Soul Eternal

by Kate Keir

  It was now impossible to speak, or to hear someone speak, over the deafening roar of battle, so I didn’t waste my breath. I simply gave Sluag a cold, hard smile of triumph. I knew the battle was far from won, but it hadn’t been a bad start and for now, that was enough.

  I felt Lyall touch his fingers against mine, and a jolt of fire teased around my hand and wrist.

  “It’s time to keep up our end of the deal, love,” he said loud enough that I could just hear him over the din.

  I couldn’t resist one last glance back to where Sluag stood. He was as far back from the front-line as he could be. None of my army had a chance of laying a single finger on him. His Supers and mortal world Draugur were starting to fall all around him, but he didn’t blink. He had the air of a commander who would sacrifice each and every soul who fought for him without hesitation or regret.

  I shook my head in disgust, knowing he would understand the thought that was running through my mind.

  Coward.

  Sluag didn’t respond to my insult in the way I had expected. He slowly shook his head from side to side. A wide grin split his face, revealing the rows of his yellow tombstone teeth. Leaving one hand to rest on the hilt of his sword, Sluag haltingly lifted his other hand up until it was extended before him.

  He tucked each of the bony fingers of his hand into his palm until just his index finger remained, pointing in a fixed direction. My gaze travelled the invisible line that extended from his finger until my eyes landed on Lyall’s face.

  “Flora, we need to crack on.” Lyall spoke with urgency.

  I nodded and reached out to take Lyall’s hand in my own. Shifting my gaze back to Sluag, I shuddered as he stopped pointing at Lyall. Lifting his arm even higher, until it was level with his shoulder, he slowly and deliberately drew his hand across the air in front of his throat. The grin never leaving his rotten face.

  His intent was clear.

  Lyall will die.

  Chapter Thirty-Eight

  Giving my hand a gentle tug, Lyall brought my attention fully back to him.

  “Okay, I’m ready.” I spoke with a confidence I didn’t feel.

  I kept my fingers firmly entwined with Lyall’s. No matter what else happened, we had to keep touching for as long as I needed to draw on his energy.

  Turning back to face Sluag, I focussed all of my concentration on him as I pushed past the boundaries of the physical, allowing my soul to burrow its way past his body and into the cavity inside him that housed his black and rotting soul.

  Sluag’s eyes widened imperceptibly as he felt the push of my own soul against his. He hadn’t realised how powerful I had become.

  Smiling grimly at my small success, I concentrated on allowing the strands of my own soul to wrap around his. I needed to anchor myself against him so that when I called his soul forward, I had the ability to reel his out like a fish.

  I felt a vague sense of surprise and delight as I realised for the first time that my own soul was a vivid purple colour.

  Allowing my concentration to drop—even momentarily—was a mistake. A single hard push ejected my soul from Sluag’s body in an instant and sent my mortal body reeling backward with the force. Only Lyall’s unending grip prevented me from losing my footing and landing on my ass.

  Raising a brow, Lyall smiled. “Time to call in the reinforcements, Soul Keeper.”

  I nodded breathlessly as I rounded on Sluag and prepared for my second attempt. Inside my head, I called out to my best friend.

  Finlay, it’s time.

  The little white orb had been bobbing patiently at a safe distance, but it didn’t hesitate when I called.

  What do you want me to do, Flor?

  I looked to Sluag and was surprised to see he looked more than a little worried.

  I was going to try to do this in stages, Finlay, but he’s too strong, too ancient. Let’s just go for it.

  The white light fired across the battleground so quickly he left a trail of magnesium-bright light behind him.

  All the way? Finlay checked with me in the instant before he collided with Sluag’s broad chest.

  I swallowed back my fear. All the way.

  As Finlay crashed into Sluag he started to melt, first through the armour and then through the monster’s grey scaled skin. Sluag howled in anger and fear.

  Gripping Lyall’s hand tightly in my own, I shouted so he could hear me over the noises that surrounded us.

