Page 22 of Shadows Ascend (Remnant Archives #2)

M y sword flashed in Sheol’s cosmic light and swept outwards the moment I stepped outside our tower. The sound of steel ringing against shadow traveled down the hallowed paths of Voltum as I turned to see my brother's power crossing my blade.

Kade grinned, leaning casually against the tower wall, his eyes trailing behind me with expectation. "Trying to start the day off with a kill I see. Where are your little sidekicks today?"

I snorted and sheathed my blade while my brother dropped the shadows. "Emon and Riella are eating pastries on the balcony watching the herd of camphor you showed her yesterday. What are you doing here Kade?"

He looked slightly deflated, like he was looking forward to seeing his niece, his new little shadow. Curly blue hair fell across his face when his eyes darkened. "You are leaving. I thought it would be a good idea to visit my sister before I don't see her for another century or two."

"Kade—"

He shook his head, pushing off the building with his foot. "I didn't come here to rehash this. I actually came here to see if you wanted to play shadow league before you go. For old time’s sake."

I frowned, "Shadow league…I haven't played that since—"

His brow arched mischievously and his emerald eyes so much like mine twinkled. "Since we destroyed the throne room of the City of Light after too much ambrosia wine?"

I bit my lip smiling back at him. "I seem to remember you just could not accept the fact that my shadow warrior was far superior than yours. I was going to win and you purposefully set fire to the frozen stone trolls on display there."

Kade snickered, "It was worth it seeing the queen of Faerie's look of disgust when they woke from their slumber farting."

I laughed and pointed at him, "Half the court was left unconscious for days by that stench. It took me weeks to get the smell from my nose!"

He grinned, "Those pompous court fae needed a little bit of stench for their upturned noses, Rem Rem."

Shaking my head I answered him truthfully, "Perhaps." Then my smirk grew wider seeing that knowing sparkle in his eyes. "You're hoping that we do the same to dear old dad’s realm aren't you?"

My little, not so little brother crossed his lithe muscular arms over his chest. "Such an accusation, sister!" Tapping his fingers, his teeth flashed in the twilight. "But now that you mention it…"

"As much as I'd love to play shadow league with you Kadey Kins, my power has not been reacting obediently to me lately. I have no control over the shadows." It goddess damn hurt to admit that. The ache of that knowledge vast inside my chest.

Kade chuckled darkly, "Oh I know it and it's perfect, who knows what kind of wondrous things would happen with rogue shadows.

Besides, I spotted some nuckelavee not too far from here.

They are hunting the camphor this morning.

So what do you say Rem Rem? Afraid you'll finally lose to your baby brother? "

I tilted my head, studying him. For a better part of a century Kade had been trapped here, the people he once loved and cared about were in a soulless sleep, leaving him alone in a world of death while our parents rekindled their former love.

And here I was—less than a day since I had arrived and was already planning on leaving…

I smiled wide at him and cracked my neck side to side. "Alright. You're on but tagging instead.” I wasn’t even sure I could handle that. “Hand to hand combat or weapons…"

Kade grinned, his eyes gleaming with renewed light. "I was thinking given the unknown way your powers are manifesting…explosives."

"Explosive tag sounds… dangerous ." I reached out for the smallest of shadows.

I could feel its initial resistance, but then it finally conformed to my will morphing into a sparking ball of shadow.

It would have to do. I looked up at him and nodded, "You're on.

" Tossing the shadow bomb at his feet, I ran before it exploded in the white sand. "Best me if you can, little brother!"

Stepping off the silvered path, I ran lightly upon the white sand out away from the city.

Kade was right, there was no telling what I would do with rogue shadows that I could not control.

I scowled when I attempted to pull ones that were trailing across my path following a soaring fiery comet, but its shadow barely budged.

"Shit," I hissed, feeling rather than seeing Kade's darkness descending.

Skidding to a halt, I raised my brows at a dozen shadow gnomes waddling towards me, complete with their long beards dragging across the sand and biting needled teeth.

"Tick, tick, tick," Kade called behind me, his voice slightly unhinged.

"Oh come on, that is so fucked up!" I cried out, diving down into the white sands just before they exploded one by one.

Waiting for the attack to end, counting down each explosion, I rose after the last one buried my entire body in an inch of sand.

Normally, I would have just disintegrated the shadows, just last night I could pull them down from the goddess damn sky.

Now I couldn't even use them to shield myself for protection.

