Chapter Twenty Five

Everett

Everett woke up in the same blank room that he’d been in when he lost consciousness. The only difference was that he now felt void of emotion. He remembered every second of the mental simulation that the Neuro had forced into his mind. He’d experienced a similar simulation as a child when his father tried to test his smarts in battle-like experiences. The moment he’d been transported to a room with his father, he knew that it couldn’t have been real. His father had looked at him with sincerity in his eyes, a look that Everett had never expected to see in his father’s features. When Azazel had shown up in the throne room, it had automatically confirmed his suspicions. He had taken the dagger from the man and smiled while he slid it across his father’s throat.

The others around him were still in a peaceful-looking slumber. Aerilyn’s head was hanging, her white hair falling in a curtain around her face. Her breaths were faster than usual, her hands twitching as she fought something in her mind. He could only imagine what horrific thing she was experiencing in the mental simulation.

Everett moved out of the chair, getting closer to Aerilyn. He slid his hands over her face to lift it, examining her features. Tears rolled down her cheeks even while unconscious. He hated the sight. “Aerilyn, fight for me. You’ve got this,” he spoke the words of encouragement even though he knew she couldn’t hear them. He noticed the Neuro sitting on the floor, his eyes closed as he was deep in concentration to keep all of his companions in their simulations. He debated killing the man with his bare hands. The thought seemed pleasing until he considered that the man had a hold on Aerilyn’s mind. If he killed the Neuro, he wasn’t sure what would happen to her.

Suddenly, he heard a scream escape from Brinley. The girl’s eyes flew open, her wide eyes taking in her surroundings. Her hands grasped at her face and hair, panic flashing in her vision. “It’s okay, Brinley. It wasn’t real,” he quickly moved to her, grabbing onto her hands to pull her back to reality. Her eyes finally reached him and she seemed to calm down from the reassuring touch. “I killed them. My family is dead, Everett. I killed them,” she let out a cry, throwing her arms around his neck. His heart ached from the girl before him as he slid his arms around her to grasp the girl in a tight hug. “It wasn’t real. The Neuro made you think it was. Your family is safe back in Orissia, I promise,” he tried to say what he could to reassure her. He knew the exact panic she was feeling at that moment. The only difference was, he didn’t have anyone to comfort him when he’d awoken from the first simulation his father had forced him into.

Brinley finally pulled into full consciousness, realizing where she was. Her features began to calm as she understood the situation that they were stuck in. She pulled away from him before running her hands over her face, letting out a heavy sigh. “Why would they do this to us?” Her voice was too soft for comfort. Everett wasn’t used to seeing the girl be so vulnerable. She was the hard ass that rarely showed emotion. It was obvious that she’d been raised to be a soldier instead of a daughter. “That was the second trial,” he frowned, his mind trying to determine why the king of Korth was doing this.

Everett was about to continue before he heard another piercing scream. Aerilyn’s eyes flew open, her entire body crumbling to the ground in front of her chair. She was curled into a ball, her arms wrapping tightly around herself as sobs left the broken girl. Brinley moved with him, the two dropping down next to Aerilyn as he pulled her close to his chest. “I’m right here, darling. You’re safe. It wasn’t real” he stroked his fingers through her hair soothingly. “It wasn’t real,” Brinley repeated, placing her hand on Aerilyn’s back alongside his own. He was grateful that she was willing to help him comfort Aerilyn.

Aerilyn finally lifted her head, looking between them before her eyes seemed to grow distant. Everett looked over his shoulder to where her gaze had landed and he noticed Azazel pushing himself off the wall. “You piece of shit…” Everett stood, moving towards the king with anger bubbling inside of him. The thoughts of putting a dagger into the man’s throat passed through his mind, his fingers curling into a fist. “Everett,” the woman’s soft voice pulled him back to her, her big blue eyes raising to his. He dropped the negative thoughts and pulled his attention completely to Aerilyn. She wrapped her arms around his neck, her scent filling his senses. The feeling of his warmth was enough to calm him down as he cupped the back of her head.

The fear that was written across her expression was enough to break his heart. He wished he could take the fear away from her. The girl who had snuck into the palace and held a dagger to his throat was only desperate for a meal. The broken look in her eyes reminded him of when he had held her bleeding figure after the hound had attacked her. The way she grasped onto the back of his shirt made him feel a different type of pain.

