Page 27 of Kingdom of Rot & Ruin
Using my ankle would do as the starting point. I traced the design in my head, then once lightly on my skin with the blade. I’d practiced it hundreds of times, preparing for this moment.
This ritual was supposed to help my body acclimate to intense heat and protect my skin against burns. It felt logical considering a dragon constantly hovered above all of us.
Taking a deep breath in, I let it out and cut down on the wound with the knife.
White-hot pain assaulted my senses, but I shoved it away to focus on making perfect angles in my skin.
I had every step memorized. First the ankles, then a sun design up the calf. For added protection, I could repeat on my other leg, but it had to be perfect, and the blade couldn’t leave the skin once, except to change legs.
The knife itself was important, but I didn’t exactly havea large selection at my disposal. The one L let me borrow was simple and sharp, slitting my skin open quickly and efficiently. I didn’t stop to think, just do: that was the purpose of memorizing the ritual so thoroughly, so that I wouldn’t second guess myself or get cold feet.
Checking the design, I let out a breath and lifted the knife from my skin, sitting back on my haunches.
Breathe.
Nothing exploded, and I wasn’t dead. Perfect.
Did I dare do the other leg? It had to be perfectly symmetrical, or I risked catastrophe.
Good thing I had an impeccable eye for detail and an obsessive personality.
My knife kissed the skin of my left leg and repeated the design.
“Are you com—What the hell?”
I flinched and sliced a line down my leg that wasn’t part of the design. L stood stock-still one step into the room, lips parted in shock.
Don’t stop. Have to finish it.
“Stay there! If you fuck this up we both die!” I yelled at him.
His eyes went wide, trained on the knife in my hands and the blood dripping all over me.
Pain spread through my body as a dull ache, which became worse with each beat of my heart. I had to adjust the ritual on the fly and finish it, or fuck it up and die.
I didn’t have a contingency plan, so I simply pulled the knife away and leaned back to stretch out my muscles, careful to keep every limb inside the circle. The designs on my legs flared a gold, then sank down into my skin and vanished. It worked! I wasn’t blowing up! But ithurt. Was it supposed to hurt this bad, or was it part of my mistake?
My heart raced.
Or at least, I think it worked. Golden lines were a good sign. My exploding would have been a bad sign. And so far, I was still here. Unfortunately, there was no way to know if it worked unless I tried burning myself, or somehow came face-to-face with the dragon.
Shaking slightly with pain and adrenaline, I took the bucket and dumped the water across my circle, scattering the blood circle and extinguishing the magick.
L skittered backwards to avoid the wave of water and my blood. Not that I blamed him.
“You … I …”
The weight of any lingering magick vanished, and I could breathe. I fell onto my back with my arms and legs splayed, letting the cool stone soothe the itch and burn of the wounds on my legs.
I would need to bathe. Urgently.
“Z! Answer me!” His voice shook as he rattled his spear, hands fumbling at the shaft.
I tried to stand, but my left leg buckled under me and I fell hard, my muscles too weak to catch myself. L ran forward before I kissed hard stones catching my arm and pulling me back and setting me down on my back. He wiped his hands on his tunic, cleaning my blood off him.
I tried to stand again.
“Ah! Fuck!”
