Chapter Thirty-Six （Sacrifice）

CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX (SACRIFICE)

HAZEL

We ran towards the forgotten hall. I could sense where Zero was and followed the sensation. I was really hoping the barrier was made of something other than copper. God, I didn't want to give that up. Especially now.

"Well?" Baz asked.

"What?"

"Did she tell you how to break the spell?" He asked. I looked at him.

"Yeah."

"It's bad isn't it?"

"A bit," I huffed. I looked at his friends beside us. He found himself people, despite all the odds being against him. An untouchable basilisk locked in an asylum. Yet he had three people who would burn the world for him.

"Let me guess, cat sacrifice?" He asked. I rolled my eyes. It was hard to believe we'd come this far. I couldn't remember a time before he took up space in my mind. Whether that had been loving him or hating him—wanting to save him or end him. My life up to this point was shaped purely by him. And for the longest time, even when I was lying to myself, what I thought I wanted most in the world was this. To be real siblings.

We turned the corner and saw Gonzo standing outside the office room that had all the file cabinets. He stared at the flame in my lighter. In the hall near his feet were several cans of gasoline. He looked locked in place, watching the fire dance. What was he doing? He dragged his teeth over his bottom lip, looking on the verge of doing something stupid.

"Gonzo!" I called out. He jerked in shock and then dropped the lighter. It fell to the ground, lighting a puddle of gasoline leaking from a can.

"Well, that's not good," he said. He ran to me, grabbed my hand, and pulled me even faster down the hall in the direction of Zero. We all sprinted past the cans and kept going. I looked behind us and saw the flames slowly crawl to the cans.

The explosion was small but fierce. The heat was oppressive on my back. I winced, turning away as the brightness stung my eyes. The others slowed down but Gonzo kept going.

"We have about fifteen minutes before that fire reaches the rest of the gas," he said.

"What were you doing in the hall with the lighter?"

"Thinking of you," he said, planting a quick peck on my cheek. He turned to look behind us. His eyes grew big and excited as he saw the flames crawling up the walls.

"You're beautiful," he said in awe. He twisted to look at me and wink.

High-pitched screams stopped us in our tracks. I swallowed and turned into the room in front of us. Zero had the woman clutched in his hands. His mouth tentacles slid into her throat, choking her. Other tentacles slid into her nose and ears.

Zero looked at me as I watched him shred her brain, pulling out chunks he swallowed down. Finally, he pulled his tentacles back and dropped the woman to the ground, dead.

"So that just happened," Baz said right before he gagged. I went to Zero quickly, trying not to think about what Coral had told me. I didn't want him to know and was hoping it wouldn't come to that anyway.

"Do you know how to get out?" I asked. He stared into my mismatched eyes.

"You really don't mind what you saw?"

"Zero, I was only afraid before because I wasn't sure you were still you."

"You also thought I wanted to eat your brain." He twisted a piece of my hair in his fingers before tucking it behind my ear.

"That too. But please," I scoffed, "I've done worse than this." I waved at the woman. Gonzo stepped beside us.

"This bonding moment is heartwarming. But we need to go."

"You made a fire," Zero said, giving him an unimpressed look.

"Accidentally. I promise I was a very good team player, just like you asked." Gonzo flashed him a charming smile. Zero rolled his eyes.

"I know how to get out," Zero said. "There's a tunnel in this hall. This way." We followed Zero at a fast pace, running deeper into the depths of the forgotten halls. Suddenly, a creature burst through the burning walls. Something large and long.

"Stein!" It roared.

"Is that a fucking dragon?" I yelled.

"Sea snake," Baz and Gonzo said at the same time.

"Through here," Zero said. We ducked into an old brick tunnel. The water went up to our ankles and appeared black without much light.

"God, is this sewage?" Orson asked, covering his nose.

"Yes," Zero answered. "Up ahead, there's a brick wall. Someone needs to break through it. Normally, it would be impossible, but… we have a couple people with us who are abnormally strong." When we got to it, Nemo ran right at it and then fell over. He practically had birds circling his head. The wall cracked but held. Gonzo bent over, laughing with tears in his eyes.

"I'd like to see you try," Nemo growled. Gonzo ran off, and then a large ball of light surrounded him. So he didn't have to shift like a nightmare like before? Guess that was just him being dramatic.

A moment later, a massive tawny fox ran past us and barrelled through the wall. On the other side of the broken wall, we saw human Gonzo brushing dust and rubble from his hair.

"I cracked it for you," Nemo grumbled, stepping through.

"Sure thing," Gonzo said, winking at me. We all walked through. Well, almost everyone. Zero was still standing on the other side of the wall. The sound of people grew louder behind him.