  “It’s going to be just like we did with the Super, Lyall. Finlay will get inside and push, we need to pull as though our lives depend on it.”

  Lyall frowned for a moment. “What happens to Finlay once Sluag’s soul is out, love?”

  I had a pretty good idea—at least I hoped I did. But that could wait until after we’d won.

  “Not important, Lyall. If you really want to do this, then let’s do it,” I shouted.

  He only hesitated for a moment, and then I felt the warm flow of his energy passing through his own hand and into mine. The fire flicked and curled up my wrist and then climbed up my arm. It felt as though I were being supercharged.

  I smiled gratefully at him before turning swiftly back to focus all of my attention on Sluag’s writhing form.

  I felt myself become overrun with energy from Lyall, to the point that it was almost painful. I concentrated on twining Lyall’s energy with my own. The end result, a kaleidoscope of colours containing a bolt of power that would have been strong enough to take down a whole herd of elephants.

  As I raised my hand with the palm facing Sluag, I didn’t even have to encourage the energy bolt. Without hesitation, it leapt from my hand in an arc of blue fire and punched its way through Sluag’s chest.

  He roared in fury, as for the first time ever, he truly understood exactly how much power I had when my soul mate and my best friend stood beside me.

  As the blue fire found its way into the pit that surrounded Sluag’s soul, I felt Finlay pressing against the black mass. I could almost see my best friend with his shoulder braced against Sluag, his head down, and his face red with the exertion of trying to eject the immortal soul from its millennia-aged body.

  My initial elation was short-lived. I felt Finlay tremble as Sluag pushed back against him. Finlay’s soul snapped back like an elastic band, and for a terrifying moment, I was sure he had been obliterated somehow.

  Finlay? I called out desperately, inside my mind.

  I’m okay, Flor. He didn’t get me out, just gave me a slap is all.

  I sighed in relief at the sound of my best friend’s voice inside my head.

  “Again,” I snarled aloud, as I threw my energy against Sluag for a second time.

  Finlay started to push once more, and I closed my eyes as I concentrated on firing every drop of power inside me across the battlefield and into the body of the creature I had to stop at all costs.

  Sluag roared in fear, and I pushed and pushed. Even when I could hear Finlay inside my head, screaming at me to stop, I carried on.

  Only when a firm hand gripped my chin, and I heard Lyall’s voice shouting at me, did I snap back to the present.

  “Flora, enough. You’re going to kill yourself.”

  I blinked slowly as I stared into Lyall’s amber eyes. I lifted the back of my hand to my nose. When I pulled my hand away, I was horrified to see, not the usual trickle of blood but a river of it, running across the back of my hand.

  Lyall touched the back of his hand gently to my cheek.

  “You have to take more from me, love. I have plenty left to give, yet.”

  “No. You’ll die,” I growled.

  “Flora, you don’t have the power to do it alone, and right now Finlay is trapped inside that thing, along with the darkest soul in the history of humanity. You can’t do it without me, love.”

  He was right. Dammit, I didn’t want him to be right.

  “Okay.” I wiped the blood from my face and ignored the stabbing pain inside my head.

  Lyall wrapped
his hand around mine and smiled down at me. I looked back at him and felt as though I were being torn in two. Indecision raged through me.

  Finlay, we’re going to go again. I called out to my best friend.

  I’m ready when you are, Flor. Even though his voice was inside my head, I knew he was grinding the words out around clenched teeth.

  I fixed my attention on the warm tingles of energy that kissed my fingers as they leapt from Lyall’s skin. I concentrated on soaking up all of the energy that Lyall was offering, absorbing it into myself. My own body becoming a conduit that would collect his energy and merge it with my own, before sending the blue fire back after Sluag’s soul again.

  My eyes met Sluag’s once more, and this time he had the confidence to smile and shake his head slowly at me.

  You can’t do this, Little Dreamer.

  I dropped my gaze and focused on the blue fire that crackled and burned across my open palm.

  Finlay, now, I yelled inside my head.

