Page 80 of The Fated and the Damned
“No,” Sylvie screamed. “How do you have that? It’s not possible. No!”
… and lifted the cursed thing to my head.
“Bring it on, bitch.”
I barely heard her answering scream as the crown unleashed its power. Wave upon wave of magic burst out of my very being, consuming, devouring, stretching out as far as the eye could see and even blasting into the heavens.
Pain lanced through my veins like fire, burning me from the inside out. I forced myself to stay standing, raising my arms up, gritting my teeth. My eyes felt like they might pop from my sockets as the pressure built within my body, but still I let it take me.
I turned my gaze on Sylvie and smiled as the magic tore through her, devouring her power and stretching her so thin her body exploded, bits of blood and body parts splattering everywhere.
Holy fuck.
My body spasmed as hot blood trickled down my nose and out my ears. My eyes would leak soon and I knew, before long, my body would break down until there was nothing left. With great effort, I managed to move my legs so I could see the armies, willing with all my might for that unfathomable power to bend around my allies.
Somehow, some-fucking-how, it did as commanded, coiling round the cultists and wiping them from existence. I could feel it peeling back the corruption in the forest and as far as the outer cities it had begun consuming—what remained of my old village among them.
Vaguely, I registered the moment the power had vanquished all our enemies, a small sliver of relief filling my subconscious at that thought. I tried to pull back, to staunch the power and lift my hand to my head, but the magic was unstoppable, my body nothing but a vessel for its might.
Hands grasped at my arms, swivelling my body around and I stared at Dante’s face, his features etched with desperation and sheer panic.
“Let go, Kitarni,” he roared. “Don’t let it consume you. Fight back.”
I tried to move my lips, but they were frozen in a silent scream as my back bowed and I threw my head back to the sky, holding on with everything I had to stop that magic from harming him.
His hands found my cheeks, forcing me to look him in the eye even as I stood there helplessly. “You are my person, Kitarni. Mine. I will not let you go. Please. Please don’t go.”
I could sense his pain, his magic reaching out with tender fingers against my own. András stood by his side, his mouth wide with horror and Lukasz stood beside him, his gentle brown eyes downcast.
My person.It was all I could focus on while my lifeforce drained away, as I burned and burned and burned.
Dante grabbed my hand. I gasped as the crown’s power flooded into him and he instantly cried out in pain. The sound echoed in my bones and I shook my head, finally able to speak with the pressure lessened. “Let go. You cannot do this Dante. We willbothdie!”
His eyes flashed, that stubborn golden ring flaring. “Then I will have you in death as I did in life.”
Damn that man.Poetic bastard. My throat choked up with tears and I lifted my face, that same stubbornness flaring inside me. I hadn’t come all this way for both of us to die.
“Or …” Dante said through gritted teeth, somehow managing a crooked smile. “Or you can … buckle up … Freckles. Fight. It.”
I panted in frustration, my muscles straining as I fought against the power. The dark magic of that crown hissed and lashed out, doubling down on its efforts to take me. Dante only bit back harder, taking the brunt of my pain, his nose and ears bleeding.
My fingers twitched, my hand moving ever so slowly towards the crown as memories flashed before my eyes. Cooking in Mama’s kitchen, watching Eszter sew, lying by the fire with Laszlo, Jazmin and Lili’s smiling faces as they taught me how to weave nets and catch fish.
Tears streamed down my face as the pain wore me down, my vitality slipping like grains of sand through my fingers.
“Look at me,” Dante said fiercely. “You can do this. You always could.”
More memories surged through my mind’s eye—of him consoling me in the abandoned cabin, of us lying in the lavender fields and eating bejgli, of our wedding day when he’d looked at me like a god’s gift, even when he’d betrayed me in the cultist camp.
Every moment of happiness, sadness, and joy flashed before my eyes, because each moment was precious. Each moment made me stronger, not the magic inside me.
That was just a bonus.
I dug deep and threw the gate wide open for that beast inside me. No leash, no restraint, just pure permission to control me. It uncoiled, growing as it filled me up, taking every available space offered. My vision fluttered and I let go, fully giving in to that dark part of myself.
Vaguely, I sensed the beast take charge and almost cried with sorrow at what I felt. It was simply a misunderstood creature who’d only ever wanted to find a place to call home. Well, we’d found it, and we weren’t letting go. Blood magic hidden within the deepest recesses of my body filled my palms and the beast gnashed its teeth, snarling as its jaws yawned wide and it latched on to the crown’s darkness.
The pain was unimaginable and I screamed in agony as the two powers fought, ripping and tearing at my insides.
