Page 26 of Duskbound (Esprithean Trilogy #2)

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

The Void stretched before us. Whispers from the crowd drifted across the empty space behind, but I kept my eyes forward, searching for any sign of movement. Vexa stood beside me, uncharacteristically silent.

"How long was I in there?" I finally asked, my voice still raw.

"Twelve hours." She shifted her weight, crossing her arms. "Theron emerged first, then Mira. You came out with Lael about an hour ago."

I nodded, processing this. The medics had taken Lael immediately, working quickly to stabilize him. He was unconscious but alive—that's what mattered. Time had felt impossible to track in there, stretching and compressing without logic or reason.

"Twelve hours," I repeated. "It felt like weeks. And also like minutes."

"That's normal." Vexa's lips quirked, but the smile didn't reach her eyes. "Though emerging with another person? That’s… rare.” She glanced at me. "Want to talk about what happened in there?"

"Not really. "

"Fair enough." She went quiet for a moment. "Kenna's still in. And Valkan."

Something in her tone made me look over. "You're worried about Kenna."

"Wouldn't you be? That thing is in there with her." She didn't need to specify who she meant.

I wanted to tell her Kenna would be fine, but the memory of that darkness was too fresh to offer empty comfort. Instead, I watched the Void, silently willing it to give us Kenna next. And hoping that Valkan would never come out at all.

The other candidates had gathered near one of the stone outcrops. Theron sat with his back against the rock, eyes fixed on some distant point, while Mira paced in tight circles nearby. Their void burns looked raw, fresh—painful in a way that made my own skin itch in sympathy.

"Did you see anything in there?" Mira's whisper caught me off guard. She'd stopped pacing, lingering just a few feet away. "Besides the darkness, I mean."

I opened my mouth, but before I could respond, nobles began arriving in clusters, their fine clothing stark against the gray landscape. Lord Skaldvindr led one group, while Lord Sveinson guided another. Their quiet conversations carried an edge of tension.

"They're all here for the same reason." Rethlyn appeared beside me, his playful demeanor replaced by something harder. "To see what comes out of that darkness next."

"You mean who," I corrected.

"No." His eyes tracked the noble houses as they positioned themselves strategically around the area. "They don't care about Kenna. They're here for him. Valkan's emergence could shift everything."

"The Council's already divided," Vexa added in a low voice. "If he makes it out of there…"

She didn't need to finish. I'd seen how quickly the noble houses had changed their allegiances since the conference. How desperate they were for any solution to their dying realm.

A figure began to materialize in the shadows.

Valkan emerged from the darkness with the same fluid grace he'd shown during the trials. As he stepped into the gray light, he wiped something dark from his lips. Blood. My stomach turned. Was that his?

His eyes swept over the crowd before falling to his bare arms. A smile spread across his face.

No void burns marked his skin.

"How is that possible?" I whispered to Vexa, but she looked just as confused as I felt.

The word Duskbound rippled through the crowd as Valkan raised his arms, commanding their attention. "My friends," his voice carried across the space, smooth as silk. "The Void has chosen me. It required no trial, no demand, no sacrifice. I simply had to find my way back to you."

I caught Theron and Mira exchanging looks of disbelief. Their void burns seemed to darken in contrast to Valkan's unmarked skin.

His milky eyes found mine, and his smile widened into something predatory. He crossed the space between us with measured steps, close enough that I could smell the blood on his breath.

"I knew you were special," he whispered. Before I could react, he grabbed my hand, raising it with his own. "Look!" he called to the crowd. "Two Duskbound emerge to lead Umbrathia into a new era!"

I yanked my hand away, but instead of retreating, I held my ground. Something about his perfect smile, the way his eyes raked over me, made anger churn in my gut.

"Hello lovely," he murmured, stepping closer. "You look ravishing."

"Where's Kenna? "

A soft laugh escaped his lips. "So concerned for others. It's quite... endearing." He reached out as if to touch my face, but I jerked back. "We could be magnificent together, you know."

"You didn't answer my question."

"No," he agreed, his smile widening a fraction. "I suppose I didn't." He ran his tongue over his teeth.

"Did you find her in there?" I pressed, even as dread pooled in my stomach.

"The Void shows us what we truly are," he said simply, his voice dropping lower. "Some of us simply embrace our nature more... readily than others." His eyes flickered to my lips. "You will too, in time. Once you understand what we could accomplish together."

The realization hit me like ice water.

"You killed her."

His smile never wavered. "Quite an accusation, pet." He leaned closer, his breath cold against my ear. "There are better ways to use that pretty mouth."

