45. Chapter 45

Chapter 45

T he centipede creatures take off full speed towards the rock, laying at my feet. I turn and run deeper into the cemetery, twisting and turning as fast as I can. The chittering of the creatures grows louder as they gain on me. A couple thud into tombstones as I round a tight corner.

A rat scurries past me, and I look over my shoulder. Several of the centipedes pounce on it, ripping it limb from limb. They form a tumbling ball as they all fight for a piece.

Cirrus swoops above, and I follow him. Around the corner, Razenna uses her whip to yank a tombstone down on some of my pursuing attackers.

She pulls her sword and slashes at the creatures. "Follow Cirrus."

I turn at another intersection and nearly slam into August. He turns his body, allowing me to pass, and unsheathes his sword.

It takes almost no time at all for August to slay the handful of centipedes that trail me. He looks at his sword, and the corners of his mouth pull down in disgust. He wipes the green-tinged blood on his pant leg before sheathing his sword.

I rush into his arms. He's here. He holds me tight, and I squeeze my eyes shut. He's warm and safe, and he's here. He came for me.

"Where's Luc?" August is short and direct.

I point.

"Stay here and don't move. I've dealt with these things before. They're blind and detect movement through the ground." He looks up over my shoulder. "Actually. . ."

He returns to me, close enough I can smell the leather of his fighting gear. Without warning, he lifts me up, and I let out a little squeak. I wrap my legs around him and cling to his shoulders as he approaches a mausoleum.

Our eyes lock. "I'm going to hoist you up where you'll be safe."

I sense movement out of the corner of my eye.

"August!" I whisper urgently and nod toward the line of centipede creatures heading our direction, antennae waving in all directions. They're walking slowly, so I don't think they've heard us. Quite a few more come into view following the hoard. There must be hundreds.

"Don't move a muscle." His words are barely audible. The first centipede meanders past us, dragging its long antenna behind it. One of the antennae slides across the backside of August's boot, and he holds his breath.

It keeps moving and is followed closely by several others. The line of them gets thicker and thicker until there is a river of them passing by. It becomes more and more obvious that they can't see or hear us, but talking loudly still feels dangerous.

My eyes widen, staring at the endless river of disgusting creatures that have trapped us here. My hands start to tremble, and my chest feels tight. We're trapped.

"Look at me," August whispers.

I tear my eyes from the moving blob, so thick the bodies are indistinguishable.

"Just look at me." He's calm and speaks slowly, eyes locked on mine. His thumb gently rubs my thigh.

"August." I stare into his eyes for several moments as we wait.

His eyes dip to my lips, and somehow, the gap between us feels even smaller. I feel the heat of his breath on my face.

"I miss you." The words leave my lips without thought.

The corner of his mouth ticks up. "Come back with me."

"I can't. I'm bound to him. He's made sure everyone knows about that and our deal."

"Fuck the deal." The tip of his nose touches mine, and he lets out a low growl.

"I want to, but I still have freedom of movement in Helios. I think I know where the crown relic is. I'm trying to figure out how to sneak it out. There are tunnels under the castle. I found it down there, unguarded and not even locked up. It seems sort of careless but effective as I still haven't managed to sneak it away."

"I know the tunnels you're speaking of. He slipped away in one that day you found me in the woods. I'll send my men in."

"And risk starting a war?"

The last of the centipedes trail into nearby shadows, following their companions blindly. His eyes darken."You make me want to risk it all sometimes."

His words send a wave of desire through me, and he smiles as the muscles in my legs involuntarily clench around him.

He leans in, pressing his warm lips to mine, and I wish we were somewhere else. I want him to take me now. I shift in his grip, and his boot slides.

A loud scuffle to the east brings us back to reality as the swarm of centipedes turns back and scurries towards us.

"Shit," August says, moving us back from the wall. He hoists me up quickly, practically tossing me onto the mausoleum roof. His yell startles me as one of them bites at his ankle. He promptly releases a torrent of fire at them. Some screech and writhe in the flames, but others scurry around the fire and continue in their pursuit of August.

A loud and booming roar sounds from across the cemetery, followed by two more.

"The second gate!" My heart pounds furiously.

August blasts fire at the centipedes. "Stay here. Stay hidden. I need to get to that relic before Luc does."

