Page 115 of Of Wind and Terror

“He… He told me about Order and Chaos. About how they fought. About how you and Thanatos combined your powers to put them to sleep.” I desperately search my memory for anything I may be missing, but I can’t think coherently, not with fear rampaging through my bloodstream.

“Hundreds, if not thousands, of years ago, we combined our power to create a spell potent enough to keep them away.” Gaia sounds…sad. Despondent. Maybe even guilty. “And then one day, the magic began to change. Distort, you could say. When we went to check on Order and Chaos, we found that the magic had manifested into fae.”

“Wait…what?” I whirl around again, but like before, I don’t see anyone.

“Magic has a mind of its own, as your elf can attest to. It does what it wants, when it wants.” She chuckles wryly, but the sound holds no humor. “And it appears as if this magic wanted to take the form of a fae.”

“Of a fae,” I parrot blankly, a sick understanding twisting my stomach.

No. No. No. Nononono.

“Of two fae,” Gaia corrects. “A fae who embodies light, and a fae who embodies darkness. Both of whom were gifted the same magic—our magic.”

Her words don’t make a lick of sense. My head begins to spin with the onslaught of information being thrown at me. A splitting headache threatens to rip my brain apart.

“T-two fae?”

“A little boy and a little girl, both gifted the abilities to control both life and death.” There’s the slightest pressure of what feels like fingertips against my cheek, but it’s there and gone too quickly for me to be sure. “Your brother, Kassandra. Your twin brother.”

“W-what?”

This can’t be happening.

This can’t be.

“And your brother is not like you. He wants to awaken Chaos. He wants?—”

“What are you saying?!” I demand, my voice rising in pitch until it’s practically a scream. Tears flow down my cheeks, freely and unencumbered. “Are you saying that I’m not… That I’m not alive? That I’m just…excess magic?”

“Oh, my darling daughter.” Another phantom touch against my cheek. “You’re alive because you came from me. From me and Thanatos.”

“And I have a brother?” My voice cracks on that last word.

“He may have been your brother once upon a time, but he’s not anymore.” Gaia’s voice is infused with steel. “Your brother has been corrupted by Chaos, and he would sooner see you dead than partake in a family reunion.”

I feel pressure against the mark on my arm, feather-light, and I wince imperceptibly, pulling away.

“Who do you think gave you the Mark of Chaos in the first place?”

45

TREYTON

Ihold Kassandra tight against my chest as I kick open the door to my room and hurry into the hallway.

It’s absolute fucking chaos.

Guards run in every direction—at least those who haven’t been crushed by the caving roof. Staff members scream, and someone is sobbing in the distance.

And there, beneath a collection of cement, is the young female Kassandra introduced me to just a few ticks earlier.

Bailey’s eyes are wide and unseeing, and her lips are parted as if she had been about to scream before death claimed her. Blood trickles from her lips, and there’s even more blood surrounding her head, darkening her fair hair.

“What the fuck is happening?” Aleksander rushes towards me, his eyes wild with panic—an emotion I’ve never seen before on the seemingly unflappable elf.

His shoulders seem to physically sag in relief when he catches sight of Kassandra in my arms, unconscious but alive.

Then he notices the young girl buried beneath piles of cement.

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