Page 13

Annalise

I love the river. Because of the threat of the beasts, our village was located miles from the river. It was too dangerous to live so close to an area that anyone could stumble upon due to it being a freshwater source. But it was so far away from the village that I could leave and enjoy the sound of it rushing by for hours, finding an escape from the fear of the unknown.

Now is no different.

Elias has been distant ever since my refusal to kill a human at his command. I know in disobeying him, I have ruined the small bit of trust I’ve managed to gain from him so far. But I also know that with his army growing and surrounding himself with more humans like me, he can’t afford to waste time testing my loyalty further. War looms closer with every passing day.

A war he is chomping at the bit to begin.

I suck in a deep breath as I soak in the cool riverbed. The water feels nice, covering the bruising that has formed over my body over the past few days. Training with people like me has been difficult—more so than training against beasts. The humans Elias has brought into his army have been forced into a position I am sure they resent. Elias has made it clear that once they step into his camp, they have no other option than to fight for his cause. To release them would be suicide, as word could spread of his presence. And they have proven they are disloyal to his cause by not choosing him in the first place.

He can’t have humans who are disloyal to his cause roaming his new world. It is a condition of allowing them a place during his reign. They must have fought for it.

I release a bitter chuckle, shifting lower in the water until it runs slightly under my nose.

The amount of hunter bodies we have had to dispose of over the course of the week is nauseating. Elias’s ability to kill without conscience terrifies me. I knew he was cruel from the scars he left on my body. But I see now his cruelty extends to those less fortunate. He uses the fact that the hunters have been branded as outcasts with nowhere to go to his advantage. He doesn’t see them as helpless individuals to add to his reign but as pawns to sacrifice in his game.

With each passing day, I find myself more curious about the opponent King Elias has decided to face.

Cyrus.

Just thinking of the name aloud causes a chill to form on my arms. His eyes haunt my dreams and my every waking moment. He elicits more fear from me than Elias does. I can’t remember anything about him other than meeting him by the river that fateful day and the sporadic moments that have come back to me that apparently followed. My body remembers him well. And I can’t help but wonder what will happen should I ever see him again. Will I be able to kill him? Or will the fear that my body knows keep me from moving?

Once my body begins to grow numb from the chill of the river, I make my way out of the water to pull on my clothes. I shift my attention to the beasts who have been sent to accompany me to the river. They stand with their backs to me but are highly aware of my presence. It’s as I said before, the little trust between Elias and I has been broken. Lucky for me, he hasn’t commanded me to take any more lives. But that hasn’t excluded me from being forced to watch him do so.

As I pull on my shirt, I shift my attention to the mark on my ribs. It isn’t burning into my skin for the first time in days. It’s been eerily still, not calling to me as it usually does. I almost miss it. It helps me not feel so trapped and isolated. But now that it has silenced, I am back to being alone.

I quickly pull on my shirt, strapping my weapon to me as I make my way to the beasts standing guard.

The walk back to Elias’s camp takes a little over half an hour, giving me plenty of time to mentally reinforce the wall I keep up around him. I’ve learned it’s best not to show emotion around Elias. He’s a master manipulator, and I’ve already gotten what I wanted out of him.

To bring me back to my homeland and for him to trust me. The trust still has yet to come, but he does not see me as too much of a threat, at least—only an annoyance at times. And I already know when I’m going to kill him and escape. For now, I just have to bide my time until that moment comes.

My footsteps falter as we approach the camp.

I sense instantly that something is off. The air is still. Much more than it ever is. I continue to make my way through to Elias’s camp, my eyes widening as I pass the small arena at the center, which is the designated training area.

Piles of dead bodies lie in the center. The longer I stare, the more gruesome the detail in each of them grows. They weren’t killed because they refused to fight. They were slaughtered out of anger.

I slowly call on the seal as my panic rises. Something is wrong. The warmth of the seal activating gives me the comfort I need to continue to Elias’s tent. I suck in a deep breath, pulling back the flaps to reveal Elias. He’s standing over his table, his eyes narrowed as he looks down on a piece of paper.