Disgust fractured through me, churning my stomach. Before I could step back, Aether materialized at my side. His hand closed around my arm, yanking me behind him as he positioned himself between me and Valkan. Even through his leathers, I could see the tension coiled in his frame, ready to strike. For once, I didn't mind his interference.

Urkin stepped forward, the other Generals trailing behind him as they broke through the crowd. A heavy silence fell over the area, shattered only by the sound of their boot. Urkin's eyes went wide as they fixed on Valkan's untouched skin.

"It's not possible," he said, voice barely carrying.

"You experienced nothing?" Theron stood, his voice sharp with disbelief. "In there?"

"Just pure darkness." Valkan spread his arms wide, his smile never wavering. "Darkness that recognized its own."

"A Damphyre has never entered the Void before." Talon stepped forward, adjusting his archival robes as he studied Valkan. "We cannot know what effect it would have."

The crowd physically recoiled at the mention of Damphyre. I watched Valkan's smile falter for just a moment before smoothing back into place.

"There are no shadows in your eyes," Vexa spat. She moved to step forward but Effie caught her arm, pulling her back.

Valkan's personal guard materialized from the crowd, taking position around him, milky eyes narrowing. Their movements were too fluid, so graceful that it sent a chill over my skin.

"The foreign-born emerged swathed in shadows," General Karis said, his calculating gaze moving between Valkan and me. "You, however, have come out exactly as you entered."

Something dark flashed across Valkan's face, cracking that carefully maintained charm.

"Do you see my skin marked by void burns?" Valkan's voice rose, carrying across the crowd with practiced authority. "Only three outcomes exist when one enters the Void. Clearly, my emergence speaks for itself."

"Prove it." Mira's voice cut through the tension as she shot to her feet.

"A simple demonstration would settle this." Rethlyn shrugged, moving to stand beside Vexa and Effie. The casualness of his stance didn't match the edge in his voice.

Valkan's eyes narrowed, though his smile remained fixed in place. "No other Kalfar has ever emerged from the Void unmarked without claiming the title of Duskbound. I will not be forced to prove myself. I remain the Lord of Draxon. It would suit you to remember that."

Lord Skaldvindr emerged from the crowd then, flanked by members of other noble houses. His dark eyes swept over the scene with careful calculation. "Lord Valkan, we request that you show us. It would put all doubts to rest immediately. "

Valkan strode to Skaldvindr, closing the distance until mere inches separated them. He leaned in, whispering something I couldn't hear. Whatever it was made Skaldvindr's face drain of color before anger replaced his shock.

"My friends…" Valkan turned back to address the crowd, his voice carrying that practiced charm once more. "Have I not proven myself time and again? While other lands wither, Draxon's people thrive. While others starve, my people feast. And now you would question my worth, after I've passed your trials with unprecedented success?"

His words carried a different weight now, an underlying threat beneath the charm. I watched several Council members shift uncomfortably.

"If you are unable to prove yourself," Aether's voice cut through Valkan's rhetoric, "then crawl back to Draxon."

Valkan spun toward him, and for just a moment, that mask slipped completely. Pure hatred flashed in those milky eyes. Then his gaze found mine, and something worse replaced the hatred—a promise. A hunger that made my blood run cold.

Before anyone could react, his form rippled and twisted. Where he had stood, a massive black bird now towered, its wings blocking out what little light remained. With one powerful beat of those wings, he took to the sky.

The crowd erupted into chaos as Valkan disappeared into the clouds. Lord Sveinson immediately turned to his allies, face flushed with rage as he gestured toward where Valkan had stood. Other noble houses began shifting alliances before my eyes—those who had supported Valkan at the conference now desperately trying to distance themselves, while others seized the opportunity to denounce him openly.

Lord Skaldvindr broke away from the other nobles, approaching our group with calculated steps. His dark eyes swept over me, lingering on the shadows that still clung to my skin. " You've done well," he said, though his tone carried more assessment than praise. "The realm will remember this day."

I met his gaze. "Which part? The part where a Damphyre claimed to be chosen by the Void? Or the part where everyone just let him leave?"

Something flickered across his face—anger or fear, I couldn't tell which. But his diplomatic expression never slipped. "And what exactly were any of us supposed to do? He's a free man. What would we hold him for?"

Behind him, I watched the Skaldvindr family guards subtly repositioning themselves, creating a barrier between their Lord and Valkan's remaining supporters.

Effie pushed through the crowd then, her face tight with worry as she reached for Vexa. "I can't believe he even made it out of there." She looked toward the Void, then back to our group. "And Kenna—has anyone seen?—"

"She's not coming out." The words felt like ash in my mouth. I watched realization creep into their faces. The silence that followed was deafening. Lord Skaldvindr's carefully neutral expression cracked, just for a moment, revealing something like genuine horror beneath.

"Valkan made sure of that."