He takes off, running towards the sound of the roars, and I lie flat on my belly on the rooftop. From this vantage point, I can see quite a bit more of the cemetery. Several of the centipedes follow August, but most lose interest and begin their slow meander through the paths between tombs.

The clouds once again move across the moon, leaving me in the pitch black of night. I can faintly make out the details of the tombs around me.

The silence I'm left in becomes an entity of its own as I wait for whatever beast or creature has emerged. I search for any sign of Razenna or Cirrus. I hope she's okay.

I curl my fingers over the edge of the roof as I peer around. The chill of the stone seeps through my clothes and into my bones. It makes me miss the warmth of August's embrace even more.

The sudden huff of a bull snorting in agitation makes the hair of my arms stand on end. My mouth goes dry, and I press myself into the roof, trying to make myself small.

I lock my eyes on the mausoleum two rows away where the huff seems to have emanated from. It's so dark still, I can hardly see it. Movement catches my eye as two large horns come into view.

The clouds part and reveal the minotaur striding confidently my way. He snorts again and steam billows from his nostrils. He takes long strides, swinging his ax languidly.

I pull my fingers back over the edge of the roof and attempt to flatten myself even further. I don't dare scoot away from the edge for fear of making too much noise.

The half-man, half-bull beast approaches, and his muscles ripple with each step. I hold my breath as he passes in front of me, and he stops, scanning left and right with his head.

"I can hear your heartbeat." His voice is low and echoes slightly as if he were speaking into a well. Slowly, he turns his head up towards me, and his huge bovine eyes lock on mine. Every muscle in my body tenses.

The minotaur raises his ax and swings at the mausoleum's wall. Metal strikes stone and sparks fly, briefly illuminating his face and horns. The foundation below me shakes, and I shriek, jumping upright. He laughs and continues to swing at the stone structure, shaking it.

I step away from the edge, the sounds of crumbling marble and menacing laughter filling the air. The roof below my feet shifts and starts to fall towards the minotaur, and it's all I need to get my ass moving.

I run across the roof and leap onto the nearest tomb, full sprint. I leap again onto the next one and then onto the dirt path, slipping in the loose dirt and sand.

I pick myself up and sprint forward as fast as my legs will carry me. Cirrus swoops above me, and I follow him towards the sound of clanging swords. The beast behind me roars as I round another corner.

I race back to the three archways, and I'm not alone. Razenna engages a minotaur in combat. The sight is spectacular, and she's never looked more frightening. August runs towards me from the farthest archway. Luc is nowhere to be seen.

Still, in a full sprint, I duck and slide under Razenna's sword as she attempts to disarm her minotaur. I look over my shoulder as I start running again. My minotaur is now engaging Razenna as well; two against one.

August rushes towards the skirmish, blade in hand. Within the span of four heartbeats, August drives his sword through my minotaur's heart, dropping him. Razenna continues to deflect blows from hers until August torches him. She swiftly drives her blade through his heart as well.

"There's one more," she says, looking around wildly. "You couldn't stop him?" She looks to August.

"No. He made it through the final portal. Hopefully, he's unable to retrieve it." His deep brown eyes lock on me. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," I say, hunched over, trying desperately to catch my breath. Behind me, a growing clicking and chittering sound grabs all of our attention. "Oh, come on, for fuck's sake."

"We were being pretty loud. There's still a hoard of them." Razenna stands and wipes her blade on her pant leg. "The third minotaur is still out there, too. I got a glimpse of that one. He's larger than these two." She kicks the beast sprawled in front of her. Her eyes dart around us as if looking for some sort of answer.

"Bronwyn, I saw you running and leaping across the tombstones. Let's try that as long as we can and see how long we can distract them. I think there are too many for us to fight on our own." She walks towards the nearest tombstone and hops onto it with one graceful leap. I approach one and pull myself onto it as if I were exiting a pool. August finds one as well.

Seconds later, the hoard of centipedes floods the paths around us and piles in a frenzy onto the minotaur corpses. The pile of centipedes on the first corpse disperses, leaving only bones behind.

August tips his head as if I should follow him, and he starts running, leaping from tomb to tomb. I follow, running and leaping without looking behind. Motion to my left catches my eye as Razenna leaps onto a separate line of tombs. We run and leap and run some more, and just as I find a rhythm, August leaps across an impossible distance. I dig my heels in, coming to an abrupt stop.

