Page 28 of Veiled By Smoke (The Nature Hunters Academy #5)

“I want to believe that a lie that is beyond my control is forgivable. But a lie, no matter the reason or way it comes about, is still a lie. It still strips the thread of trust between people and carves a hole into the heart. It still leaves a scar.” ~ Ra

E l Tor Mountain was a place that shouldn’t have been touched by darkness.

It sat at the edge of the world, where the land bled into the sky, and the wind carried the memories of a thousand years.

Ra’s earliest recollections began here: the scent of wild thyme crushed beneath his sneakers, the laughter of his grandparents echoing off the stones, the way the sun painted the rocks gold and the sky impossibly blue.

This was where he’d run when the world had been too much, when the weight of magic and history pressed too hard on his shoulders.

Here, above the town of El Tor, he’d found clarity. Peace.

Tonight, the mountain was a wound.

He’d felt Viscious’s magic long before he’d seen him.

It was a cold tingle at the base of his skull, a taste like burnt metal on his tongue.

The wind, usually playful, now whipped at Ra’s clothes with a nervous urgency, shoving him toward the summit.

He kept his back straight, his chin high, refusing to look anywhere but forward.

He would not let that monster see weakness.

The sky overhead was bruised, clouds roiling and alive with flashes of distant lightning. The scents of home, the sweet, earthy tang of desert sage, the sharp bite of sun-baked stone were tainted by something acrid and unnatural. Even the stars seemed to hide, retreating behind the gloom.

Ra climbed the last few meters of the goat path with steady, deliberate steps. He could see the silhouette waiting for him at the summit, black cloak swirling in the mountain wind, a figure that seemed carved from shadow and arrogance. Viscious.

Ra paused a moment, letting the memory of his grandfather’s voice steady him: Stand tall, my boy. Never bow unless you choose to. He drew one deep breath, squared his shoulders, and stepped fully into the clearing.

Viscious turned, and the night seemed to flinch away from him. His eyes gleamed with a hungry, unnatural light, a predator savoring the anticipation of the kill. A cruel smile twisted his lips.

“Pharaoh,” Viscious drawled, the word a mockery and a greeting all at once. “You took your time. I was beginning to think you’d lost your nerve.”

Ra’s jaw clenched. He kept his voice level, cool as the wind that whipped around them. “You picked this place for a reason. How you know about it is a mystery I’m sure you won’t divulge. You always were one for theatrics.”

Viscious’s grin widened; there was a gleam of satisfaction in it, a flash of teeth meant to remind Ra that he was prey, not a peer. He paced slowly along the edge of the cliff, boots scuffing ancient stone, his cloak trailing behind him like a shadow.

“Oh, I do love a bit of drama,” Viscious chided.

“But I chose El Tor for more than the view. I wanted to see how it felt to taint something you hold dear.” He stopped, facing Ra squarely, eyes alight with glee.

“You see, I want you to remember tonight, every time you think of home. Every time you try to find comfort in your past, I want you to taste my victory on your tongue.”

Ra felt the words lance through him, cold and sharp. “You think you can poison my memories? You’re not that powerful.”

Viscious laughed, a low, delighted sound, rich with malice.

“Oh, Ra. I don’t need to poison anything.

I just need to prove that I can . That I can reach into the best parts of you and leave my mark.

” He stepped closer, his presence a physical thing, oppressive and electric.

“You’re angry. I can feel it. Good. Let that fire burn. But don’t pretend you’re not scared.”

Ra didn’t flinch. He met Viscious’s gaze, steel for steel, and let his own magic simmer beneath his skin, banked but ready. “You want a bargain, sealed my promise. Say it and be done.”

Viscious’s mouth curled into a snarl of pleasure.

“So eager. So loyal. It’s almost touching, what you’ll do for those you love.

” He circled Ra, slow and predatory, eyes never leaving him.

“You see, I have a need, a very particular need. There’s a girl.

She’s, as you will realize, special. And I want her brought to me. You must be the one to find her.”

Ra kept his expression blank, his heart thundering in his chest. His gut churned as he hoped, futilely, that it wasn’t who he thought it was. “You want me to find a child? Why? You have acolytes to find you Marks.”

Viscious’s eyes narrowed, and for a moment, something ancient and hungry flickered in their depths.

“It is a precarious situation, and I don’t want to trust an acolyte with it.

And don’t pretend you don’t know who it is.

I know of her because your people have discovered her.

Aurora. She’s more than a child, as you well know.

She’s a missing piece. Possibly the key to breaking the soul bonded, to tearing the dragons apart from the inside.

Her soul is unmarked, unclaimed—a perfect vessel for my darkness. ”

Ra’s fists clenched, his nails digging into his palms. He forced his voice to remain steady, to give nothing away. “And if I refuse?”

Viscious leaned in, his breath a cold caress against Ra’s ear.

“You can’t. I told you the first time you came to me if you didn’t accept the deal, I’d kill you.

You’re not the only one who is a man of his word, pharaoh.

You will do this. You will make the promise to bring her to me.

Your ancestors sold their souls and therefore your soul long before you were born.

You can die now, by my fire, or you can make the deal.

And if you break it, you know what awaits you.

” He tilted his head slightly. “And as you think on it, let me ask you this; what happens to Shelly if you die?”

