Page 31 of A Broken Ember

“Meet me at the usual place,” he said before his soft footsteps retreated. My gaze fell on Claeg’s peaceful form again. It was so unusual to see him without all the tension in his shoulders. My gut told me that now would be a good time to reintroduce him to his father, but he looked so serene. I couldn’t disturb him. There would be time later.

For now, I had draconis to attend to.

Chapter 27: Claeg

I awoke from a mercifully dreamless sleep to Anastasius gently extricating himself from my arms. Instinct told me not to reveal my consciousness, so I remained calm, letting my breaths cycle quietly. The deception worked. I waited a moment before following Anastasius, keeping my distance so that he wouldn’t discover that he had a tail. I needed to know the truth—what happened to the captured draconis and how this magic was created.

He descended into the depths of the castle. The smell of blood and waste grew more potent the farther we went. Weakness, the Ruptor purred. My heart twisted and bile rose in my throat. I kept to the shadows and waited as he went into a room at the end of a hall. On either side were dark doorways, the smell of vulnerability seeping from within each like a heavy fog.

Anastasius spoke with another just below my ability to hear. I had to get closer. I crept down the hallway, noting tainted flavors of weakness seeping from under locked doors. Outside the far room, I could make out three voices: Anastasius, Rohit, and one I thought I would never hear again. My father.

Chills ran down my spine. I suppressed a sharp inhale. What was he doing here with the prince? I shouldn’t have been so surprised that he was here. De Vita were known for taking the Pruned and Saving them. I was proof of that, but after so long of not seeing any other Circulus, his presence caught me off-guard. I blinked, gaping at the dark, stone walls. I almost didn’t realize the three had stopped talking. Footsteps approached. Fuck. If they found me… I quickly backtracked to the first door and slipped inside, leaving it open a crack to prevent it from making a sound and alerting them. Inside the pressure of weakness throbbed against my body, but I ignored the Ruptor in favor of spying.

“You’re sure he saw you?” Rohit whispered.

“Yes,” Anastasius answered, his voice unsteady. I held my breath, not even blinking. I was caught. Surely. The scent of old spice spiked, making my heart rate hitch. They stood directly outside.

“He knows too much, or at least he suspects. This has to end now,” Ercan said. The sound of his voice made old anger flare in my stomach.

“We aren’t ready. What if somebody gets hurt? I can’t protect you. He won’t do anything yet. Just wait until after the Selection,” Anastasius pleaded. The reply was too faint as they continued to walk away. Clearly the prince knew I was an imposter, but strangely, he hadn’t mentioned that. Perhaps we were using each other. I clenched my fist. It wasn’t fair of me to expect anything different. He was De Vita, after all. But he was also my prince.

“Have they left yet?” a fragile whisper came from within the dark, making my heart cease to beat as it froze in place. I whipped around to find a Circulus fledgling crouched in the corner. She trembled beneath me. In the dim light, I saw her gaunt and bruised face. That wasn’t the extent of her weakness, though. I sensed matching wounds everywhere on her.

My blood boiled and sent my heart hammering in my chest. This was the proof I had been looking for. Persefoni, the youngest that had gone missing. Her pale skin contrasted her dark, matted hair. Anger flared hot up my spine. I was a fool. Anastasius was clearly involved in this . . . whatever this was. The young draconis before me eyed me warily. "Are you here to complete my Circle, Ruptor?" She blinked at me, biting her lip in a way that reminded me of the prince.

I thought about her question for a moment. Thana had instructed me to not free the captured draconis. And she was clearly weak.

"Is that what you want?" I asked. Confusion flickered across her features. I didn't blame her. I had no idea what the fuck to do now. She slowly shook her head as if trying to judge my reaction before committing to an answer. "Good. Tell me, how many others?"

"I don't know. They keep the doors locked from the outside. But I hear them whimper. Does that make us weak?" she asked. Yes, I went to say, but as the word formed on my tongue, another came to mind: protect. I looked at her. Whatever Odon and Anastasius had done to her, had traumatized her. She didn't need the extra weight of guilt right now.

"No, it doesn't." I ground my teeth through the lie. "Come. We are getting you out of here." I pushed open the door, flooding the room with light from tame flames—such an unnatural thing. It had to be magic.

Once I was in the hallway, I opened dozens of other doors concealing draconis that had disappeared before and after I had left the Circulus. I found a total of thirteen terrified young draconis. They all had wounds covering their bodies, and every time I approached, they asked if I was there to complete their Circle. When I asked if that was what they wanted, all but one said no. I looked at the last Circulus, a boy of twenty sun turns, the equivalent of many moon turns. Ajal. I tried to recall any information about him but came up blank. There was nothing I could say to tempt him to return or change his mind.

"Thana will order our Circles completed anyways, or have us Pruned. I would rather die without that dishonor.”

"Go with them. You don’t belong here," I begged him.

"Look at you. You're deluded if you think they'll take any of us back. Go. I'm not coming with you."

“Then fly east!” I didn’t even know what laid beyond the sea, but Anastasius seemed to believe there was civilization there.

“I will not flee like a coward. Do your job, Ruptor," he sneered.

I winced as if he had struck me. My gut curdled at the task he presented me with. My throat bobbed as we glared at each other. His eyes were so full of life. I couldn’t take that from him. A sharp pain shredded my insides. After a few minutes, I sighed, unable to look him in the eye anymore.

"I can't."

His answering laughter was hysterical shrieks.

"So, you’re their puppet, too? Such a shame. You were such a strong Circulus. We all admired you once. Now look at you." He eyed me up and down, his gaze landing on my scarred palms. He snorted. "Figures you would have your Circles broken. Why else would you be here?" He spat.

I bared my teeth, not bothering to defend myself. Who would believe me if I told them the truth? Circles were only broken for traitors. He folded his arms and took a step back. I held his eye for a moment before nodding. The draconis behind me shuffled restlessly. It was time to leave. I backed out of the cell, letting the door slip closed. We silently tread through De Vita halls without meeting another soul. I prayed to the gods of the Circulus that I would be successful in freeing these survivors. I didn’t know what I would do if I were caught. There was no excuse for why the victims I had in tow were free. Thankfully, we reached outside without incident, although it surprised me that there were no guards placed to watch over the prisoners. They were truly left down there to rot.

The spice of the Sand Eye flooded our noses. I took a deep breath, preparing myself for what came next. I couldn’t return with them. Not yet. Anastasius would tell me about the magic he possessed and then he would pay for his involvement in this atrocity. "Where will you go?" I asked.

"You're not coming with us?" Persefoni said, tucking her hair behind a bloody ear.

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