Chapter 23

K ratos carried us west for what felt like hours. The solid muscle of his legs rocked the saddle forward and back with each powerful step. Color in the trees faded into bright yellows, then oranges, then reds, as we left Venia behind. I stayed quiet, only responding to Aryx in short, clipped sentences.

Ignoring my hints, he continued on with casual conversation. My patience wore thin as the sun slowly crept across the sky. Finally, when it reached its apex, I snapped. Pulling up on Kratos's reins, we skidded to a halt. I jumped to the ground, the imprint of my boots pressing deep into the dirt path.

"If you don't stop talking, I will slice out your tongue," I hissed, throwing my hands into the air.

"Don't bite my head off. I'm just trying to make the trip a little less mundane," he replied, dismounting Kratos to stand next to me.

"I don't want to make the trip less mundane. I just want to travel in silence, arrive in Canissa, and accomplish what we need to do. Just because we are allies at this moment doesn't make up for what you did. And it doesn't mean that I am your friend," I screamed, stomping my foot like a tempered child.

Aryx sucked in a breath. He clenched, then unclenched his fists, glaring at me with smoldering eyes, the gold blazing brightly around his pupils.

"I'm sorry," he said. His tone was as sharp as the blade sheathed across his back. Reaching into my pouch, I pulled out my water-skin and drained it.

"We're out of water. I'm going to go look for a spring to refill."

Before he could argue, I turned on my heels and trudged into the neighboring trees. With Arcturas at my side, we stepped over roots and ducked under branches. Following a faint rush of water, we made our way to a narrow creek that gargled peacefully through the forest.

Bright, young fiddleheads had poked their way through the earth and tall, thin trees stretched toward the blue sky above us. Kneeling beside the creek, I dunked my hand into the water and allowed it to bubble into the mouth of the skin. The woodland air was smooth as I breathed deeply and sunk into my heels, sitting against the cool riverbank. I leaned back, letting my neck relax and my chin tip up to the sky. Sparrows chirped their amicable tunes as a grey squirrel, munching on a nut, sat perched in the branch above me.

This is what I was fighting for.

I had to endure just a little longer until this was all over. The freedom of the forest was sweet on my lips. I Inhaled, then exhaled until my frustration subsided.

"Elpis, I'm sorry," Aryx said from behind me. "What I did was unforgivable. I know that. I-"

"I let you in, let you see everything. I was vulnerable with you, and it was all a lie. You saw how broken I am and you played that to your advantage."

"I know. I'm sorry, truly, I am. I hated having to do that to you." He sat on the bank next to me, tossing a pebble into the babbling water below.

"There was no blade against your throat, you chose to manipulate me. You chose to lie to my face."

"It wasn't all a lie, Elpis. What I said, the things we shared. Those weren't lies." Aryx turned to me.

"That's horseshit, and you know it." I snapped, "I told you things I hadn't even admitted to myself yet, Aryx, and you used it against me."

We sat in silence, watching the stream trickle by. Hatred burned in my throat as I looked at my shaking hands. Funny how in a matter of seconds, everything I thought to be true became a lie. Someone I trusted, cared for, even loved, became my enemy. I couldn't bear to look upon the man who once touched my skin, whispered words of kindness to me, comforted me. He was gone. In his place, a manipulator. An abuser. Someone so selfish they'd use the fragility of a broken mind to their advantage. He disgusted me. Nauseated me.

"I led the invasion into Aquilae. I commanded my men to slaughter those innocent people and burn their homes to the ground. When I said Altair and I have a rocky past, it's because I was the one that held the blade to his chest during the last battle. I fully intended to kill him that day. It would have been easy to plunge my sword through his heart. My mother threatened that if I didn't lead that attack, she would kill my father. If he knew what I'd become, the killer she had molded me into, I think he'd rather have died." His voice trembled as he spoke. "I'm the monster, not you."

I inhaled deeply, staring at the killer sitting beside me. Regret shadowed his eyes, and I watched as his lower lip shook between breaths. The tattoo down the side of his face stretched and creased against the sadness washing over him.

"It's not the blood on your hands that makes you a monster Aryx. Everyone in war causes bloodshed. It's the ease with which you toy with people that does." I sprung to my feet and left the half-god sitting on the riverbank.

Arcturas nipped at his hand as she passed, following me back to the trail. We rode in silence until reaching the gates of Canissa. The shiver of Autumn bit my fingers as I led Kratos through the large, wooden gates. Everything else inside was already frozen to the bone .