Page 87 of Rose and Shadows
“Indeed.”
He frowned at me. “And the baby, you think?”
“It is a crucial factor. Of that I have no doubt.”
Sylas started pacing and yelling to himself then.
“I’m tired of it! First my sickness. Then the Dark Fae mind-meddling. Morien and Corvin violating the laws of magic by interacting through the Valley. That fucker resurrecting. Now him twisting necromancy in ways that go beyond violations of the balance. Those Dark Fae he had wielding his necromantic energy will die—as they fucking should—but still… that’s how fucked up him doing that is. It can’t be done without those consequences. It shouldn’t be done.He tugged at his hair. “And if that’s not enough, he’s found a way to infuse black magic and Celestial power to soup up his necromantic energy to such a level that he could pull off an extinction-level event. I mean—fuck!”
He snatched his coffee mug off the counter, then threw it against the wall, roaring as it shattered to pieces.
“I can’t locate Morien! I can’t get a lock on my core or latch onto Corvin’s magic either! All three are vital things to be able to take that motherfucker out! To stop him from launching his demented version of Risen Reckoning on the living! Fuck! Motherfucking fuck! Argh!”
Ketheron and I exchanged a look.
In the next moment, we teleported right into the kitchen.
Sylas started. “Some warning would’ve been nice.”
“So you can destroy more of the kitchen?” I queried.
“The kitchen, the living room… all of it, if needs be.”
“Now, that would be a dear shame after the trouble I went to in order to restore this home for you.”
That managed to jar him, and he blew out a breath and sank against the wall. “It would, yeah. I’m just… you know…”
“We do know,” Ketheron assured him. “You are hurting, frustrated, and afraid.”
Sylas’ eyes flashed at Ketheron’s use of that last word.
But he didn’t actually deny it. Because now that fear was for those he loved. As I’d come to learn also, that was a whole other level of terror.
“Thanks to Velra getting that intel from Sorin—the name of the leader ofPuritas—it has led to a fuck-ton of leads. The Guardian Movement has taken out sevenPuritascells now. Remnant is working on those buried deeper and harder to reach as we speak, and already The Shadowed has decimated ten fucking cells. I need to be ready with this ASAP,” Sylas told us.
“You need to take a brief break. Your mind needs it,” I told him.
“I can’t just—”
“You are experiencing burnout,” Ketheron spoke. “If I do not rest my mind, I cannot solve highly complex problems either. And this problem is dearly complex. In fact, after this break that Cassius is correct in saying you need to take, I will assist you.”
“I appreciate it, K, but you’ve got enough on your plate.”
Ketheron eyed me for confirmation and I gave a nod, wherein he then informed Sylas, “Ryker and I have determined a solution to the Celestial-infused Dark Fae mind-meddling. Working with Arcanum Order, we were able to fuse the Celestial power that Ryker siphoned into the antidote for general Dark Fae mind-meddling. Ryker will disburse it across the supernatural worldusing the mechanism embedded into Blackline Protocol which continues on as we speak.”
I stepped forward. “Ryker has insisted on warning the supernatural populace first, though. He’ll offer everyone a choice—again, communicating through Blackline.”
“That will alert the entire supernatural world, even our enemies. The way they could react to that… it could be devastating,” Sylas warned.
“Or it could lead to them scrambling and, therefore, making mistakes,” I countered.
“Aren’t you the optimistic force today?”
“I believe you need me to be.” I gestured at the mess all over the kitchen. “You will solve this. But you need to take a step back first. And, fortunately, there is something that Ketheron and I have come to take you to that will assist.” I looked at Ketheron. “And you must focus on the other Celestial-related issue that you and I are seeing to. If you think you can do both, I will support that, but don’t stretch yourself too thin, or you will find yourself burned out too before you know it.”
“Getting rid of the Celestial power that Morien has accessed from Corvin’s stores?” Sylas asked.
“Yes,” I confirmed. “There is a way to draw it away from all non-Celestial beings, but holding it permanently is the issue.”
