A Toiling Darkness

by Jaliza Burwell

  He stared at me, his blue eyes trying to penetrate and read me. He got nothing so he tried a different route. “You’re nothing.”

  “Not now, I’m not.” I cocked my head. “It took you long enough. I paid close attention to that threat and nothing happened for so long that I forgot all about you.”

  Frey’s face turned red with anger. Veins started popping up around his eyes. He moved closer to me, his fingers poking at my body. Each poke was more of a stab.

  “I keep my threats,” he said, moving his face closer to mine, intruding in on my personal space. He was only inches away.

  When he got too close, I pulled my head back and then head butted him as hard as I could. I swear I heard my own skull crack and blood started dripping into my eyes. It was worth it though as I watched the blood spray from Frey’s nose. Maybe that was the crack I heard.

  “You bitch!” His voice was nasally as he tried to stop his nose from bleeding. “You little bitch.”

  Like I said when Kalen had the nasally voice; it’s funny when they talk. It’s hard to take a person seriously when they spoke like they had a blow horn shoved up their nose. For the life of me, I couldn’t take his anger seriously.

  I think Frey understood that too because he stood up and kicked me in the chest, hard enough to lift me up an inch or two from the ground. He did it again and then again before he stopped, his chest heaving. He swore before storming out of the room, leaving Paige behind with me.

  She sauntered over to me as I tried to breathe. My chest was making a wheezing sound and I knew if I was human, I would be dead.

  “You gave him the spell,” I wheezed.

  Paige tilted her head, considering me for a moment before she smiled big. “Of course. When I was with El, I made a copy of it.” She sounded absolutely proud of herself. If I learned anything about her, it was that she was always boastful. “It was surprisingly hard to find a being who hated you enough to risk summoning a slauve. Then it took even longer to find the perfect man to become a slauve.”

  “And Kalen was the perfect man?” My voice was strong again. Good.

  “Ah, yes. He’s definitely special. Probably the only one who can kill you.”

  “How so?”

  She shook her head. “I think I’ll just leave it as a surprise.”

  “So this is your revenge? Use others to do it for you.”

  Paige laughed. “Oh, don’t worry. My hands are very dirty and they will only get dirtier.” She paused for a moment, finding amusement in something only she knew about. “Besides. Who do you think ensured Kalen was killed?”

  She did? She caused Kalen’s death?

  That little confession brought my rage to a boil inside of me. I managed to keep my body still and my face blank. Just barely. I was going to fall apart soon and when I did, I was going shatter and it wasn’t going to be pretty.

  She was the one who killed such a sweet man, the one to curse him. Oh, Frey casted the spell, but Paige orchestrated it all, hiding in the background, tugging on the strings to make Frey do her bidding.

  I smirked, making sure to show all my teeth. “I wonder how Frey feels about being a puppet.”

  She blinked, surprised by my statement. Then she smiled softly. “Frey is no puppet. We both had an agreement and we acted on it. He’s capable of doing far more than me.” There it was again—the reverence in her voice. There was no doubt that she would jump if he said jump. It made it harder to determine who was in charge. She was the one making all the plans and executing them while Frey was the one with all the power. Power Paige wanted and knew she could never have.

  “Which is why you have to leech off of him.” I allowed myself to painfully relax against the wall. "You are weak.”

  She smacked me. Hard. My teeth cut open my cheek and the sweet coppery taste of blood filled my mouth.

  “Shut up! You understand nothing! Nothing! You destroyed everything my family worked hard to achieve. We lost so much because of you. Because you just up and decided that someday, just maybe, we would be able to end you. A fucking possibility.”

  “Possibility? There was no possibility. Your family was high risk. They were always aiming to destroy me. I’ve been their prisoner more than a handful of times. Of course I would wipe them out the first chance I got. Besides, they asked for it, sending those men to me. What did you think was going to happen? What was I suppose to do? Just take it laying down?” I shook my head. “You’re so full of delusions.”

  She shook her head and stepped back lifting her hands in defeat. I would really believe I won if she wasn’t smiling.

  “You know what? It doesn’t matter. Kalen will come and when he kills you, you will be dead and I’ll be the one to look down at you, laughing. Revenge makes the best satisfaction.”

  I spat a mouthful of blood at her feet. She stumbled back a little. I grinned, showing all my teeth and watched with satisfaction as she paled. “Oh, yeah. Revenge is always satisfying,” I purred. I allowed all my plans to show in my eyes. None of what I wanted to do to her was pretty.

  Paige backed up until her back hit the wall. When she realized she just retreated from a little girl chained to a wall, she snarled. How very beastly of her. It went against her sophisticated appearance.

  “You’re going to get what’s coming.”

  “Looking forward to it.”

  She glanced at me before escaping out of the door and closing it behind her with a definite click. The lights flared back to life and I settled inside of myself, nursing the embers of my rage, keeping it alive.

  Chapter 25:

  There is an abyss of power inside of me, just sitting there untouched. To touch it means death and suffering for those around me. To touch it means to reach my full potential. The day El came to me, I was so close to embracing it. I was tired back then, sick of being in existence. I was self-destructive and I almost used my true power to end the problems to my suffering—the humans.

