35. Chapter 34

Chapter 34

A ya knew something was wrong.

In the corner of her eye, Elaine stared distractedly into the crowd. A look Aya was beginning to recognize. Aurora was speaking to her and whatever it was, it wasn't good. Tendrils of unease wormed through her belly and up her throat.

It was a battle to force even breaths over her lips as the syrens moved toward her. Loraina was at the head of them, with each one carrying their own lanterns, fashioned out of a creamy white paper and etched in symbols she didn't understand. Each one was designed a little differently with swirls that felt personal, as if in honor of a specific syren lost to them.

Aya opened her mind and magic, stretching out across the crowd. If anyone felt the whisper of her magic rippling outward, no one showed any sign. Nor did anyone seem to notice the way the clearing darkened a fraction or the way the shadows stretched a fraction out from the woods toward her. She focused her mind on the feeling she'd detected at the temple ruins, the way it had brushed against her mind. A kind of wrongness she now hunted for, letting her mind drift out, floating among those gathered.

None of the syrens paid her any mind as they lit their lanterns at the water's edge and whispered their own prayers into the cold night. Their eyes shimmered with unshed tears. Even Loraina—usually so composed and even, seemed to let her mask down. Her lower lip wobbled as her own lantern rose into the sky, following the trail of others winding toward the stars. Aya wondered who she lost, but knew it was not her place to ask—certainly not now, and likely not later either.

The banshees followed next with their warbling cries, followed by a single unified scream that split the night. Aya winced.

Despite their magic feeling so similar to her own, none were resurrected. They were just broken, grieving souls, and their sobs sliced Aya's heart to ribbons. She acted as though loss didn't affect her, that it slid off her skin like water, but nights like this reminded her of all she'd lost, and the mother that barely tolerated her existence. All for the crime of loving a witch.

Ingrid led her women away with steady steps, her lips a thin, firm line. The stony air cracked for a second when one of the banshees stumbled in a sob. Ingrid's hands shot out, taking hold to steady her. She whispered something into the young woman's ear, then led her away, holding her as Aya imagined a mother might. The prickle of jealousy brushed against the nape of her neck. She quickly tamped it down and set to work.

The vampires followed next, then the werewolves, each seeming to act as tough as the last. A competition of hardened resolve. None of them sparked her interest either. Nora slipped in next, accompanied by her rag-tag company, and to no surprise, none of them sparked her interest.

The humans were the last to pay their respects. One by one they shuffled past, sniffling and red-eyed. Aya's hope of finding the person was beginning to fade. Had she been a fool, desperate to think this was going to be her chance? That the resurrected soul would be so foolish to court so close to a necromancer?

Her jaw clenched and her gaze started to lift beyond the humans when it snagged.

That cold feeling tugged hard at her chest. Aya's gaze snapped down to the source.

Orion.

The man knelt at the water's edge, leaning forward to place a small paper boat on the water. A chill stole through her chest. By instinct, she started to move when a pendant swung loose from his shirt. The face caught in the moonlight.

Aya froze.

Time stopped.

The pendant's sigil glared at her, a mocking reminder. One she would never forget. Not until her dying days.

Aya? A worried voice brushed her mind.

Tobias.

She jerked back, splashing noisily. Orion's head lifted, their eyes met. His brow dropped, then his gaze dipped, following her own, still locked on the pendant. Shock flashed, quick as lightning, across his face—so fast she nearly missed it, could've lost it among the roar of thoughts and memories and screams of her people crashing through her.

The sigil of Vesmir. The very family responsible for the genocide of her people.

And the shock on his face, the way his gaze flicked to hers for a split second before returning to the water, that calm mask sliding into place, told her everything. Rage, molten and thick, bubbled up in her chest. Its heat rippled outward, consuming her limbs.

This man was resurrected.

But that look and that fucking pendant sent her into a rage.

All the questions surged through, burning her throat with a demand. The crowd and setting be damned. Her fingers itched to yank him from the water and into the sky, to haul him into the clouds. There she imagined snarling at him, demanding answers, all whilst she threatened to drop him and, in her mind, she imagined doing it anyway. Watching his head smash against the shore, brains spilling out with blood. There would be screams and horror. She wouldn't care, couldn't muster the humanity.

Aya! Tobias's voice thundered.

She jerked her head toward him, eyes narrowed. Yes?

That him?

