Page 23 of Beyond the Darkness

Aerilyn went still as she saw the sight before her. Everett was on the ground with a hound pinning him down. He had his sword out towards the snapping jaws, keeping a small distance between the sharp teeth and his face. She didn’t have timeto think. She let out a scream to distract the hound before she threw her weight into it, tackling the large beast to the ground. She stabbed her dagger into its side, feeling the blood seeping into her hands. She quickly retracted the dagger before slamming it into the hound repeatedly. She let out ragged cries as she continued to stab the creature until she felt its movements die out. She was gasping for air by the time she was finished, falling back onto her ass on the dirt. She heard soft grunts coming from behind her and it brought her back to reality. Everett was trying to push himself to his feet but struggled. He was holding his shoulder as blood pooled on his shirt and ran down his arm. She gasped as she moved closer to him, trying to find the source of the wound.

“What happened, Everett?” Her wide eyes ran all over his body, looking for any other source of damage besides his shoulder. “I’m okay, darling,” he whispered, but there was weakness in his tone. His face was pale as if he had lost more blood than what she was seeing then. She was about to protest when he finally fell back to the ground, his head hitting the ground as he groaned in pain. “Let me see it,” she snapped as she used her bloody dagger to cut open his top, exposing the source of all the blood. She felt her heart crack in her chest at the sight of the mauled wound on his body. His skin was ripped to shreds, the claw marks even deeper than she could possibly see. There was a never-ending spray of blood, the wound so deep that she could see exposed bone. It was too close to his heart. The wound only inches away from the vital organ. She’d never seen such an extensive injury before.

“Fuck Ev,” she bit her lower lip as she ripped a bit of her top off, trying to apply some pressure against the wound. He screamed, his body trying to curl away from the pain she was causing. She had never expected to hear such horrid sounds coming from him. She never wanted to see his pain, not likethis. Aerilyn had seen many wounds before, but the one before her was so extensive she was unsure of how to stop the bleeding. She tried to think of what she’d seen the healers do to close up a wound. The reality of it all seemed to hit her hard when she considered her options.

“Aerilyn, stop. I’m okay,” he lied, his face going pale from the mixture of blood loss and pain. She bit her lower lip trying to hide her emotions so that she didn’t concern him too much. “Don’t lie to me. I need to get you help. You just need to hold on until one of the others dies and then we can get out of here,” she rushed out, keeping one hand pressed to his shoulder. She lifted her other hand to his cheek, stroking her bloodied fingertips along his face. “Just let me go. If I die, you all can live. It will all be over,” he gave her a weak smile that made her body go numb. She refused to lose him. Not now. Not like this.

“That’s not going to happen, Everett. I need you. Your kingdom needs you. You have to survive this,” Aerilyn shook his head, slapping his cheek when his eyes began to flutter. She felt the tears wet her cheeks as she pulled his head into her lap. She knew there was nothing else she could do unless Azazel ended the trial. She knew the cruel king wouldn’t do such a thing. Not when there was an entire audience watching for a blood bath. She felt like she was back in the room when she found her mother’s dead, bleeding body. The sight of the blood coating her front side was enough to break her. The tears finally hit, a sob escaping her as she held onto Everett. “Please don’t die. I need you. You’re the only person I have,” She pressed her forehead to his, trying to keep him conscious. “I need you,” she repeated, fisting her hand into his hair.

“You’re the most special girl to ever exist, darling,” he smiled at her, blood soaking his teeth. She continued to cry as Everett continued to bleed. She’d never been so willing to give up her own life for someone else. She would trade positions withEverett without any second thoughts. The heir of Orissia’s life was much more important than her own. She wouldn’t be able to save an entire kingdom. He could. He was the only hope that Orissia had.

“I love you.”

Aerilyn froze at the words that fell from his lips. She hadn’t heard those three words since she was a child. She didn't have anyone left on the earth that loved her. Not until that moment. She’d never felt so full before. “I love you, Everett. So that means you can’t die. Please, I’m begging you,” she kissed his mouth repeatedly. His lips barely moved with hers as his breaths became more shallow. She let out a scream in anguish as she threw her body over his, hugging him close. His chest was hardly moving anymore. His heart was a dull thump in his chest. Aerilyn had never felt so powerless in all her life. She was losing the one thing that she continued to fight for. Without Everett, she was afraid of losing herself. She’d never see life the same again. She hadn’t let anyone close to her since she’d lost her parents in fear of losing them. Everett had been the only exception to that rule. She’d let him in and now she was horrifically losing him.

