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Chapter 35

Aaliyah

P andemonium.

The room erupted into chaos like I'd never seen. The snarls, crashes, and overall panic.

The eyes that were all pointed at us. At me .

Between Sebek's declaration and Darius's accusation, we were cornered. Other Challenges were called over the ensuing mayhem. I heard the likes of Milo and Drakon cutting through the fog in a lawless blend of fire. Yet, nothing drowned out the cries of the Eternals going rabid at the idea of being shown up. Other issues were screamed, but I blotted every single one of them out, my mind focused solely on the pounding beat of my own heart.

Of the flex of the shadows that surrounded us.

I didn't want the call of my power, not now, not when everyone was already in a frenzy. They were terrified, and my power reveled in it, that dark voice brushing along my skin like a rabid beast, sinking into me with furious intent.

Get rid of them.

I held in a startled gasp, stepping back directly into Prince's arms. I tried to keep myself stable, to keep my eyes open. The shadows flexed again, but there wasn't the give they should have had, not the swirling ease that had come before. The Eternium's lock on intentional violence toward others was absolute. Even still, I struggled to pull it in; I struggled to let it go, as sweat pooled on my brow. It was right there, pushing at me to move.

Yet staying locked inside of me, like it couldn't break out.

The air grew cold a breath later as Red's energy came barreling toward me, his fear so thick it nearly took me off my feet. The hair on the back of my neck stood, my mind narrowing on the instincts of prey about to be mauled by a predator. Fight-or-flight.

Attack-or-run.

The others felt it, too, freezing as steps sounded behind us, like warning bells that none of us could avoid.

"I half expected you to run," a familiar voice said, the frigid calculation pointed. "You should have run. Would have saved me the trouble."

Varying degrees of fear lined each of my men's faces, hidden only partially by the masks that sat there. Hands that had found mine tightened, and they circled me as ice took root in my veins.

The voice of a man I'd never forget. I hated the way it made my stomach spasm now, the same voice that had read my bedtime stories and used to sing me to sleep.

My ab.

"Sebek," Osiris said, a spark traveling along his skin, lighting up his eyes. "Do you really think that was the best move? Think of how many will want her head now."

He was the first to look back, the first to turn around as he placed himself between us and the monster, like a shield. Power flooded the air, ancient and cruel, fire dancing over Sebek's arms the same way it was Osiris's. It buried everything else, snuffing out Osiris's spark.

"Of course, they'd have to get through me first." Sebek took a step forward, his hands in his pockets, black hair slicked against his head, his red eyes beaming behind the blood red mask he wore. It was split down the middle, showing half of his face, intricate details lost in the fear I couldn't hide as he smirked, like he was proud to see what Osiris could do. "Usire."

"We have no words for you," Osiris said, but Sebek paid him no mind.

His eyes landed on me, and even behind the bodies of Eirik and Fallon, I still felt that gaze. It burned me, singed the hair on my arms as I took an unwilling step back. He tracked me, his head tilting like a beast getting ready to strike.

The others were silent, tension sitting so heavily I could feel it in the heaves of their breaths. Sebek watched on, endless power, endless greed, and rage .

We couldn't win.

"I will not ask again, Glass," he said, the others looking between themselves in confusion.

But I knew what he meant, understood it with a clarity that ripped me to shreds, the same way it had when I'd woken with his blood in my mouth. A pin could have dropped, and he didn't even need to look at them. Each of the men that I knew would give their lives for me … Suddenly, I wasn't here anymore. I was standing with Sebek in front of Ascension Rising.

Asking myself if I could walk into it again.

He extended his hand.

The answer was and would always be, yes .

My men flew into action, fangs dropping, eyes bursting red as they snarled and snapped. But none of them moved closer to him, caught by the magic of the Eternium. I was glad, the runaway panic in my body nearly sending me into a spiral.

For a moment I considered his offer, thought of what would happen if we failed.

"I think the fuck not," Prince said, his voice nothing of the carefree one I'd been soaking in. It was deep, dipped in a fire like a warrior preparing to fight as he stepped forward. "Back the fuck up, you prick bastard."

There was a moment of confusion as Sebek's eyes narrowed before they blew wide. It was like the breath was sucked from the hall, a chill in the air as Sebek took a step forward.

"Nero?" he asked, shock a look that was quickly washed away by feral intensity.

"In the flesh. Now, if you don't mind, we have a shit show to get out of," he said, the prettied words hitting like a bat, no kindness behind them as he sneered.

Sebek didn't move for a second, making me nervous. The cold efficiency ate the crazy behind his eyes, and this Sebek, the one with a plan, was infinitely more terrifying than the one that rambled and killed seemingly without reason.

His head tipped as his lips tilted up. "I can't harm you here. You know that. Even a Charm would push the limits."

His eyes danced between us, for the first time looking at the men he'd Turned, as if picking out a piece of fruit to bite into. Red eyes, like hollow rubies, played with us. His dance stopped on Adrian, whose hand tightened, growing shaky in mine. I sucked in a breath.

"But … reiterating one?" Sebek whispered, just as I turned, Fallon's hand landing on Adrian's shoulder. "Where's the harm in that?"

Osiris flung forward, tension bursting in the air, but nothing could have stopped his next words.

"After all, a live command is still a command."

