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Kiara

It has often been argued whether shadow beasts have the potential to become their namesake. If they can slip between the cracks of reality and travel the planes of the world with freedom. Of course, that is a mystery that will never be solve d.

Excerpt from Asidian Lore: Legends and Myths of the Realm

We’d been walking for hours.

Surprisingly, there were no more symbols or pressurized stones, though several decayed bodies decorated the floor, the skeletons mostly intact. I surmised they’d died from dehydration or injuries sustained from one of the earlier traps.

We journeyed on like this for some time, each tunnel a replica of the one before. The Fox navigated them with remarkable ease, stiffly pointing me in the proper direction as I led us all.

Jude had avoided his mother after their confrontation, and while I gave him space, my shadows couldn’t help but sneak out and touch him every so often as we traveled.

I felt him now, lingering at the back of our group, his tension causing my shadows to flicker.

Perhaps leaving him to his thoughts wasn’t such a good idea—

I froze as soft vibrations worked their way up my legs.

“The ground…” I crouched, placing my palm upon the cold stone. “It’s trembling. You feel it?”

Emelia shot me a concerned look.

This place was alive, as alive as any creature in the mortal world above our heads. It had a pulse as if the god himself had given his life over to his shrine.

Jude crept forward, his eyes aglow. When I held up a hand to stop him, he jerked to a halt. His own hands were balled into fists, his frame practically shaking with the need to assume command—the only way he believed he could protect me.

We’d have to work on those misguided notions.

My shadows unfurled from my skin, peeling away to slip along the stones. They caressed the ground until the sound of a single gear clicked.

The Fox jumped backward as the floor gave out where my shadows had touched, the ground now a gaping void of black. The eleventh trap so far.

“Good call.” Finn slapped me on the back and then offered me a hand. “I could get used to this one, Emelia.” He crooked a thumb my way. “Between her and the smooth-talking sidekick over there, we’d make a fortune.”

Jake pouted. “Hey, I’m not a side—”

“No,” Emelia said tightly, cutting him off. “We work alone.”

As if I were eager to join her band of thieves. Jake, on the other hand, looked more annoyed by the idea that he wasn’t invited.

“Stubborn lass,” Finn teased, reaching for a flask that certainly wasn’t filled with water. “Can’t even admit the truth when it’s staring you in the face.”

My focus landed on Jude. His nostrils flared whenever Emelia glanced in his general direction. Their talk had gone disastrously, and she didn’t seem eager for a repeat.

All I could offer was support, and he would have that from me in spades.

My back prickled as shadows unfurled, swirling around my periphery. I swallowed a gasp when I peered over my shoulder.

They looked like wings, although they were more batlike in appearance , the almost translucent ends pointed and jagged, the shimmering silver specks gleaming from the subtle breeze.

Jude’s eyes landed on the rippling black wings jutting out from my back, and the tension in his jaw lessened. I found myself relaxing beneath his reverent stare.

He didn’t smile, but his eyes brightened, causing my heart to skip several beats. I cursed myself as my mind wandered to the other night when it was just the two of us, alone. Heat scorched my cheeks, and I had to glance away before the others took note, though seconds later, a deep chuckle sounded from behind. Jude missed nothing.

It took all my strength to continue, my steps leaden, my pulse hammering at my throat.

Life-or-death situation, Ki, I scolded, even as the heat worked its way down my neck. I swore I felt him smile.

Thankfully, I kept my lustful thoughts under control as we avoided a slew of arrows in the next passage, which boasted a swinging ax. By the sixth turn, my shadows triggered a gaping pit filled with razor-sharp blades. Easily avoided.

That was the problem. It felt too damned easy.

When Jude announced it was nearly ten in the evening, Emelia called out for us to rest. “We’re almost to the end,” she said while Finn passed out bundles of food.

I sensed she , too, was on edge, wary of the ease with which we’d infiltrated the temple. I caught her rubbing at her chin, Jude grasping his at the same time, both in thought while they ignored their too-salty meat.

Dimitri took the opportunity to whistle his lullaby as I gulped down the precious remains of my canteen. The tune had become a steadying constant, and my eyes flickered shut as it washed over me.

It didn’t take long for snores to fill the open hall.

