Page 44 of To Sway a Prince
"No, Sentinels frequently enter the Chasm. It's one of the ways we protect it. Anyone from our realm can survive up to three days in the Chasm unless you get pulled into the aether. That's a whole other problem. They say if your spirit gets trapped in there, you stay until the end of time. So avoid chasm wraiths at all costs. If they bite down on you or grab you, yourspirit will start to separate from your body. Their poison is contact based. It gets in the skin as soon as they touch you."
"Is that similar to what the omenfang is doing to you?" A pang of fear cut deeper.
He nodded, his expression grim. "The omenfang will drain my power and weaken me physically until I can be dragged away, whether just in spirit or spirit and body. But chasm wraiths work faster and have to be in physical contact with you. There aren't any near the surface right now. So…if you wanted to take a peek, you could have Zephyrus dip inside. He's especially skilled at that. I can't go with you though. So be cautious."
I started to nod. Exploration delighted me, and seeing the inside of something like the Chasm should have thrilled me. But almost as fast, a sharp pang of discomfort twisted inside me. No. Absolutely not. I could not enter.
"Is everything all right?" he asked.
"Y-yes. I just…I suddenly felt like I shouldn't go down there." I pressed my hand to my chest. The cold of the wind suddenly seemed far stronger, and the sun's warmth no longer reached me. Of course, it wasn't quite as bright either because storm clouds were building and covering more of the sun. My body ached. Especially my shoulder.
As I rubbed my palm across the scars, I looked around. The Chasm was far narrower here than elsewhere, more like a broad river that a strong swimmer could cross in three full breaths. Back at the Eye of the Needle, it had been more like a great lake. The mountains closed in more, the trees sparser and the rocks far rougher. There were small islands of stone, some large enough for three dragons to land on. These islands were a few feet above the deeper mist, but curling wisps of the purple mist still coiled around the stones. "Shouldn't go in," I repeated.
He hummed in contemplation, his brow knitting. "Well, it isn't the safest of places, so it is perhaps for the best that youdon't." He snapped his fingers and pointed. "Look! There he is! The leviathan." He pointed down at a lighter portion of the mist in the Chasm. "Thank the Creator. Thalorion, we've got to follow if we can. Pray he doesn't dive down."
I leaned down, my thighs gripping tight and holding me in place. It took a moment for me to see through the mist. But soon, my focus improved. Through the purple haze, I caught a glimpse of dark scales, bobbing and diving as if swimming. Based on the angle and the style of the scales, I suspected I was looking at the leviathan's neck. He was massive, easily forty feet in length based on this angle. Possibly larger. His build reminded me of the brine iguanas in the south, except that his scales were thick as pinecone scales but much tighter and coarser.
"Where are we following him to?" I asked.
"Wherever he goes as long as he stays near the barrier," Ramiel responded, his gaze scanning the Chasm. "We need to spot the kind of wound he has and potential solutions. Looks like he's just finished a meal. He's swimming it off. He'll return to sleep for a time after this after this, but then he'll be roused and raging, trying to get relief."
"Why does he come up here when he's' in pain?"
"The barrier has natural healing elements within it. Especially near the Eye of the Needle. If we're fortunate, he'll be trying to push the wound into the barrier itself. Focus on the places where the barrier is dimmer. It will be stronger and better for soothing the wound."
Zephyrus dipped to the side as did Thalorion, tracking along after the leviathan.
Now that I knew how to focus on the mist and see into the Chasm better, I picked out far more details. It really was like the ocean, though it did not look as if there was water down there. Another pang of alarm cut through me when I saw the thinness of the barrier at some points. "Are we too low?" I asked. "Couldsomething come up and attack us?" Visions of shark attacks and crocodile ambushes flashed into my mind.
A smile flickered on Ramiel's face, but his focus remained on the surface of the Chasm. Thalorion had slowed his pace. "As long as nothing breaks the surface, they won't come out here. The surface is weakest near the tower. It's why we built it there. Here it would take a great deliberate force sustained for almost a minute to break through from their side. And it couldn't be just any creature. This leviathan though, he's on his way to rest."
"What about on our side?" I asked. The leviathan continued to move along beneath the mist. He was massive. At least twice the size of Thalorion.
"It'd take a lot less, so be careful. If you do slip in, don't panic. It will feel like you can't breathe, but I promise you can. You'll need to keep your movements slow and steady and envision the action as you do it. It's quite disorienting down there, but focus on reaching the rocks and climbing out. You will sink if you stop moving. Just don't let your spirit get separated from your body. You know how to resist that, right?"
"Yeah…but if it's a big enough and dangerous enough creature, it's just delaying the inevitable."
"The delay is what matters. Sometimes it's all we have."
Thunder grumbled in the distance. My eyes snapped up to the darkening storm clouds. That did not look good. The scent in the air was changing as well, that crisp smell of fresh rain and cold stone. "Any interactions with storms we should know about?"
Ramiel cut his gaze at the clouds. "It can get pretty strong and worsen swiftly. Keep an eye out for the winds. A rock slide out here would be problematic. We should probably go." He hummed with frustration, his grip on Thalorion's horns tightening, weighing our options.
I understood that look. He didn't want to leave until he determined what was wrong with the leviathan. If we could figure it out and get it resolved, it might buy more time before the leviathan tried to escape again and Ramiel had to use so much of his magic. "Would you stay and search if it was just you and Thalorion?" I asked.
He tore his gaze from the mist and met mine. Concern radiated in his eyes. Then he nodded. "I've been trying to identify the source of the leviathan's injury for weeks. Knowing what caused this lingering wound would allow us to potentially resolve it, and he only ever gets his head and neck through before we drive him back and he resumes resting and healing."
"Then we stay. I know how to handle myself," I responded. "Trust me."
He weighed this. A muscle jumped in his jaw. Another nod then. "Then stay close. Watch for gaps in the mist. Enhance your sight if you need to. This could get dangerous."
18
BEASTS OF THE STORM
Zephyrus and Thalorion slid over the Chasm, taking care not to even brush against the mist as we followed the leviathan. The sunlight faded as the clouds darkened. I scanned the mist and the Chasm below, searching for any indicators of the massive creature's wound. He remained near the surface. Dark shapes stirred down below, occasionally creating pulses of dull light and void-like circles.
The wind picked up. My eyes ached despite the runes helping my vision.
