Page 7 of The Fae Lord
He does not flinch or try to fight me. He just looks down at my blade and says, “End me if you dare.”
The muscles in my forearm twitch. I inhale deeply. I thrust forward.
And then I am somewhere else.
Standing on charred earth, legs shaking. The noise is unbearable. The noise in my head. Screaming, and screaming, and screaming. And they are not just my screams. They are screams that belong to everyone. Every single creature in the city is screaming.
Bodies lie at my feet. Blood pools in deep crevices on the ground.
The sky is black. Dark clouds gather. Thunder shakes the air. Rain begins to fall, and it bleeds into the crimson puddles, spreading the darkness further and further, and coating the ground like poisonous tar.
More darkness approaches. A huge, looming shadow.
At first I think it’s him – Eldrion – but then I realise it is something more. It is water. A tidal wave, approaching the city. Coming to engulf us all.
I try to fly but my wings beat with futile effort behind me.
I try to hold the water back using Kayan’s magic. The magic that saved us in the tunnels. But it is no use.
I can still hear the screams. They torment me, they threaten to break me.
They will not stop.
“Alana . . .”
My name. The sound is familiar, but I can barely latch onto it amongst the clamour of noise beating against the raw insides of my skull.
“Alana . . .”
“Alana . . .”
My eyes spring open. My heart is beating so hard inside my ribs that I feel as if it might break free and drop down at my feet. I am freezing cold, but drenched in sweat. My hands are shaking.
Beside me, Finn smooths my hair from my face and kisses the bridge of my nose. He takes my hands in his and meets my eyes, trying to pull me back into the present. “Alana, you were having a nightmare.” He is whispering, talking to me like a child he is trying to comfort. He takes a flask of whisky from beside the bed and hands it to me. I drink down a large swig and wince as it burns my throat. “The same one?” he asks, taking the flask and drinking some himself.
I can hardly speak, but manage to nod, while still clinging on to his hand.
“What do they mean?” I ask him. Because surely he knows. He has to; he’s the one with all the plans, all the ideas.
He shakes his head and pulls the blanket tightly around us, curling in behind me and hugging my waist as I settle back into his embrace.
“When you and Eldrion fought in the tunnels,” he whispers, “what happened?”
“Why does that matter?” I ask, swallowing hard as guilt, like bile, congeals in my throat.
“Because there are rumours that Eldrion’s powers involve the power of prophecy.” Finn is speaking quietly, close to my ear, his breath warm and sweet. “If you fought, perhaps, somehow...” He stops, shaking his head. “No, it’s silly.”
“What is?” I frown at him.
“Absorbing Kayan’s power was one thing. Absorbing Eldrion’s? He’s too powerful. There’s no way...”
I sit up, tucking my knees up underneath me. “You think I absorbed his power?” A trickle of something that borders on the precipice between intrigue and fear drips down my spine.
Finn shakes his head. “I don’t see how,” he says. “It would make sense, but you absorbed Kayan’s powers when you fucked him, right?” He meets my eyes.
A sickening sense of guilt swills inside me.
“Right,” I whisper.