Page 66 of The Curse Between Us

“Yes, you.” Abyss took a step closer, folding its hands behind its back as it began to circle Edric, examining him like a predator considering its prey. “I have three enemies in this world, King Edric. One, I am currently in control of.” It gestured loosely to Zephyr’s body, an almost casual motion that made Edric’s chest tighten with fury. “One, my greatest enemy, I must still locate. And then you.”

“Why didn’t you simply kill me?” Edric demanded, his voice rising in challenge. He couldn’t let Abyss see how terrifiedhe was—he had to keep it talking. There had to be a way out of this. “Why torment me this way?”

Abyss cocked its head to the side, as if considering the question. “Is it a torment?” it asked with mock curiosity. “How interesting. Yes, I suppose it would be difficult, seeing your lover’s face but hearing my words emerge from these lips.” Abyss paused, its gaze shifting as it thought, then added, “If you would prefer, I could take possession of you, and kill him instead?”

Edric’s heart clenched painfully in his chest. He couldn’t bear the thought. His hands trembled as his mind raced. “No!” he exclaimed before he could stop himself, stepping forward as though to protect Zephyr from this unthinkable choice. “Don’t. Please.”

Abyss shrugged indifferently. “It truly does not matter to me. It was easier for me to locate Zephyr once I had you both down here, as I had already spoken to him before. But even that was a matter of convenience more than anything else.” It raised its finger, as if imparting a nugget of knowledge. “Your people were wise enough to never make a path that led to my mountain. It kept you safe from me, for a time.”

Edric’s thoughts were racing. He had heard bits and pieces about the ancient entities—the balance between Plenty and Abyss—but he hadn’t fully understood the extent of their influence, their power, until now. The reason the lands had been divided between the two forces, the reason there was peace at all, was because of their constant struggle. Abyss and Plenty were two sides of the same coin, unable to exist without the other.

“Until our marriage threatened to unite our lands again,” Edric murmured softly. The pieces clicked together, and now he understood the full weight of the prophecy and the forces that had been set in motion by their union. “The war between Rafria and Eskarven was what kept the peace between Plenty and Abyss, and when it ended, so too did their uneasy truce.”

Abyss smiled again, a sinister, knowing grin. “But you cannot defeat Plenty,” Edric continued, his voice steady despite the turmoil inside. “One without the other cannot exist. The world, all of being, would be ended with your demise.”

“And so?” Abyss lifted one dark eyebrow, clearly unbothered by the weight of Edric’s words. “I will gladly go to my end if it means I will take Plenty with me.” Abyss laughed, bitter and low. “It is possible. But Plenty would not do so, for it loves itself too much. Ending is against its very nature. So it imprisoned me, thereby keeping itself alive, if that is the correct word for what we are.”

Edric swallowed hard, his thoughts spinning. If there was a way to defeat Abyss without destroying the balance, without bringing everything to an end, he had to find it. But it seemed impossible. The two entities were bound together in a way that made their fates inextricably linked.

Unfortunately, Abyss had grown tired of their conversation. It took a step closer, its hands closing into fists at its sides, and Edric could see the anger simmering beneath the surface. “You begin to bore me, little king. I believe it is time I removed you from the field.”

Edric’s hand instinctively flew to the dagger at his waist, but he hesitated. Any injury he inflicted would be on Zephyr, not Abyss. The creature’s smile only widened at Edric’s hesitation, as if it knew exactly what was running through his mind.

It came closer, forcing Edric to take a step back until his back was pressed against the cold, unforgiving stone of the cavern wall.

“Edric,” Abyss whispered, and Edric’s breath caught in his throat. His heart raced, and for a moment, he could barely think. It wasn’t Zephyr’s voice, but it was so close to it, so hauntingly familiar.

He forced himself to try again, though his voice was shaky. “Zephyr. Can you hear me?”

Abyss shook its head slowly, the smile on Zephyr's face stretching wider, sharper, as it looked down at Edric. “A valiant effort, but in vain,” it said, the voice dripping with mocking sweetness. “He can hear you, yes. He can see you, and he will see the light dim from your eyes. But there is nothing he can do to stop it.”

Edric, gritting his teeth, ignored Abyss’s taunts. His heart was hammering, and every instinct told him to act. “Zephyr,” he called, his voice raw with desperation, “I know you can hear me. Please, love, you can fight this.”

Abyss snarled then, a vicious, animalistic sound that sent a shiver down Edric's spine. "Stop this!" it growled, its voice suddenly low and full of venom. Like a striking serpent, it lashed out with its hands, wrapping them tightly around Edric's throat and cutting off his words with a cruel force. The pressure on his windpipe was immediate and suffocating. “You will be lost to the darkness, King Edric, and your glorious destiny will die with you.”

Gasping, Edric clawed at the hands around his neck, his body already growing weaker with each passing second. His vision blurred, spots dancing in his eyes as he struggled to breathe. “Zephyr,” he gasped, barely able to manage the word, his voice choking with the effort. “Stop.”

For a brief moment, a flicker of recognition seemed to pass through Zephyr’s eyes. There was a shift, subtle but undeniable, as though a curtain had been drawn back. The warmth, the life he had known in Zephyr's gaze—the intelligence and the spark that was unmistakably his—was there, just for an instant. The change was so brief, so fleeting, but it was enough. Edric could feel it, like a lifeline pulling him back from the edge.

With that glimmer of hope, Edric managed to gather what little strength he had left, pushing against Abyss’s hold, his breath a harsh, desperate rasp. “You are a warrior as much as a king,” Edric gasped, his voice cracking. “Fight this!”

The hands at his throat loosened just slightly, just enough for Edric to take a shuddering breath, the air cold and painful as it filled his lungs.

“Edric?” It was Zephyr's voice—Zephyr’s voice. It wasn’t distorted, not this time. It was weak, filled with exhaustion and pain, but it was undeniably him.

Edric’s heart surged with relief, but it was quickly replaced with a sharp, agonizing worry. He could hear the struggle in Zephyr’s voice—the battle within himself. “I cannot... it is so strong,” Zephyr whispered, his face drawn, the lines of struggle carved deep into his features.

“You can,” Edric said fiercely, his voice low but resolute. “You already are.”

Zephyr shook his head slowly, his eyes clenched shut, as if he were physically fighting against something invisible. “I’m sorry,” he whispered again, his voice strained with pain, and his eyes went dark and shuttered once more, a cold emptiness replacing the brief flicker of life.

“No—!” Edric’s protest was lost in his throat as the hands around his neck tightened again, cutting off any hope that had started to bloom.

The pressure was crushing. Edric could feel himself growing weaker, the edges of his vision darkening with the lack of oxygen. His chest was tight, his body trembling from the effort of resisting the suffocating grip. The world felt distant, like the ground was moving farther away. And yet, the flicker of life in Zephyr’s eyes lingered in his mind, the memory of it like a beacon in the fog of despair.

A dark shadow passed over Zephyr’s face, and Edric could see the coldness return, the presence of Abyss seizing control once more. It was like the creature was settling in again, reclaiming its territory. A sickening sense of dread filled Edric as the hands around his throat tightened even further, crushing his resolve and hope alike.

But then, something shifted in Edric’s mind—a spark, a sudden idea borne of desperation and the dark abyss of his own weakening strength. He didn’t have much time. There had to be something, some way to use the power that surged through him, to use it to his advantage.

---