Page 70 of Isle of Beasts and Shadows

She crumpled to the ground, clutching her gaping wound, her fingers slipping on the slick, warm blood that poured from her stomach. The blonde coughed violently, her breath catching as the sight of crimson blood splattered around her.

“Welcome yourself to the underworld,” Conivx’s voice dripped with a venomous mix of mockery and twisted admiration. “Be proud that you solved my mystery and live on in the afterlife.” Her laughter echoed hauntingly through the air, a chilling sound that seemed to mock Airella’s suffering. Conivx turned on her heel, her graceful steps carrying her towards Alikad, leaving Airella writhing in unspeakable pain behind her.

Airella fought desperately against the encroaching darkness, her vision blurring as she struggled to stay conscious. She knew that giving in to the seductive pull of sleep would mean risking never waking again in this twisted reality. An urgent sense of survival gripped her, urging her to keep her eyes open no matter how heavy they felt, to keep fighting against the pain that threatened to consume her.

Meanwhile, Conivx stood next to Alikad, her movements eerily tender as she reached out to caress his face with enticing hands.

“Oh, my darling,” her voice was soft, laced with a mixture of longing and possessiveness, “how I’ve longed for this moment.” She planted a gentle kiss on his forehead, her touch betraying a history filled with dark complexities and unfulfilled desires. “To hold you like this is what I’ve been waiting for. I’ve watched you transform into a full-fledged reaper… You’re all mine, and now you’re finally whole. My dearest, you’re only mine.” She colored her words with a twisted devotion, promising an unbreakable bond and the eternity they would share. “Together, we shall be unstoppable. We will conquer death itself—”

Her sentence came to an abrupt halt as a sudden, excruciating pain tore through her being. A blade had found its mark in the center of her body, slicing through flesh and bone with merciless precision. Conivx’s eyes widened in shock and agony, her breath hitching as she looked down at the blood-soaked blade protruding from her chest.

And there, standing amidst the chaos, was Alikad. His face was a mask of grim determination, his eyes cold and unyielding. Without a moment of hesitation, he yanked his scythe from her body in a fluid motion, spraying blood in a grotesque arc. The silent declaration of defiance and resolute determination was clear in his every movement. The tension hung heavy in the air, mingling with the scent of blood, as a testament to the brutal and gruesome reality they were entrenched in.

“How?” She fell backward onto the damp ground, crimson blood seeping from her wound. “The gem… instead ofattempting to defend yourself, you snatched it from me. You’re not as feeble as I thought. You have… turned my manipulation magic against me. Well played… clever girl…”

As she drew her last ragged breaths, the life force drained from her body, causing her eyes to glaze over with an eerie stillness. With a final, agonized exhale, she succumbed to the inevitable.

At that moment, the island itself seemed to mourn her passing. A chilling decay spread rapidly, like an unstoppable plague, through the once vibrant plants and trees surrounding the group. Leaves shriveled and fell like autumn’s last breath, flowers wilted, their colors draining away to nothingness, and the lush greenery turned brittle and lifeless. The air grew heavy with the scent of death and decay, as if the very heart of the island had ceased to beat. It was a tragic, dramatic end, marked by the island’s swift transformation into a barren wasteland.

Airella’s fingers clutched tightly to the shimmering purple gem, its glow dimming as she continued to bleed out. Despite witnessing the island’s descent into lifelessness, she found solace in the belief that everyone else was unharmed.

With trembling hands, she whispered a final plea to the pendant, “Alikad, come back.” Each word pained her to utter. Airella lay there motionless, gazing up at the dawning sky, resigned to her fate.

Chapter 41

Alikad snapped back to reality, his eyes locking onto the mysterious, darkly clad woman before him. Her dark hair cascaded around her pale, flawless skin like a cloak of shadows. Bewilderment clouded his features as he struggled to place her amidst the chaos. Taking in the decaying forest, he sprang to his feet effortlessly, a newfound clarity washing over him. Arii and Jonathan’s safety weighed heavily, reminding himself that he sent them to Limbo before his mind went dark.

It took Alikad a moment to fully view his surroundings. Fear filled his mind as he took in the scene. His vision pulsed and blurred as he rubbed his head, seeking comfort from a major headache that seemed to intensify with each passing second.

That moment of disorientation passed swiftly as his gaze fell upon the blonde-haired girl gasping for air on the ground before him. The metallic tang of blood hung heavy in the air, saturating the area around her as she tightly clutched the wound on her stomach, her fingers slick with crimson.

