That also means Rev must be nearby. He’ll have begun the trek up the mountain.
If I can make myself stand up and walk, maybe I can find him. Maybe I can find them both. Maybe I can have one last moment with him before I die. Before I let this place devour me.
“Don’t you know this already?”
“Not really,” I admit, staring up blankly at the hazy sky. Smoke plumes from the mount behind me. A volcano more than a mountain. That makes it so much better.
“You’re my hope,” my wraith whispers.
“For the Shadow Court? In death, that is still what matters most to you?”
“You are my redemption. If I can rebuild the court I helped to dismantle...” He pauses, gliding around my fallen body in a tight circle. “But also, I’ve come to realize that you are here because of me, child. I don’t know if you realize that. It’s my fault. It’s my blood in your veins that marked you as a target for these horrific beasts.” The pain in his voice is sharp. His smoke-like magic is continually restless, but he mimics me, lying down and staring up at the grey sky. There are no clouds to examine here. No changing skies. No birds in flight. There is only a sheet of smog, never changing other than to dim and brighten over a day’s time.
Still, the wraith lies beside me on the ashen ground, his magic rippling awkwardly as he does.
“There have been many with that same blood since your death.”
He nods. “There was a small manner of luck involved, yes.”
I shake my head. “No. They chose me for a reason. They saw the darkness inside. They saw my reckless ambition and used it against me.”
“You are a foolish child sometimes.” He tsks. “Ambition is not unique to you. And recklessness is simply a common adolescent trait. The things they took advantage of do not make you bad. You never desired to cause pain. I can see that in your eyes. In your soul. In your every action. You have fought for good. You have given all of yourself, much more than another fae would have given, to help those you care for. I admire you for this, Caelynn. If I’m honest, I think the Night Bringer failed by choosing you as his tool. So many others would have been easier to manipulate. To trick. He underestimated you. And you are close, very close, to winning his game.”
“I’m also very close to losing it.”
“Yes,” he whispers. “Yes, you are close to that too.”
“It’s not over, though, is it? Even if I were to walk out of here alive... he’d come for me again.”
“He couldn’t,” the wraith breathes. “You ensured that with your bargain so long ago. You don’t fully understand how well you did that day, or perhaps, how badly he did. To those who know what you’ve done, you are a true hero. The Night Bringer tried to trick you. He wanted you as his eternal slave. It was the simplest way to achieve his ends. But he knew no bargain could convince you to willingly submit to slavery. And so, he presented a false bargain. It had to be real, of course, or else the result would be false. Magic cannot be fooled. Instead, he created a bargain he knew you would fail. He wanted you to kill the wrong fae, and when you did, he would use it against you. The bargain would have trapped you. That is why he gave you as beneficial of terms as he did. He never expected you to figure it out.”
My wraith sighs. “Refuse, maybe. Fail, possibly. Succeed in what you assumed was the right murder but was not, yes. Any of those results earned him exactly what he desired. But to kill Reahgan? To fulfill the true bargain? No. He did not think it possible you’d figure it out and succeed.”
“But I did,” I croak.
“And because of that, the Night Bringer cannot touch you now. You are in full control of his magic, and that gives you an advantage. His only way to manipulate you now is with your mate. The mate you saved. The mate you sacrificed so deeply for. He was right, that you’d throw anything away to save him. If you were to leave the Schorchedlands now, you could take back your throne and the Night Bringer couldn’t touch you because that was part of his bargain.”
I close my eyes and hold my breath. “But the scourge would continue to spread.”
“You could find another way to stop that silly plague.”
“Could we?”
“Certainly,” he says, voice high pitched.
But I am certain he doesn't believe it. Maybe we could. Maybe we couldn’t. “And if I were to have children?”
The wraith is silent, his magic continues to billow and ripple, but he does not speak. My children, and their children, will not be safe so long as the Night Bringer and Night Terror are living. That much is clear. I would have to choose to never have children or raise them in a different court where they would absorb a different elemental magic to free them of my curse.
“Why do they want Rev dead?” This is a question I hadn’t bothered to ask previously. Something about his magic, his fate, I don’t know. I should have asked. I should have clarified.
“He has the power to undo their curse. He has the power to heal what no one else can heal.”
I purse my lips. “Like the Scourge.”
That’s what this was always about, right? The plague. It feels almost small now in comparison to what I know the world will face if the Night Terror is freed.
“Indeed, Rev can put a stop to the scourge without the spell book.”
“And yet, you still want him dead.”
“I want you alive. He is of no consequence. In fact, if his survival didn’t cost yours, I’d prefer him alive. Contrary to what you think, I do not wish you unhappiness. But that is not the reality we have now.”
“And you hate me for choosing him over my homelands.”
“I do not hate you. I am disappointed. I was certainly angry. But I do understand how it is an unfair choice.”
My eyelids flutter closed. My mind is more at ease now, my heart rate has settled, but my body is still worn and tired. I feel... numb. I feel nothing.
“How are you, child?”
