Page 8 of Feral Gods
"Agreed," Ravik says, then fixes those burning amber eyes on me once more. "You disobeyed me."
It's not a question, but I answer anyway. "I did."
"Why?"
The directness of the question catches me off guard. Dark elves never ask why a slave does anything—they simply punish disobedience without interest in motivation. I find myself searching for the right words to explain an impulse I barely understand myself.
"Because knowledge is power," I finally say. "And I have precious little power in this situation. I needed to understand what I'm facing—both from you and from them."
Something shifts in Ravik's expression—not quite approval, but perhaps a grudging recognition. "And what have you learned, little Kaia?"
"That you're more dangerous than the dark elves," I answer honestly. "But also that you have reason to hate them as much as I do. That makes you... unpredictable, but not necessarily my enemy."
Zephyr makes a sound that might almost be a chuckle. "Perceptive."
"Irrelevant," Thane counters. "She's here because we allow it, nothing more."
"She's here," Ravik corrects him, "because she awakened magic older than our curse. Magic that recognizes her right to sanctuary." He moves closer to me, his massive form blocking out the light, surrounding me with his intimidating presence. "But sanctuary comes with rules, little human. Rules you will obey, or face consequences even you, with all your survival instincts, cannot anticipate."
I should be terrified. By all rights, I should be trembling before this creature who could end my life with a casual flick of his clawed hand. Yet something in me refuses to bend, refuses to show the fear clawing at my insides.
"I understand rules," I reply, meeting his gaze directly. "I've lived under them my entire life. But I won't trade one form of slavery for another."
A tense silence follows my declaration. Thane growls low in his throat, clearly offended by my audacity. Zephyr watches with evident fascination, as if I'm some rare specimen behaving in unexpected ways. But it's Ravik's reaction that matters most, and for long moments, his expression remains unreadable.
Then, to my astonishment, the corner of his mouth quirks upward in what might almost be a smile.
"No," he says softly, dangerously. "What we offer is not slavery, Kaia. It is protection. Shelter. Perhaps, eventually, freedom of a sort you've never known." He leans closer still, his face mere inches from mine. "But make no mistake—you are ours now. Not as a slave, but as a ward. A charge. A responsibility we did not seek but will not abandon."
Something in his words, in the intensity of his gaze, sends a strange shiver through me that isn't entirely fear. I've been property all my life—first as a daughter in a poor human family, then as merchandise to be sold, finally as a servant with no rights or dignity. The concept of being protected rather than possessed is so foreign it's almost incomprehensible.
"Why?" I whisper, voicing the question that burns in my mind. "Why protect me at all? What am I to you but an unwanted complication?"
It's Zephyr who answers, his scholarly voice gentle despite its inhuman timbre. "You are a mystery, Kaia. A human whose desperate plea shattered enchantments that have held for centuries. That alone makes you worthy of our interest." He glances at Ravik. "And perhaps something more."
Ravik doesn't contradict him, but his expression hardens once more. "Enough talk. The dark elves will return in greater numbers, and we must be prepared." He gestures toward the inner sanctum. "Go. Rest. Recover your strength. You will need it in the days to come."
This time, I don't argue. I've pushed my luck far enough for one day, and exhaustion still pulls at my limbs despite the brief revival brought by the danger and excitement. I turn to leave, then pause, looking back at the three imposing figures silhouetted against the snow-filled doorway.
"Thank you," I say simply. "For the sanctuary. And for killing those who would drag me back to Liiandor."
Thane looks surprised, as if gratitude is the last thing he expected from me. Zephyr inclines his head in acknowledgment. But Ravik's response is most startling of all.
"We did not kill them for you, little Kaia," he says, his voice rumbling like distant thunder. "We killed them for ourselves. For vengeance centuries in the making. That our interests align in this matter is... convenient."
Yet despite his harsh words, something in his eyes tells a different story—a flicker of possessiveness, of protection, that contradicts his claim of mere convenience. I don't call him on the discrepancy, merely nod and continue toward the inner sanctum.
As I walk away, I hear Thane's low voice behind me. "She's trouble, that one. Too much spirit for a human."
"Indeed," Zephyr agrees, though his tone suggests he considers this a virtue rather than a flaw.
Ravik says nothing, but I feel the weight of his gaze following me until I pass beyond the threshold of the inner chamber.
Alone once more, I sink onto the stone altar, wrapping Ravik's cloak tighter around my shoulders. My mind whirls with everything I've witnessed, everything I've learned. Gargoyles, once dark elves themselves, transformed and betrayed. Magic older than their curse, somehow recognizing my plea for sanctuary. The terrible, efficient violence with which they dispatched my pursuers.
And beneath it all, a current of something unexpected—not kindness, precisely, but a connection I don't understand. Especially with Ravik, whose amber eyes seem to see through all my carefully constructed defenses, whose presence affects me in ways I cannot explain.
I should be planning my escape. I should be plotting how to survive these dangerous creatures whose motives I barely comprehend. Instead, I find myself wondering if perhaps, inthis ancient temple with these fearsome guardians, I might have found something I've never had before.
