Another creature rushed him and he listlessly raised his sword. He desperately wanted it to be over. The creature growled and his mind switched back to focusing on the battle. He clutched his sword and when the creature tried to land a blow, he ducked out of the way and stabbed it in the neck. Dark liquid poured out of the wound as the creature fell on the grass.
A horn sounded at the far edge of the field and everything stopped. The creatures scampered away, regrouping, forming a cluster near the opposite end of the field. There was a moan nearby and Krishani glanced around. He saw someone he didn’t recognize laying in the grass, his arm covered in blood. He was panting and clutching his chest plate. Krishani offered him his hand and pulled the kinfolk to his feet.
“Thank you,” the kinfolk mumbled as he stood and tried to regain himself. Krishani went to say something when a cold wind pulled his attention away.
The Daed emerged from the northeast with elegance, their cloaks sweeping across the land as their muscular forms towered above the creatures. Krishani panicked as he counted six of them. They spread to either side of the battlefield and removed their hoods, revealing elven features and haunting hate-filled eyes. There was no doubt by the way that they carried themselves that they were extremely skilled warriors. He watched as one with tattoos on his face and long dark hair approached Istar.
“I’runya,” the Flame, one of the Daed hissed.
Istar roared in contempt and kicked him. The Daed was too quick. He slid away from Istar, laughing and turning from the battlefield.
The kinfolk had gathered on one side of the field and were tending to their wounds. Krishani stood with the lot of them and noticed Pux in the crowd, still alive. There was an eerie chill in the air as the Daed withdrew to the edges of the field. Istar rode towards the kinfolk, his mouth working like he was speaking but no sound came out. A shrill cry pierced the sky as the gargoyles overhead became restless. The creatures, seemingly under the hypnosis of the Daed, snapped back to life and the battle continued. Krishani noticed that both groups were quickly losing numbers, even the gargoyles were strewn across the land, licking their wounds.
Krishani raised his sword as the creatures bounded towards him and the kinfolk, the battlefield becoming a mess. This time his eyes followed the Daed with the tattoos on his face. Krishani felt like he was being watched, and as he kicked another of the black-skinned creatures away, the Daed with the tattooed face singled him out. Krishani twisted his sword into another of the creatures and froze. His eyes met with those of the tattooed warrior. Anger washed over him. Tonight, this Daed would die. He just didn’t know who or what would kill him.
The Daed pulled out a thin sword and cocked his head to the side, a silent challenge. Krishani gulped and backed away, thinking of Wraynas. He was no match for this enemy. Even if he could focus on anything but Kaliel and her safety, there was no way he would live. His foot slipped on a body and he went careening to the ground. He landed on armor-covered carcasses and lost weapons. He yelped as his hand tread over something hard.
Krishani scrambled to his feet and turned away from the battlefield. There was no way he was strong enough to face a formidable enemy like The Daed. Again, he tripped and tumbled onto his hands and knees, his helmet falling on the ground. He glanced at the stables and relief washed over him. Atara and the other ladies approached the battlefield. He took a deep breath as the elders glided past him and began striking down enemies with their force.
Krishani went to stab another of the creatures when he saw someone riding from the northwest of Avristar. His eyes widened as Mallorn came into view. He ran towards him. Mallorn would know if Kaliel was safe.
“Mallorn!” Krishani shouted as he tried to bring his hand up to wave. His shoulder ached with stitches of pain that shot into the back of his head and made him dizzy. He swayed on his heels and tried to find his balance as the horse neared the battle. Mallorn had a grave expression on his face.
“How is Kaliel?” Krishani asked, forgetting all about the battle behind him, and the enemies that were winning.
Mallorn pressed his lips together. “She’s fine, the Shee will help,” he answered. “Are you wounded?”
Krishani shook his head. He closed his eyes and tried to force out the crippling feelings of uncertainty and fear weighing him down. It wasn’t the blood on the battlefield, but what the Ferryman had said to him. You will find similar sorry sites I’m sure. This wasn’t a dream. He felt the souls rising out of the bodies, their pain curling around him, forcing him to feel delirious and sick. He wanted to touch their foreheads, allow them safe passage to the Great Hall, but he knew he couldn’t go back without endangering himself.
