Page 71 of A Realm of Fire and Ash

MORTE

Emeric’s hands roam around my body, tracing every curve, cataloging each and every mark and divot that makes me who I am. His hands card through my hair, sending goosebumps along my flesh.

I’m panting by the time he finishes, a smirk adorning his face as he steps back from me. His throat bobs as he draws his attention to his hands, where shadows form between them. He pulls them apart, and I watch in morbid fascination as anothermebegins to take shape right in front of us.

The shadows dance around my fake form, spinning and caressing the body as though they’d always meant to be a part of me. It solidifies, dropping to the forest floor before stalking towards the mission Emeric sends it on.

Unease pulses through my veins as I watch my doppelgänger writhe and moan on the dirt path below. Even though it's made of shadows, it looks identical to me. The same flaming hair, the glowing gem on my chest, and even the tiny crease between my brows.

We're perched in a nightfire oak, Emeric behind me, and I'm settled between his thighs for support as I ready my bow. A few branches above us sits Az, keeping vigilant watch for beasts. It's daylight, so his duties are light until the sun goes down. Four hours is how long it took to get here, and I'd racked up twenty-three more easy kills during that time.

In the distance is a bridge they call the Ember Gateway. It has a shimmering archway made from black marble, wrought iron, and gold. The stone is carved with ancient runes that glow red as they reflect the setting sun. It towers higher than the trees and spans the wide river that separates the forest and Duskvale. On either side of the bridge stand two huge statues of demons, their eyes glowing a bright orange like fire. Their wingspans stretch out over fifteen feet across, and they each hold a giant mace in one clawed hand and a flaming staff in the other.

The faint odor of sulfur lingers in the air, mixed with hints of burning wood and brimstone. The bridge creaks and groans as if it's alive, and every thirty seconds the sound of a firework cracks in the distance.

My heart stops as I catch a glimpse of movement in my periphery. The figure moves with a grace that could only belong to a wolf shifter, its fur a sleek blanket of black and orange patches, illuminated by a gleaming ruby above its shoulder blades. In a flash, it lunges towards my shadow self, its eyes blazing with an animalistic hunger.

I loose the arrow with a fierce determination, watching as it pierces through the creature's hide and sinks deep into its side. The creature howls in agony, its enraged bellowing echoing through the forest, yet it continues its relentless charge. I draw another arrow and release it, the shaft finding its mark in the beast's left shoulder. The creature immediately stops in its tracks, hanging in the air like a marionette whose strings have suddenly been cut. It slowly slides to the ground, its heavy body illuminated by the fiery rays of the setting sun. Its lifeless body twitches once before slipping into an eternal slumber.

The faintest glimmer of light shimmers above the lifeless body before a sudden eruption of energy sends the kill count soaring up into the sky with a deafening crack. The majestic beams of light pierce through the air like blades and the thunderous boom that follows sends shockwaves trembling through the trees.

"Hey, Az," Emeric calls up to Azazel. He leans down, raising a brow. "I'm not sure which is sexier, the Forsaken Hunt or the Wild Pursuit."

"Why's that?" I ask him, and Az must have guessed the punchline because he's grinning.

"Seeing you take down competitor after competitor has me all hot and bothered."

Heat creeps up my cheeks, but I just shake my head. "You two are insufferable."

"That's where you're wrong, Morte. I think I speak for us both when I say we'd gladly suffer under the weight of your aim if it meant you'd pin us in the end," Az teases.

"Uh huh," I muse.

For hours, we use my phantom apparition to lure contestants in before I finish them off with an arrow.

With no way of knowing how well other hunt participants are doing unless I see their kill number, we just have to keep killing. If this were Bedlam, I'd probably feel bad, but in the underworld? There's a reason we're all here.

A crackling in the trees behind us signals that another creature has entered the fray. This time, from the canopy.

Already nocking an arrow, I glance nervously at Emeric when I see the beast. Its fur is pitch black and its eyes are an unnatural yellow, intense in their warmth, though its giant maw full of razor-sharp teeth is anything but welcoming.

With a quick nod, I launch the arrow, only for the monster to extend arms three times as long as its body. It reaches for a limb above its head and swoops over the top of us, its claws rending the branches to nothing in its wake.

This isn't a contestant, but some hideous creature reminiscent of a gorilla, but more terrifying. Its fangs protrude from its upper lip, dripping with a putrid green saliva that smells of death and decay when it splatters on the limb next to me. With every breath it takes, it unleashes an agonizing rumble like a storm brewing in the distance.

Azazel hisses, "Move!" and we scatter in opposite directions. I land on my feet and spin around just in time to see the monster demolish a thicket of trees, splitting boulders and branches into fragments. Including the ancient nightfire oak we'd kept sentry in.

It notices Azazel and takes off towards him, moving faster than I thought possible with its size. Shaking, I bring up my bow again with trembling fingers and aim. I let loose an arrow in desperation and thank the gods when it lodges in the monster's shoulder. But it barely slows its charge.

Az rolls out of the way as it lunges, and its giant paw crashes into the ground instead. It doesn't stop, though. It roars and turns towards me, snarling and slobbering as it runs closer.

"Get behind the tree!" Emeric shouts.

I circle the enormous willow just as my shadow doppelgänger takes off in the opposite direction, drawing the beast's attention away from me. I breathe a sigh of relief, but my heart stops when I see that Emeric is still standing close by the monster.

Without a thought, I take off towards them. Az sees my intent and leaps towards the lumbering monstrosity, but I'm faster. I grab Emeric and heave him out of the way just in time, tumbling onto the ground as the creature passes by us with a thunderous roar.

The fight is on. Az engages it, dodging and swiping with his claws and teeth, while I take aim and shoot blindly at the massive body. It's a large target, but it moves faster than it should for its size.

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