Page 124 of Shadows Ascend
I shook my head, staring at the blood and ink. "No, you are Remnant Ezra Solaire Dark. You are my soulmate, our daughter, she calls you maedere. You dream of us being a family. We are to destroy the queen together. I know you. I know you. I know you," I say with hysteria.
She laughs. It's a cold sound but I still love it. Love how her face lights up, her back arches, her neck elongates. "Oh you are so broken, my shifter king." Rising she blew me a kiss. "Enjoy your daydreams shifter."
Tears fell from my eyes as she turned her back on me. "Little umbra."
She did not turn.
"Remnant!" I barked.
She paused then, pivoting slowly on her laced booted foot.
I narrowed my eyes on her, trying with all my might to see past this facade, but I could not. The illusion was too strong and I was too weak, the hunger of my soul wraith form destroying my resolve…my truth.
With my heart on the line, I growled,"Whether you are the monster of my dreams or the lover of my nightmares. You are mine and I will find you again. I will always find you."
She smiled at me then. "Perhaps you're not so broken after all." Turning back to the heavy iron door she called over her shoulder. "Can't wait for you to find your way back to me, King Daemon."
That name…Remnant never used my full name. But who had? Someone I could not remember, someone I knew I loathed.
Then she slammed the door, leaving me in darkness and with something else…deep dark red tendrils oozed upwards over the table and snaked around me. The Sanguine power hungrily latched onto my body, whispering its poisonous words anew while my mind weakened further.
"Abandoned. They abandoned you. Everyone abandoned you. She abandoned you."
My anguished roars rattled the walls but remained unheard for hours to come. If I had been in more of myright mind, I would have noticed the dark satisfied laughter coming from the former queen of Faerie, hidden within the shadows.
Chapter 58
TheWellengulfedus,my fate sealed with nothing but the sheer will that my little family would survive—I had no other choice.
Falling around us in a sparkling shimmer of white and gold dust, souls fluttered within the glow. Reaching out with a trembling hand, my brows raised at the sweet vibrancy of life’s essence humming against my skin.
There was no malice here.
Looking down at Riella, I could see her face scrunched tightly as she breathed shallowly against my protective hold. Bringing my hand back down, I smoothed over the wrinkles of fear, whispering gently, "It is safe for now, my little chickadee."
Riella peeked one eye open and then the other, her eyes widening at the same splendor around us that I had just admired.
"We are flying," she said in awe, peering downward and then squinting up into the light that fell on her upturned face. Itshimmered on her bronze skin, a dancing glow that fell away just as quickly as it descended leaving not a trace of its touch until another cascaded upon her.
Riella’s nose wrinkled, "Can you hear them too?"
My lips thinned, wishing I had the ability to shield her from this innate power but I tilted my head to listen more intensely anyway. I shook my head, "I do not hear anything."
Riella squeezed her eyes shut. "So many voices, too many.” Her tiny voice wavered. “I cannot understand them."
Alarmed by her fear, I weaved the lilin to form small black muffs over her ears, shielding her effectively from the noise.
Immediate relief spread across my daughter’s face and she gave me an apologetic smile. "Thank you, maedere."
Nodding, I held her closer, whispering loudly against her cheek just as the lights began to speed up around us. "We are going faster. We must be prepared for what is to come."
Her body tensed and she looked quickly around. "But what about faedere?" Her voice held panic that she could not mask and I squeezed her reassuringly again.
Even though I felt anything but reassured.
"He is below, little one. Once we stop we will figure out how we can help him, okay?"
We both looked down simultaneously, seeing the tattered remains of Emon's shadow trailing behind us, like a defeated flag being dragged across the ground in retreat.