Ra’s vision flashed with images: chains, fire, the screams of the damned.

He gritted his teeth, refusing to let Viscious see anything in his eyes but contempt.

There was no option, not when it came to Shelly.

He had no idea how the hell he would get out of this, but better to save his life now, thereby saving his soul-bonded’s, and figuring out the rest later.

Viscious stepped back, his posture loose, almost casual, but his fingers twitched with excitement.

“Here’s what you’ll do. You’ll find Aurora.

You’ll convince her, convince everyone , that you’re helping her, that you’re reuniting her with her sister and the soul bonded.

They’ll trust you. They always do, because, as I said, you’re a man of your word, after all.

You will bring her to me, Ra. And when you do, I will claim her as my own.

I will Mark her, and she will become my acolyte.

Darkness will flower in the heart of the dragons, and you will be the one who planted the seed. ”

Every word was a knife. Ra could feel the promise tightening around him, the blood bond coiling like a serpent, squeezing the air from his lungs. “You’re making me betray everyone I love.”

Viscious tilted his head, feigning sympathy, but his eyes glimmered with triumph. “That’s the price of love, isn’t it? Pain. Sacrifice. You denied my first offer, Ra. Now you must pay your life, or this deal.”

A muscle ticked in Ra’s jaw, but he stood tall. “I want your word that she won’t be harmed.” He had no idea why he demanded it. Viscious didn’t have to make him any promises. But Ra was sick at the thought of something happening to a child.

Viscious laughed, a sound like shattering glass.

“You’re in no position to bargain, pharaoh.

But I give you this: I won’t harm her. Not until she’s mine, and even then, the only harm that will come to her might be the occasional injury as she trains, and of course any injuries when battling your kind.

Though I don’t expect the light elementals to be a problem for much longer. ”

It was a lie. Any one of the other acolytes could hurt Aurora. There was no honor in them, but it was all Ra could wring from him. He straightened, letting his own fire rise just enough that the air shimmered around him. “Say it. Seal the command. Let’s be done.”

Viscious’s eyes burned, red and cruel. He raised a hand, tracing a sigil in the air, and the mountain itself seemed to tremble.

“By this oath you swear now, by the old magic and the bones of your ancestors, I command you: Find Aurora. Convince her to come with you, believing she will be reunited with her sister and the soul bonded. Bring her to me, and let her be Marked as my acolyte. So it is spoken. So it is bound.”

The words slammed into Ra like a physical blow. Magic burned through his veins, molten and merciless, branding the command into his soul. He staggered, just for a heartbeat, before forcing himself upright.

Viscious stepped back, satisfaction radiating from every line of his body.

“There now. Wasn’t that easy? I look forward to seeing what becomes of you and the relationship you have with your friends and your mate.

Will they be able to forgive you? Isn’t that what you light elementals are all about?

Goodness, forgiveness, and love? Guess that will be truly tested. ”

Ra glared, every muscle quivering with the effort not to strike out.

“You may have my obedience. You will never have my loyalty. And even if they hate me for this, I would not return those emotions towards them. Even if they shun me, I will spend the rest of my life making sure they are safe. Fighting against you, and others like you.”

Viscious’s smile was pure poison. “We’ll see. The line between love and hate is quite thin. You may think you can endure their anger, but eventually it will get to you.”

With a swirl of his cloak and a flare of his hand, Viscious opened a portal and stepped through without another word, leaving the air colder, the mountain emptier, and Ra more alone than he’d ever been.

For a long, raw moment, Ra stood rooted in place, the command echoing in his mind, each word a lash. The mountain wind whipped at him, but it couldn’t cool the fire building inside. Rage–hot, wild, and bottomless–rose from his chest, searing away the last shreds of composure.

He fell to his knees, fists pressed into the rocky ground. His vision blurred as fire erupted from his skin, licking up his arms, across his chest, wreathing him in a corona of blue and gold flame. The mountain shuddered beneath him, stones cracking and blackening where his fire touched.

He screamed then, a sound torn from the depths of his soul, echoing off the cliffs and into the night.

It was the sound of a man betrayed by fate, shackled by promises, forced to destroy the very people who had made him whole.

The fire roared higher, searing the air, filling his nostrils with the scent of scorched earth and lost hope.

Memories flashed; Shelly’s laughter, Elias’s hand on his shoulder, the warmth of belonging, the peace he’d found on this very mountain.

All of it tainted now, twisted by Viscious’s touch.

His heart pounded, every beat a war drum.

He wanted to burn it all down to destroy the mountain, the world, himself, if only it would erase what he’d just been forced to do.

The fire within him built up, a tidal wave of agony and anger, until it threatened to tear him apart. But even as the flames roared, a single thought pierced the maelstrom: Shelly. Her face, her voice, the promise he’d made to her. I will come back to you .

With a supreme effort, Ra wrenched the fire back, choking it down until only embers danced on his skin. He fell forward, forehead pressed to the blackened stone, breath coming in ragged gasps.

The mountain was silent now, save for the distant rumble of thunder and the faint crackle of cooling flames. Ra knelt in the ruins of his sanctuary, the command burning in his blood, the taste of ashes on his tongue.

He had become the thing he feared most: a weapon turned against those he loved. And as the night closed in around him, Ra knew that the hardest part was yet to come.

He would have to look his family in the eyes, and lie to them all.