“Are you certain she’s safe?” Krishani asked.
Mallorn nodded. “She’s going to see Avred. Crestaos won’t find her.”
Krishani wanted to throw himself into the battle, but the word on Pux’s lips stopped him. “Avred isn’t a volcano, is he?”
A shadow crossed Mallorn’s face, but it was gone as fast as it had appeared. “Avred won’t let Crestaos take her.”
Krishani nodded, strength flowing into him. He gripped his sword with all the force he could muster and held it aloft. “Then we will end them,” he said. It was a promise.
He got his second wind as Mallorn grimaced and followed him into battle.
* * *
32-Weed of Temptation
Little Flame.
The slithering voice of Crestaos hit her senses with striking magnitude. Kaliel opened her eyes to find herself hovering in the grove near Mallorn’s cabin. There was an unnatural chill in the air and she rubbed the tops of her arms with her palms. The grove was where she awakened, where she gave in to the desire racing through her, where she said goodbye to Krishani. She didn’t know why she would be having a vision of being there instead of envisioning the battle.
The hairs on the back of her neck stood on end as someone drifted through the trees. As she stumbled to her feet, Crestaos himself moved into the grove, the grass turning to ash. He was impossibly tall, his clothes confused her, long jacket with silver cufflinks and a wide hood covered his features. He had straight, black pants covering what looked like rough leather boots. She cried out as the last memory of Krishani was forever replaced by the image of his silent and unnatural destruction.
I see you.
His voice was like poison as it wafted through the air. She felt like her astral body glowed, showing the fear streaked across her expression. She could never hide how she felt. She glanced at his shadowy form, she could see him and he could see her. He said nothing as he floated towards the Village of the Shee.
Stop! she said, putting as much strength behind the thought as she was able. She fell on her knees and brought her hands to her heart. Hot pain curled around her as the energy of the enemy pressed against her, crushing her.
Her eyes snapped open and she found herself kneeling on the beach at the glade. She glanced at the bushes; the Kiirar Shee stood there, a worried expression on her face. Kaliel realized she had screamed “Stop!” into the night air. Shivers ran through her as she looked into the small woman’s silver eyes.
“He’s almost here,” Kaliel said.
The Kiirar nodded, understanding. She ducked into the brush and moved deep into the rainforest. Kaliel waited, her body slumped forward as the spasms of pain shot through her. The agony was getting worse as Crestaos neared her. She didn’t know how long she could take the feeling of knives stabbing her insides. She coughed involuntarily and tasted blood in her mouth. She spat it on the white sand and winced.
The Kiirar emerged from the brush carrying a dagger half the size of her body. She flew towards the girl and laid it beside her. “The pure one must shed their blood and tears for the mountain to have mercy.”
Kaliel didn’t think she could feel worse. Yet the quiet chimes of the Kiirar made her scream as the pain lashed at her heart. This pain wasn’t caused by the enemy on his way, or because Krishani would die, thi
s pain was caused by the parable she could never escape. Bloom the weed of temptation and expire the great garden of life. Liquid caught in her throat and she choked on it.
“I’m the weed,” she whispered in disbelief. She pressed her hands into the sand and poured her energy into it. Whispers of the Shee flooded the village as she forced out more energy. Her lungs burst in exasperation, stitches of pain lacing themselves through her. She opened her eyes in frustration and cried at the sight before her. The lagoon was covered in a thick bed of weeds, hundreds of them littering the surface of the water. She growled like a feral animal and pulled her hands out of the sand. She ran her fingers through her hair and clamped around clumps of it as she fought against the madness that threatened to consume her. There was nothing she could do but wait for Crestaos to find her. Nothing she could do to stop them from killing Krishani. Everyone would die, and she would be the Valtanyana’s pawn. She fell to the sand and her aura faded.
