Page 51 of Fallen Stars
With purpose, she set off—well versed now in how to fight in a dream. But as one foot landed in front of the other, the earth writhed beneath her, causing her to jump back. She whirled, seeing the shrubs and bushes around her contort as they formed neat blocks, drifting closer.
“Adapt,” Eli called though his voice was fainter.
The grass under her feet rippled like a pack of cards, growing rapidly as it towered above her, becoming denser, the hedges fanning out in concentric circles until Elara was completely surrounded. She could barely see the Light in the dreamscape for the hedges rose so high. Looking around warily, she realised she was in some sort of maze or labyrinth. The thin, grassy path before her split into two directions at the end.
“Elaraaaa,” Botis mocked again. He sounded nearer, and she cursed, weighing her odds. Which would take her closer to the demon, and which would take her further away? She had to find her escape, that was the aim of this. To exit these dreams unscathed, just like she’d have to do with Ariete.
Shrugging out her shoulders, she marched down the path, a hand out, ready to summon magick as she turned the corner.
Left or right? She peered down each direction. Left was shrouded in mist, the fog hanging so low and dense that she could not see through. To her right were tangles of thorns, an obstacle in itself to get through.
“Only an immortal out of touch with reality would conjure this,” she said, more to herself than anyone else. She wished Enzo was here. She always felt stronger when he was around, like she could face anything with his light behind her. Her chest felt tight as she weighed her options. Neither was looking good. She decided that the thorns were more hassle than they were worth, so she plunged with gritted teeth into the mist.
She hadn’t realised that there was sound in the dreamscape until it wasn’t there anymore. Any surroundings were engulfed by the fog; the only sounds permeating her space were the sound of her footsteps trudging on grass and her ragged breath. Even Botis’s chanting had ceased.
She squinted ahead but could see nothing.
Letting out a long stream of air, she continued, reaching a hand out tentatively to the hedge to feel her way.
The sound of flapping wings and a crow cawing made her jump, and she stumbled over a root on the ground.
She grunted as her hands shot forward to catch her fall, her palms skinned on the rough garden floor.
She realised the mist hovered around a foot off the ground, leaving the way beneath clear. She turned, still on her stomach, peering into the hedge’s undergrowth.
Two grey eyes peered back in a face waxen with death.
Elara screamed, scrambling to her feet as she spun around the maze.
Botis’s laugh sounded mere feet away from her, and she began to run, full tilt, chasing the path to its end, heaving shallow breaths.
She knew those eyes. As recognisable as her own. But how would Botis know?
She reached the corner, turning sharply right and away from the cloying mist, only slowing once she was clear of it. She sank against a hedge wall, gasping sobs that she tried to hush escaping her. The last thing she needed was a demon on her heels.
She must have lost him though for she didn’t hear even a footstep. She pressed the heels of her hands to her eyes.
It’s just a dream, she reminded herself.None of this is real.
She sucked in another breath, willing herself to focus. Ariete would likely have much worse than this to tackle, and here she was losing her mind over a demon’s parlour trick. It was clearly Botis’s sick and twisted way to get under her skin, and Eli was allowing it—to test her. She was going to throttle him when she saw him.
A shadow flitted past her, and she staggered back, swearing. But it wasn’t Botis. The figure instead drifted past, leaving her unharmed. The shadow stopped at the end of the maze, its hooded figure turning to look at her.
“No,” she breathed.
Elara took a step forward, then another, before launching into a sprint down the maze and towards the figure. It turned at the last moment, driftingthroughthe hedge and disappearing.
She was losing her mind. That or she had begun to see dead people. All thoughts of Eli’s task or Botis lurking left her as she pounded after the hooded figure, skidding around a corner. She squinted through the mist. Up ahead, she saw a shadow veer right.
She slowed, taking a tentative step, then another.
“Elaraaaaaa,” a voice sang.
She stilled. No. Botis couldn’t be doing this, couldn’t know the sound of that voice. A voice she hadn’t heard since it had said farewell as she was marched out of a cell.
“Sofia?” she whispered, staggering forward.
A soft, distorted chuckle carried on the chilled breeze. She whipped her head around, heart pounding as she heard Botis’s demonic laugh grow closer.