Page 58 of To Sway a Prince
The poor creature was suffering badly. My heart ached for him. The spear in its shoulder was nearly free, the healing magic working. I grimaced, shaking my head. Healing always hurt before it helped, but that didn't make it easy to endure. The pain in my own flesh reminded me of that. If he would just stop fighting it and let us help, he'd heal so much faster. But there was no way to communicate that.
Ramiel planted his feet on the bridge's edge as the structure trembled beneath him, far closer to the edge than I wanted him to be. His hands began to move, precise and deliberate, cutting glowing runes into the air.
I focused my energy, reaching out with my magic to strengthen each symbol as it formed. My aura stretched out as close as I could send it to find the weaknesses. Come on. Come on! The runes brightened, their edges sharpening as my power flowed into them.
I could see the strain in Ramiel's shoulders, the slight tremor in his fingers that others might miss. The power required to heal such a massive wound was taking its toll. Sweat beaded on his brow despite the chill wind.
The leviathan reared back, his massive jaws opening. Lightning crackled between his jagged teeth, arcing outward in ablinding flash. Ramiel barely pulled back, the brilliant streak of energy burning the stone near his foot.
A horrifying screech drew my attention skyward. Another chasm wraith had broken free, its ghostly hand wrapping around Giselle. She twisted in its grasp, purple wings beating frantically as the color bled from her form.
"Ramiel! Above!" I pointed upward.
He glanced up, fingers still cutting runes into the air. Without breaking rhythm, he carved three new symbols over the Chasm, these glowing with a fierce silver-blue light. Zephyrus and a dark-grey dragon immediately dove toward the wraith.
Two other dragons swooped in, snatching the silver runes in their claws before soaring toward Giselle. Their coordinated attack tore at the wraith's misty form, freeing the purple dragon from its grip. The grey one swept beneath Giselle and helped her to fly to an outcropping as Zephyrus and Veyruneth bared their teeth and lured to the disintegrating runes where they would kill it.
The bridge shuddered violently beneath us. Thalorion landed beside Ramiel with a heavy thud. The whiskered dragon roared, a sound that seemed to shake the very air, and launched himself at the leviathan. Claws and teeth flashed as Thalorion drove the creature back from the bridge, creating space for Ramiel to work but without drawing blood.
Gritting my teeth, I channeled more power into Ramiel's runes. Almost there. The gold and silver spiraled together. Already though the scent of burning metal cut through the myriad of scents, present and growing. My skin crawled, my breaths tightening.
No! Not yet.
My magic surged as I strengthened the last of the runes Ramiel was carving. It hooked onto him momentarily, lighting him up. Maybe it was the mate bond that granted me insighteven as it fought to seal into place. Maybe it was something from the Chasm. Maybe both.
But I saw it.
There.
My blood ran cold.
Ramiel was nearing the end of his strength, flagging badly though he kept up his grim expression. His heart thundered, its every pulse and throb highlighted by my golden light, the knots cutting in tighter and pulling closer.
And right in the center of his heart, peeking out just far enough was that central thread that bound the knots, layered around itself at least six times to form that crucial center knot.
He was right. It was hooked into the very essence of the curse and his heart, resistant to removal. If I pulled it free, I wouldn't have time to break it into pieces. I was already too weakened to do more than draw it out, let alone guide it. The whole thing would come loose, and it would coil around me as if I were the spindle on a spinning wheel. And I would die.
Funny.
Some curses really couldn't be escaped.
Mine had found me after all this time. After so much death and loss. It had found me.
I could run. Hide under a sycamore tree. Could probably call Zephyrus to me, and he'd come. Take me away from this place.
I really could.
In theory.
Ramiel would understand.
Pulling that thread free would unleash the fullness of his power, and it would condemn me. If I didn't, he would reach the end of his strength, collapse, and die at the omenfang's claws. The leviathan would not be healed. He would worsen and continue in this madness until he tore free and died a horrible death as he destroyed all he encountered. The dragonswould continue fighting the creatures of the rift. But one chasm wraith could destroy any of them. Zephyrus would fall. I could practically see that, and tears stung my eyes. The rift would remain open with all the creatures of the liminal space free to pour through. And eventually everything would perish.
A small, sad smile tugged at my lips as I kept my magic steady. Oh, I could continue with the reasons. There were so many. But the fact that this would take Ramiel's life and almost certainly Zephyrus's was reason enough for me.
Creator of All, keep me strong, keep me steadfast. And please don't let it hurt too much.
Ramiel continued to cut the runes into the air. He sagged to the left, his breaths labored. Adjusting his stance, he stood again and called something out in a language I did not recognize.
