What was he doing? Weren’t we supposed to be restoring the portal? But then he pulled me closer, and my coherent thoughts seemed to evaporate. All I could focus on was the feeling of his hand in mine, the warmth of his skin, the sensual curve of his lips.
Without thinking, I reached up and traced my fingers over his lips. “Who are you really?” I asked him.
“I’m whoever you want me to be.”
“What does that mean?”
A ghost of a smile crossed his face. He leaned toward my ear. “May I kiss you?” he whispered.
I didn’t let him wait for my answer. My lips found his, and everything except us seemed to disappear. His lips were softer than I remembered, and I couldn’t seem to get enough of him. Kissing him only made me more impatient. Running my fingers along his chest, I felt the hard ridges of his muscles. He was more intoxicating than I imagined.
Too soon, he pulled away, our breathing heavy. He pushed a strand of hair away from my eyes.
“My apologies,” he said.
“Apologies?”
“I hadn’t intended on kissing you.”
“Then what had you intended?”
“I honestly need your help removing the disc.”
I studied his face, wondering if he’d really meant what he’d said about falling in love with me, but it seemed his timing was horrible. We were about to return to Faythander and lose all our memories of each other. I wanted to be angry with him, but all I could think about was the way his lips felt on mine.
“Very well,” I said. “Shall we get this over with?”
“Yes, are you ready?”
I nodded. We both took several deep breaths, and then we dove underwater. The world transformed as water surrounded me. As sounds drifted in fluid, muffled tones, I focused on the gleaming, golden disc at the pool’s bottom and swam toward it. Maveryck reached it first, and I drew closer, I noticed the shape of a dragon had been etched into the gold.
Maveryck grabbed one edge of the disc and I grabbed the other. Straining, we lifted it off the pool’s floor, but its weight was more than expected, and I almost dropped it. We were only able to bring it to the surface by dragging and pushing it up to shallow ground.
As we emerged from the water, we pushed the disc up the shore, and then finally out of the pool. The moment the disc touched dry land, the light in the room darkened. We stood by the pool’s edge, watching as the water grew agitated, slowly churning into a whirlpool. Flashes of lightning burst from the water and thunder boomed so loudly it shook the floor, making tremors fill the room.
“What’s happening?” I called over the noise.
“We’ve unleashed the magic! That disc must have been placed there to absorb the pool’s power, but now, the cave is no longer protected.”
The room shook so badly I feared it would tear apart. Clattering noise filled my ears, so loud I worried I might go deaf. We watched the water spiral upward, creating a spout, and then reformed to make a perfect circle. No longer did we stand over a pool of water. Instead, we stared into a shimmering blue portal. Magic burst with electrical intensity around the portal’s edges.
The air quieted, filled only by an occasional spark of energy from the portal.
“Was that supposed to happen?” I asked.
“I don’t know. I’ve never seen a portal form like this.”
“Do you trust it?”
“I’m not sure. If it’s unstable, it could tear us apart as we try to cross worlds.”
Wonderful.
He clutched the crystal around his neck. “I’m going to see if the portal is stable. Wait here.”
He walked down the slope of the now-dry lakebed. I grabbed my knife and then glanced back at the empty hallway, adopting Maveryck’s nervous tick as I began feeling increasingly anxious. When he reached the portal, he stopped in front of it and outstretched his hand. A zap of electric energy shot out, lancing his fingers. He cursed and stepped back.
“It’s as I expected,” he called back to me. “We can’t go through it as it is. I’ll have to use the crystal’s magic to open the portal to Faythander.”
As he removed his necklace, a gray mist formed silently behind him. The wraith appeared and glided forward.
“Maveryck, behind you,” I shouted as I grabbed my knife and sprinted toward the portal. Time seemed to slow, and all I could do was watch as the wraith lashed out, preternaturally fast, and slit Maveryck’s throat.
The world stopped.
