Page 64 of Devour
I swallow.
Blythe releases me, standing at the door.
“Come,” the seer says. She has a kind look to her, much less intimidating than Blythe and the black-haired woman I’d seen before. So, I obey and rush forward.
“We are in much need of tender beauty here,” she tells me as I reach her.
This room is small and darker. There are no skulls, but instead the back wall is decorated with red curtains. There is a slab of stone covered in a white cloth beneath a symbol painted in gold.
“Our Drak,” the seer says gently, distracting me from my assessment of the room. “They are filled with necessary violence. They defend. They fight. It is deep within them. We have some fierce Drahkitas, but the soft ones—those are the most special.” She stops to face me and then curls a strand of my hair behind my ear.
I don’t always feel soft. Sometimes, I feel weak. Other times, I feel strong. Calloused.
“You are one of the very most special Drahkitas we have found in the wilds. Out there, where many have lost their lives or their souls. Out there, where so few have the will to continue on.You—you are a bright star. I feel that, even before tasting your blood.”
I rip my hand from her without thinking and stumble back a few steps.
A deep rage fills her features for one instant, and I swear I see her very bones beneath the smooth skin of her face, but it’s gone fast I instantly doubt the image. “Oh, child,” she croons tenderly. “Do not fear. We require only but a drop from you. I know you’ve heard many horrifying stories. But I must tell you that there is a reason for every drop of blood we spill. There is purpose and grace behind each one.”
The door clicks shut behind me, and I twist to find the other Drahkita waiting. She has dark skin and light brown eyes. She steps forward without expression.
“The process is not as intimidating as you expect, Lina. Watch how simple it is.” The seer holds her hand out to Tabitha, who approaches without a word.
“To be worthy of your blessing, you must offer yourself to the Ancient. Give yourself, body and soul, to Nihil.”
“I am willing,” the woman mutters and holds out her hand. She doesn’t so much as gasp, as the seer pricks her finger with a pin and squeezes until a red dot wells on her finger and then slides down her wrist and to the stone below.
I swallow but watch carefully. The stones are set in a circular pattern with lines of gold between them. The seer lifts Tabitha’s arm and licks the line of blood from her wrist.
“Restoration,” the seer says. “That is your soul’s taste this moon cycle, Tabitha. Devin has been on his exhibition across the desert for nearly a month. His return will come, and you will have the opportunity to restore your bond with him. That is wonderful news.”
Tabitha still shows no sign of emotion. Does she not believe in the prophecy, or does she not care? Or perhaps she has simply learned to hide everything possible from the seers.
“Your blessing is complete.”
Tabitha quietly retreats from the room, leaving me alone with the seer. “Are you ready now, Lina?”
I press my lips together, but I know I don’t actually have a choice. I am being swept away with the current, and the harder I fight, the more exhausted I will become. I must save my defiance for when it will matter.
I employ the mask Tabitha held, and I step forward to have my reading.
“To be worthy of your blessing, you must offer yourself to the Ancient. Give yourself, body and soul, to Nihil.”
“I am willing.” I force myself to say the words, but it is so quiet I can barely hear my own voice.
When the priestess pricks my finger, I can’t help but flinch. Blood pools, slides down my wrist, and falls—but then stops.
The tiny drop of blood hangs in the air above the stones.
Silence stretches as she stares at the blood. Finally, she lifts my wrist, and her tongue slides across my skin.
The air chills. The hair on my arms rises.
The blood falls.
She stares, transfixed, at my blood on the ground. I examine the stones, not understanding the significance.
Moments pass and the seer doesn’t move. She says no more. I try to pull my hand free from her grip, but she is immovable. My breathing begins to quicken. My vision peppering black as panic sets in.
