Page 24

24

THE CASTLE OF THANATOS

W isely, no one spoke after this, because in a nutshell, we were fucked! As not only had I intended to do this quietly, but I had also planned for us to have a way out. But as it was, unless we found another route, then this rescue was going to go one way. I was going to save Ella from one Fate before potentially throwing her straight into another. Oh yeah, we would be together, but unless we had some Romeo and Juliet kind of bullshit ending intent on dying together, then this was not going to plan at all.

The tunnel didn’t branch off anywhere, which also didn’t bode well for us. Meaning that by the time we walked long enough to reach the castle entrance, I still didn’t have a fucking clue how I was going to get us out of this one.

Because there was only one door.

Our only shred of luck was that there were no guards to contend with, and when I say luck, I meant that in the barest sense of the word… like, no bigger than fucking ant sized . Surprisingly, the landslide of bones hadn’t even alerted anyone to our presence, despite causing a fucking avalanche big enough to shake the mountain.

“Now I am going to go in there and by the time I come out with my girl, I want a fucking plan!” I barked at my brother and Marcus.

“Er…” both of them said, looking at each other like naughty fucking schoolboys!

“I am serious, this plan is properly fucked if we can’t get out of this place,” I told them.

“I think I…”

“Not now, Tyr,” I snapped, as I continued to give my brother and my best friend a piece of my very pissed off mind.

“I don’t care if you have to try and claw your way out of this fucking place…”

“HellBeast…”

“I said not now!” I shouted at Tyr, who instead of going the fuck away, grabbed me by the shoulder. I was about to punch him in the face, but he grabbed mine first and forced it back.

“Or we could just use those steps,” he said, making my eyes widen as he let me go. Because he was right, there was, in fact, a staircase built into the stone that lead to the top of the mountain above us. One that daylight was pouring in from. I sighed in relief, something mirrored by the other two, as this had thankfully got them out of the shit.

“You lucky sons of bitches!” I said, now looking back at them, making my brother shrug as Marcus leaned against the wall, looked at his nails, and said,

“No biggy, I knew that was there.”

“Ha, like fuck you did,” Orth scoffed.

“Now I am going in there and no matter what, I don’t want any of you to follow.”

“But…” my brother tried to protest like I knew he would.

“I am serious, Orth, anything happens, get your arses out of here and alert the others.”

At this my brother’s shoulders lowered in defeat.

“Fine. But for the record, I don’t fucking like this plan,” he stated gruffly.

“Yeah well, it’s the only one we got, so it’s tough shit. Now wish me luck,” I said, now facing the door, breaking the lock, and stepping inside.

I knew my brother didn’t like letting me do this alone, his expression told me as much. But in all honesty, I couldn’t risk it. I was already trying to break out the love of my life, the last thing I needed was potentially losing my brother too.

Plus, it was like I said, it would be easier to stay hidden this way. Something that was proven when I started to hear voices, making me put my back to the wall, keeping to the shadows. Guards were obviously making their rounds, and they spoke of the upcoming battle. I listened in, knowing that any information I could obtain was only going to be useful later on. However, the second I heard talk of their Queen’s return, I had a job to keep my breathing even.

I waited for the voices to trail off before stepping from the wall and making my way through the hallway once more. There was no natural light, as this castle had been built inside a mountain, one very similar to Lucius’s home in Germany.

It was a catacomb of tunnels and hidden rooms that I knew I could easily get lost in. But thankfully, the map had shown exactly where to go, one I had memorized. As there was only one place a merchant providing dresses and material needed to go and that was the bedchamber. A place I hoped they were keeping her, as the anger at thinking of her in some damp, dark jail cell somewhere had me even more on edge.

But then, I also had to question Garmr’s need to get her dresses in the first place. Knowing I would also lose my shit if I found out he was keeping her in his own bedchamber. I swear if he laid a finger on her, then nothing would stop me from bursting into my HellBeast.

I tried to push these murderous thoughts down as far as they would go, so I could concentrate on finding her. I walked through an open arch and looked both ways, to find only one door that looked like it could belong to a bedroom. So, I made a left and after checking there was no one standing guard, I tried the door, surprised when I found it unlocked.

I almost gave up before looking, as I knew he wouldn’t have chanced her behind a door that wasn’t secure. As surely, Ella would have tried to have run. However, I was glad when I did, as the second I saw her red hair against the pillow, I swear my heart nearly stopped.

I had found her.

I stepped further inside, making sure to close the door behind me quietly, so as not to alarm her enough to scream out. I walked softly to the bed, briefly taking note of the gothic room, making me grit my teeth, hoping it had only been used for her.

The second I got to the bed and saw her start to stir, I quickly covered her mouth with my hand, lifting my finger up to cover my lips when she opened her eyes. They were wide with a moment of shock before narrowing furiously, making me frown. I removed my hand slowly and told her on instinct,

“Ella, it’s me.” However, the second her eyes started to glow green, I knew the awful truth… I was too late. This was proven when she suddenly grabbed me by the throat and was strong enough to force me backwards as she rose to sitting.

“E…ll…a,” I choked out as her grip tightened before she suddenly tossed me backwards, her strength shocking… her aim even better, as I crashed into a pair of wooden screens. Damn it, but she almost winded me, making me rub my throat and try again.

“Ella… it’s me… fuck.”

“My name is Anástasi!” she roared at me, thrusting out her hands and making me move from the walls as streams of her power started circling the room. I rose to my feet, panic beginning to take hold. She was wearing a green night dress, flowing around her as if she was her own energy source, manipulating even the material she wore.

“No! Your name is Ella, and I am Jared!” At this she shook her head a bit, making me watch her like a hawk.