The world seemed to go dark as Everett continued to slip away. She looked up to the top of the walls where she knew Azazel was in the audience watching the scene unfold before him. He was a heartless monster and she vowed to end him if she lost Everett. Her emotions began to turn into anger as her hatred for the king pulsed through her soul. Her hands shook as she held Everett close, not wanting to let him go. She began to see red. Red hot anger. All she could think about was ripping Azazel’s heart from his chest and crushing it within her palm. She could make him pay for what he had done.

White hot light erupted from her body, flashing in the air around her. Panic took the place of the anger as she tried to pullit back. The last time the light had flared from her, she’d killed two men. She felt murderous, but she also knew Everett was close to her. She refused to harm him. She pulled herself away from Everett and wrapped her arms around her torso in hopes of containing the light. Her hands continued to glow with light but no longer blinded her. She looked up to Azazel, finding his face in the crowd. He was standing, his attention fully locked on her. She wanted to beg him to get her out of the situation. She was losing control.

“Aerilyn?” His voice croaked, making her chest ache. Everett was sitting up, color had returned to his face. The light suddenly disappeared as she moved back towards him, taking in his entire frame. He was sitting there like he wasn’t on the verge of death. “How the hell did you do that?” The confusion was written across his expression. He pulled back his shirt, exposing his shoulder that had been mauled moments prior. The skin was bloody but there was no longer a wound there. Her eyes went wide as she ran her fingers along his warm skin. “I don’t know. I didn’t do this,” she shook her head, trying to make sense of it all. “The light. It made me feel warm everywhere and I could feel it soaking into my skin. You did this, darling. You saved me,” he wrapped his arms around her, grasping her body close to his. She began to cry from the feeling of his tight grasp, her body shaking. She hadn’t hurt him. She had saved him. She wasn’t going to lose him.

“We need to find somewhere to hide. We can’t be sitting out here exposed. Do you think you can walk?” She bit her lower lip, trying to double-check that he no longer had any injuries. He nodded and let go of her to attempt to stand. She quickly got to her feet and offered him both hands to help him. When he got to his feet he let out a heavy breath, his hands grasping tighter onto hers. She steadied the man as he tried to regain his grounding before he was finally able to stand without assistance.

With the injuries, Aerilyn knew that Everett was going to slow them both down. She wished her healing had been strong enough to rid him of any pain, but she wasn’t trained enough to understand how it all worked. She refused to leave his side, knowing how vulnerable he was in this state. She kept her arm around him as she headed for the trees, needing some sort of cover. Her dagger was glued in her other hand as she scanned their surroundings. Her breaths came hard and fast, her panic beginning to take over. The idea of avoiding killing any of her friends seemed impossible at that moment. If they didn’t fight, the king would continue to send in hounds. She wasn’t sure how he had gotten them, but she also had no idea how many he had.

As they stumbled through the forest, Aerilyn attempted to find a place that would be easy for them to hide. If they could wait it out for a bit, maybe the other two would be able to kill off some of the hounds. She doubted that Blaise and Brinley would kill each other though. They seemed to have grown much closer over time and she didn’t think they’d turn on each other. She was about to set Everett down against the tree when she saw the blood. There was so much blood. It was splattered across the tree and pooled in a trial. It was red blood. The blood belonged to Blaise or Brinley.

Aerilyn swore as she began to follow the trail. The blood was constant as if the flow was heavy. She couldn’t imagine what sort of injury had to occur for the amount of blood she saw. When she finally rounded the tree, she saw them. She saw the bright red hair surrounded by the pools of blood.

Brinley.

Chapter Thirty Two

Aerilyn

Brinley was sitting on the forest floor, cries of pain exploding from her. The girl had her back pressed against a tree to support her and keep her upright. Aerilyn’s eyes scanned over the length of her to determine where the blood was coming from. It put her back to only minutes ago when she had found Everett in a similar position. It seemed Azazel knew they wouldn’t fight against each other so he had to throw something else into the mix. When Aerilyn finally noticed where the blood was coming from, she felt her legs go weak beneath her. She ran to Brinley’s side as she dropped to her knees beside the girl. Her right leg was missing from her knee down.

