Page 196 of Crimson Promises
With newfound hope, I lunged at the nearest wolf, the blade singing as it arced through the air. When it made contact, the wolf didn't just shatter—it evaporated into a wisp of dark mist, its essence entirely obliterated.
Aurora, drawing from our combined energy, sent shockwaves of magic toward the pack. The wolves, caught in the raw force of our combined might, disintegrated one after the other.
But the alpha remained, even more enraged. Its ferocity was unmatched, a desperate beast sensing its impending doom. It leapt, aiming for Aurora. With a roar, I intervened, the dagger meeting the creature mid-flight. The beast's final battle cry echoed as it dissolved, but not without it swiping me with its sharp claws.
Aurora spun around, scanning the bushes and shadows for hidden wolves. I sagged to my knees, my hand grasping the lines the wolf had torn into me across the top of my forearm.
“Ben!” Aurora cried as she rushed to meet me on the wood floor. “You’re injured.”
I swatted her hands away. “I’m fine.” I didn't need her wasting her energy. We hadn’t even discovered where this mysterious flower was. She needed to conserve her strength and worry about herself. Not me.
“You are not okay.” Her finger circles a pool of my violet blood. Then, she flashed her eyes accusingly at me, daring me to argue with her.
I shook off her hand. “It’s a little scratch. I’ll be fine. We wasted enough time trying to fight off those wolves. We still have to find the flower before our time is up.”
She gripped my chin, forcing me to look up at her. “We aren’t going anywhere until I fix this.”
I rolled my eyes. “Really, Aurora. I’m fine. I don’t want you wasting your energy trying to heal me.”
“Why do men always feel like they have the right to dictate a woman’s decisions?” She blew out a breath. “It’s my power. My decision. And as you so kindly pointed out once upon a time, I apparently have an almost unlimited well of power. And, if we still have a long way to go in our journey, doesn’t it make sense that you aren’t injured? Otherwise, you’d be a liability, just slowing us down. I need you whole and together for this.”
“Fine.” There was no point arguing with her when she got into these moods.
“Humph,” was all she said before placing both of her hands on my arm.
Her fingertips grazed the ragged claw mark marring my skin, warmth spreading from the point of contact. Energy hummed the outline of her fingers. Beneath her touch, the raw, searing pain from the wolf's assault began to recede, replaced by a gentle, tingling sensation. The wound, which moments before had pulsed with a stinging throb, now felt cool, like the caress of dew-kissed grass against bare skin.
“All done,” she said as she stood up, wiping her hands across her thighs.
“Thank you.” There was nothing there, not even a faint mark where the wolf had torn through my skin. I wondered if being in a realm where magic was as organic as breathing did anything to heighten her powers.
“Of course.” She nodded towards the path we had been traveling down before the wolves had intercepted us.
“We should get going.” I got up and brushed the twigs and debris off of me. I started down the path when I noticed Aurora wasn’t beside me. Looking over my shoulder, I noticed she hadn’t moved. Her face was scrunched up, her gaze darting between the path we were on, and a faint dirt trail located southeast of us.
“What’s up?” I asked.
Her cerulean eyes, usually so sharp, seemed to be gazing far beyond the immediate horizon, ensnared by something only she could perceive.
"Ben," she whispered, thick with emotion, “Something is calling me in this direction. It's almost like a song, a lullaby drawing me in."
Curiosity peaked, I approached her, trying to decipher what she was sensing.
“Do you trust it?”
A line formed between her brows. “My gut instinct says yes, but I could be wrong.”
“This realm responds in ways to you I didn’t anticipate. Trust what it’s trying to tell you. Lead the way," I murmured, placing a hand at the small of her back, her warmth seeping through the fabric of her clothes and grounding me.
The forest, as if reacting to her pull, began to transform. Trees no longer felt oppressive but guided, their canopies creating an intricate web of shadow and light that painted our path.
Underbrush gave way to softer terrain, moss-covered and cool against our boots. Birds, with hauntingly melodic calls, played the role of our elusive guides, darting just beyond our reach.
Was this because she was to be Lucifer's bride?
We found ourselves standing at the precipice of a vast clearing. I could see the weight of realization settle upon Aurora's features. This was the heart of the forest, the nexus of the magical pull she had sensed. It stood between us and the flower—our key out of here.
In its midst stood a pedestal, atop which rested a solitary flower. Its petals were a deep, velvety crimson, each one seemingly perfect, not a blemish in sight. The stem was a thorny spine of dark green, each thorn gleaming like a dagger’s edge under the soft light. Encased around it was a thin layer of crystalline dew, sparkling in the muted glow of the forest.
