Page 161 of Of Stars and Lightning
She knew what night this was.
She knew what memory she was in.
The booming music flowing in through the open windows gave away it was the annual Yaven Port Celebration, a town-made holiday for sailors trademarked by dances and drinks in the Yavenharrow town square, which is where Sol had been that night.
The fact her mother stood with her back against the front door, facing the back door, made Sol realize this wasn’t a memory at all.
This is what happened after Sol ran.
After her mother had pushed her out the door when she returned for the night, locked it, and yelled at her to find Lora. Solbacked away toward the wall in horror, realizing she would witness what had truly transpired all those years ago. Her chest felt like it may burst with terror.
Was this what Mind Slayers did? Would she be stuck in this scene forever? Was it her purgatory?
Hot tears burned behind her eyes.
“You are breaching a sacred blood oath by being here,” her mother said. Her black hair was in knots around her face, as if she had been running. It blew wildly with each of her heavy breaths, and her blue eyes were dimmed with fear as she beheld something past the staircase, past Sol.
As Sol turned, she trembled.
“Too bad we don’t answer to blood, unlike you, Wielder filth.”
The Mind Slayer was absolutely horrid. It made the ones Sol had seen pleasant.
The one that towered toward Irene was giant, at least eight feet tall, and a doorframe wide.
Unlike the ones that crept behind it, the leader had orange, crackling skin still attached to protruding bones around its limbs. The flesh melted off of it like candle wax, and its talons were an unearthly shade of green. It stomped forward, its eyes flashing white then black, like a lighthouse beckoning its sailors. It had long, stringy black hair that twisted into the gaping holes within its skin.
Sol turned away, suppressing the compulsion to vomit.
Behind it were Lower Jinn, not that it made things any better. The blue-gray, decaying piles of rot were just as paralyzing.
“Mavka won’t stand for this,” her mother said. She leaned over to her right, fumbling with something behind the wall. She withdrew a sword, angled and ready for a fight.
“I don’t answer to Loumallet or his whore,” the orange Mind Slayer announced, its hollow voice booming through the house.
Sol stared at the sword as it became engulfed in a kaleidoscope of colors, almost as if doused in an oily flame.
“We answer to the mighty Lorkin,” the Jinn on the right added, cackling. This one had a white, festering wound on its forehead.
Irene gave them an unamused laugh. “You all are taking council from that nasty thing?” Her mother eyed the orange creature.
“Gods help you.”
“Enough banter, Irene,” the colossal Mind Slayer growled, getting down on all fours. “Now, where is she?”
The cold smile dissipated from her Mother’s beautiful face. “You’ll never find her,” she whispered.
“Oh, we will. After we take care of you," the creature behind the orange one said, dropping to the floor like a snake. It slithered forward, taking its place at the front, protecting the odd one out.
Sol wanted to scream. To run to her mother, to launch herself in front of her like she should’ve done all those wretched years ago.
Her mother had been everything. Everything good in the world.
Sol struggled to move, but she was pinned to the spot, cursed to watch as her mother brought her sword up in front of her. “Come and get it, then.” They lunged.
The one in the front flew first, directly at Irene in the blink of an eye. It clawed at her, but she efficiently deflected its talons with a sweep of her blade. The creature groaned in pain, the Ward around the blade clearly wounding it. Again, it pounced.
Irene jumped, stomping down on its arm, and with a bellow of fury, slammed her blade straight into the creature’s skull. Black blood poured from it, making the gray floors even darker.
