Page 99 of Shadowlands Omega

The wind has picked up, as it is known to near the cliffs, though it carries the scent of something else. Something sweet and sickly that I recognize distantly. Something dead. They intend to attack from both sides, swarming south from the ports and east from the cliffs. They would not have drawn me out to the edge of the world without intending to throw me off of it.

And I’m walking willingly right into their trap.

The cliffs jut off of the mainland like fingers, each one no more than a kilometer wide at its thickest. They stand proudly several hundred feet above the thrashing sea waters below. Small beaches form inlets between them, like the skin between fingers when stretched, but the waters claim them often. The peaks are known for violent winds and rains, their grounds mostly rocky and covered in mosses and the occasional muddy patches of grass. They remain uninhabited — for good reason. Blocked by the highest peak of Shadow Ridge that separates them from the mainland, they are like little violent isles.

The road is clear. There are no travelers out today. I think back to the overturned cart and wonder who was among the wreckage. There were no bodies. Did they escape? Or were they killed and repurposed for the simple sin of having been out on a day that the Fates decided to come for me? It does not matter. Either way, they will be avenged. I do not intend to lose my life or Kiandah’s on this day. The Shadowlands will stand.

I descend the ridge and my heart and beast are intertwined in a violent dance as I take in the supremely unexpected and yet wholly expected sight.

Expected, because I know that Kiandah is here and that the Fates have her.

Unexpected, because thehowis what I have yet to uncover.

Positioned in the center of the widest cliff are two Fates, an additional Fate enchained, and a little girl perched on the edge of a large boulder, kicking her feet. A whole host of accomplices continue working along diligently behind them, many from Trash City, but several from the Shadowlands — I can tell by their wardrobes. Owenna is among them.

She glances up at me as I approach, but looks away quickly and continues her discussion with a female I recognize as the Sea Witch innkeep and I am hit with a renewed rush of rage that Kiandah slipped away from me in the night to speak with this traitor. Then I dismiss it. It matters little now, but I do vow that, before this is over, that innkeeper will be dealt with.

I quickly calculate approximately twenty helpers plus the Fates, but no undead, which surprises me a little. The odds would be in my favor, except for the fact that my Kiandah sits in a vulnerable position in their midst. A lamb among two dozen lions.And this is why Shadow Lords do not take Ladies.Any other Shadow Lord would not have lost his most important possession to the cruel hands of another. His heart. My mouth twitches, as if to smile. Though it is a sad smile. The odds are in my favor, but it does not matter. I will likely die here, I realize. And I still do not regret any of it.

Our time was short but it was the best use of time I could have never dreamed up, because to dream it would have been to know that it even existed — thatsheeven existed. I did not. And I know that, when the Death Omega switches from her task of creating undead, to taking my life so that I may join her foul creations, it is not my life that will flash before my eyes. It will be these past four weeks.

I come to a stop about twenty long paces from the clustered Fates, the wind whipping at my cloak and hair. Sipho, in chains of his own, kneels next to the Fate who is also wrapped head to toe in thick metal chains. She’s on her knees as well, her eyes flitting between me and Kiandah desperately. I recognize her and am aware that she must also recognize me. It is a far departure from the glassy-eyed female who sloughed off Berserker Maengor’s dead skin as if it were water.

And then a moment later, tried to kill her brother.

Now, her eyes are bloodshot and full of fire. She struggles against her bindings, her long brown hair tattered and unkempt. She has on a thick wool dress that appears mostly wet. Her face is drawn and her cheeks sunken. Her eyes are dark and miserable. A dagger of pity stabs me in the chest as I look upon Berserker Dragnovic’s sister, a powerful Omega who has only known captivity her entire life.

And yet…she is dangerous. Do I believe I would let her roam freely if I were given the chance? I do not know. It is a question I do not wish to answer.

My gaze switches across the Omegas and Sipho to my Kiandah. My sweet Kiandah. The only unchained ally I have here, and yet I know she has been left unchained for a reason. It is a slight. They do not know her at all and yet they know she is not a threat. Because she isn’t. They brought her here to kill her, and in all likelihood, she will let them.

But will she let them take any other lives?

I do not know how to answer that question, but I know I cannot rely on her to get us out of this. My beast beats out a rhythm beneath my sternum, thrashing and struggling, wanting to escape. I will let him do his best, but first, we must wait.

I gather strength and return my gaze to the Fates and the little girl. I hadn’t bothered to assess her face earlier, but I do when she smiles and waves at me.

“Ah. So that is how it was done. That is how you separated us.” I nod. “I am impressed, truly. You are a formidable group.”

“Thank you.” Odette steps forward and places her hand on Kiandah’s shoulder, tightening her grip. Kiandah winces and flattens her lips.

There is wetness to her eyes that makes me sad. I tell her softly, “It’s alright, Kiandah.”

She looks up at me, blinking quickly. “I’m sorry, Yaron. I should have stayed in the castle.”

“It is not your fault. You were deceived by the Fate of Mind and Madness. It would have taken a strong resolve not to fall to her,” I say, tipping my head towards the little girl who pretended to be a refugee from Ruby City — and I believed it — as she claps her hands. “And I should have killed Odette the first moment I saw her at the Dark City Omega’s ball…”

“Are you finished? Your parting words can wait. We plan on taking you alive.”

Interesting. I nod, my hands clasped behind my back as I continue to struggle through my beast’s reaction. He will get us killed quickly. And I am alright with that. Just…not yet. “What do you intend to do with me?”

“Something fun,” Omora, the Beast Fate, answers, a flash of teeth that look suspiciously fanglike peeking from between her pale lips. She is so pale. She looks so eerily like the Fallen Beast Omega in all but expression, it makes me wonder what happened to the female. She would not have fallen so quickly. Not without a savage fight. I fight not to scan the skies, wondering…would Freya truly wait for them to kill me before attacking herself? I nearly snort out a laugh.Of course she would. Her hatred of me only just falls short of her hatred of them.

Omora claps her hands twice. “Alright, I suppose we should get on with it then.”

“You’re handling this very well, my Lord.” Odette’s voice creeps me out. I’ve heard it before, but that was before I knew Kiandah existed. The voice, the one they share, is Kiandah’s now. Odette has no right to it. “If you wouldn’t mind coming right this way, you’ll see we have a ship waiting at the base of the staircase. Unless you prefer to use the cage. We had it created from the finest iron, one that cannot be broken by a Berserker’s strength — and we should know, we tested it.”

“With N’dogo?”

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