Page 63 of In Between Darkness

“I see him!” Ryder shouts, and a glimmer of hope twinkles in my eyes.

“Where is he? Can you get to him?” I question trying to eliminate all doubt and worry from my mind.

“Yes, he’s in some sort of trance, floating around like those other objects… The butterfly you saw?” he questions.

“Yeah?” I answer in response as the wind blows my curls from my face.

“Did it have green and pink specks on it?” He shifts in his place, eyes still darker than the surrounding sky.

“Yes. Can you see it?” Another hopeful glint embodies me. I hope it is okay.

“It’s here. Sad to say, it did not survive the vortex.” A pit forms in the bottom of my stomach, and a stray tear rolls down my cheek. Poor thing. I killed it. I don’t have time to wallow in my sadness because River is in there, and who’s to say that he isn’t dead as well?

“River, he’s… Are you sure it’s a trance? Are you sure he’s not dead too?” I ask. I don’t want to think he could be dead.

“I’m not sure. The only way to tell would be to go in ourselves and find his pulse.” He pauses, and a slight chuckle escapes his lips. “My hawks are good, but not that good.”

I hold my breath. For some reason, I thought the hawk would have all the answers. My breath hitches, and he clears his throat.

“I’m going to summon Kyro back here, okay?”

“B-but how do you know we won’t die in there as well?” My chest tightens as I try to get a hold of the panic that is now thriving in my veins. The grip on my control loosens, and I mentally try to calm myself down.

“Asha, don’t ask questions you don’t want to know the answer to.” Ryder sends a stare over in my direction, though I know he can’t see me.

“What’s happening?” he calls out, but I can barely hear him over my shaky breaths.

“Asha, whatever you’re doing, you need to stop. The room… it’s changing.”

The more I try to focus, the more I lose hope. My breathing is now almost uncontrollable, and I am losing sight of the world around.

“Asha, focus. You can do this.”

He’s right. Snap out of it, Asha. River’s in there. Alone. And possibly dead. I visualise the pot again, which is boiling over, and turn down the heat. The world starts coming back to me again, but I know I cannot hold the orb for much longer.

I fall to my knees… The vortex is going to shut. Ryder snaps out of his trance and rushes over to me.

“Just a little longer. He’s almost out, I can feel him.”

I feel his arm stretch around me as his hand moves in circular motions on my back.

“I’m trying.” I battle with myself, and just as I feel I’m about to lose, I hear the squawk of Kyro and see a shadowed wing appear from the black hole.

I cry a sigh of relief. The dark orb blinks out just as his final wing pinches through, slicing the tip clean off. I drop my head in my hands and catch my breath. Kyro does not seem bothered that his wing did not come back in one piece. Instead, he shakes his wing and miraculously manifests another row of feathers. Wow, I didn’t know shadow hawks could regrow their limbs.

“Impressive, right?” Ryder smirks as Kyro takes his place back on his shoulder again. “Well done for not pecking River’s eyes out.” He chuckles and reaches deep into his pocket, pulling out a piece of kibble. Kyro brushes his head into Ryder’s hands and gobbles it up before dissipating back into thin air. Another exhale leaves my lips. He’s so insensitive. I stand up and dust myself off, feeling annoyance bubble in my veins.

“You can’t be serious for one second, can you?” I shout at him, pushing him away from me.

“Woah, don’t take it all out on me.” He raises his hands as if to defend himself. “I’m trying to help you.” He raises his voice too, but I’m not scared.

“River is still in there, and you’re making jokes about your hawk pecking his eyes out.” My voice lowers an octave. “He could be dead.” I look at him helplessly through my watery eyes.

“Yeah, and whose fault is that?” he snaps, making the wave of guilt rush back over me. I stare back in disbelief.

“You think I wanted this?” I shout, gesturing around me. “I didn’t ask for any of this.” I am angry at the world; I’m angry at Oriah for choosing me. I am angry at my parents for putting me in this position and at my dad for lying to me my whole life.

“Yeah, but you got it. So, are you gonna cry about it like a baby or are you gonna own it and deal with it?” His voice is sharp like a knife, which triggers my pain, and I feel like screaming. The pot is bubbling again, and I can’t see through the steam to turn the heat down.