Page 223 of A Dance of Water

Luella felt the vampire nudge against her mind.Go to sleep.

Warm lips kissed the bow of her mouth, and she sighed sleepily against Az. "I love you," the demon mumbled against her skin. "This is to keep you safe. Please, angel, remember that."

Sleep stole her. She was too tired to dream.

When she woke up, she was alone, and two hooded figures stood over her.

Luella gasped and bundled the sheets up to her chin, looking around. "W-where’s Az? Bastian?" Her voice was thick with sleep.

The deep shadows of the Temple Mothers’ grey hoods shifted, revealing the sight of their sewn lips. No malice radiated from them; they were calm. Waiting.

One of the Temple Mothers took the sheets from her and folded them down, while the other waved a hand for her to stand. Luella did, wrapping her arms around her waist to ward off the chill in the stone room. Her toes curled into the rugs on the floor as she was led to a small hole in the corner of the room—another doorway.

The Temple Mothers crowded behind her, forcing her in. Steam curled in the cavernous air, humid and thick. A pool was set into the stone ground. Small bubbles popped on the surface as if there was a natural heat source underground. It would’ve been inviting to her sore, dirty body, if not for the utter terror that gripped her at the sight of the water in the dim light. The ripples appeared even more foreboding amidst the backdrop of the stone caves. As if it were endless, stretching down, down, down and?—

A hand touched her back.

"No!" Her voice cracked. She dug her sore heels into the stone, chest heaving with shallow gasps.

Not the water—not alone.

Please.

The hand grew firmer, forcing her to stumble forward as the other Temple Mother methodically began to remove Luella’s sweat-soaked blouse. Their movements were detached, but she still felt her cheeks burn from being exposed.

Luella stood nude and shivering, her pleas unable to be answered due to their sewn lips—she would receive no help here.

She was forced into the water. Steam curled against her flesh, loosening her sore, overused muscles.

Invisible splinters radiated out from her soul as her magic swelled, weak and spluttering from exhaustion. The water did nothing more than bubble a bit faster—she was spent. The previous chill that had filled her bones turned fiery, liquid heat scorching through her veins as she was forced to sit in the pool.

Luella found herself missing Ina’s quiet presence, so different than the haunting presence of these beings. Warm water was poured over her head, and she spluttered, feeling a sting in her nostrils and a burn in the back of her throat as she swallowed it. She coughed, struggling to keep her eyes open. Every time she blinked, she felt hands forcing her under the water, the ache in her lungs, saltwater crusted on her skin…

Her eyes were red and burning from unshed tears—she would not let them see. Tears were too intimate a thing.

After the Temple Mothers deemed Luella clean, no trace of her journey left on her skin, she was silently commanded to stand. Her hair was wet, hanging heavy around her face and nude body. The hems of the Temple Mothers’ cloaks dragged against the damp stone floor as they walked closer to her, and Luella realized something was in one of their hands.

Luella shivered. "What is that?"

No response, of course, not even a hint of acknowledgment.

The taller of the two held out a white bundle, the bell-shaped sleeves of her cloak billowing.

Luella’s breaths were loud as she watched. The Temple Motherdid not waver, and slowly, Luella took the fabric from her, feeling the coarse material in her hands. A plain, white shift.

The Temple Mothers did not move. Luella stepped back, feeling water under her toes as she turned her body to the side for a modicum of privacy and pulled the shift over her head. The stiff fabric fell to her upper thigh.

She was not offered any underclothes, and she did not dare ask.

She swallowed, mouth dry, as the taller Temple Mother turned to the door, the other stepping to the side and waving a hidden hand in a gesture for Luella to follow.

The flames fixed to the stone walls flickered as they walked down the cavernous corridors inside the mountain. The Temple Mothers’ steps were like water as they tread across the stone floors, while Luella was acutely aware of her own existence, evident in the harsh sound of her breathing and the quiet slap of her bare feet on the stone.

The hall slanted downward, winding, and she wondered how far, how deep, this Temple went.

Her wet hair brushed her back as she looked around. It was a maze. She couldn’t run; she would get lost. She was dependent on these beings to see to her safety, and right now, Luella was not confident in them. She yearned for the others, at least their motives were more clear than these silent overseers of the Temples of Aedis.

The candles grew sparser, the orange flames illuminating the deep cavern. It seemed to stretch on forever.

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