“I don’t know,” I whisper. I force my body upright and look down at my hands. I watch the ash fall and land on my skin. We are so very close to the center, where rumors told us a living being couldn’t survive for more than a few hours. Does that mean the air is already poisoning me? Shouldn’t the ash be burning?
I look down at my arm again. There are red dots where the flakes have struck. My skin is peeling off, grey like ash. I pick at it gently and a thick slice pulls pack, exposing red flesh. I gasp and drop it back.
What is happening to me? This acid rain is burning, but I don’t feel it. I don’t feel anything anymore.
And how did I know the ash would burn? Did I read that somewhere? I don’t remember reading or hearing about it.
But I do remember dreaming about it.
I remember a dream that I was running through the center of the Schorchedlands to reach Rev, to save him. He was in trouble.
I remember my wraith being with me, telling me to let him die. Telling me that the Night Bringer would take over my soul if I wasn’t careful.
“Where is Rev?” I ask again.
Was it really a dream, him healing me here? He... I swallow. He said he’d been trapped by the Night Terror. I whip my head to the wraith.
“Where is Rev,” I demand this time, heart hammering in my chest. Something is wrong. I know it deep in my soul.
“How should I know?”
“You do,” I say, eyes harsh. He’s supported me, helped me, but all I can feel is anger. Because he knows. He knows where Rev is. I reach to grip the wraith by the throat, but my hand falls right through his black smokey magic.
“What are you doing?”
Something is wrong... that dream. I had a dream. I was running to Rev. He was in trouble. And the wraith was telling me to leave him behind.
“If you stay,” the wraith whispered, “the Night Bringer will take away more of you, piece by piece until it’s only his magic that remains. Then, he will free himself with ease. It will be his soul inside your body, reigning over the Shadow Court. On
that day, Caelynn, Princess of the Shadow Court, you’ll lose everything you ever dared to hope for.”
That’s what the wraith wants.
Fuck.
“You’re working with him,” I whisper.
“What are you on about, child?”
My hand can’t touch him. But my iron blade can. I grip the blade and have it pressed against his heart before he can even blink. “What did you do?”
The wraith freezes. Fear flickers over his expression, but then his lips spread into an eerie grin and he rumbles with a low chuckle. “You’re going to kill me, are you?”
“Why is that funny?”
“I am your last ally, child. How ironic it would be for you to end me, leaving you entirely alone.”
“Allies don’t betray you. What did you do to Rev? I know you did something.” I press harder over his magic which sizzles against the iron.
He winces but continues his sick grin. “Have you become as weak as we? Have you become like us?” the wraith whispers. “Perhaps you are less special than I thought. You’re just like the rest of them.”
“No, I’m the only one foolish enough to trust a wraith!”
“Then, end me. Kill me now. Relieve me of the despair I will feel when I watch you die and all my hopes end.”
“I’ve always known I can’t win this battle,” I admit. “But I can stop them from winning. If I die, the line has ended.”
“Your father still lives,” the wraith whispers like a threat.
I drop the knife. I hadn’t thought of that. Would he go after my father? “Is that even possible?”
“Probably not. But he’ll try. He’ll torture him. Perhaps try to force him to breed.”
My fingers tremble.
“I swear, child. I am not lying when I say I am on your side. I do not wish for the Night Terror released from her prison or the Night Bringer to gain any additional power. I fought to stop them long ago. I have not turned back on that.”
I lean closer, examining him. “You know what happened to Rev,” I say more calmly. I believe him, I decide. He may not have jumped sides wholly, but he is certainly withholding information. “Be on my side entirely, and I will do my best to find a way out of this place and revive the Shadow Court.”
His eyes narrow. “You’ll promise that if you exit this place, you’ll take your place as queen?”
I pull in a long breath, considering such a promise. I don’t like making bargains of any kind. But a promise is not a binding bargain... and I would entirely intend to give my power to the Shadow Court and work to rebuild its power. If I can get out of that banishment...
I pull my blade from his chest. “I will do everything within my power to claim my throne,” I promise. Then, I point at him. “And you will tell me everything you know about Rev. You will not purposefully withhold important information from us. And you will do everything you can to protect both Rev and me.”
He curls his lips, exposing sharp teeth. “I cannot promise to protect him.”
“You will.”
“I will not.” He spins and begins to pace. “I will promise instead to never cause him harm, directly or indirectly. I will not conspire to cause him harm or take action I know will harm him—unless it is to save you.”
I screw my lips, thinking it through. “Rev told me he doesn’t intend to leave me here,” I admit, cheeks burning. I don’t even understand such a proclamation. How could he not intend to leave me behind? What could he possibly do? “He is my ally. If you are to be mine, you will be his too.”
The wraith sighs. “I will help him if I can, and if it doesn’t hurt you in the process.”
I grunt. I suppose it’s good enough. “Very well. I agree.”
The wraith’s smile grows, his eyes flickering gold.
I look out over the open plain, to the mountain pass a few hundred feet away. Nothing but ash and stones between us. The swamp lies behind us, with its bank full of torn limbs and still warm flesh. About a mile to the east is a massive tree, grey bark, and sprawling leafless branches reaching up into the sky, nearly as tall as the volcano itself.