Maveryck glanced at me, his eyes wide and pleading. He tried to speak, but the cut was too deep and had likely severed his life’s vein. He clutched his neck. Blood seeped between his fingers as he fell to his knees and collapsed. If I could get to him in time and take him through the portal, he might still have a chance.
I ran toward Maveryck when the wraith blocked my path, a wicked, curved knife clutched in his hands, Maveryck’s blood staining the blade.
I lashed out. Intent on killing the beast, I aimed my knife at the monster’s heart, but he disappeared and then reappeared behind me. I spun around as he tried to slit my throat the same way he had done to Maveryck.
Dodging his attack, I rounded and plunged my blade in the beast’s ribcage. It wasn’t a killing blow, but it would slow him down. I ripped my blade from the beast’s body, making him cry out. His pupils dilated and his eyes simmered with rage. The creature lunged for me, but I feinted backward, using the time to search for his weaknesses.
It was then I noticed he held the magical staff in one hand and a knife in the other, throwing off his balance. The beast was most likely not accustomed to fighting with the staff. The wraith swung it out, trying to knock me down, but I ducked and then grabbed the wood and jerked it from the beast’s hands. I saw my opportunity as he lost his footing and stumbled, so I planted my knife an inch to the left from his heart—a killing blow.
The monster screamed and fell backward, his voice an unnatural wail that echoed through the cavern. He yanked the knife from his chest, but it would do him no good now. He fell to the ground, his breathing harsh and rattling. Moments later, his breathing stopped, his eyes staring blankly at the cavern’s ceiling.
I turned away from the monster and stumbled toward Maveryck.
Kneeling beside him, I inspected the cut in his neck, and my fears were confirmed. His life’s vein had been severed. He would die soon. Truthfully, I was surprised he hadn’t died already, so maybe we still had time.
I took his hand, attempting a smile. “I’m going to get you through the portal. You’ll be fine, I promise.”
He grabbed my arm, struggling to speak. “Heidel,” he gasped. “It won’t work. The portal… won’t heal me. Naturally made portals don’t… heal.”
“What?” His words stunned me. If the portal couldn’t heal him, then what chance did I have of saving him? “Shouldn’t I at least try?”
He shook his head. “It’s no use.”
“But I can’t just watch you die. I have to do something.” I grabbed him under the arms and pulled him toward the portal, but he cried out and I stopped. He coughed, choking on his own blood. I knelt beside him, and he took my hand, pressing the crystal into my palm, the blood on his fingers still warm.
“Take the staff and use the crystal… to escape this world.”
I eyed the portal. “No. You’re coming with me. Besides, I don’t know how to use magic.”
“You don’t… need to know how.” He gave me a slight smile, and then he closed his eyes. His face paled, now almost gray, as blood drained from his body.
“Maveryck,” I whispered.
He didn’t respond.
How could this be happening? He’d been fine only a moment ago. I found my knife and cut strips of fabric from my hemline, ripping the embroidered blue flowers in half, and then I pressed the material to the wound in his neck. It wouldn’t stop the bleeding and I knew it, but sitting here and watching him die was not an option. I ha
d to do something.
“Maveryck, you’re going to be okay,” I told him. “You’ll get through this.”
“Yes, you’re right.” He gave me a weak smile. “I’m sure I’ll be fine.”
I swallowed the lump in my throat. We were both talented liars. It was only now that I realized how much I had in common with him. We were both stubborn, both proud, yet he brought out the best in me. He’d taught me that I didn’t need to hide behind my armor—that I could be myself without it—now I was losing him. I refused to lose him. There had to be some way to save him.
His breathing grew shallower.
I turned my attention to the crystal clutched in my hand. If I used it to heal him, it meant there would be no magic left to open the portal. It meant I would never escape this cursed world and return home. I would be trapped here forever without a way back.
The glowing blue light from the portal reflected off his skin, making his pale countenance look ghostly. With his breathing growing more labored, coupled with his blood loss, he wouldn’t last much longer.
