Page 13 of Risen
“Hmm?I have no idea what you’re thanking me for, vampire,” she drawled, as if nothing significant had just passed between us.As if I didn’t suddenly… want to curl up in her arms.“Did you have a message for me?”
I shook off the startling urge to hug the dragon and sighed.“Yes.Acacia wants us to kill the king of the syndicate shifters.She says the emperor has asked to start meeting with her again—I assume that means he’s wanting to keep draining her magic.But she’ll lead us to him if we get rid of the shifter.”
Robin’s eyes narrowed.“And is she listening right now?”
I scoffed.“Always.”
“Good,” she said, stepping closer, her long, lean body moving like a sinuous predator.“Listen to me very closely, Acacia.I have people working on finding the emperor’s location.And if you use your little puppet here to fuck with any of my court again, I’ll simply get rid of him.So why should I do any more of your dirty work?”
I felt her trying to speak through me again, and it made me choke.Shuddering, Iallowedit, just to be rid of her that much quicker.
“Because even if you find the location of our meetings,” Acacia said with my mouth, our lips twisting into a sneer, “you’ll never get inside before he vanishes again.He portals in and out of the location, and the place is warded by his sorcerers, as well as his own stolen magic.ButIhave been given a key to get inside his wards for our… meetings.”
Robin glared silently as seconds ticked by.I knew she was fighting with herself.Here was the opportunity to carry out her revenge, handed to her on a silver platter.But it would require carrying out Acacia’s orders again.That had to offend every last battered shred of pride she possessed.
“Fine,” she said, deadly silent.Then her voice shifted as she cocked a hip and studied her nails.“But you can hardly expect us to go out in public for a merry murder spree at the moment, Acacia,darling.Think of our situation.”
“Soon, then,” Acacia said through me.“Since I am such agenerousqueen, I will offer you resources in the city, if you need them.Don’t waste time, dragon, or I will make you regret it.”
Chapter 6
Dusek
Thenagaenclavewasquiet, but it wasn’t silent.Most silence was hollow, a space where nothing could grow.But in this place—this impossible city in a cavern beneath an island surrounded by water—the silence was alive.Itbreathed.I didn’t have an earth affinity, the way Ruya or the naga, or the faun did.But here, I could sense the magic in the earth in a way I never had before.It was… grounding, I suppose.Though that seemed a stupid observation.
I stood near a small pool carved into the stone, watching the glow cast by bioluminescent fungus ripple along the edges.My reflection, when it was present, shimmered back at me in broken fragments emerging from the dark.A jawline.The corner of an eye.Fitting, since I felt a bit… fragmented, lately.
The rebel court was standing on a precipice.Soon, we would make our move, the syndicate would be destroyed.The broken edges of Robin’s heart would, hopefully, be soothed by the emperor’s death.She needed us, though, needed all of her court to be at their best, sharp and ready.And I felt… unsteady.
Something was broken inside me.For decades, I had kept myself together by maintaining strict boundaries between myself and others.But then Ruya came along and kept chipping at my protective walls.And Cicely started showing up in my dreams, treating me as if we were friends, encouraging Ruya’s reckless schemes to seduce me.Now Sadavir just brushed my crumbling walls aside like it was nothing… it left me feeling raw and vulnerable.And confused.
I couldn’t stop thinking about this rising need to protect the people I cared about.I wanted to wrap them all in my shadows and hide them from the world.Keep them safe and sound in the darkness with me.It was almostalphaof me.A disturbing thought.But even more disturbing was the way I craved closeness.Touch.Some insane part of me wanted to give in to the ever-increasing need to… indulge in physical affection.It was a dangerous urge for a monster like me.
But… maybe they were right.Ruya, and Cicely, and Sadavir.Maybe they trulydidn’tsee a monster when they looked at me.Was that really possible?And did it even matter now, when we were on the eve of waging war on the syndicate, and possibly being hunted by a cult of insane witches?I was losing my mind.
I thought I could make sense of the conflicting desires and thoughts inside me by spending some time alone.I didn’t expect anyone to come looking for me here.So, it was a bit of a surprise when I heard the soft footfalls behind me.I didn’t turn to see who it was.I could sense her, always.I waited, let the living silence stretch between us as Ruya joined me.
Her soft alto voice was a balm to my soul.“Having a good lurk in a dark corner?Is that a popular bubak pastime?”I turned to see her rubbing her hands over her arms, which were bared in the t-shirt she wore.She could only see shadows and light, so she probably couldn’t tell just how much darker this little corner was, but itwascooler here, the water lending its chill to the air.
I huffed a short laugh.“Visiting with the shadows,” I said, trying to match her teasing tone.“They tell me their secrets.And it’s a good place to see everything and be seen by nothing, trinket.”
She stepped closer to me, close enough that I felt the brush of her aura, warm, and steady, and maddeningly gentle.I didn’t move away as I normally would.I made myself trust in her strength, in her ability andwillingnessto endure my presence.She didn’t flinch.
“Trinket?”she said lightly.“You haven’t called me that in a while.”A soft smile played about her lips, telling me she didn’t mind the silly nickname I’d given her when we first stole her away from the cult.
“We’re not too different, you know,” she said, furrowing her brow as she gazed at the darkness near where I stood.“You think staying in the dark is comfortable.I thought my tower in the pocket world was comfortable too, once.That it hid me from the scary outside world, and kept me safe.”She gave a dry laugh.“It’s what The Mother taught me.That the outside world was bad.That other people couldn’t be trusted.That keeping me apart from others was for my own good.That what I could do was a rare gift, but also something to be contained and carefully handled.”
I didn’t answer.Not right away.Eventually I said, “The difference is, you were supposedly kept locked up for your own safety.I keep to myself for the safety and wellbeing of others.”
“Mmm,” she hummed, as if considering.“I know that’s what youthink.But I think you’ve been so adamant about calling yourself a monster because you’re afraid.”
I huffed.But she wasn’t wrong.Itwasfear that kept me from reaching out for connection with other people.Fear of their reactions.Fear of rejection.Fear of the pain I’d feel when they inevitably looked at me with horror or disgust.And now, fear of how much worse the loneliness felt after experiencing touch.
“It was terrifying at first,” she said softly.“When I left the tower.Not knowing what I was doing.Feeling like I was at a complete loss for how to interact with the world.”She turned her face toward me and gave me a knowing smirk.“I found people who made it worth the risk, though.Who drew me out of my shell and showed me it was okay to be myself, whoever that was.That I was worthy of love, and attention, and being cared for.That not everyone was out to control me or hurt me.”She grinned.“And that it is okay to ask for what I want.”
I chuckled.“You think our experiences are similar, little witch?”
She shrugged.“I think you’ve been more present lately.Less distant.And I know it’s notonlybecause I keep nudging you to accept the fact that you’re not a monster and that I do actually care for you and want to be near you.”That knowing grin again.“I think maybe I’m not the only one working on getting you to take down those scary dark walls.And that makes me so happy for you, Dusek.”
