Page 37 of Marked

The sky was painted in hues of orange and red, fading fast as the sun dipped beyond the horizon.

A wind whispered through the mountains around them, and Blair's boots crunched softly against the ground as she followed the two men in front of her.

A thick aura of apprehension lingered between the two men.

She often guessed at which moment they would turn and tackle each other, dueling to see who would come out victorious, but Damien remained silent, warily following the stranger.

"This is the place," Blake said, voice low but steady as they approached a building.

Damien moved to Blair's side, his gaze sweeping the abandoned city. A black mist began to swirl in his eyes, the telltale sign that his shadows were waiting to be released. Only a couple feet away in front of them, Blake lingered in silence, a half-smile twitching at the edge of his lips.

"And you're sure one of them is here?" Damien asked, casting a sideways glance at Blake and then Blair.

Blake nodded. "At least one of them is. My bet is that this is the hideout for the North County. Nova leads them. She's on your list. There are rumors of a second one coming in and out of here often, but we won't know until we are inside."

Damien's jaw clenched at his words. "Okay."

The trio moved toward the entrance, a building that split into different corridors. Blake stopped and ran his fingers over a sigil hidden in the brick.

"This is definitely it." Blake looked behind him and glared at both of them. "We won't know how many are here. It depends on who's out on patrol. I say Blair stays in the middle; she can even hold on to my hand to guide her." Blake says, winking at Blair.

Damien narrows his eyes in response, "She stays behind me."

Blair rolled her eyes as Blake shrugged and turned back toward the door. The tension in Damien's face only stiffened as they entered.

Inside the corridors, the air turned colder.

The only lights were small flickers from lanterns that lined the hallway.

Silence pressed in on them, no sounds filling the air around them besides the steps they took.

The only thing they saw were shadows. The place around them, made for people like them, wielders of the dark.

They crept forward. Damien's own shadow stirred, rising like smoke. Coiling first around Blair and then moving to his own feet and up along his arm as he shaped it into a curved blade, black and whispering with ethereal energy.

As they continued a few paces, Blake stopped.

Damien let out a frustrated grunt as a flicker from the lights revealed Blake was gone. Not walked away. Not disappeared behind a wall. One blink, and he was gone, swallowed whole by the shadow beneath his feet. Blair didn't even flinch, but Damien's eyes narrowed.

"He can hide in the shadows," Damien muttered, his voice barely loud enough for her to hear, "Or at least move between them."

"So, that's his ability," Blair replied as quietly as she could, scanning the corridor.

"Mhmm," Damien said, barely audible.

Blair didn't answer.

From the darkness ahead, a whisper stirred. The shadows convulsed. And then, they were no longer alone.

The first hunter launched from the wall like a beast. An enforcer that was a blur of tendrils and smoke.

Damien reacted instantly. His shadow-scythe arced upward, cleaving the figure in two.

A second figure lunged from behind, but Damien was faster, a burst of shadow energy knocking the enemy across the corridor like a rag doll.

And then more came.

Three… four… five hunters poured from the halls, blades out, eyes glinting in the flickering light.

Damien dropped low, spreading his arms. His shadow exploded outward like a living storm, branching into sharp tendrils that snapped and lashed at their enemies.

One wrapped around a hunter's leg and yanked, slamming them into the ceiling.

Another morphed into a hammer, which Damien swung into a charging enemy's chest, sending them flying.

"Now would be a good time to come out Blake." Damien barked .

Blair inhaled sharply as she tried to stay as close to the wall as she could, holding her dagger. Although she wanted to attempt to help, she knew it was best to keep out of Damien's way.

Suddenly, Blake emerged from the wall itself, stepping out of the shadow like it was water.

His eyes shimmered pitch-black, and his body wreathed in wisps of darkness.

He moved like a ghost, striking and vanishing again.

He reappeared behind a hunter, dragging a knife across their throat.

Blair watched as he used his ability to move freely in the space around them.

