Chapter 16

CHAPTER16

“Are you hurt?” a boy asked Athan, staring at him with big eyes.

Athan glanced around the dirty alley where he’d decided to rest. There was a pile of discarded items in one corner, and a puddle that smelled like urine only a few feet from him.

“No. Why are you here?” he asked the boy. From the look of him, the boy must have been one of the many street children—older than he pretended to be, and likely hoping to steal something from Athan’s pack.

“My mama told me to wait. So I’m waiting.” The boy sat down next to Athan… on the side Athan had his pack.

It was a little obvious, but Athan wasn’t going to fault the child. He closed his eyes and smiled. “That’s good of you, to follow directions. But you should make sure you aren’t obeying blindly. Sometimes people ask you to do things you don’t want.”

“Yeah.” The kid rummaged through Athan’s pack, and he was doing his best, but it was clear he wasn’t an expert pickpocket yet. Athan was going to let him take whatever he wanted, but as soon as the child’s hand withdrew, Athan tensed.

“Take something else,” Athan said sharply, opening his eyes. “I actually want to keep that.”

The boy startled and dropped what he was holding. Athan only barely managed to keep it from falling onto the dirty road.

It was the set of playing cards Callan had given Elric. The top card was the king of swords.

“How did you…?” the child asked, shaking. “Sorry!”

“I just said…” Athan sighed and reached into his bag, pulling out a few coins. “Here, take these, and be more careful when you steal from people next time. And—”

But the child had run off with the coins, not interested in hearing more lessons from Athan.

Athan sighed again and stared at the card set. He idly shuffled the cards, and he wasn’t all too surprised when the first card he pulled from the deck was the wild card. When he reshuffled, the same card appeared.

He tried it a third time, this time setting the wild card aside.

He got the king of swords.

“Cards aren’t actually psychic,” Athan told the deck. He pushed his finger against the darkened corner, and watched the lingering spell go up in flames.

If Athan were smart, he’d forget all about Elric now.

Let him be consumed by Callan. Let the rust take control of him.

Without an army, there wasn’t much Elric could do anyway. At most, he’d be lost to Callan’s hunger, and that would be one less person who wanted to claim dominion over others.

If Elric had seen what Athan had seen, he wouldn’t have been so eager for Eoghan’s help. The way Eoghan was made of needles, and every word he spoke littered the floor with his sharpness. He spoke gently and with good cheer, but it was all lies.

They were the same kinds of lies Elric was good at telling, only when Elric spoke, he poked holes into himself, he rusted, he dirtied himself, and…

Athan squeezed the king of swords and watched as the card went up in flames too. The problem was, Elric wasn’t the king of swords. He wanted to be, so badly. He’d be so much happier if he just realized…

Elric was never going to if he stuck with Callan. Elric was going to forget all the happy memories they’d made together, and how easily he’d laughed, and how it was possible to simply have fun.

Athan stood up, stuffing the remaining cards into his pack, to go back to the castle and pick up Elric. He’d find some way to apologize and get them back on course. Maybe they could just negotiate with the dragon and come to some sort of middle ground, and…

A sudden shadow crossed over Athan, cold as ice. Athan stumbled and gripped the alley wall, fighting off a wave of nausea. His ears buzzed, and one of his feathers threatened to come loose.

No. No, no. Elric must have stepped into Callan’s shadow, and all the warmth Athan had poured into Elric was getting driven out.

Fuck.

Athan bolted through the streets. He had to leave the city so he could transform without damaging anybody. His body was itching to change shapes, and he winced when he noticed things catching fire in a path ahead of him. He drew the flames back into himself as he ran over them, hoping he didn’t miss any in his desperation.

He couldn’t stop long enough to be sure, though. He had to help Elric.

It took too long to be clear of civilization, too long to finally be able to spread his wings and take to the air. The more time passed, the fainter the pulse of his heat inside Elric got. Athan struggled against more dizziness and even faltered in the air a few times.

There was a destination, though. Elric wasn’t moving anymore. There was only the faintest hint of warmth left in him. Athan flew faster.

The trail led him to a ruin in a forest, well hidden in the density. Athan couldn’t find a good place to land, so he was forced to let go of his bird shape and crash into the brush. He couldn’t even cushion his fall too much without risking something catching fire.

Would it be so bad, if everything burned?

When Athan stumbled out of the brush into the clearing, he found Elric sitting alone on a stone dais.

Elric looked up, and Athan’s heart skipped a beat as he saw the black lines streaking his cheeks. He was dark, the warmth and light inside of him so dim it was almost impossible to see. “What the fuck are you doing here?” Elric snarled, his features twisted into something ugly.

Athan rushed over to him. “What happened? Why are you here?” He reached out to burn some of the thick, dripping darkness away, but Elric slapped his hand away.

“Don’t touch me. You didn’t want to help me, so I found someone who would.”

Callan, of course.

