Page 74 of The Gilded Ones

“‘No matter what you do – no matter how badly you hurt her, grind her beneath your feet – she’ll heal. She’ll always be as good as new. Even if you slit her throat.’” Belcalis sobs brokenly, and something inside me shatters. These past few months, I’ve been so determined to bury my own pain, to prove to myself I’m fine – I’ve been so focused on my own troubles – I’ve forgotten that other girls are suffering too.

“Belcalis…” I whisper.

She abruptly reaches for the ties to her robe, begins untying them.

My eyes widen. “Belcalis, you don’t have to—”

“I want you to see,” she insists. “Remember those scars you saw long ago? Look now.”

She takes off her robe and turns, offering me her back. I gasp, shocked. “They’re gone.” Her back is completely smooth now. But of course they are. The only scars that ever remain are the ones acquired before the blood turns.

“Once I stopped being hurt, being violated, they faded.” She smiles bitterly. “And that’s the worst part. The physical body – it heals. The scars fade. But the memories are for ever. Even when you forget, they remain inside, taunting you, resurfacing when you least expect.”

My entire body is trembling now. “I’m so sorry,” I whisper. “I’m so very sorry.”

Belcalis shakes her head. “I don’t want you to be sorry,” she says. “I want you to keep the memory of my scars. I need someone to remember what happened to me. I need someone to—”

I rush to her and gather her in my arms. “I won’t forget,” I promise her. “I’ll never forget.”

The tears Belcalis has been holding back for so long burst out of her in great big heaving sobs. “Don’t you dare,” she cries. “Don’t you dare. They might need us now because we’re valuable, might pretend to accept us, to reward us – but never forget what they did to us first. If they did it once, Deka, they’ll surely do it again, no matter the flowery promises they give.”

“I won’t forget,” I promise, tears streaming down my face, determination building in my heart. “I’ll never forget.”

It’s evening and we’re slogging through the marshes at Hemaira’s southern edge, heading towards a deathshriek nest deep in the marsh. Mist hangs thick over us, as does a cloud of mosquitoes, which nip incessantly at our faces. Leeches would do the same to our legs, but thankfully, we’ve worn sturdy boots for the occasion. Even so, this is the most draining raid I’ve ever been on. Now that the campaign is almost here, we’re taking on even tougher raids in even more difficult terrain, the places where the deathshrieks blend themselves so completely into their surroundings, you almost never notice them until it’s too late.

“It’s like the Infernal Realms, it is,” Britta grumbles under her breath.

“The arsehole of the Infernal Realms,” Belcalis mutters – her favourite insult in times like these.

Keita shrugs. “If you think this is bad, wait till you visit my family home at Gar—”

A rock whizzes past so quickly, he has mere seconds to dodge it. I immediately slip into the combat state, time seeming to slow as I notice how quiet the marsh has become. Unnaturally quiet. The deathshrieks are near.

Power rushes into my veins as I raise my hands, gathering the energy in them. The air around me begins to vibrate as my body obeys my silent command.

“Show yourselves,” I say.

The reeds around us rustle as deathshrieks slip out of them, answering my call. To my surprise, they’re all wearing strange metal circlets around their heads. I squint at them, wondering what in the world they are. One of the deathshrieks nods to something behind me.

I whirl back, alarmed, and that’s when I realize my mistake. Those metal circlets are cochleans, protecting the deathshrieks from the effects of my voice. We wear the same thing under our helmets to protect ourselves from deathshriek screams. Before I can gesture to freeze them in place, one of the deathshrieks throws a rock into my face, crushing my jaw and throat. I gurgle, blood oozing from the remnants of my jaw, but the next rock is even more sizable, breaking my hands, so I can’t move them. I’m in shock now, my body going cold, blackness edging at my vision. I can’t even absorb the fact that the deathshrieks are using rocks and cochleans – that they’ve obviously planned for my arrival. All I can feel is pain and confusion as golden blood gushes from me, pouring into the water.

“Deka!” Keita rushes towards me, using his body to shield me from the storm of rocks the deathshrieks are now throwing.

More of them are running out the marsh’s bushes, slingshots in their hands. It’s an ambush, but I can do nothing, only continue gurgling helplessly as my own blood drowns my mouth and throat. If only I could just move my arms – a finger.

“Call them off, Deka!” Captain Kelechi roars. Being human, he can’t see what’s happened to me in the darkness as he beats a retreat with the others.

“She can’t, she’s been struck!” Keita answers, holding me closer to his body.

By now, black is spotting my vision, and I can’t feel my limbs any more. Blood has already drained from them. I’m going to die again. Is it my final death? I’ve never had my face crushed before. The serenity of the thought jars me, forcing me to struggle against the cold, the helplessness.

No, no, no! I must remain awake.

Keita desperately covers my neck, trying to stem the blood flow. “Deka!” he cries. “Deka!”

He doesn’t seem to notice the deathshrieks gathering around him, their claws at the ready. I desperately motion towards them with my eyes, trying to get Keita to see them, to notice. Beware, Keita! I try to say, but it’s no use. I can no longer move my tongue – or any other part of me, for that matter. The darkness has gathered around me now, bringing with it that familiar chill. My skin is already gilding, turning that eerie gold colour. I should be relieved it’s only an almost-death, but I’m not. I’m scared for Keita, scared for all my friends. What’ll happen to them when I go into the gilded sleep? Please, please let them be all right.

DEKA! Reptilian blue scales flash past me, a monstrously large body. Deathshriek screams fill the air as the enormous creature ploughs into them, claws flashing, jaws chomping.

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