“Silence!” she screamed, banging her head with the palm of her hand, as if my girl was trying to break out.

“ELLA, PUSH THROUGH IT!” I shouted.

“NO! She is no more! There is only I, the Summoner Queen!” she bellowed, flicking her wrist and making her power lasso my hands and my arms, holding me prisoner.

“That’s not true, I know she is in there. Ella, you have to try!” Again, she shook her head, making me try harder to tell her.

“I am your HellBeast! I am Cerberus!” I shouted, making her sob suddenly, covering her mouth with both hands and releasing me of her power.

“No… No… he left me! He left me to die!” she shouted, making me jerk my head back in shock.

“No! Baby, that’s not what happened, the battle, you wanted to leave…”

“Enough!” she screamed before suddenly she was in front of me again, this time pinning me to the wall, before snarling,

“My HellBeast is dead!”

I started choking, having no choice but to try and pry her wrist back to free me, something that prompted her to toss me across the room once more. This time I crashed into a wardrobe, making clothes come spilling out. The outfit I had created for her was torn on the floor, just like her memory of me. Because Garmr had done something other than just giving her back her powers.

He had changed her.

I held my stomach as I coughed through the pain, broken pieces of wood around me from the destroyed furniture. I staggered back to my feet, knowing now that it was no use. She was too strong, and I couldn’t fight her.

I wouldn’t fight her.

Although I could stop her… She flew at me, her fist heading towards my face, and I grabbed her hand, catching this time as part of my HellBeast. Then I told her,

“Your HellBeast isn’t dead, sweetheart!”

At this her eyes widened as she looked to my hand in shock. A flickering of recognition made her glowing eyes simmer down, before she spoke a single word, enough to give me hope.

“Cerberus?”

I closed my eyes as relief flooded through me. But then, the moment was quickly stolen from us, as Garmr entered the room.

“I see we have found ourselves an intruder,” he said, snapping Ella back into her controlled state, the Summoner in her blazing forward as she grabbed my neck and actually lifted me from the ground. This was before slamming me back against a broken mirror. Then she stepped away, her powers taking her place and effectively keeping me pinned there, as she was now free to walk up to Garmr.

“You’d get Ella to fight me, you fucking coward!” I growled, making him sneer at me.

“But this is so much more fun, for I did offer your head on a platter as a gift for my Queen. But I must say, I didn’t expect you to deliver it yourself,” he replied, making me snarl.

“Fight me!”

“I think not, no, this is far more fitting but before your end, I wish you to see who she truly belongs to… show him, my dear,” he said, and I was forced to watch as my Ella wrapped her arms around him and kissed him, pouring everything into it. Her fingers fisted in his white hair as she pulled him closer. The sight was one of the most painful I’ve had to endure, and one that had me trying to fight like a madman against the power of her souls.

“Mmm, delicious, my love,” Garmr cooed.

“You controlling bastard! What have you done to her!?” I snarled, making him grin.

“I did nothing but show her who she was always meant to be, her true self, with no HellBeast mongrel holding her back!” he snapped, making her suddenly jerk back a little.

“HellBeast?” she questioned, making Garmr grit his teeth.

“It is an expression, my dear,” he told her, making me narrow my gaze at them both. As it was true, she believed I was dead. Whatever version of Ella this was, it was like time had reversed. As if this was the Ella Garmr had first taken.

He must have made her believe I had left her to die, that I myself had died because Cerberus wasn’t at the gates. I knew this when my own beast wined inside of me, begging to be let out. But I couldn’t, not here, because if she attacked us, then I didn’t know what he would do. She could accidently get hurt. Which was why I had to try and reason with her.

“He lied to you! Ella… Anástasi!” I said her name, making her gasp. But Garmr gripped her chin and pulled her face back to his.

“He lies, he is not who you think he is, he is an intruder trying to kidnap you, to steal you from me again!” he told her, making her growl demonically.

“No! Anástasi, you need to listen to me, he has manipulated you!” I tried but it was no use. I could see Garmr’s red eyes glow as he held her gaze, then what he said next fired ice into my veins.

“You love me, don’t you?”

“Yes,” she said, and it was like being shot in the fucking heart, but no more so than when she replied to his next question.

“Then kill him for me.” To which she looked back at me, her eyes lost once more to the darkness inside her.

“Yes,” she said as she started to walk towards me. I tried to fight harder against the power she held me with, but it was no use. So, I did the only thing I could do… pleaded with her.

“Ella, fight it! Try, baby, I am begging you!”

“Ella is lost to my queen, your pleas are useless and nothing but entertaining,” Garmr said laughing. But I ignored him and focused instead on Ella.

“You are being controlled, you have to fight it. Everything he told you is a lie!” I tried. Finally, she reached me and with a tender hand placed on my cheek, I thought I had finally broken through. Tears filled my eyes as she gave me a curious look.

But then, she thrust her arm back and suddenly I was in agony as she stabbed me with a piece of broken wood straight into my gut. I roared in pain, and all at once I fell to the floor as her powers released me. My hands went to the stake in my stomach, my blood soaking the stone as my strength left me, making me collapse. My eyes focused on the blood as it traveled through the cracks between the slabs.

But then, there was a glistening of something else, as I saw it rolling towards me. A ring… Ella’s ring.

The one I gave her.

So, with the last of my strength, I reached out and grabbed it, clutching it to me as if it was the last part of her I could hold on to. Because I had failed to save her. And in the end…

Love had killed us both.

Which is why with my last breath, I spoke the words that I could only hope somewhere deep inside her, she could hear…

“I love you, Red, Ella, My love … my wild one.”

After that I finally let go, feeling myself falling into the abyss of death as my world…

Ended.