Page 40

Chapter 40

It is Finished

E lnok screamed for Sylzenya, the light from her body blinding him. Her yells echoed in the cavern, filling it with her pain and power. A rush of wind threw Elnok away from Distrathrus who had been poised to strike her with a sword.

The god erupted with golden light.

Sylzenya’s yells ceased.

“ No! ” Elnok shouted as he rushed for her, the pain of dying nothing compared to the sight of Sylzenya’s body being crushed by her own creation. “ Sylzenya, stop! ”

Blood no longer spilled from Elnok’s chest, his limbs strong and his lungs gulping in air. He swore he’d been dead, but somehow he was back. Now, all that mattered was saving Sylzenya. He moved for her, his hand reaching out as the thick roots covered the heart—covered her.

But it was too late.

The large heartbeat ceased. Distrathrus’ screeches turned silent as the god’s human body convulsed, eyes rolling to the back of his head. Black liquid oozed out of his yellow eyes. A cut suddenly ripped down his face, throat, torso, and both legs. A lone piece of orodyte fell out of his chest and into the stream of blood.

Yellow light pulsed once, twice.

Then it turned clear as crystal.

Elnok growled. That damned goddess hadn’t tried to kill her brother all those centuries ago. She’d kept him alive this whole time—gave him her own blood in an orodyte.

Damn her .

A great trembling shook the earth, sending Elnok backwards with a thud. Yellow sparks floated in the air, dancing like bugs on a warm summer night.

The wind stopped.

Silence ensued.

And then the silence fell as a familiar voice yelled for him. Elnok turned to find Kharis running towards him, his eyes aglow with power and veins crackling with light.

Kharis slid to his knees, staring at Elnok’s stomach with wide eyes.

“You’re healed,” Kharis exclaimed.

Elnok lifted his blood-stained clothes. He placed his hand over his stomach, the skin smooth and even.

“She saved you,” Kharis said as he turned to look at the large cocoon of roots, “Sacrificed herself for all of us.”

Elnok grabbed Kharis by the collar, “Help me get her out. She doesn’t die, not after this.”

Kharis didn’t argue. Hot adrenaline rushed through Elnok’s veins as he climbed the thicket, splinters from the roots pricking at his palms.

“Elnok,” Kharis said, “if she didn’t make it?—”

“Less talking, more digging, Kharis,” Elnok seethed.

A woman’s voice called from below, asking for Sylzenya’s whereabouts.

“She’s under this somewhere,” Elnok yelled back.

To his surprise, the woman climbed too, worry lining her face as she started to tear apart the roots with them.

It was Sylzenya’s friend—Nyla.

Elnok broke apart what had to be the hundredth root when he finally saw it—ash-colored hair.

“She’s here!” he yelled.

Kharis and Nyla dug with him, breaking roots and throwing them to the orodyte floor as more ash-colored hair was uncovered. Sylzenya’s body was coated in black blood. Elnok grabbed under her arms and Kharis gripped her waist as they lifted her up and out of the mess. Elnok’s throat constricted at what he saw—roots pierced through her back, her leg, and her neck.

His mouth went dry as they quickly lowered her off the altar.

Her chest suddenly moved, eyes fluttering open.

“Elnok?” she rasped, blood dripping from her mouth. The branch piercing just underneath her clavicle moved with her breaths, causing her to grit her teeth.

“I’m here,” he breathed, “You’re ok, everything’s going to be ok.”

“Is he dead?” she whispered, her voice weak.

Elnok nodded, tears forming at the corners of his eyes. Nyla placed a hand on his shoulder.

“You killed Distrathrus,” Nyla spoke, her voice shaking, “You stopped him, and you saved us.”

Sylzenya’s eyes brightened, the deep blue burning like sapphires.

“Nyla.” She reached out a hand. “You’re alright?”

Nyla cried. “Yes, yes, I’m alright. But by the gods, Sylzenya…” She broke down, squeezing Sylzenya’s hand tight. “What do we do? How do we save her?”

Breaths short and hands shaking, Elnok looked to Kharis.

The warrior’s mouth thinned. “I don’t know.”

“It’s alright,” Sylzenya said, “As long as Distrathrus is dead, that’s all that matters.”

Elnok cradled her head, his lip quivering. “I didn’t die on you, so you better return the favor.”

A faint smile graced her lips. “I wish—” she coughed, her eyes pinching in pain before she continued, “I wish we had more time.”

