Page 101 of House of Ydril

“Longborn,” Faust starts.

But his uncle cuts him off, looking pissed. “Andreas, compel her or I will do it for you.”

“What kind of monster are you?” I demand.

“What did you call me?” Baldor hisses as he appears right in front of me. “Would amonsterdelay getting rid of you for as long as I have?”

I open my mouth, but I don’t manage to say anything.

I see Faust lunge at his uncle and get in his face. “So you admit it?” he snarls at him. “That you went and tried to kill her?”

Baldor doesn’t say anything. He just raises one hand and I see Faust’s entire body tense up, his face taking on a pained expression. “Stop it,” he yells at his uncle, but he makes him take a step back and just keep standing there.

I snap. Quickly, I tap the Element Rune and send rocks flying straight at him.

He just dodges them and looks deep into my eyes, raising his left hand at me while his right is still busy trying to control his nephew.

“Leave her the fuck alone,” I hear Faust growl at him.

I try to stop it, but Baldor manages to assert his control over me, making me freeze in place.

He turns to his nephew. “Now go out and make them bow to you,” he commands.

I myself can’t move an inch, but I see Faust struggling not to listen. “Uncle, I’m warning you. If you don’t stop, I’m going to use the Stone against you.”

Baldor just shakes his head. “I’m afraid you wouldn’t be able to. I put a drop of my own blood in the mixture I gave you. A failsafe of sorts, in case you chose… not to cooperate.” He pauses for a second before he adds, “Now stop resisting and get out there. The people won’t be waiting forever.”

For what seems like an eternity, Faust keeps struggling, the veins on his face bulging, but then he lets out an exasperated breath and moves for the door behind the throne, stiffly and without a word.

“Good boy,” his uncle says as he follows him.

Once again, I try to move and I fail miserably. It’s over, I think to myself as I watch them leave without being able to do anything to stop them. And they manage to go through the door, which seems to lead straight back into the ring, and all of a sudden, I find myself alone, my mind racing and my heart pounding.

I hear the crowd cheer and start preparing for the worst.

But the more he controls his nephew, the weaker Baldor’s grip onmebecomes.

As soon as I feel my body as my own again, I tear my feet off the ground and run after the two of them, through the door behind the throne and up the stairs leading onto the ring.

I barge outside, raising my hand in front of my face. After the darkness below, the light outside is blinding. As my eyes adjust to it, there’s only silence. I squint and I see everyone in the audience standing still with their heads bowed down.

Nuala, I spot Nuala among them.

I panic and my eyes dart to Faust, who’s standing to the other side of the stairs we’ve just climbed, his uncle by his side.

His uncle who’s spotted me and is now squinting in my direction, preparing to do something about it.

Without hesitation, I tap the Element Rune and send a wall of dense air flying straight into him.

He just dodges it and lands right in front of me, his nephew turning to me in one swift but awkward movement, his eyes filled with so many emotions, I can’t even begin untangling them.

“So you’re fine controlling everyone else, but not her?” his uncle spits out.

“Let him go,” I yell out as I shoot another, denser and angrier wall of air at him.

He dodges it, but pretends as if he didn’t hear me. He lets out an exasperated sigh and says, “Fine. I guess I’ll have to find another way to deal with her.”

All of a sudden, I get the urge look up. I see people from the audience staring at me as they get out of their seats and start making their way down the bleachers and into the ring, all of their movements perfectly synchronized.

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