I made my decision. Grasping the crystal tight and holding it over him, I felt the warmth of the magic stirring inside. I hated magic, but if using it meant I could save him, I would do it without hesitation.
“Heal him,” I whispered. Inside the shard, magic stirred, warming my hand. It glowed with a soft white light, but the magic stayed within the crystal, unmoving.
“Heal him!” I demanded as I held it over Maveryck’s heart, willing the magic to work. But it only shone a faint light, barely bright enough to illuminate his face. I waited, watching as the magic faded, and then it disappeared altogether.
This isn’t happening.
Around his neck, blood soaked through the makeshift bandage, making the blue flowers turn black. I felt for a pulse in his neck and in his wrists. Tears stained my cheeks as I pressed my ear to his chest, but I heard only silence. It deafened me. The absence of his heartbeat was the loneliest sound I’d ever heard.
I screamed out in frustration and pain, my voice echoing through the cave. Anger over losing him bubbled inside, threatening to boil over.
What curse had been placed on me that I should lose everyone I loved?
I grabbed the useless crystal and threw it across the room. It clattered on the floor, ringing out against the stone until the sound faded, plunging me even deeper into silence, alone with Maveryck’s body.
As I looked at him—at his stone-gray skin and unfocused eyes—I knew he was dead. I debated going to the portal and trying to find a way through, but my mind had gone to a strange place, and I couldn’t fully concentrate on anything. I found myself sitting beside Maveryck, holding his hand in mine. As I stared at our entwined fingers, my scars stood out in the portal’s light, making me remember how I’d gotten them.
“I should have told you,” I said, whispering, “how I got the scars.” I exhaled nervously. “I was seventeen. I was on a scouting expedition near the goblin lands. Our troop got attacked by creatures we thought were elves. Most of my companions were captured, but I managed to escape, only to fall into a trap and break my leg.”
Behind me, the portal sparked, but I ignored it and continued my story.
“After three days alone with no food, I thought I would die in the trap. But then he found me. He rescued me and healed my leg with his magic. I thought he was my savior.
“I continued to meet him in secret after that, and I fell in love with him. One day, when I went to meet him in the forest, he didn’t show up. When I searched for him, I found him in his true form—a goblin.
“He scared me and I ran away, but then he caught me. He hurt me. His goblin’s skin exuded chemicals that burned me, so he grabbed my arms, refusing to release me until I promised to stay with him. When he finally let go, I was bleeding so badly. I will never forget that pain because I’ve never felt anything worse.”
I pried Maveryck’s stiff fingers from mine, and then I gently ran my finger over his cheek.
“The pain stayed with me always,” I said. “It never went away. Even after his death, I still felt the poison inside me. Until I met you.”
The portal’s light moved like water over his skin, smooth and fluid, almost lifelike.
“I don’t know how it happened,” I continued, “or how to explain it, but after I met you, I didn’t feel the pain anymore. You made it go away.” I pushed the hair away from his forehead and gently kissed him. “I should have told you sooner. I was too afraid you were like him. But you’re not. I wished I’d realized it sooner. You’re not like him, Maveryck.”
I stood and backed toward the portal, knowing I would never be the same without him. Behind me, the light glowed in colors of blue and silver. I found the staff and the crystal, and then I faced the portal.
Could I really go back without him?
I would forget everything once I went through. I would forget how I felt about him and how he’d made my pain go away, and I would forget the sound of his voice and the way his eyes sparkled with magic. I tried to convince myself that this was for the best—that perhaps it was best to forget, because then I would no longer feel the pain of losing him—but that thought only made me feel worse.
Looking behind me, I wasn’t sure I could just leave him here on this world with no burial and no one to remember him. I still knew so little about him, and I didn’t even know where to find his family. Was there anyone in the world who would miss him? But as I stared at his body lying prone on the stone floor, I watched as his skin changed from gray to pink.