As the last of the enemy hunters fell, the corridor trembled. A low hum filled the air.

"She's close," Blake whispered.

Damien growled in response. "We end this now."

The trio burst through the reinforced door at the end of the hall and came face-to-face with her.

Nova stood in a circle of flickering sigils, her body armored in dark scales. Her hair flowed like black fire, a dark void that met Damien's with quiet contempt. Nova raised her hand slowly, and then the room erupted.

Walls peeled away into shadows that lashed like serpents.

Damien dove forward, his shadow transforming into a broad shield that absorbed a blast of dark energy.

Blake disappeared mid-sprint, reappearing behind Nova, but she struck first, spinning and cutting him across the chest with a blade of pure shadow.

Blake cried out and vanished into the floor again .

Damien growled, shaping his shadow into twin axes and throwing them. Nova dodged one and deflected the other, but Damien moved faster, hitting her with a flurry of shadow-imbued strikes.

Nova's shrill voice echoed around them as her body absorbed the attack, "Two little shadow wielders? Ah, but what about this one?"

Then Nova turned her power on Blair.

Shadows burst from the floor, wrapping around her limbs and crushing her to the ground. She fought back with every ounce of control, but she had no strength compared to the shadows.

Just as she began to scream, Blake reappeared.

From the ceiling, he dropped like an arrow, driving his own shadow through Nova's shoulder. She screamed, her hold on Blair snapping. She fell to her knees, gasping.

Blake stood over Nova, his body flickering between solid and smoke. His shadow burned along his arms, coiling like serpents. With eyes on Blake, Nova didn't notice Damien come up from behind her until it was too late. A sharp cry pierced the air as her chest was impaled with a shadowed sword.

Nova collapsed, the darkness ebbing away from her form, and silence fell.

Damien pulled Blair to her feet and held her close to his chest. With a staggered breath, she looked up at Blake.

"Thank you for that. "

Damien nodded in agreement, watching Blake. Blood streaked his arm and his chest, but there was no denying it. He could have left Blair to die. Could have run. But he hadn't.

"So, you hide and move within the shadows?" Damien asked, eyeing Blake." Any other surprises?"

Blake offers a proud smile in return, "I can also sense them."

Damien nodded in response, his furrowed brow relaxing, "Feel like taking some more down with us?"

"Damn right, I do," Blake responded, a large grin on his face showing dimples on his cheeks.

They turned as a pulse of shadow emanated from Nova form.

A small imbuement mark on the back of her hand illuminated and cracked, sending strands of faintly growing light up her arm and throughout her body.

The lights expanded, breaking the skin around them and quickly causing Nova's body to flake and vanish into dust.

Blair's eyes widened, and her mouth dropped open.

"What the fuck was that?" Taking a step back, her body bumped into Damien, who brought his hands up to soothe her.

"Remember how I said Enforcers burn from the inside?

People who have shadows imbued into them can become unstable from the very beginning.

Those with strong wills can live with them for some time, but once they are killed, the shadows release, causing this to happen.

A brand like that means you're a phantom.

Being a phantom means you're a ticketing time bomb.

" Damien explains, squeezing her arm in comfort .

"Th-this is what will eventually happen to you?" she asked, fear coating her words.

"No, unfortunately, we were blessed with being born like this . That's the one perk of being Shadowborn. We don't have internal dynamite inside of us." Blake responds.

"I never told you I was a Shadowborn." Damien declared, Taking a step in front of Blair in a defensive position.

Blake leaned around him, making eye contact with Blair, "Is he always so fucking paranoid?" Scoffing, he continued. "I already told you I can sense the shadows. That means I can tell the difference between your strength, that of a real shadowborn, and a hunter. Don’t get your panties in a bunch."

Damien's stance slightly relaxed, his eyes squinting in caution. "I don't like you."

Blake laughed in response, "Love you too, bud."

Blair took a deep breath as her eyes darted between the two men. "Good. All it took was me almost dying to get you two to get along."