“I’m here, darling. I’ve got you,” he whispered, pressing his lips against the top of her hair. Azazel’s death glare met Everett’s, his eyes narrowing. The man was responsible for the pain that Aerilyn was feeling and that only pissed him off even more. He pushed aside the feeling of anger to focus on comforting the girl before him. He ran his fingers through her hair, soothingly rocking her. He heard her soft sniffles as she tried to contain her feelings. He gave her a moment to process everything that had happened, glancing towards Blaise and Brinley. The man had awoken in a panic, the girl at his side holding the sides of his face. The only one who was still asleep was Bastian.

“Why is he still unconscious?” Everett questioned, fixing his attention on the silent king. Azazel looked between him and the Healer with no emotion in his eyes. “It seems like he can’t make his decision. He’s too weak to go through with it,” Azazel shrugged like it was a casual day for him. His hatred towards the king of Korth only seemed to grow with each encounter. Everett had experienced the wrath of his father his entire life, but the hardened edges of Azazel made him more of a monster than his father. Azazel seemed like he was much more capable of taking lives without remorse.

“Then wake him up!” This time it was Aerilyn’s voice that cut through the air like daggers. Azazel’s lips parted as if he were about to say something before he exchanged a look with her and simply shook his head. “I can’t do that. If he can’t make his choice, he gives up his life,” the king moved his attention to his hand, examining his perfectly manicured nails. Anger bubbled inside of Everett as he tried to find a solution to the situation. He’d never been put into a simulation that he couldn’t escape without death. The idea of it seemed cruel which is exactly what Azazel was. He was the definition of evil. “You piece of shit!” Aerilyn screamed, pushing to her feet as she approached the man with fire in her eyes. Everett knew she had a rage in her and he almost smiled at the woman’s bravery. She threw her hands into Azazel’s chest, but he barely budged.

“I suggest you step away before I have to end you, doll,” he gave her a crooked smile. The nickname he’d given Aerilyn only further infuriated Everett. He hated that the man had given her a nickname that felt too intimate for his liking. Aerilyn didn’t move, throwing her fists into the king’s chest. Everett quickly approached her, wrapping his arms around her from behind. “Aeri, it’s no use. He has the power to save Bastian. We can’t piss him off even more,” he whispered against the shell of her ear. He could feel her body melt into his, her head slowly bobbing in a nod.

“Listen to your little prince, I’m sure he knows what’s best for you.”

That singular statement was enough to light a fire in Aerilyn. She swung at the king once more, breaking from Everett’s hold. The king grabbed her wrist, twisting it behind her back. “Get your fucking hands off of her,” Everett threw a punch, landing the blow to the king’s jaw. Azazel dropped Aerilyn to the floor, rubbing his hand over his jaw. The expression on his face darkened in a way that he hadn’t seen before. Everett prepared to get into a brawl with the king when a piercing scream erupted through the room. All of their attention turned to where the sound had come from, seeing Bastian’s body now lying on the stone floor. His body was shaking as blood oozed from his nose and ears, soaking him in dark red.

Aerilyn ran to the man and Everett followed behind her, attempting to find out what was happening to their companion. Blaise’s eyes were wide as he stood back, watching everything unfold. They all circled their friend, trying to bring him back to consciousness. “Bastian!” Everett shouted, grasping onto the man’s shoulders in an attempt to stop his violent thrashing. Another deep scream came from the man as blood began to bubble in his mouth. The liquid was coming from various places and it was hard to determine the source of it all.

“They melted his brain,” Blaise’s voice cut through the chaos, his face going pale. They all stopped, beginning to understand what was unfolding before them. “Make it stop. Fix him!” Aerilyn yelled at Azazel who only shrugged with a smirk plastered on his face. “He’s already dead,” the Neuro spoke up, hovering behind them with a small sigh. “He was unable to choose loyalty to this kingdom, therefore he failed the second test. His life had to be forfeited. The brain cannot be healed, what’s done is irreversible,” he spoke calmly, his voice holding no regret over what he had done.

Bastian stopped shaking before them, his body going completely still. He was dead. One of them hadn’t survived the second trial. Everett felt sick as the reality of the situation hit him harder than he’d like to admit. Their lives were truly at risk. They weren’t all making it out of here alive. He slid his arms around Aerilyn, pulling her tight into his chest as he rocked her shaking frame. She tucked her face into his shoulder and let out soft cries. Even if they’d all known each other for such a short period, they’d learned to enjoy each other’s company. Bastian had saved Aerilyn’s life. Everett was fully in debt to the man for saving the one thing he cared about.

The group stayed huddled around their dead friend, trying to comfort each other as they realized what had just happened. Everett could hardly process it all. He decided at that moment to make any attempts to get Aerilyn out of that kingdom before the next trial. He refused to let her die, even if it meant risking his own life to protect her.