Page 62 of Devour
Irelease a breath when we leave the hall filled with Dread, only to find a new threat looming.
It’s thick in the air and rising like a storm.
Nearly a hundred torches are scattered across the room large enough to hold a hundred people. The walls on the sides are shiny layers of brightly colored stone. Orange and yellow and white. The back wall is covered with human skulls. I try my best not to focus on their morbid decoration or consider too long who they might have been.
They don’t try to hide their brutality. I find it so hard to understand how Helena seems happy here. Is that a requirement? Does she pretend to avoid punishment?
At the front of the room is a circular structure of sparkling white stone filled with fire. Kneeling behind the glowing pit are three of the beautiful priestesses, with their necks arched back and their arms wide. Two are in silver gowns, one in gold.
The hair on my arm rises.
There is nothing outwardly wrong here. Three women praying at an altar.
Yet there is the feeling of darkness, a weight that sets my teeth on edge. Like in the forest when silence falls and you know in your very soul something terrible is coming.
The room is quiet, except for the softer flickering of flames.
There are two other couples watching the priestesses and two additional Drahkita’s with no Drak. Two Dread, four beautiful women dressed in blue silk.
I glance over my shoulder to watch my Dread enter the room behind me. If he has any expression at all, I cannot tell behind that damned mask. Is he in awe of this place? Is it sacred to him? Nothing in his countenance gives away his emotions. As far as I can tell, this is the same to him as entering the dungeons or the cascades or his dwelling.
He takes his place beside the closest Drahkita and I follow suit, standing in line next to him, watching the frozen-still priestess.
After another moment, the door squeals and groans, announcing a new arrival. A small blond girl with terrified eyes and a warrior with his hand clasped on her shoulder. He pushes her forward, forcing her into line with the rest of us. She whimpers but obeys with trembling fingers and tear-crusted eyes.
I fight the urge to comfort her. I wish I were beside her rather than the warrior. My fingers ache to reach out to hers, to cling to her and share our fear together.
I’ve started to notice a few things to help me tell the warriors apart despite their similar attire and covered faces. My biggest clue is their stature. Some are shorter, some are thinner. Some have hair that peaks out from beneath their hood. Some wear chains around their necks.
The warrior to my left has thicker arms than my Dread’s, and is slightly taller. My Dread does not wear any jewelry but he has black locks that occasionally fall over his forehead.
He is the thinnest of the warriors I’ve seen—aside from the guards in our living quarters. He towers over those warriors.
The skull-masked men tend to surround the beautiful priestesses. Are those the acolytes? Or warriors in training?
A soft tone begins ringing through the cool air, but I cannot tell where it comes from.
The redhead in the middle lowers her arms and slowly rises from her knees.
“Today is a special day.” Her voice is as soft as rain but somehow holds power as thick as the black magic the warriors used in their battle. “We have accepted two new Drahkitas into our precious community. You are serving the drakai, Nihil, and the Ancient One. There is no bigger blessing!”
I look to my right and then my left. Surely the young blond who came in after me is the other new Drahkita. The other two must be more established, then. How often must they come here and face the priestess?
“I am Blythe, the Nihil Priestess. I am charged with interpreting the will of the Ancient One, who is the only living being able to commune with Nihil himself. It is his power that protects us from the curse.”
“Bless the Ancient,” my Dread says in unison with the others.
The redheaded priestess, Blythe, stands and smiles. “These are my seers, known as the Makaria. Their names are Deidre and Nakyi.”
The two other women bow their heads, eyes closed and arms still wide in worship.
“You have been placed in our community, an important role filled. But more importantly, today, we will peer inside your soul and find your purpose. We will unravel your heart. And after today, we will know for certain if you are worthy of the Nihil.”
I swallow, uncertain what that could mean. My Dread implied that, to pass their test, I simply needed to not be rebellious, but this sounds like something more.
“We will start with the youngest and newest.” She holds out her hand to the blond that came in after me. The girl trembles like a leaf. Her warrior shoves her forward. The red-haired priestess grins as she catches her in her red claws.
Without another word, she guides the whimpering girl through a doorway behind the glowing pit. One of the worshiping women silently stands and follows them into the other room.
