Page 165 of A Soul to Embrace

At the reminder that he’d watched her dart through the grass, her sight shifted to a reddish pink. She couldn’t imagine what she looked like doing something that silly, but the desire had been so compelling she’d been unable to stop herself.

“That Demon spoke in a different language,” Zylah commented, trying to get away from the conversation of her behaviour. “You spoke it to Goldie when we first entered her shop as well.”

His expression fell, and his brows narrowed in thought. Then he cupped his chin, subtly covering part of his lips as he drifted his gaze away. His ears twitched and flicked the way they often did when he was thoughtful.

“Hmm. I just realised you won’t be able to understand a single word that’s being said around you. I should have considered this.”

“Oh.” Uncertainty tightened her gut. She remembered how hard it was to communicate when she was first learning how to speak, and having to restart that again was daunting.

His lips flattened at the way she shifted her weight. “Don’t worry. I’ll teach you how to speak and read it. You’re a fast learner, so I don’t doubt you’ll pick it up in no time.”

“What is it?”

“Nyl’kira.”

Zylah tilted her head at the word, finding that it sounded similar to Nyl’theria. “Nyl’kira?”

“I guess the English word for it would be Elvish, although that’s grossly inaccurate. I’ll figure out if there’s some kind of translation spell we can use. The Elysians used to portal to other worlds, so it wouldn’t be surprising if they found a means to communicate with their inhabitants.” The right side of his mouth lifted as he said with mischief in his tone, “Although, if we speak English, it means we can talk freely.”

Jabez then stepped to the side, and Zylah immediately followed. They only needed to pass one tree before a white sheen appeared a fair way ahead, flickering through the gaps in the trees.

Her fur lifted when she heard movement, and she accidentally bumped into him.

“I doubt there’s actually any scouts,” Jabez told her as he led her towards that sheen. “Any sound you hear is likely coming from within the village, and if something does approach suddenly, I’ll just teleport us away.”

Reassured, she managed to soothe some of the stress that had unsettled her flesh. Her hand constantly brushed against the back of his, but he didn’t seem to mind her nearness as they trudged through odd plants and the occasional glowing flora. Most of it consisted of orange moss, glowing mushrooms, or various flowers she hadn’t seen before.

Sensing they were close to their destination, Zylah resisted the urge to inspect anything new to her. However, her gaze lingered on the plants that were particularly strange.

As they approached the village, the colliding scents of a decent population of Demons flittered over the wind. The white sheen eventually revealed itself as some kind of transparent dome, and it encompassed a large, partially ruined village.

It was hard to see what it truly looked like behind a makeshift wall of reddish bark. It didn’t look as though the wall was there for protection, but there to shield the outside and inside from viewing each other.

They approached a narrow gap where people could come and go if they were to lower the dome.

“Jabez,” Zylah called, grabbing his forearm when she noticed a Demon watching them through the gap. “What do I do?”

He hadn’t told her how she should behave or if she needed to be careful. Now that they were here, she couldn’t stop the way unease twisted inside her.

“You don’t need to do anything,” he answered, shifting slightly so they could face each other. She refused to let go of him, and she was thankful he didn’t stop her. “Like I said, I’ve spoken to their leader before. Once I explain why I’m here, and where we’re from, he’ll likely take us to somewhere more private so we can discuss it.”

“A-and a glamour?” He hadn’t told her if he’d put one on her like in Spiral Haven.

His features softened as he looked upon her skull. “There’s no point in hiding what you are. Since we plan to be here long term, I’d rather they understand and accept you, as opposed to hiding what you are. We’re Demons, Zylah. We’re used to all of us looking different and strange even to each other, so the fact you have a skull will mean little to them. They will adjust, and I’m hoping you’ll feel welcomed in this realm.”

Her grip on him tightened as a lightness wrapped around her heart. She thought he’d hide her skull, or make her look different at first, but the fact that he had no intention of doing so made her really...happy.

She didn’t mind if people looked at her funny, so long as she was able to be seen for who and what she was, and eventually be accepted. She’d wanted the same thing in Spiral Haven too. Zylah wanted to be herself. She wanted to know that it was actually okay to be a Mavka, that her skull wasn’t ugly, and that she could be considered a person rather than a monster.

“The only spell I’m using, which I have been since we came here, is a scent cloak for myself,” he continued, moving his gaze to the small crowd of Demons now at the narrow opening. “If they know I’m an Elf, they’ll be unsure of my presence, and it could lead to danger.”

Zylah nodded and loosened her grip before letting go. To her surprise, he placed his palm over her lower back to gently push her forward, and kept it there as if to let the warm pressure of his palm soothe her.

Only when they were at the narrow opening did he drop it so he could step closer.

The Demons on the other side gawked at her, except the one who began to talk to Jabez in Nyl’kira.

He looked just like Jabez, except his horns were pointing straight up from his head. He had pointed ears, sharp fangs, red eyes, and even white hair, which was short and spikey around his head.

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