I quickly note his body language. His muscles are rigid, his knuckles white as he clenches his fists so hard that blood drips from his palms to the floor. A vein forms in his jaw as he clenches and unclenches, his breathing shallow as he tries to calm himself. Whatever he’s reading is the cause of the bloodbath outside.

I pull in a deep breath, trying to calm the beating of my heart as I step into the tent to disturb this beast.

“Your M—”

“Out.” Elias looks past me to the beasts standing behind me, his eyes filled with rage as he approaches where I stand, speaking to the beasts.

“Both of you out,” he growls as he points past me.

Blood seeps from his palm, and I note that he’s still trembling as the beasts bow before quickly exiting the tent.

I barely have time to register Elias’s fist coming toward my face. I activate the full power of the seal seconds before his attack connects, the side of my face exploding in pain as he strikes me. The room darkens for a split second, but Elias has me in his hold before I can hit the ground, his crushing grip holding my throat as he looks at me through a narrowed gaze.

“Did you know? Did you fucking know?” he shouts.

My eyes widen as his grip tightens, and my air is instantly cut off. I can’t respond, but I know he isn’t expecting me to. His eyes are wide as he glares at me, trying to control his rage, but he can’t. Whatever has happened is something that has pushed him into a corner.

I cry out as he throws me to the ground, the brunt force ripping all the air from my lungs. I choke on my breathing as Elias comes at me again with his full rage, but I’m ready this time. I use the full power of the seal, catching his attack.

Wind whips past my face from the brunt force blocking his attack produces, and I flinch as my wrist strains from the impact. Elias’s gaze narrows. This is the first time I’ve defended myself.

“I—” I break into a fit of coughs, my throat damaged from his attack, preventing me from speaking. I also notice my throat has begun swelling, making breathing more difficult as the seconds pass.

Elias roughly pulls his arm from my grip, moving at the speed of his kind as his leg whips around. I bring my arm up just in time to prevent him from hitting me in the chest, but the force of his attack sends me flying. I crash out of the tent, the burn of the dirt tearing at my skin assaulting me as my body flies at an uncontrollable speed.

I finally stop, dirt rising around me. My arm throbs in pain as I try and stand, and I tense when I see Elias exiting the tent several feet away. His eyes are narrowed as he stalks toward me, ready to fight. But whatever this is, it isn’t training.

My adrenaline spikes as he comes closer, helping my slightly blurred vision. I struggle to my feet, gripping my blade with my good hand as I watch him. His eyes narrow at the action.

“I should have known from the day I brought you into my palace you were nothing but bad luck,” he growls. My eyes widen as black smoke rises from his arms. I’ve seen what that can do enough times to know not to let it touch me.

My throat has swollen so much that I can barely breathe, let alone speak. So, I tighten my grip on my blade as I wait for him to make the move. I slowly crouch into a defensive position just as he launches across the field to where I stand.

I hold my blade up just in time for it to collide with his hand. Sparks fly as his abnormally sharp nails come into contact with the steel. The force he uses is much unlike before. It throws me off balance, his sheer strength. As I stumble, I note that his hand reaches for me, covered in that black smoke. I quickly dodge, swinging my blade again, only for him to dodge.

I feel myself calling on the seal with more desperation than ever, urging it to fill me with the strength and speed to match Elias. But it won’t. It feels limited for some reason. Elias, however, is a seasoned fighter, knowing exactly how to dodge and avoid while waiting for the perfect moment to strike. Lucky for me, I’ve studied his movements long enough to become familiar with his fighting style.

My sword finally connects, cutting a thin layer at the right side of Elias’s throat. His eyes narrow from the attack, and to my horror, he no longer fights like a man but begins moving like a beast. His attacks grow more animalistic and lithe, and it only takes him five seconds to have me off balance.

I cry out as his nails rip at my cheek, and his fist collides with my stomach. He attacks upward, forcing my feet slightly from the ground before he lands a final blow, knocking me into the dirt.

The world blurs, and I am suddenly fighting with my own body to remain conscious. My weapon still remains in my hand as I struggle. It’s all I can do to stay awake, feeling my grip around the blade. It’s the only thing that can protect me.