  As the blue fire bled from my hand and ate its way through Sluag’s chest for the second time, I felt Finlay respond to my call. He pushed against the dark orb inside Sluag. I felt my flame of energy retreat a minute amount, as Sluag’s soul began to shift toward the entry point of my power.

  “It’s working,” I shouted in relief and delight.

  Suddenly, Lyall grunted and fell to his knees beside me.

  The terror of losing my soul mate was enough to make me drop my concentration and once again, my energy snapped back out of Sluag, leaving his soul unmoved.

  Finlay cursed in frustration, but I ignored him, instead dropping to my knees beside Lyall. He looked up at me and frowned.

  “No, Flora. We have to keep going. You know the deal.”

  I shook my head furiously. “I didn’t make any deal.”

  He laughed weakly. “You’re the Soul Keeper, love. The deal was made on your behalf, and you have to honour it.”

  I looked out across the raging battle, once again torn by indecision.

  Finally deciding, I stood up. “No, I don’t.”

  Lyall started to speak, but he was quickly silenced as I brought the hilt of my sword down against the back of his skull.

  There was no time to wonder if it would render him perfectly unconscious, like it did in the movies. I stood up quickly. I had to try to finish this.

  I could feel Finlay’s disbelief as I spoke to him inside my mind.

  Finlay, again.

  Suddenly, a voice raised in a sound of high-pitched elation above the noise of the battle. Sluag’s laughter was so loud and gleeful that those closest to him stopped fighting and turned to look at him

  “Oh, Flora,” he shouted in delight. “What have you done?”

  Chapter Thirty-Nine

  Biting my lip, I stared around at the raging battle and tried to quash the bubbling self-hatred that threatened to overwhelm me. I saw each of my Dion surrounded by monstrosities that could not die. Bear was lashing out with his massive paws at the Supers who kept on coming at him in continuous waves of evil.

  Freya was doing her best to help him by diving at the Supers and other Draugur, clawing at eyes with her talons. She had clearly been in a few close scrapes because her feathers were looking a little ragged around the edges.

  Artair and Enid never left each other alone for a minute; the two eagles attacked in tandem. Their perfectly aligned aerial displays made them seem formidable and untouchable. But, I knew the truth. I’d learned it the hard way and so had Artair. They could easily die, and I had just made a decision that meant they probably would.

  Flora? Finlay’s voice sounded desperate inside my head.

  Okay. Again, Finlay. I faced Sluag and prepared myself to attack.

  His voice was sceptical. Flor, we can’t do this without Lyall.

  Glancing down at Lyall’s unconscious form, I stood firm and prepared to send my own energy across the battlefield toward Sluag again.

  We don’t have a choice, Finlay.

  Not anymore, we don’t, Flora.

  I heard the disappointment in his voice, and it hurt like hell, but there was no time to dwell on it now.

  My energy leapt back into Sluag once more, and my soul gripped on to Sluag’s. Finlay steeled himself before starting to push against the corrupt, black orb in another attempt to dislodge it from the void inside the Host of the Unforgiven Dead.

  After only seconds had passed, my whole body burned with a need to pull my soul back and stop haemorrhaging any more energy. I ignored the burn and kept on pushing, even as my vision started to dull and a splitting white-hot headache pierced my brain.

  Finlay howled with the sheer exertion of pushing against a soul that was thousands of years more ancient than him.

  I reached out for Finlay’s soul with my own, terrified that Sluag would destroy him, but the tiny white light was holding its own impressively.

  I could feel Sluag’s soul starting to vacate the cavity inside him. He was struggling to hold fast against our power. With hope renewed, I threw everything I had at him, and his armoured body thrashed and kicked in anger as he realised he was losing his grip.

  I could suddenly taste the river of blood which had begun to cascade down over my lips, and the battle started to sound farther and farther away as my senses began to shut down. I was dying and I knew it. But that was okay because Lyall would wake up, and he would live, and I would have fulfilled my duty as Soul Keeper.