"Awe, is little Rem Rem feeling sorry for herself. "

Wriggling from the sand and spitting it out from my mouth, I glared at my baby brother standing over me, then kicked out my feet. Kade’s ass hit the ground in a puff of dust and I sent another small spark of shadow towards him that wriggled and then puffed in the cloud of smoke.

He stared at it before looking at me, laughter bursting from us both at the sorry state of my powers.

Swiping sand at him playfully, I eased my laughter, reclining back on my elbows.

Kade’s laughter trailed off as well and the silence stretched between us.

I gazed up at the colorful twilight feeling the star dust fall upon us. “It really is beautiful here.”

Kade snorted. “Until you realize you’re literally living in a tomb.”

My lips pressed together grimly and I shot my brother a side glance, seeing the pain and darkness creep into his features. “Our people didn’t have a choice when they became soulless, but you do Kade. You still have a choice.”

He snarled, leaning back on his hands. “What kind of fae would that make me then, Rem? How could I possibly ever feel any ounce of joy when I know they are there, half dead, their lives being stolen from them with each passing of the moons.”

I tilted my head to the side, letting the stardust kiss my face.

“I felt the same once. For almost a hundred years, I exiled myself in the Wildwoods, staring into a soul mirror every hour of every day, reliving what I had done. I destroyed half our world Kade and I loathed myself, a monster of all monsters, not fit for redemption, not deserving of death.”

“I hate that our mother led our people here,” Kade said after a long pause.

“But what I hate more is that she forced me to leave you behind Rem. After that day on the balcony, when you told us your decision to take your vows with the queen. I left you there, left you in that bitch’s shadow and if I hadn’t been acting like such a damn faeling I would have seen clearly what you were trying to do, who you were trying to protect.

I vowed I would never make that mistake again… and then I did.”

Tears blurred my vision, “I know Kade, Emon showed me the memory of that night. But they were both right to force you to go. Deirdre would have destroyed you just as easily as she destroyed me and I promise you there is more than one way to kill someone without stopping their heart and Deirdre…goddess she is a master at it. Even our people are better off as soulless than in her hands.”

Kade stared back, his green eyes a turbulence of emotion. “I always had a purpose. Protect you, protect our court, protect our mother…who for years walked alone in her darkness. But here, I protect nothing, I do nothing, I am nothing.”

I reached for his shaking hand and pulled it into mine.

“That is not true, you are my brother, you are our mother’s son, you are half a god, and most importantly you are the ever vigilant watcher of our people, keeping them safe and their memories alive while their bodies sleep.

Sometimes the mark of a leader isn't about what you do but about what you don't do that matters the most.” I squeezed his hand, “I am proud of you for taking care of our people all this time Kadey Kins, and I swear to you, I will return from The Well with every single one of them. Your story doesn’t end here, it’s just beginning. I can feel it.”

Kade pulled his hand back to sweep the curls off his brow, his face scrunched up tightly, “Fuck Rem Rem, when did you start becoming so philosophical,” he chuckled softly through the glistening of tears he would never admit were there.

Shrugging, I looked back at the cosmos of Sheol, “Well when you spend that many years alone in a cramped cabin with nothing but shadows you tend to think harder than normal. Plus I’m goddess damn older than you, which means I am wiser.”

Kade snickered. “Not wise enough for this sister.” Quickly rising, I stared idiotically at him sprinting away from me before I noticed the shadow bomb.

Diving away, it exploded. Dark spots and sand blurred my vision while I cursed at his retreating form.

“Goddess damn it Kade! You cheat like a fucking leprechaun!”

He laughed maniacally, “Takes ones to know one!” he hollered back, his heels kicking up the sand as he ran.

“Takes one to know one…” I repeated back with a frown, staring at my little brother, actually worried now that he had lost his goddess damn mind because he was starting to sound like Emon.

Shaking my head, I jumped to my feet, spitting out more sand, and narrowed my eyes on the shadows in front of Kade.

The ones he was running directly towards.

Forcing them to answer my call, they fought against my hold but I still managed to draw up a thin small line—one Kade was speeding straight towards.

Sweat dripped down my brow as I struggled to hold the rebellious thread of darkness.

No more than six inches long and as thin as a piece of my hair, it was all I could manage—but it would be more than enough.

Like a tripwire, the moment Kade’s lithe frame crossed the line, a wall of sand blew up into his unsuspecting face. His loud curse was the last thing I saw before a massive pile of exploded dunes fell hard upon him like a heavy snow from the bough of a tree.

Unlike my brother, I didn't waste time laughing as I took off running, although my grin was now just as wide as his was a moment ago…before I buried him alive.