It’s silent as the sound of my choking fills the air. Tears burn my eyes, spilling past my temples into the dirt beneath me. Elias stands over me, looking down at me in disgust. He slowly bends and I tense when I feel his hand on my thigh.

“Everything, everyone. It’s all gone. My entire life, my people. Dead,” Elias says.

I scream as pain scorches my leg where Elias touches me. It feels excruciating. Elias ignores my screams, however, continuing to speak.

“It’s no matter now. Even if he destroyed my home, I shall take his. I shall make this my new home. Our new home. I will take everything he has ever known and has ever loved, starting with you. Cyrus will rue the day he eradicated my world.”

The pain on my thigh increases, creeping up my body as Elias makes good on his promise. I force myself to think through the pain, my eyes darting over the camp in a panic until I notice the horses nearby.

I scream as I move, ignoring the pain as my grip on my blade tightens. I rise quickly, gripping the hilt of my blade as I stab Elias in his neck. He dodges slightly at the last second, allowing my blade to sink into his collarbone, but there is still shock on his face as I rip my blade from his throat, gripping his hair with my free hand to hold him tight as I run it across the front of his throat.

I stumble back, trying to stand to move to the horses as he holds his neck to staunch the bleeding while he heals himself. My thigh throbs excruciatingly as I attempt to move, refusing to work no matter how hard I try. My wheezing breath fills the air as my adrenaline dies down, and my throat is swollen past the point of breathing properly.

I hear shouting behind me, ignoring the commands as I scream through my pain, pulling myself up on a horse. I grunt as I kick its stomach, steering it in the direction of the woods.

This wasn’t the escape I had planned for myself, but it doesn’t matter at this point. I need to get away. But that feels impossible as the sound of more beasts atop their horses follows me through the woods. I can’t see anything, nor can I breathe or direct my horse as the pain rushing through my entire body makes itself known. Now that the adrenaline has died down, I know just how damaged my body truly is. And it is not good.

I groan in pain as my horse jostles me, making my injuries hurt even more.

I tense as arrows fly past me, landing in the trees near me. They’re firing at me. And I can barely stay conscious. Will alone is no longer enough. I don’t know how long we remain in this chase into the woods, and with me unable to direct my horse, it takes me deeper without a sense of direction.

I flinch as the loud roar of a waterfall suddenly assaults me, and I realize I lost consciousness. I don’t know where we are. My seal doesn’t work, and my body is battered. My stomach dips as I am suddenly thrown into the air, my body flying as my horse stumbles and flips with me. Its pained cries mingle with my own as I land near the edge of the waterfall.

I don’t have the strength to move.

The sound of the waterfall drowns out all noise, and as I slowly lift my head, I see what happened. There’s an arrow in my horse’s leg. They shot it, and it threw me. I slowly shift to my knees, looking up to see the beasts who chased me on horseback closing in. Their arrows are still aimed as they climb from their horses, watching me menacingly.

I still can’t move.

Fear crawls up my spine as the final assailant catches up. Elias breaks through the brush, his blood-crusted clothing the only evidence that his blood was spilled this night.

I note that my breathing is shallow, hitching in my throat as I look death in the face.

Elias climbs down from his horse, pulling his sword from its scabbard as he approaches me with a cruel smile. I quietly watch him, my mind spinning as I try to think of what to do, but I can’t.

“I told you, Annalise. You won’t survive my wrath a second time,” he says.

Elias’s muscles tense, and as if sensing my distress, the seal on my side comes alive. It heats up, filling my body with its warmth without me calling for it.

Elias attacks, his blade aimed straight for my throat to remove my head from my shoulders. And at the last second, I am able to see his attack in vivid detail.

I lift my sword, the force of Elias’s blow knocking mine from my hand but preventing him from cutting off my head as it flies over the edge of the waterfall. Elias counters, ready to attack again, and I use the strength of the seal to move. My muscles bunch up, and as I press my foot into the ground, I feel the earth give way from the force. I don’t think as I propel myself over the edge of the waterfall.

I enjoy Elias’s look of shock as I fall over the edge. It comforts me, allowing me to ignore the steep drop and the fact that my chances of surviving are very slim.

And yet, I still somehow smile, knowing I escaped him, even if it is in death.