Page 66 of Prisoner of Darkness and Dreams
I look up blearily at the ring of light far above me, where Leon’s dark outline is silhouetted against the hole in the ceiling. “Ana! I’ll come get you.”
The drop is too high for even him to jump, and there’s no way to climb down. I watch as he realizes this too, disappearing from view.
I focus on breathing through the throbbing in my leg, beating like a pulse against my nerves. Leon will be here soon, and then everything will be okay.
Something shifts in the corner of my vision, sending a clattering of bone and wood echoing toward me.
The mortifus. The fall didn’t kill it.
Of course not. How could it? It’s already dead.
I turn my head and watch in horror as the fractured creature slowly gets to what’s left of its feet. By now, the bottom of its jaw is hanging off, and one of its legs is still lying in pieces on the floor, a splintered stump of bone protruding from a piece of rotten flesh on its haunch. And still, it staggers toward me, an awful, bubbling noise coming from its maw, a sound like something trying to breathe through mud.
It might not be moving very fast, but my leg is broken, and I can’t run.
Heart pounding, I try to drag myself away on my elbows. Every inch sends a burst of agony stabbing through my leg, but I know I have to keep moving. I desperately search the space for something to defend myself with. I lost my sword in the fall, but could I orbit one of its discarded bones to me to use instead?
But what difference would it make? If a blade or sun beam couldn’t stop it, then that certainly wouldn’t.
I crawl as fast as I can, my skin scraping against the stone floor as the creature’s uneven footsteps echo behind me. For the first time, I take in the sheer size of the chamber we’re in. It’s dim, but from what I can tell, it must take up the whole footprint of Aquila Hall, even extending beyond it.
The only light source is something shining in the floor up ahead—an odd, silvery glow emanating straight out of the ground.
That light is good. That light can help me.
I don’t know how I know it, but something inside me awakens at the sight, and a flare of energy courses through my veins. Whatever’s there is powerful—and I need some power on my side.
The mortifus snarls from behind me, a broken growl rumbling from its mangled jaw. I can’t keep crawling from it forever, and there’s still no sign of Leon.
I trust my gut. I have no other choice.
With all my strength, I haul myself toward the light. As I pick up speed, so does the animal behind me, its hot, labored breaths coming heavier. But finally, I reach the source of the light: a stretch of bright, opalescent stones giving off an ethereal glow.
Ralus, Lusteris, whoever’s listening—please, please let this work,I pray as I slam my hand down onto the surface of the stones.
It’s like I’ve been struck by lightning. A jolt of energy runs through me so powerful I think I might explode. Instead, I throw my other palm out toward the mortifus, letting the force running into me from the stones pour out.
A blast of sunlight so bright it sears itself onto my eyeballs shoots directly into the mortifus’s face. The beast doesn’t have time to react, to growl or shake off the attack. Instead, it simply…disintegrates. Every scrap of bone and wood turns to ash, crumbling into a dusty pile on the floor.
The sweet smell of decay is overtaken by the bitterness of burning wood. I cough and splutter on the smoke as I rip my palm away from the stone. The force that burned through me fades, and my sunlight sputters out, but I’m still left feeling like every inch of me is more alive than I’ve ever been before, fizzing with the unexpected infusion of magic.
And pain—I feel that too. From my injury and from the raw magic ripping through me. Enough pain to make my head spin and my breaths come shallow and short. Without fear or adrenaline driving me forward, the pain swallows everything for a minute.
Sure that the mortifus is no more, I collapse onto the cool stone, counting my heartbeats until they start to slow.
Not long after, footsteps reverberate across the floor, sprinting toward me.
“Ana!” Leon shouts my name like an invocation, his voice echoing across the chamber.
I sense, rather than see, him approach. The thudding of his heartbeat is like a comforting melody to my battered body and soul, even if it comes mingled with an abruptly sharp sense of fear.He doesn’t have any reason to be afraid, I think hazily, and the fear subsides a little. I’m not sure I understand what that means, but then Leon is beside me, reaching for me, and I don’t care about anything else.
LEON
I barrel into the chamber, heart pounding, searching for her. I sense she’s here somewhere, the pull acting like a beacon—clear as day, to the point where I don’t even need that useless fucking council giving me directions.
Please be alright, please.
The images of her lying cold and lifeless cut through me, sharp as steel, but I know they’re not real. I’d feel it if she was?—