“I didn’t say I didn’t want to help you,” Athan said. “Please. Talk to me. I can’t help if I don’t know what’s going on.”

Elric stared at him, then barked out a laugh. “Like you don’t know? You know what I need. All you had to do was agree to help Eoghan. But that’s fine. I’ll get what he wanted myself, and I’ll have Kithage back in my grasp on my own terms.”

When Elric spoke, black tar spilled out of his lips.

Terror rose inside Athan. He’d seen this before. Blackness like that didn’t happen on its own.

He wanted to yell at Elric and try to shake some sense into him, but it was too late for that. Athan was so set on fixing things that sometimes he forgot to take human stubbornness into account.

He was paying dearly for that oversight now.

“Okay,” Athan said instead, forcing himself to smile. “Maybe I can help with that. Better you than Eoghan. Giving him what he wanted would have been a bad idea, Elric. But if it’s you…” He placed his hands on Elric’s shoulders and leaned in closer.

He could smell the dark and the filth. When he opened his mouth, a small drop of that tar landed on his tongue.

It tasted vile, and everything inside Athan recoiled at what he was doing.

Athan held still and held his breath.

Elric grabbed Athan’s long hair and pulled him in, brutally kissing him. That tar spilled into Athan’s mouth, threatening to choke him. He had to remain strong, though. He had to replace that darkness with his own light.

He fought against the tar as it tried to invade his mouth, his soul, pushing back with his own flame and light.

Elric didn’t even seem aware of the battle raging between them.

“You’ll help me?” Elric asked, pulling away.

His eyes were so cold, so distant, that for a moment… Athan wasn’t even sure there was anything in there worth saving anymore.

“I’ll help you.” Athan stroked the side of Elric’s face, watching as a few flecks of darkness burned away.

More darkness filled the gaps.

Elric let out a shuddering breath, nodding to Athan. The steady ooze continued to drip from his eyes, from his ears, and Athan wanted to make it all go away. He wanted to burn it out, but he wasn’t sure what would be left if he did.

“I—I have a potion,” Athan said, reaching down to fumble with his pack. “If you just take one, and I—”

Elric grabbed Athan’s wrist, his fingers sticky as he gripped him hard. “I don’t want a potion. I just need…” His eyes searched Athan’s, pupils dark, and he licked his lips. “I need your heat. I’m so cold, Athan.”

Athan’s heart splintered, hearing that. “Of course. You can have as much of my heat as you need. There’s more than enough to go around.”

He went in for a kiss again, ignoring the foul taste and sending as much fire into Elric as he dared. Surely he could still save Elric.

Like he’d saved Callan.

Athan pushed that thought aside and pushed closer to Elric, gripping his hair and trying to convey all the warmth and affection and… and love.

Elric pulled Athan up, against him, kissing him harder and plunging his tongue into his mouth—filling it with more of that taste until Athan nearly gagged on it. He dragged him a few steps. “Here,” he said, pulling Athan to a stone block that was strangely smooth on top—an altar of some sort.

There was a pulse from the stone, something worrying, but then Elric kissed Athan again.

It was hard to breathe.

Athan’s flame was burning as much of the darkness as it could, but more of the sludge dripped in, coating his skin and leaving him feeling filthy and tainted. His attempts to push Elric to the stone altar were weak, and Elric stared intently at him as he slowly shook his head.

“My turn,” Elric said hoarsely. “It’s my turn to be on top.”

“Wait—” Athan said, but Elric was tugging at his clothes, trying to pull them off.

“Need it.” Elric groaned, pinning Athan down beneath him. “Give it to me, Athan. You said you wanted to help me. Help me.”

“Not like…” Athan struggled against Elric’s grip. His attempts to start a flame stuttered, the fire smothered underneath the darkness. “Elric, I will, but let me—”

Elric kissed him again, forcing his tongue into Athan’s mouth as he got Athan’s pants down to his knees. “Let me,” he insisted. “Let me take what I need.”

You can’t take it, Athan thought, even as darkness poured from Elric into Athan. He blinked his eyes against the sudden wetness. He struggled against Elric’s hands, but his legs were coated in darkness too, weighing Athan down and leaving him weakened and exposed.

The darkness seeped into his feathers, turning each one into a leaden weight.

Elric shoved at his own pants, revealing his cock. It was dripping with more darkness, and Athan realized Elric intended to shove that inside of him. He wanted to protest, wanted to warn Elric. Had he forgotten how hot Athan burned?

But that darkness was all encompassing, and when Elric shoved his cock inside Athan’s ass, the flame sputtered again, allowing Elric to penetrate him without burning up.

Athan cried out and shook his head, reaching for Elric with a leaden hand. “Don’t,” he slurred, but he didn’t know what he could say to get through to him.

Elric ignored his plea and began thrusting with abandon. The cold, the wet, the filth, all of it penetrated deep inside Athan and smothered his flame. No matter how hard Athan tried to send heat to Elric, it all dissipated, replaced by darkness.