  I couldn’t stop myself from dropping to my knees once more as my legs gave way beneath me. I could hear my heartbeat inside my own ears now, and it was slow, so very slow.

  Flora? Finlay howled.

  I’m okay, keep going, I replied groggily. I pushed my energy against Sluag’s soul once again.

  That was when something truly miraculous happened.

  As I sent what I suspected was the final burst of energy I had left in me toward Sluag, I felt a huge surge of flame that engulfed my own power and carried it across the battlefield. The blue fire ripped through Sluag’s chest with such force it punched his black and rotten soul straight through his back and out into the open air.

  Freya? I spoke weakly inside my head.

  The raven didn’t hesitate; she dived toward me and hooked her beak through the loop that held the Síorraidh box on my belt, tearing it away from me.

  Freya shot back up into the sky until she became a tiny speck against the blue expanse. Then she opened her beak and let the box fall toward the earth.

  As the box tumbled and spun, I felt the roar of anger and fear that emanated from the inky, black Sluag soul.

  This is not the end for me, Flora. I won’t go in that box. His voice was malevolent and threatening.

  As the box completed its final revolution in the air, it landed with a cracking sound against a rock that protruded from the ground. As the box hit the rock, the lid sprang open, and a tortured scream ripped through my mind as Sluag’s soul was pulled into the blue, wooden box before the lid clicked quickly closed again.

  I had somehow ended up lying down on the floor with my face pressed against the damp straw-coloured grass. My vision was fading in and out, but I saw enough to know that Sluag was done.

  “Yes, you will go in that box,” I murmured around the blood that tainted my mouth with copper as I let my eyes drift closed.

  A sudden thought jolted me back from the brink of unconsciousness, and my eyes opened in just enough time to see Sluag’s body sitting up from the prone position it had adopted when the tainted, black soul had been ejected from it.

  Sluag stood up and started to walk shakily across the battlefield, toward where I lay. The fighting still raged around him. The Supers weren’t quite ready to back down yet, it seemed.

  I managed to lift my head up from the grass a fraction as Sluag approached me. Once he was standing with his grey boots only inches from my face, he dropped into a crouch and peered down until his fire-pit eyes met my green ones.

  I grinned, despite t
he pain inside my head.

  “You do know you can choose any shape, now. I hope you’re not planning on sticking with that one,” I croaked.

  A slow smile spread across his grey scaly face, only all of a sudden, it wasn’t quite so scaly any more. The features began to swim and change, in much the same way the face of the first Draugur I ever met had done, all those months ago.

  The sparse, grey hair became lighter and thicker, and the fire within his eyes died back until they ended up a sparkling blue colour. His skin paled and the scales disappeared, until I was finally looking at the face of my best friend.

  He spoke slowly, as though hearing his voice for the very first time. “It’s good to be back, Flor.”

  “It’s really good to have you back, Finlay Michaelson.” I smiled through my tears.

  The sounds of fighting returned to my ears, and I gave Finlay a weak but urgent push.

  “A blood inheritance secures allegiance. Go on, those Supers belong to you now. Stop them?”

  He stood up and looked hesitantly at me.

  “Go on, end this,” I urged as I started to pull myself up.

  “The ones that were made with my blood will listen, but not the ones made with Pen’s blood, Flor,” he insisted.

  “Do it,” I growled as I fought to sit up.

  Finlay coughed to clear his throat before calling out, “Super Draugur, kneel.”

  It was as though a magic spell had been cast over them, and perhaps in a way, it had. Each and every Super turned toward the sound of Finlay’s voice and without hesitation, they dropped to one knee and bowed their heads in deference.

  “My Lord,” they murmured in unison.

  Finlay turned astonished eyes on me. “They all knelt, even Pen’s Supers. Why?”

  I fought back tears as I finally admitted the truth to my best friend.

  “I didn’t want to tell you before in case the soul in the Everwood was wrong. But it wasn’t. Pen was your mother, Finlay. She never once pretended to be your mother in all those years, because you really are her son.”