Page 32 of Wild Ivy
“Or what?” Life asks, examining her nails with casual disinterest. “You’ll try to smite me? Please.”
Morrigan moves to stand beside Life, and suddenly, their alliance is crystal clear. “Now then,” the war goddess says, her eyes fixed on Bram. “Shall we discuss terms?”
“Terms?” Torin spits. “You just sent Ivy to her death!”
“Death can’t die,” Life corrects him. “But she can suffer. She can learn her place in the natural order, and you all can help ensure she stays exactly where I put her.”
The remaining souls swirl around us, their loyalty clearly shifted. Whatever control Ivy had over them is gone.
“Never,” Bram growls, but I can see the conflict in his eyes. Morrigan’s power inside him is responding to her proximity, but it’s recoiling, and not trying to return, as Bram said.
I process all this information in rapid succession. I need to think faster. We’re outnumbered and outgunned, and our strongest player just got kicked off the board. But there has to be a way…
“What exactly do you want?” I ask, buying time. “Besides Bram’s power?”
Life’s smile widens. “Want to negotiate, warlock? How pragmatic of you.” Her smile makes my skin crawl. Everything about her is wrong - the way she moves, the ancient power radiating off her in waves that set my warlock senses screaming.
“I’m listening,” I say carefully, positioning myself between her and Bram. Not that my magick would do much good if she really wanted to get to him.
“It’s quite simple, really,” Life says. “Bram returns Morrigan’s power willingly, and I’ll consider letting your precious Ivy out of the void. Eventually.”
“And if he doesn’t?” Torin asks, his vampire speed making him a dark blur as he moves to flank me in front of Bram.
“Then she stays there. Forever. Being hunted by every dark soul she so arrogantly thought she could control.” Life shrugs. “Either way, I win. The only question is how many of you I have to destroy in the process.”
The remaining spirits circle us like sharks, their forms flickering in and out of existence. That has to mean something,but what? Are they unable to exist for longer than a few minutes? Or has Life’s presence disrupted their energy?
“You’re lying,” I say, my senses picking up something off about her aura. “You need something else. This isn’t just about Morrigan’s power.”
Her expression tightens almost imperceptibly.Got you.
“Careful, warlock,” Morrigan warns. “You’re in no position to make accusations.”
But I press on, drawing on years of magickal knowledge. “You said you’ve been planning this for a long time. Why? What changed?”
The flash of fear in her eyes is fleeting, and I could have imagined it, but I don’t think I did.
“When Ivy changed time, she changed something else, too. Something that affects you.”
Life’s power crackles through the clearing, making the spirits scatter. “Enough talking! Choose now. Give up Morrigan’s power, or Ivy stays in the void.”
My ancestral magick pulses as understanding floods through me.
“The void,” I say slowly. “It’s not just a prison for souls anymore, is it? It’s become something else. Something that even you’re afraid of.”
Life’s form flickers, just for a moment, but it’s enough to confirm my suspicion. The spirits around us shift uneasily, as if they can sense the truth in my words.
“The time change didn’t just affect the physical world,” I continue, piecing it together. “It changed the fundamental nature of death itself, and by extension, the void.”
“You’re just guessing,” Life sneers, but there’s an edge of panic in her voice.
“Am I?” I take a careful step forward, my magick ready. “Then why are the spirits flickering? They should be stable in your presence. After all, you’re Life itself. Unless...”
“Unless what?” Torin asks, his vampire senses clearly picking up on the same disturbance to the energy around us that I am.
“Unless the void isn’t just Death’s domain anymore,” Bram murmurs. “It’s become something new. Something neither Life nor Death fully controls.”
Morrigan shifts uncomfortably. “We should end this now,” she tells Life.