"I led the inmates here," he tapped the side of his head. "They might as well be free too." His eyes dipped to the floor under where the wall used to be. There was a track of copper metal built into the brick. Copper… fuck. My eyes burned.

"I'm afraid this is where I'll be staying," he pointed down. Gonzo's eyes flashed to me in a panic.

"Did you find the witch?"

"I did."

"Do you know how to break the spell?"

"I do," I said. A tear trailed down my cheeks. I quickly wiped them up. Zero looked at me in confusion, reading my mind.

"You'd give that up for me?" He asked. I stepped back over the copper line and grabbed his face, kissing him.

"Yes," I said with a shaky voice.

"Wait—" Gonzo said, eyes flashing wide. "What do you need to do?" I pulled the blade from under my skirt and pressed it to my hand. I slashed it. Zero grabbed my wrist pulling it away from the track before my blood fell on it.

"Don't."

"Of course, I will," I told him. I looked over at Baz. God this fucking hurt. It felt like my heart was breaking apart. I pushed my fingers in my jacket pockets and pulled out a letter. I handed it to Zero. My brother's name was on it.

"Hazel…"

"It'll only hurt for another second, right?" I asked, grimacing. More tears fell from my eyes. I swung my gaze back at Baz then I dropped to my knees and pressed my fiery palm to the track.

The copper began to heat and glow. I could feel it pulling wispy memories from my brain. The core of who I was, that's what I had to sacrifice. So the magic took him entirely, took them all. My mom and dad, my uncle, and my brother. My whole family, it pulled each memory from me, draining me until it was gone completely.

Right before I passed out I saw Zero step over the copper line.

"Thank you, Hazel," he whispered softly in my ear. His fingers brushed my head delicately. Then it was darkness.

I woke up in a hellscape. Everyone was screaming at one another. We were outside the asylum, standing at the entrance to the tunnel.

"Baz!" Bree cried.

"I didn't realize he'd just stop walking and stayed in the flaming tunnel," Nemo growled. "I shouldn't have let go of him." Everyone stared at the tunnel of flames, watching inmates start barreling out, fleeing with their clothes and hair on fire. They would be fine because most of them could heal.

God, we were really out. I looked over at Zero and sagged in relief when I saw him staring at me.

Nemo tried to fight against the inmates to get back inside, but it was useless.

A man in a mask came sauntering out with his hands in his pockets as if he didn't have a care in the world.

" Fine , I'm out of Verfallen. Happy?" The flames around him bent away from his body as if afraid to touch him.

"What?" Bree asked.

"Hmm? Oh, I'm immune to fire. It's a basilisk thing," he waved his hand in dismissal and walked up to me. He stared down at me in his mask. I looked back at him in confusion. Did he know me?

"Yeah?" I asked.

"Right," he snapped, then marched off.

"We all need to get out of here," Zero said, pushing on Gonzo and me. Inmates swarmed us suddenly, and a gush of them ran through the exit on fire. Gonzo ran with me in his arms, pushing through the small line of forest between Verfallen and freedom. The inmates were riled up like I'd never seen them and, for some insane reason, seemed determined to kill each other more than ever despite having freedom.

He dropped me to my feet, and we climbed the fence in a rush. When we plopped on the other ground, we turned and saw Zero still standing on the Verfallen side.

"What are you doing?" I asked.

"I need to tell… someone something important."

Other inmates scaled the fence and pushed against Gonzo and me, dragging us further away from the fence. Gonzo grabbed hold of me, lifting me back into his arms.

"We're going to head towards—" Gonzo yelled out but was cut off by Zero.

"I'll always know exactly where you both are," he said, smiling at us. "You let me inside." Gonzo flushed.

"Okay," he rasped.

"Go ahead. I'll be right there," Zero said. Gonzo turned and ran down the hill. We slid into an employee parking lot and he pulled out several sets of keys from his pocket. A few dropped to the ground. He ignored them and began looking for the model of car whose key he had.

"Are you okay?" He asked.

"Of course," I said. "We're free." I could hardly believe it. I looked up at the sky, seeing the stars blinking down at me.

"Oh, Hazel," Gonzo sighed sadly.

"Should I not be alright?" I asked. I touched my eyes, they felt red and puffy. Had I been crying?

"I can't believe you gave him up."

"Who?" I asked. He grabbed the handle of a car and it beeped and unlocked.

"Your brother," he said. I looked at him curiously.

"I don't have a brother. I don't have any family." I rubbed my hand against my chest, trying to relieve the odd weight I felt there.

"Shit," he choked out. "I swear Hazel, you are going to have the best life ever now that you're with me and Zero. I love you so much."

"I love you both too," I said. "I'd give up anything for you both." He nodded.

"I know."