I blinked. I’m making this up. He’s dead. He’s not coming back.
But the longer I stared, the more I doubted my own sanity. The color was returning to his skin. I crossed to him, knelt at his side, and then placed the staff aside. I pulled the bandages, stiff with dried blood, off his neck, shocked to find the flesh knitted back together.
And then his eyes opened.
I gasped and fell backward. What was happening? Was he some sort of wraith transformed? Black magic must have been at work, because I knew there was no magic that could restore life to the dead.
He sat up slowly, and I didn’t know if I should be elated or terrified. My heart hammered in my chest.
“Heidel?” he whispered. His eyes gleamed, reflecting the silver-blue in the light emanating from the portal. I’d known only one other person who’d been someone else—someone who wore a man’s skin to hide the monster inside.
“Maveryck, what’s going on? What… Who are you?”
He only shook his head, his breath coming out in quick gasps. The sound of his labored breathing was the only sound in the cavern. I tried to wrap my mind around the situation, that Maveryck had died and was now breathing and speaking once again—but as much as I wanted to believe it, I couldn’t. It had to be some sort of trick.
“Maveryck, is that really you?”
He nodded. “Yes.”
“But… how? You died. I watched you die.”
“It’s difficult to explain,” he answered, his voice distant and quiet. My heart pounded as I stared at him. As much as he frightened me, I refused to let my fear show, so I moved toward him.
“Please,” I said quietly, kneeling beside him. “I need to know who you are.”
“I… I can’t tell you.”
“Why not?”
He focused on the portal. “Because I’ve never told anyone.”
“But you have to tell me.”
“Why?”
“Because I just watched you return from the dead, for Odin’s sake! You owe me some sort of explanation.”
A ghost of a smile crossed his face. Perhaps this was the Maveryck I knew. “If I tell you,” he said quietly, “you must swear not to tell anyone. It is a secret I’ve kept my entire life.”
“Very well, I give you my oath, one Wult to another. I will not repeat what you tell me. Besides,” I said, nodding toward the portal, “I won’t remember any
thing anyway. Will I?”
“I suppose not.” His voice grew distant as he spoke. “I was born to Wult parents and adopted by elves, that much you know, but what you don’t know is that this happened almost five centuries ago.”
I gasped. “Five centuries. So you’re five hundred years old?”
Maveryck nodded.
“How is that possible?”
“I can explain, though it’s a bit of a story. You’re sure you want to know?”
“Yes.” I still couldn’t believe I was sitting here talking to him.
“It started with my brother, Navarre,” he said. “After my adopted elven parents died, he was left to raise me, but he had a secret. Navarre was obsessed with the dark arts, and he wanted eternal youth. His fixation led him to the northlands where he studied potions. After he left on his journey to the goblin realm, I didn’t see him again for many years. I’d assumed he died, but one night, he returned.
“Navarre was horribly disfigured. He’d lost most of his skin, and his eyes and lips had been cut away. How he made it back to our keep was a mystery. Yet he lived, and he carried two small bottles of potion with him. My brother instructed me in the proper use of the potion, including an elaborate ritual where the potion was to be drunk under the darkness of a new moon.
“We each took turns drinking the potion, which was supposed to give us everlasting life. Where his potion failed him, mine did not. I’m still not sure why mine worked, although it most likely had to do with my Wult heritage. However, the potion was not my salvation. It was my curse. It gave me unending life, but it also altered my brain, making it impossible for me to forget memories or emotions. Years ago, the memories would become so debilitating that I would be bed-ridden for days. But over time I have learned how to close off my mind, so now, I can function. Better than before, anyway.
“The ability to recall information eventually led to my studies in magical arts, and it is how I was named as a druid.”
“Druid?” I asked. “I am no magic user. What does that mean?”
His eyes twinkled, the purple flecks seeming to glitter. I’d always known there was something different about him, and now I knew why.
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