The glow of the blue-tinged moon blazed brightly enough that I couldn’t find sleep, Jude appearing to have the same problem. He pressed his body closer to mine, and I rested my cheek on his shoulder. Both our heads tilted up toward the sky, soaking in the breathtaking enchantment of the endless universe. Such splendor was unexpected in a place of death.

Jake assumed the first watch and was currently busying himself with a piece of rope, tying intricate knots.

When I met his stare and cocked my head to Jude with a knowing wink, Jake groaned and rolled his eyes. He knew exactly what I was asking.

“Come on,” I whispered to the commander, easing up from his arms. He made a deep sound of protest, but he must’ve understood my intention well enough when I impatiently pulled him to his feet and guided him down the next hall. Then he followed without a struggle.

Far enough from the others, I cast my shadows out, the slithering black wisps forming a wall, blocking off the rest of the world. It came easily, calling them, and being here where I felt my strongest, I found a beauty in my power.

It could be used to kill, to maim, to destroy, but now, I reveled in the grace with which the threads of shimmering night moved, carefully secluding us in a realm belonging to two.

Iridescent light radiated from under Jude’s shirt, his magic pulsing, his glow a steady heartbeat. And while my own light emanated, I didn’t need to look down to see that my scar reacted the same way. I felt it.

“Trying to get me alone?” Jude asked, shooting me with his oh-so-stern commander look of disapproval. Tease.

But yes. He was very much correct.

After seeing him earlier, after his confrontation with his mother, all I’d desired was to speak with him, to help carry the burden of his fear. But I couldn’t very well do that in front of our crew.

“What if I did want to get you all to myself?” I wound my arms around his neck and held him close.

“So inappropriate.” He leaned down, his lips an inch away. My breath hitched.

“Propriety was never really my thing.” It hardly mattered where we were—reality slipped away whenever the commander looked at me with such fierce intensity.

I’d never experienced something this strong. This unbreakable. I wanted to make him feel the same way.

“Are you all right?” I asked, bracing for his reaction.

His face was stone, his lips pressed into a thin line. Just when I’d assumed he wouldn’t answer, Jude stunned me into silence.

“Why is it that we care so much for those who often care so little about us?”

I flinched at the rawness of his voice, at how it cracked at the end. I tightened my grip around his neck, not allowing him an escape. He didn’t fight the cage I’d made.

“I think we can’t help it,” I answered truthfully. “We want to pretend we’re not torn apart by their apathy, but deep down, all we ever want is their approval. Maybe it’s fucked up and we want it more because they shunned us so easily. Or it’s simply because their lack of approval reinforces our disappointment in ourselves.”

Jude glanced away from me , and I immediately hated that.

“I thought I’d gotten over it, but it looks like I was wrong,” he murmured, jaw tight. “There are so many others I could’ve sought for answers, but at the first opportunity, I went running to her, begging.”

Drawn to him, to the sorrow that eclipsed his features, my shadows curled protectively around his frame.

“For years I was numb under Cirian’s command,” Jude said. “It wasn’t until the Mist, until you , that I began to feel again, and it’s been both a gift and a curse ever since. Now I can’t stop thinking. About the past and my mother. About my father. About you and what we’re going to lose—”

“Enough.” I grabbed his chin and made him face me. He could mourn his past—that was understandable—but the future was ours. And I’d be damned if I let him think nineteen years made up an entire life.

“You are unbelievably frustrating sometimes, you know that?” I laughed, shaking my head. “I mean, one second you look at me like we have nothing but time, and the next, you’re acting as though we’ve already lost. We haven’t lost anything yet, so you’re gonna come to terms with the fact that you may very well be stuck with me at the end of all this. I’m not leaving you. I’m not running. And possibly for the first time in my life, I’m not afraid. You wanna know why?”

Jude inhaled sharply. I wasn’t sure he dared exhale.

“I’m sick and tired of everything being decided for me all because Raina fell from the skies and we lost the light. We’ve spent our lives buried beneath the threat of death, and that’s no way to live. I’m not done with this life yet, and I sure as hells am not done with your brooding ass.”

Jude’s lips twitched, just one corner lifting, but the sight of it was like a drink of ale on a snowy night, warmth trickling into your belly, your head growing exquisitely fuzzy.

“You know I blame you for this.” He motioned between us , and I frowned. “You gave me a taste of hope , and now I’m a mess at the idea of losing it. Gods, Isiah would have laughed at the sight of me now. Talking about my emotions.”

