Page 75 of Voices in the Stars
Kier shook his head before looking down at me, holding the dagger out to me. I reached out, and the moment I touched it, I felt the tug of power as it leached into the weapon.
“I don’t understand,” I commented.
“You need two things to accomplish what Eris wants. One of which is this dagger,” Kier said, like that was all the explanation I needed.
I just blinked up at him. Until he sighed.
“I don’t think we have time for the entire story of it all. My brother is a blacksmith. His focus is essentially the transferal of this world’s magic. He puts some of his powers in each weapon he makes. So, this dagger,” Kier said while pointing at it, “will transfer my powers into you once you stab me with it.”
“Why do I need to kill you, then?” He was right, we didn’t have time for my endless questions, but I still felt the need to understand before just taking another life. “Also, I’ve already killed someone with that, and I didn’t magically gain anything from them.”
Kier glanced up at the hatch before looking back at me. “Who was it?”
“Some guard Eris sent after us.”
“Did you kill him with the dagger or was it some explosive magic?”
My mouth opened and closed several times before I found the words to answer. “How do you know?”
“The magic in the world works in a very specific way. Everyone but humans are open to some levels of it. If you used the dagger on someone that wasn’t on the same level as you, their body wouldn’t be able to handle it.”
“Which is why he caught on fire,” I muttered, glancing down at the impressively dangerous, small blade. A small weight lifted knowing that, at least my first murder, wasn’t completely my fault.
“Exactly.” Kier nodded. “Anyone can take my magic because we’re made up from the world’s magic. It adapts to the body rather than trying to force one certain level onto someone. It’s why it makes the user stronger. It opens their body from one level to all of them. I can’t stay alive because the dagger only works with quick transferals. You would have to keep the dagger pierced into me and in your hand to keep access to my magic. With my death, the magic needs somewhere to go, and the dagger gives it the perfect channel to go somewhere else.”
“I have so many questions,” I muttered, a headache starting to form in the back of my head the more he talked.
“I promise, even with you killing me, there will time later to answer any questions your little mind thinks of.”
“Why aren’t you scared of this whole dying thing? I willingly risked myself once and it was terrifying,” I said. The nerves twisting my stomach made me want to delay this until I had a chance to wrap my mind around it.
“It’s going to take a lot more than this to keep me down forever,” Kier commented, a smirk forming.
I wanted to roll my eyes, but he grabbed my hand, pulling me close to him. My eyes widened as he brought my hand up, lining the tip of the dagger up with his heart. I started shaking my head.
“There’s got to be another way,” I whispered.
Kier shook his head. “Maybe, but this is the easiest way. Trust me.”
Panic thumped through me. Each answering pulse of magic went sailing into the dagger. The gems on it glowed brightly, casting shining lights along the stone walls. Then Kier kicked one of my feet, sending me falling forward the exact moment he stepped into the dagger. I screamed as I watched it sink into his chest.
The storedmagic went shooting out from the dagger in a wave of flames. My screams didn’t stop as I watched the flames overtake him in a wave of blue. They were only there for a split moment before the flames vanished, taking any trace of Kier with them.
Sobs racked my chest as I looked at where he had been standing just moments before. Something cool snaked up my arm. I dropped the dagger as a tingling sensation followed. It clattered to the ground as it moved up my chest, wrapping around the fire in my chest.
I ran my hand over my chest, expecting the flame to disappear once again. Instead, it settled alongside the fire, keeping it burning even as the tears dried along my cheeks. Turning back to the hatch, determination to end this settled within me.
Running up the stairs, I offered a quick hope that this was going to work as I placed my hands on the cold metal. My eyes closed as I willed my magic to listen to me for once.
I didn’t need to try hard. The cool, foreign tendrils of magic snapped down to my hands with my command. It pulled the flames with it. When I opened my eyes, my hands were engulfed in bright blue flames. The metal dripped down onto the stairs until there was a hole big enough for me to fit through.
“Thank you,” I whispered, glancing back down the hall. “I won’t force any of you to leave.” I raised my voice, calling out to the other captors. “The way out is open, though. Take your time and I’ll makesure everyone gets out of here safely.” I hoped my words weren’t a lie as I climbed out of the dungeon.
The sunlight was bright as I stood on the grass, my eyes squinting as I waited for them to adjust. Voices were calling out everywhere around me. Metal clashed against each other as I made my way to the front of the house. Bekah and Leon were here.
My eyes were wide as I took in everything around me. I couldn’t see either of his friends, but the fighting soldiers around me said all I needed to know. The men and women fighting in ragged clothes and mismatched pieces of armor greatly outnumbered those in uniforms. Years of Atlas’ hard work stood in front of me. His men didn’t fight with the elegance of his father’s. They fought with rage burning in their eyes as they swung on the others. It was working, too. Uniformed bodies covered the ground. Nausea twisted as I scanned the city around me.
A twist of black hair moving toward the entrance of the city was exactly what I was looking for. Ivy was trying to leave. Eris might have left already. I sucked in a deep breath before running through the fighting people.
