Page 140 of The Light Within

Cinn turned to Lucien, who looked between him and Julien. Calculation shot over his face, and he lunged for Julien.

How tempting it was to break Lucien’s neck.

It took everything in him to resist.

Instead, he sent as much power through his shadow as he dared, slamming Lucien’s head against the tunnel wall. He slumped to the ground, body folding in on itself.

I hope that hurt.

Breathing hard, Cinn basked in the sheer exhilaration of the shadow obeying his will, its pliant, dark form shifting with precision and force. Like this, he was untouchable. The power was intoxicating, and Cinn revelled in the rush. He hadn’t touched any sort of drug in years, but the high they offered was the only thing he could compare it to. The sensation was thrilling, a heady mix of control and liberation that surged with each fresh command he issued. The raw, unrestrained power was an escape from the helplessness he’d felt for most of his life, being dragged into the shadowrealm against his will. Being told he was insane by psychologists. Bringing back malevolent entities that slaughtered people in front of him, while he was powerless to stop it.

So this? Yes, this wasexhilarating.

And frightening.

Ever so terrifying.

But Cinn pushed it all to one side.

Julienneeded him.

Julien stumbled slowly towards him, face a picture of desperation, like if he could just reach Cinn, everything would be okay.

God, how Cinn needed to touch him. Hold him. Never let him go.

Cinn threw himself across the cavern, wrapping him up in his arms. As Julien sighed into his ear, a missing piece of Cinn finally slotted back into place. He crushed Julien to him so tightly, as if holding them both close enough would prevent them from ever parting again.

“Smash these fucking cuffs off me so I can kiss you.”

Cinn slowly let go, and Julien presented him with his back. With gentle fingers, Cinn parted Julien’s matted hair, searching for a puncture wound. There was a tiny red dot, which he smoothed with his finger.

Time to get the cuffs off. A deep breath in, and Cinn was ready. He conjured a small tendril of shadow, careful to keep it controlled, and willed it to curl around the metal cuffs. He let the shadow pulse with pressure, testing the strength of the restraints. “Hold still,” he muttered, concentrating hard. With a quick motion, he tightened the shadow’s grip and heard the satisfying crack of the metal giving way. The cuffs fell to the ground with a dull clink, and Julien’s arms dropped free.

“Merci.” Julien rotated and stretched his wrists, rubbing at where they’d been bound. Then he pierced Cinn with his gaze, intensity swimming in its grey depths. “You’re a fool, by the way, coming here and endangering yourself like this.”

“Are you joking? You’re the asshole who ran off and forced me to come find you!”

Their gazes burned into one another, colliding like two stars caught in each other’s orbit. Magnetic, unstoppable. Without a word, they closed the tiny distance between them, Cinn yanking on Julien’s scarf to pull him closer even quicker. Arms wrapped around waists, hands found hair, lips pressed against lips. The brief kiss was filled with a desperate blend of relief and longing, Cinn pouring every inch of himself into it.

“I was so terrified I’d never see you again. It was all I could think about,” Julien said softly into Cinn’s ear. “I can’t believe you came.”

Cinn stepped back to stare at his mess of a boyfriend. After everything they’d done and said, how could that possibly be true?

“Okay, don’t look at me like that. I can believe it. And for what it’s worth, I’m sorry.”

Cinn pressed their foreheads together, squeezing the nape of Julien’s neck like he could slip away again at any moment. “You’re a fucking idiot. But I love you. And fuck, I missed you.”

“What did it take? Five minutes?” Julien’s exhausted face attempted a smirk, and Cinn cupped his face to kiss both of his dimples.

“If you do this to me again, I will kill you,” Cinn warned.

“I’d completely understand. But I promise, it’ll never happen again.”

Cinn would have liked to have Julien sign some sort of contract in blood, there and then, but in the background, the machine whirred. He pulled away from Julien with a sigh. “I better destroy this damned thing.” Truth be told, he was looking forward to it.

Cinn’s eyes locked onto the machine. A shiver of awe and dread rippled through him as he took in its monstrous form.Machina Tenebris.The name fit perfectly. It dominated the chamber, a grotesque fusion of metal and dark technology Cinn could only guess at. The machine thrummed with a faint, constant vibration, resonating through the ground and into Cinn’s very bones. Somehow, he could sense its power, a deep, foreboding presence that made his own newfound strength feel insignificant in comparison.

TheMachina Tenebrisneeded to be destroyed.

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