We’re smack in the middle of these open lands, which means we’re sitting ducks. I haven't bothered to use my shadows in hours now. I haven’t had the energy or the thought to do it. I haven’t seen evidence of a single being other than the wraith.
“We need to move on and find Rev.”
“About that—”
My eyes flash to him angrily.
He raises his hands in surrender. "Allies now, remember? I'll tell you everything, I promise."
"Where is he?”
The wraith pauses, eyes darting around nervously. "She has him."
My stomach drops to my feet. Part of me knew it, but even so, panic takes control for those terrible moments.
That dream or vision... his magic still tingles inside of me. He’d given me a jolt of power, of hope, I desperately needed.
But God, the thought of him in her grip, the pain she’ll inflict, the terror—my hands shake.
"Is he alive?" I'm barely able to form the words. I know the answer to this too, and I’m not sure it’s better than the alternative.
"Oh yes. She still intends to use him."
The Night Terror is going to use Rev the way the Night Bringer used me.
My vision flickers to black, and I feel myself falling.
My mind and soul are burning, but it’s not like fire. It’s like... acid.
I groan and roll, writhing in pain.
“Ahh, there she is,” a deep echoing voice calls to me. “My little pet.”
“Caelynn?” my wraith asks, and I shake my head, pushing the memories away. “What is happening? Tell me.”
“Memories,” I whisper.
“Of?”
“Him. The Night Bringer.”
“He is trying to pull you under,” the wraith whispers. “You must fight it, Caelynn.”
I clench my jaw. The echo of pain long past slams into me and my vision flickers away, turning black for a second time.
Fire sears my back, and I writhe in pain. “Make,” I force from my cracked lips. “It.” I curl my hands into fits, pain putting pressure on every part of me. My mind. My body. My soul.
The ache is deeper than I even knew it went.
“Stop,” I whine pathetically.
The Night Bringer chuckles. “Gladly,” he rumbles in my ear. “Just agree to my bargain.”
I groan, but the pain won’t let up. “No,” I finally get out.
He laughs again. “You think yourself very noble, don’t you? But you forget, my little pet, I can see inside your head. I can see what you crave. What you would do to gain it. You and I... we are the saaaame.”
MY MIND IS RELEASED from the darkness, and I gasp like I’m breaking through the surface after nearly drowning.
“Are you all right?” my wraith asks.
I shake my head, panting in breath. “I don’t know.”
“Tell me what he showed you,” the wraith says.
I bite my lip. “It was just a memory of when he trapped me. Before the bargain.”
Is that what’s happening to Rev now? Is he being tortured like I had been?
My mind spins. Is there even a way to win this now?
She will flay him alive.
I shake my head. It's so much. Too much. I don't know how to do this... I don't know what it all means. "Do you know if a soul can die while the body still lives?"
My wraith blinks. "Yes."
"How?"
"Often, that happens with suicide. The body simply dies moments after. Depression can suck the life from the soul, like an illness on your mind instead of your body. That is usually what it means. The body cannot live without a soul, though. And so, it doesn't make much difference. Soul, mind, body—if one shatters completely, the rest follow."
"The body cannot live without a soul... Except mine has two," I whisper. The Night Bringer gave me more than just a bit of magic, I reali
ze.
I curse under my breath.
“How could you have two?” my wraith asks sincerely.
“He went straight up Harry Potter,” I spit and slap the ground. The blood has dried, and it's starting to flake.
“You’ve lost me, child.”
“His magic. It will live on if my soul dies. He will take over my body.”
I've been so very close to giving up, so close to letting that happen. Close to thinking I have nothing to live for. I do. I have to slap these creatures in their face one more time. I have to take back my mate. Again. I have to never let them take me like that.
"The Night Terror wants me to come for Rev," I say.
"Yes," my wraith hisses. “It’s what she expects. That is why...”
Why he didn’t tell me. I wave him off. I don’t know if he was right or wrong. It doesn’t matter. Not now.
It’s certainly my first thought. I have to get to him. But... how? Do I march into her lair and challenge her to a battle? Even in a battle of wits, I'd have no chance of winning in my current state.
No, I have only one move if I refuse to give up. It may mean playing right into her hands, but I know I have access to the one thing the Night Terror needs. If I don't get it, she'll only continue to emotionally torture me until my soul dies and the Night Bringer takes over my body. Lose-lose. I need to grab the cards while they're in my reach.
Rev
The Night Terror is angry when she realizes what I did. I can feel it in the tightness of the tree branches clenching my arms and chest. In the steady vibration of her pet. How the purr of my tree-prison changes into a growl.
Then, out of the darkness, something shifts, slithering closer. “What,” her low voice sends terror through my body—I can’t help it, “did you do?”
The very ground trembles with her voice. The wines trapping me clench even tighter and a groan escapes my lips.
I try to ignore the panic rushing through my veins and remember I’d do it again. I’d do anything to help Caelynn.
“You’d do anything to save her. Or you’d do anything to help her save you?”
Soul of Thorns (Wicked Fae Book 3) Page 14