Page 11 of Beast of Blood and Ash
The mintine leaves were supposed to help with nightmares.
I’d been steeping them in hot water each night, choking down the bitter brew before bed. So far, they’d done nothing. The terror still found me, wrapping skeletal fingers around my throat, dragging me back to Ignarath, to the cages, to the games they played with us. To the burn of sand beneath my feet as I ran, the sound of wings?—
A scrape of claws on stone cut through the silence. My hand snapped the herbs back into the satchel, body tensing, senses stretching.
Two figures moved onto the ledge at the far end, robed in Temple yellow, faces foxlike, green scales gleaming. Forge Temple acolytes. Zealots who believed humans were stains that couldn’t be scrubbed away.
They hadn’t spotted me yet. I might still slip past if?—
My boot caught a stone. One of the acolytes’ heads snapped toward me, pupils narrowing.
“Look, Mervath,” his voice slithered. “A little human, all alone.”
I straightened, hugging my satchel to my chest, spine to the wall. “I was just leaving.”
The second acolyte sniffed, lips curled. “You reek of healing herbs. Are you ill, human?” The word landed like a curse.
“No.” Too flat. Too small.
Their eyes burned faintly. Mervath’s tail sliced the air, agitation unmistakable.
“This area is restricted,” Mervath intoned. “No humans are permitted by the sacred river.”
"I didn't know." That was a lie. I knew perfectly well this area was borderline forbidden, especially at this hour. If caught, I’d be reported, punished, denied even my small daily freedom. But this place was special. It felt like mine.
I’d risked it anyway.
“You lie,” the other one spat, tongue flicking. “I taste it on you.”
My hand tightened on the satchel strap, knuckles white. I kept my expression neutral, my spine straight. Don’t show weakness. Don’t flinch.
"I’ll leave now." I took a step toward the passageway I’d come through, but Mervath shifted, blocking my path.
"Temple law requires penance for trespass on sacred ground." His lips peeled back, revealing too-sharp fangs. "Especially from impure beings."
My heart skipped, then raced. "I’ll speak with Priest Jalliun tomorrow. Make my apologies formally."
Mervath laughed, the sound echoing off stone. "You would approach a High Priest? A human?" He moved closer, looming. "You’ve been here long enough to know your place. Below us. Grateful for the mercy we show in not casting your kind out."
I said nothing. Words were useless against that kind of hate. There were two of them, both taller than me by at least a foot, with fangs, claws, and the religious authority to make my life hell. I couldn’t fight. Couldn’t run. The only exit was past them or over the edge into the river—a drop I wasn’t sure I’d survive.
“Tell me, human.” The other one’s purr slid closer. “Are you the one who escaped Ignarath? Did you fight in their arena?”
My lungs constricted. Cold sweat joined the pulse of blood in my ears. The roar of the river sounded like the roaring crows, cheering for blood. My blood. A champion’s. Their own. It didn’t matter as long as the need was satisfied.
“No.” My voice barely trembled.
His face split into a cruel grin. “I have a cousin there. He says slaves who fail to learn their place don’t last long. Maybe we could learn a few things.”
I shrank inward, armor on the inside crumbling. The alcove constricted, air clotted thick. I was caged again, every way out locked.
"Perhaps we should show you the true purpose of the Temple." Mervath's words were honeyed poison. "Cleanse you in sacred fire. Burn away the taint of your kind."
I knew they were just words. Intimidation. If they truly intended to harm me, they would have done it by now. But reason couldn’t reach the part of me suddenly back in a cage, helpless, watching others be dragged away, hearing their screams. Knowing I was next.
“Back off.” The words surprised me, almost brave, coming from the ruins of my voice.
Mervath’s friend snickered. “Or you’ll what? Will you call your protectors?” He took another step, claws flicking open. “Do you think they’ll happily come from slaking their disgusting lusts with their human mates?"
