and came to a stop at his side, her eyes gone wide. She inhaled sharply as she took in the scene and then she was rushing forward, a name on her lips.
“Fenir!” she screamed, her hands frantically moving over his still body. There was another man by his side that looked identical to the man motionless on the floor, his white hair streaked with blood. He was sobbing, completely inconsolable, rocking back and forth next to the body. “Fenir! Wake up, damn you. Wake up. Allseer, please. Tomias, tell me this isn’t real. Tell me, please. Please.” She rested her head on Fenir’s chest and sobbed, her hands clenching his robes tightly as she cried.
There was movement to his left and he looked over to see Kirheen, a deep gash visible on her forearm. She was bleeding heavily but still alive. Lowering his bow, he stepped over to Trista and grabbed the back of her robes. He hoisted her to her feet and ignored her fury as she spun towards him. “I know you’re in pain right now but help those that can be helped. Grief can come later. Kirheen needs you.”
Her lips quivered, tears running down her cheeks in tiny rivers, swirling with the blood that had collected on her skin. She took a shuddering breath and stepped past him to help Kirheen, her eyes devoid of emotion.
Nyson stood at the far end of the temple, his hands clasped behind his back. It was not the man he remembered. He had grown terribly thin over the years, his features almost skeletal, his eyes cold and distant. His lips were curved into a smile, as if he took pride in the pain he’d caused. It filled Therin with a rage he’d never know.
“Brother,” he said through gritted teeth.
“The rebellious sibling comes crawling back to my sanctuary. You’re too late.”
His fingers curled tightly around his bow, his knuckles turning white from the pressure. “I came here to end this. Nyson, this is too much. I’ve seen what you’ve been doing all these years. You’re a heartless fool and your cruelty knows no bounds. Whatever purpose you had, whatever hope
you had of saving our kind, you lost it long ago. You’re nothing but an animal now, and one I intend to put down.”
Therin notched an arrow and raised his bow, taking a step towards his brother. Nyson regarded him with a cool stare. “You won’t hurt me, Brother. Even back then, with all the hatred and jealousy you felt, you couldn’t bring yourself to kill me and be done with it. Instead, you fled with your tail between your legs and took my bond mate with you.”
“And in return you’ve done all of this? You knew how she felt. She despised you, despised the darkness she saw in your heart. And you’ve become the monster she feared you would.”
“It doesn’t matter anymore, Therin,” he said, spitting his name as if it had soured his mouth to speak it. “I’ve become so much more than she could have ever imagined. Lower your bow. I know you won’t use it.”
“You may have changed, Nyson, but so have I.” He let his fingers slip, felt the familiar thwack of the bow string as it snapped the air. The arrow hit his brother in the shoulder, forcing him back against the wall. His hand flew up to the shaft protruding from his shoulder and he looked up with an expression of pure shock. Shock turned to rage, and he weaved his hand through the air, sending a shockwave of power hurtling towards Therin. It moved faster than he’d expected and though he managed to sidestep it, the energy clipped his hand, tearing the bow out of his grip and sending it skittering across the floor out of reach.
With no physical weapon, it was mind against mind. He took a deep breath to steady himself and reinforced his walls. He felt his brother lash out with his power, clawed fingers digging into his skull as he tried to take control of Therin. He pushed back with equal ferocity, their powers trapped in a deadlock. He kept pushing against him with all his strength, slowly making his way across the room towards his brother. Step by step he approached, even as Nyson hurled another wave of energy his way. He diverted his power, used it to weave a brief shield into existence, and knocked the shimmering blue wave aside.
The Allseer Trilogy Page 31