She couldn't even muster a reply as she watched with barely contained rage as he walked away. Why had he worn that damn pendant, something so damning?

Why? She wanted to pin him down and scream the question. WHY?

She raked in a deep breath and forced herself to walk back, each step a battle against the rage pushing her in the other direction. Toward him. To rip the pendant from his neck and throw it into the lake.

Her breaths were shaky as she stumbled back to the others. Elaine tried talking to her, but Aya couldn't pull her gaze from Orion. The man paid her no attention as he tended to his people, acting like the perfectly caring leader. Just as Marisol had.

The ceremony transitioned into a song by the syrens, their voices lifting over the muffled sobs. Aya tried to focus on it, to allow it to soothe the raging inferno roaring through her soul. The sigil blazed bright in her mind, the taunting voices of the soldiers echoing with their laughter. A god damn sound she couldn't escape as she hid beneath the floor, watching her mother's blood drip through the cracks.

Aya, it's—

BOOM!

The ground shuddered. Aya stumbled forward, blinking rapidly, as screams erupted into existence. She scrambled upright as light speared from above, slamming into the ground. The shockwave slammed into Aya, sending her flying. She hit the ground, hard. Stars flashed over her vision, pain blooming across her back and wings. Cursing viciously, she clambered up as another blast roared through the sky.

Aya dove out of the way as the bolt struck the ground.

Inches from where she stood.

She struggled to her feet and threw out her palms. A shield of darkness burst around her as another blast struck, this one slamming right into her. The blow sent her sliding back along the ground. She dropped the shield, looking for the others.

The crowds were scattering, the chaos raging around her. Red hair flashed through the mob as more blasts collided into the crowd. Someone screamed, the sound choked off. Another bolt struck.

Aya sprinted toward the fray. "Elaine!"

Blood thundered in her ears as she darted among the chaos. She tugged on her bond with Sabra, following the pull to the trees. A tug answered, and there was Sabra, looking frantically for her.

"Aya!" she screamed.

Tobias was close at hand, but Alexios was nowhere in sight.

Neither was Elaine.

She flung herself into the woods and turned around sharply as a bolt of energy roared toward her. It was too late, she—

The blast never hit her.

It crashed suddenly into an invisible shield, arcing outward.

In the corner of her vision, the syrens stood as one, their hands lifted toward the trees. Their lips moved as one, a single song rising among the screams and cries and panicked pleas. More blasts struck the shield but the syrens never faltered, holding their ground as their sound only grew louder and clearer. Then only the song remained.

Aya stumbled forward, looking for Elaine.

"Elaine? Elaine! ELAINE!"

Dozens of injured huddled together, their muffled sobs choked in embraces. Aya's gaze flew desperately over the crowds scattered among the trees. Where was she? Why wasn't she calling back? A quick glance back over the shoreline showed a scattering of bodies and mutilated limbs.

Aya pulled her gaze away, hunting for her witch. She had to be close. Perhaps she was just knocked out. Yes, that had to be it.

Haggard breaths shook her as she frantically looked for Elaine, inspecting every face that lifted toward her. They shrank away, looking away, and she realized the shadows her drawn in around her, that her eyes must've been completely black. She was death walking, and they were afraid she was going to kill them.

And then she saw him.

Orion.

Huddled among his people.

She stalked toward him, wreathed in shadows and rage, and as her darkness fell over him, his eyes widened. He tried to stand, to flee her. Her hand shot out, clamping hard on his shoulder. Bone shattered with a sickening crunch, flesh twisting, yielding beneath her iron grip. A sound like a wounded animal broke from him as she jerked him upwards, drawing him close to her face. Ensuring there was no mistake in her words, in the very promises her eyes warned of.

"You and I are going to talk."

No one said a word, nor moved to stop her. Eyes wide, like frightened deer staring down a predator, tracked them both as she dragged Orion away. His whimpers slid off her skin like water, abandoned the blood-soaked grass and muddied leaf litter. Someone shouted her name, but she kept going, hauling him away from the wolves and vampires, beyond Sabra and Tobias. She ignored their stares, eyes pleading with her to stop.

Once they were clear, she threw him into the ground. Hard enough his head smacked the ground and a broken whimper loosed from his lips. She glowered in barely contained anger as he struggled to his knees.

"Aya!" Sabra's voice neared closer.

She stepped toward Orion.

"Aya—" Sabra cut off as she stopped beside Aya, reaching for her arm.