A watery laugh came out of Elnok’s mouth. “Don’t go stealing my lines like that. It’s not very original.”

“Now you know how dramatic you sound.”

“Syl…” He breathed her name as a tear streamed down his cheek.

“These branches,” she choked, “they hurt.”

Elnok’s breaths hitched.

“I don’t want to be in pain any longer,” she said.

Nyla reached for the one piercing her clavicle. He stopped her.

“Prince Elnok, you may not understand, but us Kreenas have endured lives filled with pain,” Nyla said, “I don’t want this either, but it’s the least we can do.”

Elnok bit his tongue until blood filled his mouth. “She’ll die sooner.”

Sylzenya gripped his hand.

Fluttering his eyes closed, he gave a small nod. This was her choice, not his. He clenched his jaw as Nyla carefully wrenched the branch from her flesh. Sylzenya groaned, blood running down her sternum.

Elnok cursed as he gripped the one stuck in her stomach, ripping it out quickly. She winced, squeezing his hand harder.

“Where are my parents?” she asked.

“Right here, flower bud.”

Elnok turned, struck by the similarities Sylzenya bore to her parents. He needed to let them have their final words.

Her parents took her hands, whispering words of love and some unknown prayers over her. Sylzenya’s smile grew despite the red blood pooling around her.

“Elnok,” Kharis approached him, “Do you still have the compass? Or the medicine Aretta gave you?”

Elnok’s heart skipped. He cursed himself for not thinking about them sooner. Quickly, he rummaged through his pockets, the compass’s cold metal meeting his fingers. He pulled it out, but the needle was nothing more than an ordinary splinter now.

Elnok cursed.

He searched his pockets again, the soft fabric pilling in his hands until he found the cylinder shape of the medicine vial. He held it in his hand. The substance continued to glow a bright white, pulsing with Elnok’s heartbeat.

“I assumed it was made specifically for Orym. You think it can heal her too?” Elnok inquired.

Kharis shrugged. “It might.”

“But he could still be alive when we get back.” Elnok replied, “He could’ve beaten the odds and I still might be able to save him.”

Kharis said nothing, staring at the vial.

“I could give this to her and it might not work,” Elnok continued, “then both Sylzenya and Orym will be dead.”

“You’re not wrong.”

“ Fuck you , Kharis. I want some help here.”

“The price for life is pain,” Kharis replied, “but you better decide now. She’s almost gone.”

Elnok took a shaky breath.

Save one. Doom the other.

Or possibly doom both.

The truth washed over him. He already knew his decision, had known it since he turned around and came back instead of returning to Vutror.

“Sylzenya,” he spoke softly, kneeling next to her, “I have Aretta’s medicine.”

She turned to him, tears staining her face, a small smile on her mouth. “That’s for Orym. You should take it to him in case he’s still alive.”

Elnok shook his head, uncorking the vial. “If he’s still alive, he’d want you to have it.”

Her mouth gaped, more blood dribbling down her chin. “Elnok, no, I can’t?—”

“He’d refuse this the moment I brought it back; I was a fool to think I could force him to live just because I wanted him too.” He cradled her head. Her tired eyes fluttered shut as she leaned into his hand. “He has terrible survival instincts.”

Her parents touched Elnok’s arm, their faces splotched red.

“It’s selfish of me,” she whispered.

“Oh fuck that to hell, Syl,” Elnok breathed. “Now’s not the time to be heroic. You already did that by killing Distrathrus.”

Her laughter sounded like death. He held her head, the medicine vial balanced at her lips.

She grimaced. “The price for life will always be pain?—”

“I swear, if I hear one more of you say that damned line…” His hands shook, his desire to see her live overwhelming. He let out a breath. “I’ll only do it if you want me to. I’ve let you know my choice. Let that consequence rest on me, alright? But it’s still your decision, no one else’s.”

Eyes fading, limbs falling limp, she stared at the glowing liquid.

“I don’t want to die,” she whispered, looking deep into his eyes.

“You don’t have to.” He squeezed her hand. “And I don’t want you to die either, if that was ever in question.”

She smiled. Sweat dripped down his face.

Finally, she gave a gentle nod. Taking a relieved breath, Elnok poured the medicine into her mouth, the bright liquid disappearing behind her tongue, her throat bobbing as she swallowed it all.

Silence filled the cavern, time slipping by, her skin growing paler, her lips turning blue.

