Page 17 of Children of Anguish and Anarchy

“Nei!” King Baldyr roars like a wild beast. He grabs the shackles around my wrists, yanking me back. My feet slip out from under me as he throws me to the right. I hit the marble walls with a powerful thud.

The impact ignites the majacite crown on my head. It burns with a new wrath. Its matte-black thorns dig into my temple. Hot blood drips into my eyes and rains down my neck.

Fight, Zélie.

Though I can hardly see, I reach for everything in sight. My fingers grasp at a fallen chicken bone. When Baldyr comes for me, I swing wildly, stabbing through his cheek.

A brass candleholder falls to the left. I grab it and beat Baldyr over the head. I swing the candleholder again, clocking the king across the jaw.

But before I strike once more, the Silver Skull grabs me from behind and throws me against the back wall. Another sharp crack rings as my head collides with the marble. With another shove, the candleholder falls from my hands.

King Baldyr rips the chicken bone out from his cheek and releases a mighty laugh. Blood mixes with the black paint on his face. It travels down his chest, staining the golden medallion he holds in his hands.

The Silver Skull uses my shackles to hold my arms back. Baldyr’s eyes home in on my chest. The medallion in his hand starts to glow.

There’s nowhere to run as Baldyr drives the medallion into my breastbone.

“AGH!” I shout. Pain unlike anything I’ve ever experienced drowns everything out. I seize on the floor as the medallion digs into my sternum like a branding iron. It goes so deep, its metal melts around my bones.

The sharp heat burns through my heart. Tendrils of smoke start to flare around its rim. Despite how hard I push, I can’t breathe. My lungs sear from within.

“Það er hón!” King Baldyr shouts. My skin burns red as my blood begins to glow. A blinding gold light fills the room. It bounces against the marble walls. It cascades in brilliant arcs, blocking everything else out.

“Oya, please…”I whisper the prayer. I call for her to take my soul. I don’t want to die out at sea in the hands of these foreign beasts. So far away from home.

Please…

My seizing body stills. My heartbeat slows, tasting the bitter end.

A deafening boom of thunder is the last thing I hear before everything fades to black.

CHAPTER TEN

TZAIN

“AGAIN!”

My command travels down the long hall. All the boys hurtle forward, united as one. The iron bars screech with each charge, struggling to hold back our combined force.

“More!” I shout. Our chains rattle against the bars of our cell. Metal bolts fly from the lock. Our cage door starts to give. The rusted iron groans against its hinges.

Zélie, I’m coming.

I keep my sister’s face in my mind with every charge. I see every time Zélie’s needed me to be strong. Every person who’s caused her harm. The guards. King Saran. Nehanda and her tîtáns. Even Inan. Every enemy falls, leaving me face-to-face with the Silver Skull.

I didn’t always know my place. Without magic of my own, I didn’t know how to keep my sister safe. But in this moment, it all feels so clear.

Rescuing Zélie is the only thing I can make sense of in here.

“More!” I rally the boys. Blood drips down my knuckles as I throw my body against the lock. The cage door starts to squeal. Our freedom begins to feel real.

“It’s working!” I spur them on. Adrenaline pumps through my veins. “Don’t stop! We’re close! We just have to push—”

A monstrous bolt of lightning shudders down from the sky, flickering through the ventilation shaft. Pure white light crackles through the cargo hold. It illuminates swirling storm clouds above.

“What was that?” Taiwo whispers. One by one, the maji are drawn to the sight. Though the view is limited, I feel the power that gathers in the air. High in the sky, thunder roars. Below the ship, the waters pick up force.

An ache burns through my chest, digging deep into my ribs. My fingers grow numb when I slide my hand over the spot.

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