The scene that unfolded seemed to happen in slow motion. Adrian's face grew pale, sweat slicking it as he ripped his hand out of mine, stumbling away as his eyes rolled back in his head. He let out a strangled gasp, reaching for his throat like someone had taken hold of it. He nearly collapsed as Eirik grabbed him, keeping him standing.

Fallon was next, with a grunt and a flash of red eyes. Pain laced the cry that slid past his lips as Prince had to lean into his side to keep him standing.

Sebek clicked his tongue, and I was frozen in place as he took a step forward. So close now he could nearly reach out and grab me. "I can't hurt you, and unfortunately for you, you can't hurt me or anyone else, either."

The wall of men in front of me was the only thing stopping him. I brushed past them, planting myself between them and him as they panicked and thrashed, trying to help as Adrian and Fallon cried out.

"Let them go!" I screamed, choking on the pained noises coming from behind me.

Sebek ignored me like I was little more than filth. He lifted his arm, pointing back in the direction we were going. "Well, what are you waiting for? Feed. "

The sound of cracking bones as Adrian thrashed against Eirik's grip haunted me. He couldn't feel it. I knew that, which made the snaps hit me that much harder. Fallon wrestled in Osiris's and Prince's hold, blood pooling in his mouth as his entire body twitched.

I took the last steps forward until I was right in front of Sebek. His red eyes focused on me, his power a dangerous brush that warned me to be wary.

"Aaliyah—" Prince managed.

"I said let them go!" I gritted out again, my head starting to ache as a pounding sear started behind my eyes. A gray sheen covered them, darkening the room and stealing the colors around me, searching for an outlet … but with nothing else to target, it settled in me, slowly turning me to ash one pained groan at a time. It was cold, viciously so, circling in my veins and ending as sparks of pain that turned my hands numb. That cold found a place in the air as Red became my grounding force, an anchor to hold on to as I stared Sebek down.

"You've had your chance to come nicely, Glass. They suffer from your selfishness," Sebek said finally. Not even bothering to look at the others.

My heart sank, and I recoiled. A creeping feeling that had no place in my mind spread, touching every thought, corrupting every breath I had.

My fault. My fault.

"Your lies have no home here," Eirik shot in, moving so fast I felt the brush of wind against my face. He stood by my side, a shield and a sword with his teeth bared and arms held high. The tattoo on his face seemed to move, like it was joining in on the fight.

"The only person to blame for this is you, Butcher. Like a child throwing a tantrum," another voice bit in, coated in a pain that I felt in my soul. Fallon stumbled to my side, and I moved just in time to catch him, supporting his weight as he trembled.

Sebek watched with a blank expression before his lips curled in disgust. "We'll see if you still feel that way after a few days, won't we?"

Then he simply walked past, his back to us, his head high as he faded from view, blending into the crowd that rioted around us. Destruction left in his wake.

I shook his words out of my head as I turned my attention entirely to Adrian and Fallon, as the two writhed from the ache of the Maker's Call.

"Don't worry, love. We've dealt with worse," Adrian grunted as he spoke, the red in his eyes finally wavering. He panted, sweat sliding down his face.

"We need to get them out of here," Osiris called, looking to Eirik and Prince, who held Adrian and Fallon up, straining as they writhed against them.

More bones snapped, more screaming cries echoing as the whispers of the other Eternals grew again.

Until all focus was on us.

The room, already in a mockery of shambles, blew up again. The guys paid no mind, shuffling up the stairs, away from the mob that'd formed. I was heaving hard breaths by the time Osiris got me there, too, tears stinging in my eyes as we hit a hallway.

"Breathe, lux mea , breathe." It took me a second to recognize Osiris's voice. But I knew what he meant.

I could feel it. The dark inside of me trying to tear me apart from the inside, desperate to get out. The voice was a cadence now, a mocking scream that wiped away the sound of the Eternium.

I let out a cry, grabbing my chest as I pitched forward. It pressed again, and hands desperately tried to hold me up.

" My light ." Osiris's face was a shaded view, hazed over in a black and white sheen. "Focus on me."

His power was like a summer rain, gentle on my skin as his hands ran up and down my exposed arms. It pushed mine down, covered it as he forced my eyes on his.

The darkness wavered.

I pulled in a breath, then another, following his exaggerated movements. It helped; it settled the dark, pushing it down until it was less of an inferno in my chest, and more of a simmering ember. It didn't stay that way. The Void had never liked being ignored, and the moment I let my guard fall, it came crashing down full force.

I didn't have the time to worry about what it would do, my entire body wrenching away from the hands that held me stable, the world falling away. Mismatched blue eyes watched in shock as I was ripped away. Then there was only nothing .

Obsidian sky.

A Mercury floor.

The bitter cold of Red as he bounced nervously around me, pushing me to turn around and face the danger that I could feel as the hair raised on the back of my neck, and wisps of the Void circled me just like they circled him . Azer. The Imperial, my uncle. He looked the exact same as he had before, though with a better pep in his step as he moved toward me.

He was dressed in a tightly fitted suit, his hands tucked into his pockets as he took sure steps toward me, the Void opening up for him, as though singing for each move he made.

"Well, isn't this a surprise, little Imperial," he said, reaching me, squatting down to see me at eye level, that lavender tinted with gold so gripping it was all I could focus on. It was strange, seeing him in color here. "I was wondering when I'd see you again. I've been dreadfully bored."