The blood ran from the stub of her leg like a continuous waterfall. A mixture of bone and flesh protruding from the placeher leg once resided. She quickly tore at Brinley’s shirt, trying to use the material to stop the bleeding. It was all deja vu. She couldn’t continue seeing her friends like this, she was going to lose her mind. Brinley screamed in pain when she applied the pressure, but Aerilyn didn’t let up. She pressed down harder, looking back to Everett for help. He was staring at the missing leg with a wide-eyed expression. She’d never seen the pure fear that radiated from the prince.

“Aerilyn, please stop,” the girl choked out, her throat raw from the screaming she’d been doing. Her voice was broken. The fiery redhead who always had a smile plastered to her face was no longer present in the girl that lay before her. “No Brinley. You’re not allowed to give up. I can heal you. I did it to Everett. I’m not sure how, but I’m going to try,” she panicked, trying to pull the light from deep within her. She tried to think back to what she’d done or felt at the exact moment that she’d saved Everett. “There’s no use, Aeri. You can heal me, but you can’t grow my leg back,” she whispered, giving the woman a sad smile. Aerilyn felt her heart sink at that realization. No matter what type of power she had, Brinley was right. There was no way to grow back a limb.

“Kill me. Please. I don’t want to live like this. If you do it, the trial will be over and you will all be able to live. You’ll escape here and save Orissia,” she weakly reached out, placing her hand on top of Aerilyn’s. “You need to return with us, Brinley. Your parents will be waiting for you, ” she bit her lower lip in hopes of concealing her emotions as best as she could. “Tell my parents that I love them. I need them to know that I tried and that my death wasn’t in vain. You need to save Orissia and find that goddamn sword. I know you’re all so special. If anyone can find it, it’s you Aerilyn,” she reached to her side and withdrew her dagger, holding it out to Aerilyn. “Please,” she began again, her eyes full of pain. Aerilyn slowly accepted the dagger, the weaponsuddenly feeling too heavy in her grasp. Her stomach did flips as she looked up at Everett. She refused to let the prince dirty his hands and she didn’t want to watch her friend continue to suffer.

The mixture of emotions became insufferable. She hadn’t felt so much anguish in all of her life. Even losing her parents hadn’t felt like this. She had never taken a life before, not like this. She’d killed hounds now, but they weren’t humans. They weren’t her friends. She’d killed the two men with her mysterious magic, but that had been an accident. Everett placed a hand on her shoulder and she quickly shook it away.

“No. I have to do this,” she shot him a glare and he gave her a frown in return. She focused her attention back on Brinley, cupping a hand against her face. “Are you sure this is what you want?” She asked to gain a final confirmation. “Take care of Blaise for me. Make sure he finds someone to care for him the way I did. Don’t let him spiral into pain from losing me. Promise me that you’ll protect him,” she gave her dying wish and Aerilyn knew that she would do anything she could to keep that. “I promise,” she gave Brinley a forced smile before she steadied the dagger in her shaking hand.

Aerilyn felt the world fall around her as she plunged the dagger into her friend’s chest. The girl didn’t make a sound as the blade pierced her heart and began to take her life. Aerilyn tried to hold back her sobs as she watched the life slowly drain from Brinley’s eyes. Her breathing began to slow down and her eyes became distant. When her chest finally stopped rising and falling, Aerilyn knew she was gone. She cupped her hand over her mouth to hide her cries as everything struck her.

She had just killed someone.

She had just killed Brinley.

She let out a scream of frustration, her pain evident in the sound. She cursed any of the Gods above for what theyhad done, for taking her friend away. She took away Blaise's lover,his other half. Her mind ran back to the conversation they'd had in her bedroom when Blaise had first kissed her. Her bright smile and feet kicking in excitement. The two had talked about returning to Orissia and meeting each other's families. Now, Brinley would never return to Orissia. She would never smile again. Everything bright about the girl was gone in a matter of moments.

Everett began to tug at her shoulder, trying to pull her away from her friend’s dead body. Aerilyn began to scream, trying to force Everett away from her. She hadn’t expected the pain that began to consume her. She had lost another friend, another life that would never be returned. She had done this. She ended her friend’s life.

“It’s over, it’s all over Aerilyn,” Everett whispered as he forced his arms around her. She finally leaned into his touch, crying into his chest. She let herself crumble then. She allowed Everett to be the only thing that kept her stable. She, for once, allowed herself to be vulnerable. His hands ran up and down her arms, trying to bring her comfort. She couldn’t see anything, her vision blurred from the tears that continued to flow.

---