Page 52 of Venomous Heart
“The attachment builds strength in other ways,” Arlen answered coolly. “It gives an Eok a reason to fight when there should be none. History has proved the worth of such devotion, in more ways than one. This is what made Eok warriors so strong in the past, and what keeps us the strongest now. Even when all odds are against us, we still fight. That is what my year at the Frontier taught me. A warrior without attachment is a warrior without any reason to come back alive. And if one has no desire to live, then one dies.”
Prime Councilor Aav stared at Arlen, then at Khal. Arlen could almost feel her displeasure, her frustration at the feelings she was incapable of. Mantrilla simply weren’t made that way.
“As fascinating as the bloodmate link is to me, I haven’t summoned you here to talk about your new bloodmate, Commander.” Prime Councilor Aav walked past Arlen and as she touched the pure blackness of the wall, it morphed into a full floor to ceiling window looking over the vastness of Aveyn. “There is a very real reason why I have left my Seat, why I endangered my hold on power. And your bloodmate and her brother, hybrid or not, are not it.”
“I feared as much,” Arlen answered, casting a glance at a suddenly grim Khal over his shoulder. “Tell me.”
Her mandibles clicked and black eyes stared out over the sea of green. A claw raked the window, the sound shrill and metallic, full of wrath and hatred, more so than any words could contain.
“There is something on Aveyn that I need to retrieve.” Prime Councilor Aav spoke, her voice higher pitched now, more grinding. “Something that was once Knut’s, and that could throw the entire Ring into a chaos it would not recover from.”
As Prime Councilor Aav spoke, a cold hand closed around Arlen’s gut. He knew there was a reason why the Mantrilla had come, a reason that had nothing to do with the humans.
“If you want my help, the help of my Eoks, then you will have to tell me everything you know,” he said.
Prime Councilor Aav spoke, her black eyes fixed on Aveyn. She told them everything, and as Arlen and Khal listened, dread descended over the room.
A dread that threatened to cover the entire Ring.
* * *
Ava
I only need more time. Why can’t I have more time?
Ava’s mind floated in a thick fog as she repeated the words over and over in her mind.
But time had run out.
She knew where the Exo-Heart was, where Knut’s vault was hidden, deep in the heart of Aveyn. All she needed was a bit of time to retrieve it. But Uril’s heart had decided otherwise.
Where is Arlen? Arlen should be here. He would make this all right.
Edmila stood silently by the side of the bed. She reached over the blanket, nudging Ava gently, bringing her back to reality.
Ava shook away the fog of fear and read the chart. Again. Then again. No matter how many times she read the numbers, her brain flushed the information right away.
This is it. There’s no coming back from this.
“It’s not your fault.” Uril’s voice pulled Ava from her morbid fascination. “It’s mine. I should have rested better.”
“None of this is your fault.” How did her voice sound so strong? All she wanted to do was curl up at the foot of Uril’s bed and cry. “It’s not as bad as you think. We still have time.”
Liar. Time is the one thing we don’t have.
“You don’t need to lie to me.” Uril reached for her hand and Ava looked up sharply. His golden eyes were as clear and knowing as they had ever been. “Just tell me the truth. How long do I have?”
Panic circled her mind, and Ava fought its hold. Because her answer was his doom, because she was powerless. And because she couldn’t think of a world where he wouldn’t be there, looking back at her with golden eyes. She opened her mouth to speak, but all that came out was a tortured frog’s croak.
“Long enough,” Edmila chimed in, sitting on the bed at Uril’s side. “You don’t look that bad. In fact, you look much better than those two men who attacked you. You should have seen them when Captain Khal brought them in. Now, those two had the fright of their lives.”
Uril snorted. “Cowards, attacking us like that.” He shook his head, displacing the oxygen lines that fed his lungs with the extra support they needed. He lifted his hand to replace the tubes and the effort made him wince, then pant. “But I’m not a coward.”
“No, you’re not,” Edmila agreed, her face scrunching up with sudden emotion. “You’re the bravest person I know. The bravest person on Aveyn.”
Uril smiled and pride made him straighten up in the bed. Edmila smiled back, obviously happy with the result of her intervention, but she didn’t know Uril like Ava did. Edmila didn’t see the slight twitch at the corner of Uril’s mouth, or the way his eyes stayed open just a bit too long as he prevented himself from blinking because he didn’t want to cry. Uril was scared—he was scared because he knew just how bad this was.
Arlen, where are you? I need you.
