Page 167 of Gift from the Nexus

My frantic heartbeat kicks up a notch with anticipation as my feet pound the rocky ground. This is the moment I’ve waited my entire adult life for. To be stronger, fearless. To be able to pay him back for all the shit he did to me, put me through and I plan to have my revenge in full.

Approaching me quickly, he rears his fist back, ready to strike, and at the last moment, I turn my body into his. I latch on to his outstretched arm and flip him over my body, keeping his wrist secured in a death grip. I don’t hesitate as I call the strength of my dragon forth.

Lifting my leg, I bring my foot down as hard as I possibly can right at the crook of his elbow. The crack is ear piercing and a breath of relief, no matter how sick that may sound, leaves me as he bellows in pain. It’s like a small tally has been placed on our board and I’m one strike closer.

Flipping his body around, I sling him to the ground by his useless arm and pounce on his chest. My anger takes full control as I raise my fist and punch him over and over and over. The sight of the red pooling from his nose, his mouth, his cheek, his whole fucking face doesn’t stop me. It feeds me and I let the darker parts of myself take full control as my agony races to the surface for its vengeance.

No one interferes. No one stops me and it takes my mind a long moment to realize my throat’s becoming raw. I’m screaming loudly. With every hit, a guttural roar leaves me and tears of rage stream down my face.

“No!” I bellow when suddenly my fist connects with gravel instead of skin.

Whipping around, Donald pathetically rolls out of a transport back beside the Summum-Master, who kneels beside him.

All I see is red and I shoot my shadows out at them with the intention of wrapping Donald’s pathetic ass up in them and dragging him back to me. What I didn’t expect, though, was for the Summum-Master to latch on to my shadows as if they were physical whips and snatch me to them.

My chest would’ve collided with his if not for his sickly hands catching me and squeezing my shoulders punishingly. My name filters through my mind and the space now separating me from my men, but a blast of air has them all tumbling backward as soon as they charge toward me. It has everyone who’s still standing falling to the ground.

“You’ve surprised me, granddaughter. You’ll be most useful to me.” He hums into the silence. His air has created a sealed space for just the two of us.

His magic washes over me like acid. It burns, it’s so toxic. Not only that, but I can also sense that it’s all not his own. My gift of detecting magical signatures is going haywire beneath my skin like fire ants in a frenzy because I know he’s using more than one gift at a time. There’re, fuck, I don’t even know, hundreds coursing through him.

“I refuse to let you use me,” I grit out as his fingers brutally press into my skin.

“You have no choice.”

“There’s always a choice.”

I shove him as hard as I can in the chest, adding in the force of my winds and his body flies from mine. I’m not naïve enough to believe it was that easy, only that I caught him off guard. He’s back on his feet in seconds, casting out a chain made of ice.

My flame melts the weapon mid-air and by the smallest, I do mean tiniest of flinches that I catch from his hands, he wasn’t expecting that despite already witnessing how useless Gish’s water was. He plays it off nicely, though, by standing tall, dusting himself off, and linking his hands in front of him.

I command the purple to pour from my fingers, surrounding us fully in this air bubble he’s created. Trapping him back just as he’s trapped me. The only difference is my flames will kill him before his air suffocates me.

“Tell me who you are,” I order as I command my flames to slowly close in on us.

“I’m your grandfather,” he says seriously.

“We’ve established that unfortunate news, but who are you? Your name.”

“You do not deserve the privilege of knowing that. You’re a disgrace to our name. You’ve disobeyed, rebelled, fought, and made everything far more difficult at every turn. You truly could’ve had it all, Willow. Power, status, rightful status at that. Sure, you would’ve been far below your Nexus, but you would’ve been a respected weapon.” He says it all so calmly, so composed compared to the anger that was just radiating off him it makes me dizzy. His voice is deep, smooth as velvet, and he’d easily charm a snake with that pitch even though half of what he said was completely offensive.

“I have all those things already, rightfully and blessed by Elementra, mind you. With the added bonus of having a loving, respectful Nexus that treats me like a goddess. I’d never want the tainted version of your offerings. You can only acquire what you have by raping, killing, stealing, and torturing.”

“You have no idea what you speak of. That pitiful royal line. They are no less ruthless than I am. They will hand over what is rightfully mine when I kill every one of them.”

“Why do you believe anything is rightfully yours?”

“Because it is. I will mold this realm into what it should be because it is mine.”

His unhinged possessiveness sears into my skin. He truly believes he’s not only the rightful ruler for whatever reason, but the rightful owner. He’s mad. Completely.

“Nothing is rightfully yours because you are no one. Like it or not, the Vito line won the Realm Trials, therefore they rule this realm. A realm created, fostered, and powered by Elementra. You have no right to any of that.”

“They’ve sullied your mind just as they have history. Have no fear, though, granddaughter, I will correct that as well. I will make it right.”

That promise lingers in the air between us, but he’s a fool to still hold onto the belief he’ll make me do anything for him. I’d sooner take my own life than allow that. I won’t allow him to use me or my men or harm the ones I love.

“This isn’t going to go as you think it is. I’m not a weapon nor a woman you’ll use to your liking. You won’t get what you want because I won’t allow it,” I swear.

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