I stare across the gap ahead of me. The ground below seems to move as centipedes crawl all around. "I can't make it," I say looking to August and Razenna ahead.

Another sudden snort behind me makes my spine go rigid. August's eyes widen as he peers over my shoulder.

I whirl and lock eyes with the biggest, meanest-looking minotaur I've ever seen. I glance below me at the wall-to-wall ocean of centipedes that scurry by. I can't run back towards him, and if I leap to the ground, I'll surely be eaten in seconds. I'm trapped.

"Run and jump!" August pleads with me. "I'll catch you." My muscles tense, and I can't get myself to move. This isn't how I want to go. "Bronwyn!" August shouts my name so loud I jump.

I swallow hard and sprint towards the edge of the tomb, toe catching the lip of the tomb just before I leap.

I stumble and throw myself across the gap. It's not enough—it's not even enough for August to catch me. I fall and slam into the side of the tomb with a sickening crack and collapse to the ground.

A sharp pain shoots through my shoulder, and I fight the urge to vomit. I heal my fractured shoulder and pull myself to my feet. I reach for the blade from my belt as centipedes scurry towards me. How long can I heal while they eat me?

August jumps down, blasting them with fire and pressing his back into me. They retreat fractionally, and he blasts them again.

A low demonic laugh cuts through the air as the largest minotaur comes into view. "You don't frighten me, faery."

August snarls and presses his forearm into my chest, making sure I stay behind him. He pulls his long sword, ready to fight the Minotaur and the centipedes at once.

"Shit." Razenna looks helplessly at us from three rows over. August releases the largest blast of fire I've experienced, pushing back and scorching a majority of the centipedes. The heat of the flames takes my breath away, and I squeeze my eyes shut.

The smoke dissipates, and the minotaur's eyes lock on mine. He's only a few meters away at this point.

"August!" Razenna shouts at him above the chaos. Her red eyes glow like embers. "Get her out of here." She leaps and jumps onto the largest mausoleum in sight and climbs on top of it. The centipedes, relentless in their pursuit, return their focus to August and me and are rapidly approaching. The minotaur laughs, content with watching us die.

August grabs my hand and pulls me. I run with him, weaving down the path, and he tucks us into the crook of a small well house. I peer around the corner. Razenna stands on the roof at full height, arms raised above her head. I can't look away from her eyes. Do they always glow like this?

She raises her arms higher and recites something in another language. Her fingers curl like bear claws, and the air around her darkens.

"August," I whimper and he pulls me into his chest.

Razenna chants, raises her hands high above her, and right next to my left boot, a hand shoots from the earth. I scream, and August clamps his hand across my mouth, pulling me in tighter.

I stare wide-eyed as a corpse pulls itself from the ground before me. My eyes widen so much, I feel pressure behind them.

Across the entire cemetery, corpses in varying state of decay erupt from dozens and dozens of graves.

The remaining centipedes scramble in all directions after corpses and skeletal figures. Several of the corpses gather and slide the tops off of large tombs, releasing deceased warriors who were buried with their weaponry. The minotaur notices and roars at Razenna.

"Now, August!" She yells across the chaos but maintains focus on her adversary. I have just enough time to see two spectacularly decorated soldiers charge the minotaur with swords in the air before August grabs my hand and pulls me with him. We run, zigzagging and weaving through headstones and more of the walking undead.

We run all the way back to the three archways and stop. I lean on the first pillar and catch my breath while staring at the two piles of bones before me.

The third archway hums loudly, and sparks fly from a point in the middle where the tip of a metal box pierces the veil—Maris's tomb.

"Go!" I wave August away. "Give me a week. Go help Razenna. I'll look for both relics, and I'll bring them to Raynor's ball. I can still get them all for you."

He hesitates, glancing at the box, which is now halfway through the filament. Then he turns and runs back into the shadows of the cemetery.

Chittering from the west increases as the swarm of centipedes crawls my way. Sparks fly from the relic, piercing the veil, followed closely by a hand, an arm, and a body.

As Luc fully exits the archway, a shock wave ripples across the cemetery, and the wavy refracting light of the filament disappears. The swarm of centipedes drops dead, and all remains silent. I have one week to find two relics.