“Give it to me!” Elric sounded like he was choking on the words as they wrenched their way out of his throat. “Make it stop, Athan!” The tar-like substance was trickling down his cheeks again, acrid and demoralizing, like bitter tears.

I can’t. Athan opened his mouth to try to speak, but his voice was muffled by Elric’s sludge filling him.

It was like Callan all over again.

He should have learned his lesson. Athan should have realized that there was no helping Elric, because Elric didn’t want to be helped. Elric was drowning in this darkness, and he would rather stay there than take the light Athan offered him.

Except Callan had never begged for Athan’s warmth.

There had to still be a part of Elric that wasn’t lost to all of this.

But Elric kept thrusting into him, fast and hard and spilling more of that filth. Elric was going to come inside of him, Athan realized with rising panic. What would that do to his flame? Would it put it out permanently? His warmth could do so much good, but this darkness could extinguish it.

“P-pull out. Elric, please. Pull out,” Athan begged, forcing his voice through the dark. He clawed at the stone underneath his hands. “Before I extinguish.”

Elric didn’t seem to understand those words, but then, Athan could barely recognize Elric. He was so twisted up, rusted, and dripping all at once somehow. He wasn’t turning into a creature of shadow like Callan had. He was turning into something far worse.

Elric wouldn’t survive this. Whatever darkness inside Callan had caused him to morph, to change, wouldn’t turn Elric. Elric would die.

Athan might die along with him.

To think, he’d been optimistic about how this day would turn out.

Athan tried to lift his arm to embrace Elric, but the coils of darkness pulled it back down. A single feather fell off in the process, glowing surprisingly bright.

It landed on Athan’s chest and made the tar recoil—and rise up, as if intending to crash over the feather again like a wave.

Elric froze, and something pulsed in him. It blazed in Athan’s vision, and even Elric shielded his eyes. But the motion seemed to catch his attention. Elric blinked down at Athan, some of his natural green eye color coming through the pitch black. “W-what?” he stuttered.

“Please,” Athan said, meeting his gaze. “Pull out. I don’t… I don’t want this.”

“You don’t… You don’t want me?” Elric asked, his voice almost unrecognizable.

“Not like this.” Athan’s voice was barely more than a whisper.

The darkness that had threatened to overtake his feather broke, receding away from it. Athan’s wings began to glow a little stronger, and the next breath was a bit easier, less foul.

Elric blinked at him again, still so unfamiliar with the pain and wrath and everything else that twisted his expression.

Athan’s heart ached, thudding hard in his chest.

Slowly, Elric began to pull back, and Athan collapsed onto the stone as he was left empty, as the warmth inside of him began to pulse again now that it wasn’t being constantly filled with so much coldness.

“Then how?” Elric asked, touching Athan’s cheek with a trembling hand.

“Not when you’re angry. Not when you’re drowning.” Athan tried to sit up, and he winced against the pain in his ass. If his flame were still burning bright, it would take no time at all to heal, but for now, he had to deal with the discomfort.

Elric pulled away, his cock still hard, dripping onto Athan’s leg. He didn’t stop Athan from sitting, shifting back instead. “I’m so cold, Athan.” He sounded bewildered.

Athan laughed sadly. “I know. I know, Elric.” He extended an arm to welcome Elric into an embrace.

Elric sank down into it, shuddering violently as the tar-like substance on his skin came into contact with Athan’s warmth. It didn’t dissolve, not really, but it became less sticky, somehow like a thin syrup instead of molasses.

They sat like that while Elric calmed down, and Athan started to feel a little bit more like himself.

“Your… your feather,” Elric said after a while, pointing to where it had fallen on the stone dais with a shaking hand. “I didn’t mean to…”

“It doesn’t matter,” Athan said, kissing the side of Elric’s head. “I’m only glad you’re still you. One feather is nothing in comparison to that.”

He felt the lack of the feather though, a bare spot on his wing. It would regrow, in a few years’ time, but for now he would have to deal with the pulse of darkness that was trying to burrow into that spot.

Elric closed his eyes, trembling. He still didn’t feel like he was all there, but he wasn’t trying to hurt Athan any longer.

The setting sun elongated the shadows of the ruins behind them. Athan watched dully as one particular shadow grew and grew, but he didn’t have the energy to do anything about it.

Callan stepped forth, grinning widely.

“What a show. A shame we didn’t get to see the… climax of this performance,” Callan said, sliding up the dais stairs. “What did you do to yourself, Elric? You look dreadful.”

Elric’s eyes shot open, and he turned to stare at Callan. “Where is it?” he asked, blackness trickling down his chin. “Do you have it?”

Callan danced around the stone Athan and Elric were sitting on. “That depends. Before we get to that, though… Should we tell stories again? I have an interesting one for you, Athan.”

Whatever he was going to say, it would be bad. Athan pulled Elric closer to him and shook his head. “No. Go away, Callan.”

Callan laughed and opened his mouth to speak.