She didn't feel the touch of her friend but heard the words, felt each one like an icy dagger to her heart. Each blow fueling the unbridled storm lashing at her walls, roaring for vengeance and blood.

"Elaine is gone."

Aya loomed over Orion, stretching out her wings so they encircled him, and it was just the two of them. One, a mortal who defied the laws of death, and a creature who was forged of the very energy he insulted.

"Where is she?"

Orion paled. "I don't know!"

The question came again, a crash of thunder rattling the very trees around them. Birds scattered to the sky, shrieking out their fear. Leaves tumbled down, falling like mottled snow. Aya leaned in, barely holding back the urge to peel the flesh from his bones and make him scream.

"I will not ask again." Aya grabbed his chin, yanking him up, their faces a hair's breadth apart. "Where is she?"

"I don't—" he cut himself off, silent for a moment, seeming to carefully choose how he answered next. "I don't know Aurora's location, but I know that is where they would have taken her. Once they realized that Aurora was communicating with Elaine, they knew that she was their way to find her."

"Who?"

Aya's voice sounded less human with every second, as though a thousand voices roared through her own. She felt herself slipping, becoming something else, something truly frightening and inhuman.

Orion tried to speak, his mouth opening and closing like a fish. Every time he seemed to find the words, his face twisted in pain. His eyes scrunched shut, as though he were fighting to force the answer out. Aya released him with a snarl and turned to Sabra.

"Is Nora close?"

Sabra nodded.

"Find her."

She didn't wait for Sabra to move before she knelt before Orion, not reaching for him but close enough to show that if he tried, if he put one foot wrong, she was close enough to kill him. He stilled, regarding her with a pale, frightened air. A damp patch welled along his pants, the fetid stench of piss stinging her nose. She made no move, no sound, until the sound of footfalls approached.

Nora appeared over her shoulder.

"He's spelled—break it."

"I might not be able to."

"Then break his fucking mind and I will rip the pieces from his corpse."

Nora knelt. Panic flared across Orion's eyes. He tried desperately to tear free, but it was no use. Nora's hand shot out like a snake, latching onto his wrist. His head snapped back with a scream, the sound choking off suddenly as his eyes turned white.

Nora was in.

He moaned in agony, wordless pleas spilling from his lips for what felt like an eternity. Aya felt nothing but rage, a bloodlust that turned the world red. Every fiber of her being screamed with wrath, that she would burn the world until she found Elaine.

Nora ripped her hand free and stood with a twist of disgust on her lips. Aya wasted no time and asked her question.

"Who awakened you?"

"Councilor Ingrid."

"Does she have Elaine?"

Orion's head dropped with a whimper. "Yes."

"Where is she?"

A pause.

"I don't know."

Aya jumped to her feet, a string of curses spilling free. She hated the truth ringing from his lips, the way the fear soaked every word. But she had a name. Ingrid. She was sure it was Loraina, but she barely considered the quiet syren. Never thought she had the ambition and was in league with Honoria.

She was going to rip the woman's fucking throat out.

Closing her eyes, she stretched out her mind, hunting for the souls no doubt drawn to the ceremony. They hissed away from her fear, recoiling at the darkness rolling off her. Hundreds of them, the dead gathered from far and wide. Souls from all walks of life. She drew in a deep breath, forcing her anger down. If she was going to ask for their help, then she knew she had to cool it. Take the right steps.

Elaine's life depended on it and for that, she would not—could not—fail.

She brushed her mind over the dead, gentle and entreating, her pain and grief raw in the words flowing from her.

My love has been taken and the ones who have taken her are going to destroy our home. All those that you still love and are living will die if you don't help me find them.

There was a pause, the silence of the forest deafening. No wind stirred through the trees, nor bird moving among the branches. Even the distant crowd seemed eerily quiet, and she realized that perhaps she had dragged Orion further than she'd intended. Her heart was a fistful of thunder against her ribs, near bone shattering with every thump. She scarcely dared to breathe, waiting restlessly, the darkness drawn in close around her. A protective shield, both against the world she was tempted to burn, and to those who might see her breaking apart. Piece by piece, nearly shattered, and she knew that if anything happened to Elaine, she would be ruined. Burned to ash and that not even death would offer any respite, for her own kind despised her for who she chose to love.

The answer came, three hundred voices answering together in a promise, not just to her but to Purgatory. A vow in defiance of the threat facing them all.

We will help.