“He would’ve been thrilled,” I said, grinning. “From what you told me, he was always telling you to live a little. To let loose. I saw the love he radiated when he looked at you.”

Isiah. Jude’s only real family. Dead in the Mist.

My heart gave an excruciating tug at the memory of those final moments, Isiah covered in blood, his eyes shutting forever.

I’d been falling for Jude then, so much so that I’d have given anything to bring back his friend. I still would.

Jude swallowed thickly. “Eh, Isiah might’ve been happy. But I wouldn’t have heard the end of his teasing.” He tugged me closer until my head rested over his erratically beating heart. “I could tell Isiah liked you. Even if he told me to stay as far away from you as possible. He knew you were trouble.”

I made a sound of mock disgust. “I take back all the nice things I said about him.”

A hesitant chuckle shook his chest, and I sighed, enjoying how he embraced me, both of us needing the contact. I wondered if anyone had ever dared hold him like this.

“Thank you, Kiara,” Jude said, breaking the peaceful silence.

I craned my neck, shooting him a confused look. “For what?”

Jude’s fingers went to my chin, drawing me back so he could place a tender kiss on my temple. “Just…thank you for always finding me. Whether I like it or not.” His grin was charmingly lopsided.

My lips hovered above his, not quite kissing him, but close enough to feel his warmth. My skin tingled, heat rushing across my face, down my neck, and to my chest.

“You’ll never be alone in the dark again,” I whispered. His eyes shut, a tremor working down his body. “But if you do somehow slip and fall, I’ll be right behind you.”

Saying the words aloud cemented my faith, and while that frightened me to no end, I savored the sense of belonging. I hated myself for ever thinking that my feelings for Jude were due to our shared power.

I wouldn’t doubt us again.

Slipping my hand from Jude’s neck, I brought it to his cheek, my fingertips grazing his coarse stubble. He leaned into me, eyes flickering shut, a sigh leaving him.

“Promise me you won’t do anything foolish if we fail.” Like steal the Godslayer from my sheath and carve out the missing pieces for me to accept. He’d do it , too, without hesitation.

Jude blinked in surprise. The golden sheen masking his eyes dimmed, morphing back to the ones I’d gotten to know and love. One brown and flecked with gold, the other chaotic and full of mystery. While I adored the golden light he radiated every so often, I preferred him like this. Wholly himself.

“I can’t make you that promise,” he whispered, and my heart plummeted. “But I can promise to do everything in my power to find another way first. I’d give anything to wake up beside you. To watch the rays of dawn slide over your face, welcoming you to the new day. That would be the ending I’d prefer. Should I get to choose.”

Imagining waking up next to Jude—our limbs tangled together under silken sheets, the early sun casting light upon his naked torso—drove my pulse to dangerous levels.

“I can’t picture a better ending , either,” I said, my voice low and raspy. I wanted to curse his ability to render me nothing but a girl whose heart had been stolen. “Now, you better kiss me before—”

Jude’s lips silenced me. He held me like I was something fragile, his fingers in my hair, his hold firm yet soft. Every brush of his tongue sent shivers down my spine, and each of my exhales, he captured for himself.

“If we don’t have much time”—Jude drew back, panting—“then I best show you all the many, many wicked ways you’ve utterly ruined me.”

My mouth parted as his lips left mine, leisurely descending to graze my jaw, the column of my neck. A gasp left me when he reached my chest, leaving featherlight kisses in his wake.

With every caress, every reverent touch, Jude spoke his adoration, his devotion. I greedily unbuttoned my shirt, wanting more. Always more with him.

Once I was free of my tattered shirt, the gold in his eyes eclipsed all else. He made a deep rumbling sound before worshiping my body, savoring me as he reached the band of my trousers. When he halted on the button, he grinned, his single dimple appearing utterly devilish.

“Would you like me to show you another place I’ve been dying to kiss you, Kiara Frey?”

Shit. If he kept saying words like that my heart would give out.

I shook my head up and down so hard, I strained a muscle.

“Then lie back.” Jude languidly unbuttoned my pants, his calloused hands nimble as they slid over my hips. His eyes never left mine. “Let me worship you properly.”

I did as he asked, and I didn’t speak when his mouth touched my sensitive flesh, but I bit my lip to keep from calling out his name loud enough for it to reach the mortal world and all the stars shining upon us.