Page 71 of Empire of Wrath and Ruin
"I know what happened to my father," Taveth replied, and there was something cold in his voice that made my blood run chill. "But I'm stronger than he was. I've always been stronger."
"Stronger?" Septimus stood up, and started to pace, his frustration evident. "You're talking about deliberately exposing yourself to the same force that drove him completely insane. Taveth, you're stronger than your father ever was. If the crystal consumes you during the attempt, if you lose control completely..." He ran a hand through his hair and took a deep breath. "You could level this entire mountain. Kill everyone in the temple, in the valley below. The destruction would be catastrophic."
Livia twisted in his arms to look at him, and I saw her face go pale as she processed what I was saying. "Septimus is right," she whispered. "If you're that powerful, and the darkness takes you completely..."
"We'd have to kill you," I said bluntly, hating myself for the words but knowing they needed to be spoken.
The words hung in the air like a death sentence. I watched Taveth's face go perfectly still, that dangerous calm that preceded either complete surrender or explosive violence. Livia's sharp intake of breath was the only sound in the garden's sudden silence.
"Kill me," Taveth repeated, his voice flat and emotionless. "How efficient. How practical."
I felt like I was standing on the edge of a precipice, knowing that my next words could push us all over the edge. But someonehad to say it. Someone had to acknowledge the reality we were all dancing around.
"It would have to be immediate," I continued, forcing myself to meet his pale eyes. "The moment the ritual was complete, assuming you managed it at all. We couldn't risk waiting to see if you'd maintained control."
"Like putting down a rabid dog," he said, and the shadows around him began to writhe more violently. "Quick and merciful, before it can bite anyone else."
"Taveth, that's not—" Livia started, but he silenced her with a gentle touch to her hand.
"No, he's right." Taveth's voice was eerily calm now, which somehow made it worse than if he'd been raging. "If I attempt this and survive it, I'll be carrying the concentrated darkness of every shadow mage who's ever lived. The corruption would be... immense. Even if I succeeded in breaking the curse, what remained of me wouldn't be human anymore."
Livia made a small sound of distress, her hands tightening on Taveth's arms. "There has to be another way. Couldn't we just... imprison you? Like Sayven?"
Taveth's laugh was hollow, devoid of any warmth. "You think chains would hold me if I turned completely? You think stone walls would contain what I'd become?" His pale eyes found mine again, and I saw a flicker of the man I'd come to respect beneath the gathering darkness. "Marcus is right. If I fail, if the shadows take me entirely, you'd need to end it immediately. Before I could hurt anyone."
"No." Livia's voice cracked with desperation. "I won't accept that. There has to be—"
"There isn't," Taveth said gently, and for a moment he sounded like himself again. His hand came up to stroke her hair, the gesture tender despite the shadows writhing beneath his skin. "This is the reality we're facing, Aeveth. I’ve neverseen a mage who had a bonded mate. You already feel far too much of what I’m going through. And it's not just you, my love. There’s Tarshi and Sirrax too. We’re all connected. If I… if I get consumed by this darkness, I can't take the risk it could taint you all.”
I watched the blood drain from Livia's face as the implications hit her fully. Through whatever bond she shared with him, she could feel his darkness—had been feeling it all along. If Taveth turned completely, if the shadows consumed him entirely, would that corruption flow through their connection to her? To Tarshi? To Sirrax?
The thought made my stomach lurch. Bad enough that we might lose Taveth to this curse. The idea that he could drag others down with him, that his fall could doom the very people he was trying to protect, was almost too horrific to contemplate.
"That's not going to happen," Livia said fiercely, but I could hear the fear beneath her defiance. "I won't let it happen."
I let out a deep breath, my eyes meeting Taveth’s. The knowledge that I was going to have to kill him felt cold and heavy in my stomach. I was going to kill someone she loved, and Livia was going to hate me for it.
Taveth's arms tightened around Livia, and I realised he knew what I was thinking.
"I know what I'm becoming. Every day, the voices get louder. Every day, I lose a little more of myself." His eyes bored mine, and I could see the terrible certainty there. "I'm going to hurt her, Marcus. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but eventually. And when that happens, I won't be able to forgive myself."
"We could find another way," Livia said, her voice fierce despite the tears I could see threatening. "There has to be another option."
"There's no other choice," he said firmly. "If I become what my father became, if I'm consumed by that thing's influence, I'll be too dangerous to contain. You saw what it took to restrain him, and he wasn't anywhere near as powerful as I am now."
The casual way he discussed his own death made my stomach turn. I'd seen men face battle knowing they might not survive, but this was different. This was calculated self-sacrifice, and I could see it was tearing Livia apart.
"But if you succeed in removing the curse, then the Talfen lose their only advantage against the Empire. The shadow magic is the only thing that's kept them from being completely conquered," broke in Antonius. “yes, you’ll free their dragons, but how do we know what state they’ll be in when their minds are freed? Many of them were bred in captivity. They might not even know they’re Talfen.”
The question hung in the air like a blade. I watched Taveth's face as he processed the implications—that even if he succeeded in his impossible task, even if he somehow managed to destroy the shadow magic without being consumed by it, we might still lose the war.
"Many dragons never known freedom," Sirrax growled quietly. "Bred and trained to serve Empire. Even if break collars, can’t know they'll fight for us."
"The dragons might still fight for the Empire. Many of them have known nothing but captivity and control. When their minds are freed, they might not even remember what it means to be free. They could continue serving their Imperial masters out of habit, or fear, or simply because it's all they've ever known," Jalend added grimly. "And the Empire still has their human armies. Their war machines, their discipline, their numbers. Without shadow magic to even the odds..."
"We'll be slaughtered," Septimus finished bluntly.
The weight of it settled over our small circle like a shroud. I found myself studying each face, seeing the same hopeless realization reflected in their expressions. We were trapped between impossible choices—watch Taveth slowly descend into madness while our people were systematically destroyed or sacrifice him in a desperate gambit that might save individual lives but doom their entire civilization.
