Page 22 of Torn Ivy
“Both,” Josh says. “From what I can gather, and bear in mind the Fae talk in riddles,whenyou die, you become Death. You aren’t the reject, Ivy. You are the chosen one.”
My heart thumps at that. “But that makes no sense. Why would Death want to take my soul if he knows I become Death when I die?”
He shrugs. “Who knows?”
“Well, that’s cheerful,” I mutter, but internally, I’m filing this information away. “What if I fight it?”
“You will inevitably be torn apart by it.”
“How long until that happens?”
“A few weeks-ish. It’s hard to read, but what I do know is, according to this, their power grew exponentially in the days following their awakening. They became increasingly unstable until...”
“Until they went boom and became Death as we know it? So what was Death, I mean the title, not the creature who became it, before?”
“Another good question. Current Death has been around for a while. Vex is at MistHallow looking for more information, but in the meantime, you need to step up. The texts suggest that the first week is crucial. Either you learn to work with the power, or it starts working against you.”
“Are we going to assume that this creature was Fae then, if they have this information?”
“It’s a solid theory.”
“I have no Fae in me,” I point out, hoping this matters.
“Except when you’re fucking Bram,” Ramsey pipes up with a grin at me, and then it fades when Cathy clears her throat and shoots him a menacing glare. I hide my smile, glad we are okay again.
Josh sidesteps neatly. “I don’t think species matters. Or maybe it does. Again, who knows? We need Vex.”
“Ugh, don’t ever say that out loud to him. His ego is already monumental.”
“What’s the plan with regard to the ultimatum?” Cathy asks, watching me carefully.
“I’m going to play his game, but by my rules. He’s going to learn that poison can be just as deadly to Death as it is to everyone else.”
“That’s all very dramatic,” Josh says dryly, “but what does it actually mean in practical terms?”
“It means I need to figure out Death’s weaknesses and what his end game is, and it means I need to find a way to protect my guys while doing it.”
“And how exactly do you plan to do all that?” Ramsey asks.
“By finding out what he wants. Until we do that, all of this is pointless.”
“Well,” Cathy says after a moment, “I think that’s enough theory for now. We need to keep up with practice until we have some definitive answers.”
Death might think he has me cornered, but he’s about to learn what happens when you back a poisonous vine into a corner.
It grows.
It spreads.
And eventually, it kills everything in its path.
The question is, can I accept the fate I’ve been handed and shoved neatly under the mental mat for now?
9
IVY
“Focus on the energy,but don’t try to contain it,” Cathy instructs as I attempt to manifest my chaos magick in a controlled way.