“Please,” he whispered, burying his face into her cold neck. “ Please, stay with me.”

Lower lip quivering, Elnok tightened his grip, tangling his fingers in her hair.

“Elnok,” Kharis said, his hand gripping Elnok’s shoulder. “I don’t think?—”

Suddenly, a golden light flared from her shoulder. Sylzenya’s eyes burned a bright yellow as light weaved in and around her skin, closing up the holes made by the roots. The light danced around her, spiraling around her body, whipping her hair and clothes. She sucked in a long breath.

The sparks faded, leaving dried blood and perfectly healed skin.

Tears filled his vision as her parents squeezed his arm.

Her veins glowed bright, crackling with power, her eyes that same deep blue he could drown in. Elnok pressed his forehead to hers, her smile wide as she gently swept her fingers across his jaw. A resounding chorus of cries and sobs echoed in the cavern.

A miracle.

“I’m glad you listened to me for once.” Elnok laughed as he stroked her face, her hair, her freshly healed skin.

“You did stay alive for me, so I suppose it would’ve been unfair if I didn’t do it for you,” she said, lacing her fingers with his, her brows dipping as she wiped the tears from his cheek.

He searched her face, mouth trembling as he brought his lips to hers. She ran her fingers through his hair, her mouth warm and tasting of life as she laughed. He tightened his hold on her lower back, promising himself he would never let go of her again.

“You did it,” he whispered into her mouth. “You killed Distrathrus.”

“I couldn’t have done it without you or Kharis.”

She softly grazed his ear with her lips, her heart beating in rhythm with his. His smile peeled wide as he laughed against the warm skin of her neck.

Sylzenya leaned back, her eyes glimmering as she looked at Elnok, her parents, Nyla, Kharis, and the surrounding Kreenas and Dynameis. Her parents dove in for their daughter, and Elnok stood up, giving them space to be together.

“What now?” Elnok asked Kharis.

Kharis raised his chin, observing the dead heart seeping through the roots on the pedestal and the dead body of Distrathrus split in two, the clear piece of orodyte next to him.

“Can someone burn that?” Kharis shouted.

A Dynami grabbed a handful of candles from the banquet table, using the small flames to burn what was left of Distrathrus.

“We need to inform the kingdom of everything,” Kharis said to Elnok. “I checked with all the Kreenas and Dynameis here, and they agreed to help spread the word.” He took Elnok by the elbow, dragging him away from everyone celebrating Sylzenya’s resurrection. “Multiple Kreenas told me they were on the precipice of death, three of them swearing to me they had died, like you.”

Elnok tilted his head. “What do you mean?”

“I mean, I think Sylzenya healed everyone in this room, even bringing the dead back to life.”

Elnok went to spin the gold ring on his finger, but it was gone.

A strange wave of relief overcame him. He’d been given a second chance to live; a second chance to do something with his life, but this time, on his own terms.

It’d been a rebirth–a change.

He smiled at the thought, letting his fingers rest, placing his hand in his pocket.

“We can ask her about it when she’s more rested,” Elnok stated. “We should probably leave before Distrathrus’ burning body makes us all want to retch. And, I need to make my way back to Vutror.”

Kharis agreed. “We’ll need to take an entourage. If Aretta’s vision was correct and the continent is truly saved from Distrathrus’ curse, then Esteans might be able to help revitalize the land.”

“Revitalize the land?” Elnok questioned, the words coming out slow, “You think that could work?”

“We won’t know unless we try.”

Suddenly, the sound of wings echoed in the cavern, bird song filling the air. Elnok looked up. Golden light spilled through a crack in the ceiling, a handful of gray and white feathered birds flying through, their soft songs echoing. The sun shone onto the clear orodyte floor, a vast array of colors reflecting onto the walls.

Elnok found Sylzenya’s eyes as she embraced her mother. Her bright smile made his knees shake, his heart ache, and a deep laugh to spill from his mouth.

And then everyone started to laugh. Not the kind of laughter that felt strained or constricting, but the kind that felt warm and full. A laughter weaving in and out of everyone’s hearts, connecting each of them to one another, joyful tears spilling from their eyes.

For the first time in a very, very long time, Elnok felt something he didn’t think he’d feel again; not since he lost his parents or endured the dungeons with his brother; not since he’d been abused by his blacksmith master; not since he became nothing more than a thief in a dying land.

For the first time in ten, long years—he felt hope.