“No!” Alikad’s voice cracked with urgency as he scrambled to her side, his heart pounding in his chest. “No, no, no, no,” With trembling hands, he reached for one of hers, his touch gentle yet firm as he applied pressure to the grievous wound.

Sitting on the ground beside her, he cradled her in his arms, a mix of fear and determination etched into his features. A pained groan escaped her colorless lips, a flicker of life amidst the despair that threatened to engulf them both.

With quick thinking born of desperation, Alikad summoned a reserve of strength and used a weak swing of his scythe to tear open the fabric of reality, creating a shimmering portal to the realm of Limbo. Within moments, Arii emerged from the otherworldly gateway, his eyes wide with shock and concern, followed closely by Jonathan. They had witnessed the unfolding tragedy from the vantage point of Limbo’s dimension.

Sadness weighed heavily upon them all as Alikad wept, his tears mingling with the bloodstains on her torn clothing. Placing his head against hers, he whispered words of reassurance, his voice choked with emotion. As she weakly opened her eyes and gazed up at him, a glimmer of recognition and gratitude shone in her gaze.

“Sirius… are you in there…?” Blood trickled from a corner of Airella’s mouth.

“Shhh! Don’t speak. I remember everything, Airella. I have all of Sirius’s memories and feelings. We are one now. Just wait, I—I can fix this,” Alikad’s eyes widened as her breathing slowed. Yet, in truth, he couldn’t fix this. He knew he couldn’t. The wound was too deep, and he knew nothing of healing, only death. The closest thing he could do to help Airella was to remove her soul like he did Jonathan and find her a new body, but he couldn’t bring himself to do it. He had nowhere to keep her soul, and he loved her far too much to send her to the dark depths of Limbo, as he knew that’s where her Miscreant soul would linger for eternity, never truly succumbing to death.She would be stuck in a cage there, similar to how he had been trapped there for centuries.

Alikad’s heart ached at the thought of losing Airella, a pain so deep it felt like a physical weight on his chest. He couldn’t fathom a world without her by his side, her presence filling every corner of his being with warmth and light. The love he held for her was unlike anything he had ever known, a love that anchored him in a sea of uncertainty. He, or more like Sirius, never took the chance to tell her these things, and now she’ll die without ever knowing.

“I… I don’t know what to do.” Alikad growled, clenching her hand. His voice trembled with the raw agony of impending loss. To lose her would be to lose a part of himself, a part he never knew he had until she entered his life. Every fiber of his being rebelled against the idea of her absence, the mere thought of it creating a chasm of emptiness within him.

The memories they shared played out like a vivid tapestry in his mind, each moment a precious gem in the treasure trove of their bond. The fear of losing her consumed him, a relentless storm raging in his soul. In that moment, Alikad faced a choice no one should have to make—to save the one he loved at the cost of the unknown or to let her slip away into the shadows.

Alikad clung to her hand as if holding on for dear life, his grip tight with desperation and love intertwined. The minutes felt like hours, the seconds like an eternity. Her breaths came shallower, each one a cruel reminder of her dwindling time. He couldn’t imagine a tomorrow without her laughter, without her presence. The thought of waking up to a world without her was a nightmare from which he couldn’t wake. The surrounding air seemed to thicken with the weight of unspoken words and unfulfilled promises.

“Airella, please stay with me,” he whispered, his voice breaking. Tears streamed down his face, mingling with the blood and dirt on his cheeks. He wished he could stop time, capture every fleeting second they had left, but reality was a cruel mistress, pulling her further away with each passing breath.

“I can’t do this without you,” he choked out, his heart breaking with every word. The world around them seemed to fade, leaving only the two of them in a cocoon of shared pain and love. Her eyes met his, filled with a mixture of pain, love, and acceptance. At that moment, they both knew the inevitable truth. Alikad leaned closer, pressing his forehead against hers, their breaths mingling as one. The universe seemed to hold its breath, the rising sun watching over them in silent vigil.

As Airella’s eyes closed, Alikad felt a part of himself shattering. The silence that followed was deafening, filled with the echoes of their shared past and the void of a future that would never come. His soul cried out, a silent scream that resonated through the very fabric of his being. The love they shared was a beacon in the darkness, a light that would never truly be extinguished.

In the end, Alikad knew that the love they had would transcend the boundaries of life and death. Even as he held her lifeless body, he promised himself that he would carry her memory, her essence, within him forever.

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