Page 28 of Cursed Shadows

I turn to see Eilish, her hand extended in front of her as a spray of color blasts from her fingers and hits the devil square in its chest. It falls, ill-equipped to handle the high-level spell. The shock I feel is reflected on everyone else’s faces. It’s not long before thebone devilis entirely disintegrated.

***

EILISH

I can’t explain how I did what I just did.

My heart’s pounding and I can feel everyone’s eyes on me. Cambion’s are dark with suspicion; I already know he’s going to use this against me. He believes I’m more than I truly am—that I’m up to no good. And, after what I’ve just pulled, I’m certain he’s going to distrust me even more. But there’s nothing I can do about it.

“How did you do that?” Dragan whispers as he carries me through the dark night.

“I don’t know.” I lay my head beside his ear, thinking it’ll be easier to speak to him without being overhead. “That thing came up from nowhere, and I didn’t even think. I just watched my hand dart forward, and then there was a light between my fingers and then I was throwing the light at… whatever that was.”

“Abone devil,” Dragan clarifies, sounding amused.

“Bone devil,” I repeat.

“You’re full of all sorts of surprises,” he continues, and there’s a certain candor in his tone.

“Do you trust me?” I ask, taken aback by my own question. Then, I feel like I need to explain. “Cambion doesn’t trust me.”

“Cambion’s an asshole.”

“But do you trust me?”

He’s quiet for a few seconds. “Yes, I do.”

“I trust you, too,” I say quickly and feel a smile curling my lips. “Thank you.”

“What for?”

“For believing me.”

He chuckles, deep and low. “You’re welcome.”

“I’m not lying to you, Dragan. Everything I’ve told you is the truth. Well, as far as I know, anyway.”

“I know, Eilish,” he says, and his voice tells me not to worry about it anymore. “I know.”

***

BARON

We continue making our way through the alleys, and I breathe a sigh of relief when the gates of the city come into focus. The sprite begins to question Eilish as to how she was able to dispel thebone devil,but I immediately silence him. The least amount of noise we can make, the better. We don’t want to draw attention to ourselves.

As soon as we’re out of Grimreap and into the Raven Forest, we stop to rest for a few minutes. While we’re far from safe in this forest, it’s not as dangerous as the city, but there are still plenty of thieves and monsters along the road to and from Grimreap. Though the obstacles and threats are plenty, it’s fortuitous that our group is comprised of so many high-powered, magical beings. Even so, I refuse to be lulled into a false sense of security by such impressive company. As an assassin, I’ve survived this long due to my instincts and reliance on myself. As a general rule, I only put faith in my own abilities. Companions are a liability to which I’m unaccustomed. Already, they’ve caused more trouble than good.

Eilish appears weaker for having used her magic and Dragan requests we stop to rest longer, but I can feel the winds changing as early morning breaks on the road out of Grimreap, bathing us in dark gray. We don’t have any time to waste and I force them forward into the dawn.

“She needs to rest,” Dragan argues with a glance at Eilish, who trails behind him. She’s still walking in front of Cambion and Thoradin, though she’s slowing all of us down. Her face iswhiter than usual and a sheen of sweat drips from her brow. “She shouldn’t have used her magic here, in this realm,” he continues. “It’s wiped her out.”

“Why aren’t you just carryin’ her?” the sprite demands.

Dragan appears guilty, but it’s Cambion who responds for him.

“He needs to have access to his weapons, should we be attacked,” he says. “Carrying the angel is making him an easy target.”

I nod; Cambion’s right. “Very well, we can rest for a few minutes.”

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