Page 32 of Dark Fate

Meadowsquirms as we come to a stop on the landing, her fingers all tangled in her braid, betraying her frets. "I'm sorry, My Lord. It's just... these visions, they're broken bits and pieces—like a puzzle I can't quite solve," she stammers out an apology. She falters briefly under my probing stare. "It's just...such godly power and chaos I witness surrounding you...lightning and fury."

I halt in my tracks, my glare dropping heavily on her slight frame. "Seems like your so-called visions are just getting their wires crossed,Mouse. You're babbling about my Norse heritage, and that's as far as it goes."Meadowopens her mouth to protest, but I silence her rebuttal. We've no time for foolish debate over fanciful whims.

I stand firm, locking eyes with her. "Look, where I come from, we got legends of badass gods—ever heard of Thor? Yeah, God of Thunder and all that shit. But let's get something straight—I ain't him. No godly magic here," I say, dead serious.

Meadowpulls at her braid, twisting it between anxious fingers. "But My Lord, the visions—"

"Enough. Keep your eyes peeled and on point,Mouse," I bark, with an edge sharp enough to cleave through steel. I slice through her words, my patience wearing threadbare. We've got to score that cursed book and get the hell out of this cesspit, not scurry after her fairy-tale ramblings.

Meadowdips her head, duly subdued, and steers us deeper into the library's labyrinth, aiming for the prize. But inside, my mind's a tempest, thoughts whipping around like a storm's fury unleashed.

In his ever-so-charming pain-in-the-ass manner, "Oh snap, somebody got a celestial upgrade to Thunder God status! This is comedy gold. So, do you get the hammer and cape as a signing bonus, or...?"

His quip is cut short by the icy slice of my glare.Meadow's eyes flicker nervously from him to me as I let the urgency in my voice drill into the air. "Enough games. Where's this damn book that's supposed to bust us out of the hag's clutches?"

We come to a stop before a monolithic shelf, and a weight drops in my chest. Even with the perks of my vampiric nature, scaling this beast won't be a walk in the park. It rears up, a whopping fifteen feet of deliberate intimidation, hoarding its trove of knowledge just beyond the layman's reach. The damned grimoire rests inside a locked glass case to boot. Because simply grabbing an unguarded book would be too fucking convenient.

Powerless to call the book down with my mind, I’m itching to use it, to feel that familiar pull—but it's locked tight behind this damned collar's magic. So here I am, stuck doing the grunt work like any regular Joe without a hint of the supernatural.

Muttering a silent curse for this particular flavor of hell, I fall back several paces, muscles tensing for the inevitable. I have no choice but to muscle through this the old-fashioned way. I break into a run, springing with all the force my legs can muster, climbing with a blend of raw strength and lethal precision.

As I climb, the air turns to ice, and each upward heave meets colder resistance. When my hand punches through the final barrier, shattering a pane of glass that never stood a chance, and I grab the grimoire's silver and leather, a fierce grin cuts across my face. Not even a second to bask in glory, I lob the book to the ground. "Heads up!" The word’s barely out before the grimoire's plummeting toward unsuspecting hands below.

Meadowyelps, scrambling to intercept the falling prize. ButLucian, damn show-off that he is—always playing for the spotlight—he’s there in a flash, snagging the book with a triumphant smirk, already thumbing through the leaves as if he was the one who'd conquered those heights.

"Ohh, we've got a couple of badasses over here! Swiping off-limits loot and giving the palace a little forced feng shui? James Dean would be proud, you little rebels!"

I spare breath only to growl at him while sliding down the vertiginous bookstack. “Stow it before your jaw gets acquainted with my fist.”

Freedom awaits discovery within those crumbling pages... as soon as feeling returns properly to my legs.

I hit the ground with predatory grace, teeth bared in a feral smile of victory. The spellbook we've been after is finally ours, in arm's reach—my get-out-of-jail-free card from this enchantment-infested collar.

I zero in onMeadow. "The countercurse—dig it out,Mouse," I command, nodding toward the grimoire clutched inMeadow's trembling grasp. She’s eyeing that worn cover with a fervor that'd make a bookworm blush, her attention fixed with a fanatic's glint.

"I-I've waited so long just to glimpse this forbidden knowledge! Never did I dare dream I would one day unlock such vast power!"Meadowwhispers reverently, stroking the tome.

Lucian inspects his nails with an exaggerated eye-roll and heaves a melodramatic sigh, "Bra-vo. Now, be a dear and work that mystical mumbo-jumbo pronto, yeah? Unless you're itching to accessorize with those stylish iron cuffs again."

Meadownods jerkily, flipping through the yellowed pages with frantic care. The musty parchment crinkles loudly in the library silence. "One moment."

Moments trickle past agonizingly. "By all means, take your sweet ass time. I'll go for a leisurely stroll, maybe peruse the library's naughty book collection while I'm at it. I'm sure they won't mind me borrowing a few more forbidden tomes—"

Lucian's smart-ass commentary is swiftly interrupted by a sharp 'oof' as my pointed elbow meets his ribs. Trying not to smile,Meadowshakes her head and dives back into decoding the arcane script, silent as a tomb.

"This inscription—" She points to a spell in the book. "I believe it references the runic collar spellwork used on both of you!"Meadowblurts excitedly.

My undead heart kicks into furious life as I peer over her bony shoulder.

At fucking last!

"You positive you can reverse the binding magic,Mouse?" I demand harshly.

She meets my glare unflinchingly this time. "The counter-ritual proves complex, but, yes... if I study it properly, I am certain this knowledge can negate your collars."

Meadow's claim to undo our chains sparks hot triumph... quickly iced by lingering doubt.

"Study it properly? The hell does that mean,Mouse? We've no luxury for you to sit here cramming like some pupil."

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