• • •
Numbness washed over Kaliel as she waited. The jolts of pain had become a comforting feeling like the waves of the lake as they lapped against the shore. Sleep was inevitable. Between the onslaughts of pain she felt false comfort. Bitter self-hatred filled her with hopelessness and regret. It was as though Crestaos had already won.
The trees rustled loudly and her eyes shot open. She pushed herself to her knees and gawked at the shivering bushes. It wasn’t the enemy. There was a whimper from beyond the trees. She crawled across the beach to investigate the sound. Her hands pushed through the brush and found the ball of fur huddled in the bushes shaking uncontrollably.
“Pux!” she gasped. She tried to stifle the pain and reached for him, pulling him towards her. He was hurt; she smelled blood covering him. She found his hand and yanked him through the brush. He tumbled onto the sand, shaking his head back and forth and swiping at the air. He opened his eyes when he realized he wasn’t on the battlefield. He looked relieved.
“Kaliel.” His eyes were full of tears. “I—” He grabbed his stomach, covering up the wound that stained the sand a deep crimson. Falling on his knees he looked like he was going to pitch forward. “There were so many of them! I didn’t know what to do. I thought of you. I wanted to see you.” He was plainly delirious, shocked.
Kaliel gulped, another shock of pain rippling through her as Crestaos drew nearer to them. She couldn’t let Pux face him.
“Your side.” She knelt over him, running her hands just above his body, unsure where she should touch him. But this wound … it was so deep he wouldn’t survive. Finally, she pushed her hands into the blood, feeling flesh and liquid between her fingers. She hoped she could stop the bleeding.
Pux cried out. Then, barely managing the words, “You were the only one I wanted to see before I died.”
Tears stung her eyes as she looked at him. “Me too. It’s been so long since I saw you.” She pressed her hands harder into the wound as his eyes rolled into the back of his head. Heart pounding, bile licked at her throat as she resisted the urge to vomit. She thought back to the flower, the one she had ran her hands under, and covered in the light of the Flame. It had bounced back to life at her touch. She needed Pux to live. He was never meant to face any of this and yet he was being so strong. She desperately focused within, begging the Flame to erupt. She squeezed her eyes shut and it consumed her.
When she opened her eyes, violet-colored light flowed around her hands, healing the wound on his side. She smiled briefly to herself. “You won’t die.” She focused harder and the energy intensified, pulling skin together, searing the wound shut. The blood on her hands dried, remaining crusted against her palms. She carefully looked at Pux. He was the same, only with shadows dancing across his face.
“Why are your eyes that color?” he asked when he came to his senses.
Kaliel frowned, she knew what he meant. They must have turned amethyst during the healing. “I’m the Amethyst Flame.” She bowed her head and looked away from him, unsure of his reaction.
“They came because of you.”
Kaliel moved towards the dagger lying in the sand. She wanted to plunge it into herself to stop the pain. The way he said it made her heart crushed in a way worse than heartache.
She pushed herself onto her knees. “I know.”
Pux rubbed his shoulders. “Krishani …”
She gritted her teeth. Why would he want to berate her about her relationship now? She narrowed her eyes. “Is he safe?”
Pux nodded. “He was fighting when I disappeared from battle. He hasn’t got a scratch on him.”
She breathed a sigh of relief, but the thought of a sword in his chest still made her shake. She wondered how much time he had left. Hugging her knees to her chest and closing her eyes she remembered when she caught Krishani’s attention behind the waterfall, when he saved her from falling in the pond. Every memory stung her heart.
This is what I want, this and nothing else, ever. Krishani’s voice soothed her senses. She closed her eyes as a fresh wave of tears streamed down her face. She needed Pux to leave before Crestaos found her, before he got what he wanted.
“You love him more than anything, don’t you?” Pux asked.
She nodded. “I do.”
Pux had grown; he seemed much wiser than the boy she once knew. “He loves you more than you know.”
“I can’t help him.”
She heard him draw closer.
