Page 50 of Magic Cursed

“No...” I say. It’s my fault Baxon’s here. If anyone should carry the guilt of taking his life, it should be me. “I’ll do it.” My voice is small but firm. I set my jaw and retrieve my blades from the ground. The weight of the hilts feels heavier than normal. I sheath one.

Each step I take towards Baxon is a concerted effort. His eyes never leave me, as if he’s trying to lend me strength. I lift my blade and hover it over his heart. Hot tears fall freely down my cheeks, blurring my vision. My thundering heart drowns out the sound of my labored breathing. My hand shakes so badly, that I’m worried I’ll miss his heart and cause him more suffering. It must be a clean kill, one without pain. I clasp my other hand over the first, trying to steady myself, but it does little to stop the shaking.

I can do this. Icando this. I take a steadying breath.I can do this.

And even though the words are a mantra in my head, I still doubt myself. Another, large hand covers both of mine, warm and sure. The moment Daimis’s hand encloses my own, comfort soothes my anxiety-filled nerves like a blanket being draped over cold shoulders. I glance at Daimis. He gives me a small nod, freely offering me solidarity with this burden.

My gaze finds Baxon one last time. The corners of his lips curve up, giving me a glimpse of the smile that used to light up his features. He closes his eyes.

“I’m sorry,” I whisper, and Daimis and I plunge my blade into his heart.

What’s left of Baxon’s heart stops beating.

He’s dead.

We killed him.

A sob escapes me, and Daimis pulls me into an embrace. With his arm around me, he guides me from the room, quietly shutting the door to Baxon’s room, his tomb behind us. I allow myself a moment to let Daimis comfort me while I cry into his shoulder before I back away, dry my tears, and replace my grief with anger.

Anger is more useful. While grief cripples, anger fuels action.

“Why? Why would anyone do this to someone else?” My voice is horse and low.

Daimis closes the distance back to the stone table with the books and writings. “He’s experimenting.”

I think about the people I saw being escorted from the caves and wonder what exactly was done to them. “To what end?” I ask.

Daimis is silent for a moment as he reads what looks like another journal. His body tenses. “To find weaknesses.”

He hands the journal to me. It has a list of each race, the best ways to kill them, and how todisabletheir magic. “Disable magic?” I say. “Is that possible? Without Ash-steel?”

“According to the Regent’s research,” Daimis’s face is grim. “This is dangerous.”

Magic is the one thing that gives us an advantage over humans far greater numbers. Without it, what chance do we have? I read the passages. The first on the list is fae.

Fae:

Kill spots: Both hearts—one in the left upper chest and the other in the right upper chest (they can still survive off one), throat,brain. Wounds heal quickly, so always go for a kill spot, or disable their magic and they won't be able to heal.

Magic Spots: You must disable all spots in order to render their magic completely useless, although one or two will weaken their magic. The magic spots are located in the middle of the collar bone, and both temples on either side of the head. Firm strikes will suffice.

It goes on to explain how to kill each of the other races, and the spots to disable their magic. The other races only have one spot to disable their magic. I memorize each one, then move on until I find Sorcerers.

Sorcerers:

Kill spots: heart on left side of chest, throat, and brain. Try to incapacitate with little to no harm, do not kill. Bring in for questioning.

Magic spots: Unknown.

I breathe a sigh of relief. He hasn’t found a way to incapacitate our magic, but he wants us alive to experiment on us. How many others came before Baxon? Has the Regent been experimenting for as long as he’s been in power? For the many years I’ve been in hiding? And is Kellan aware of any of this? The thought puts a sour feeling in my stomach. But Daimis didn’t know, so there’s a chance Kellan is in the dark too.

“This book claims that the Gods brought humans here to rule this land,” Daimis says holding a large red book in his hands. “And that the humans are tasked with cleansing the land of the vile magic users who plague it. Look what the Regent wrote in the margins.”

I lean over and read it.

Annihilation is near.

I flinch. “What does that mean?”

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