“I think I understand it, Kaliel. I would do anything to know you were safe and happy. Even if I wasn’t sure it would help, I would still do it. Is that what love is?”
Kaliel nodded, ever since she had seen him at Samhain a year ago she thought he would never accept her feelings for Krishani … but he did. She wiped away the tears and glanced at the dagger on the sand. Pux picked it up and folded it into her hand. He pulled her to her feet and wrapped his arms around her.
“I know he’s almost here,” he whispered. His looks and mannerisms betrayed, he was much smarter than she gave him credit for. She trembled as she tried to find the words to tell him what was coming for her. No words would explain it. She simply tightened her arms around him. “Run. Hide. He will take your soul,” Pux whispered.
The same words the Quartz Flame spoke.
Her mouth fell open. She let her arms fall to her sides as he pulled away.
“I have to go.” She glanced behind her at the forest, a thin path wound through the trees, leading to the mountain.
Pux stepped backwards towards the brush. “I’ll make sure it’s me and not him.” He disappeared into thin air.
Without a second thought, she gripped the dagger and fled towards Avred. She hoped it wasn’t too late.
• • •
Krishani was lost in the rhythmic dance of the battle, his sword twisting through armor and flesh, bodies dropping. More creatures poured from the northeast, and as the night drew on, it seemed like the battle would never end. Half of the kinfolk were dead, only four of the cavalry remained. Istar and the elders fought with a magnitude that paled in comparison to the vengeful nature of the cloaked beings.
One thing pricked at the corner of his mind, something he hadn’t seen yet—where was the foe that was coming for Kaliel?
Krishani spun and kicked one of the creatures in the chest. The force caused him to fall back into a pile of bodies, and as his head collided with hard armor, truth hitting him.
She couldn’t hide from Crestaos.
He scrambled to his feet and scanned the battlefield. Mallorn fought atop Umber, the horse dodging blows and loudly neighing over the screams.
Krishani broke into a sprint and leapt into the air, knocking Mallorn clear off Umber’s back. He wrestled to his feet as Mallorn shot him a bewildered look.
“You’re mad!” Mallorn shouted.
Krishani had no time to respond. He grabbed the reins of the flailing horse and swung onto its back, racing towards the Village of the Shee.
The battle was nothing but a distraction.
Crestaos knew where she was.
* * *
33-Awakening
Branches whipped Kaliel’s face as she ran, her lungs aching for air. Her throat felt as though it was on fire as she fought through the forest. Her foot snagged on a root and she hit the ground hard, a prickly bush cutting into her skin as the dirt seeped between her fingers.
Kaliel winced, but overall she felt better the farther she went. She had no idea how long it would take to reach the mouth of the volcano. With the foe on her heels she wasn’t sure of time in general. She paused, her hands and knees still pressed into the soil, the dagger firmly pressed against the inside of her right palm.
She took a shaky breath and found her feet. She stood, vertigo sweeping into her as she clawed her way through the vines. The path was overgrown; nobody had used it in thousands of years. Kaliel slowed as she pushed vines and bushes out of her way, trying to reach the volcano and escape Crestaos. She shut her eyes to avoid being whipped in the face by branches and continued darting through the trees. The battle flashed before her, images of her kinfolk, her elders and Krishani caught in the fray. She gritted her teeth as she spotted Pux. He darted out of the way and injured more than executed the enemies. Her gaze snapped to Krishani. He kicked one of the creatures in the chest. She shuddered and opened her eyes, breathing heavily.
Please live, she thought.
The mountain wasn’t as steep as she thought it would be. She quickened her pace, pulling herself through the brush that covered most of the mountain in foliage. A new wave of fear and uncertainty surged into her. Crestaos was near; there was no way to avoid him. Her only hope was to awaken Avred and that idea brought scarier thoughts to her mind. What if she was unable to do it? She was the weed. A wave of sickness washed over her as the stabbing pain in her gut resumed. She slowed down, climbing. The trees were a thick mess of moist forest as she trudged on. The path twisted and curved, the mouth of the volcano evading her. Time dragged on as the air thinned.
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