  Only my promise with Kalen kept me from tapping into it now. That and this form of a child. I could still feel all that power, there was just a door between us. Well, more like a screen door, with little leaks. Being angry really did help a lot.

  After Paige left, I collected those little leaks of power and filled myself up with as much of it as I could. I needed to heal as best as I could and reserve strength to fight back the moment an opportunity presented itself. My body kept roasting and I kept healing what damage I could. It was like I couldn’t get ahead, couldn’t collect a little to reserve. Most of the power went into healing my body and even then, the damage was constant so I couldn’t completely heal.

  “What is the meaning of this?” A familiar voice roared and I realized they were back.

  Paige took post, leaning against the wall again. She was in a different sleazy dress now. It was still red, but this time it was made out of satin and there were tiny little spaghetti straps. Kalen stood just in front of me, his broad back facing me as he yelled at Frey. Frey simply looked smug.

  “Why is Darkness here?”

  There he was, trying to do what was right again.

  Seeing him stand up for me made me realize I didn’t want him here. My heart squeezed as my options narrowed dramatically. I guess I just couldn’t believe Kalen would come. I don’t know why. He does have to listen to his master after all.

  His being here left me with only one option. I was going to do it. I was going to keep my promise to help Kalen get his freedom.

  Paige said he was the only one capable of killing me and I knew he could fight. Now I just had to believe that he had the strength to fight me and win.

  “Kalen,” I mumbled. His whole body went stiff and he turned around to look at me. I managed a weak smile. He moved towards me.

  “Don’t go to her, Kalen,” Frey spoke, his words a resonance in the air. Kalen froze in mid-movement. His face tightened with strain as he fought those words, but he was only a slauve, a slave forced to listen to the words of his master. There was
no going against his master’s words. Perspiration dotted his forehead as he fought.

  I felt pity for him. Another new emotion Kalen taught me.

  Kalen eventually gave up going against Frey’s orders and turned back to his master, but not before giving me a heart-wrenching look of desperation that nearly tore my heart out. I could see the fear he always kept tucked away. He believed he was going to fail me just like he failed those children who died.

  I hardened my heart. He wasn’t going to kill me feeling like that. He had to see me for who I really was. I had to make him hate me and what better way than to make him face betrayal.

  “What are you doing to her?” Kalen asked through clenched teeth. So brave, so very brave to stand against his master.

  Frey blinked and looked between us before letting out a loud laugh. “I would think you would be happy. She’s you’re ticket to freedom.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “He means I’m Akhlys. The woman you have to kill,” I volunteered. Kalen whirled around to face me, his confusion as clear as the direction of his moral compass.

  “That’s not possible.” I could see as Kalen’s mind worked to accept what we were telling him. “You’re power is all wrong.”

  “Is it really?” Page asked, enjoying the show.

  “Shadows, Kalen. I can manipulate shadows, remember. Truthfully, it is only shadows because I’m only a shadow of myself.” I made a small gesture to represent the form I was in. The chains clanked softly against the wall. “I dampened myself in many ways.”

  “Bullshit. What game are you playing?” he said, still in disbelief. I guess if I was in his shoes, I wouldn’t be able to accept it either. I’ll probably just laugh it off, instead of looking like my world was falling apart, like how Kalen was beginning to look.

  I laughed, the sound feral and bone chilling. “Game? I play none right now, not anymore.”

  “I don’t understand.”

  “No, I guess you wouldn’t.” I forced my face to look neutral. It was the kind of neutral that said I could care less about Kalen or the situation I put him in. It deserved an Academy Award for Best Actress. He saw that expression and hated it. His brows scrunched up as his frown deepened. “Let’s put it in way for your stupid little mind to accept. Why do you keep coming to me? How? Why do you think I pushed you to focus on those kids and even helped out? You’re so fucking dumb, and that in itself kept me entertained.”

  “You didn’t push me to help those children. If I remember correctly, you were very adamant it wasn’t a being.”

  “And it only made you want to prove me wrong, right?” I asked. None of what I was saying was true. I really did think a being wasn’t behind those children’s disappearances. I was wrong and he was right. Yay for him, I guess.

  “I can’t believe you,” was his response.

  “If not, then how about if she showed you her real face?” Frey asked. He nodded and Paige took it as a cue to work her magic.

  It felt like they were tearing out my soul, separating my flesh from my skin. I screamed and tried to fight back, but failed horribly. My body elongated, my hair grew, turning as dark as the night with a new moon and my power flared. That screen door between the abyss and me was no longer there. I had full access to my powers. Did they take into consideration how powerful I could really be?

  I reached out to all that power and found I was only inches away from it all. I almost felt complete, almost completely myself. So damn close. I shook in frustration, the cuffs around my wrists and ankles now biting into my skin. They were a size too small for me now that I was an adult.

  I stared at Kalen, self conscious of my naked body, but worked hard to reveal nothing in my expression. I got to watch each emotion pass across his face. Confusion. Disbelief. Anger. Confusion again. Understanding. Then finally the pain of betrayal. All along I was the enemy he was created to destroy and he thought I strung him along.

  Good. He needs to feel that. He needs to kill me.

  “You’ve been here all along?” he asked, his voice thick with emotions.

  “The one and only. Sorry, if I could curtsy I would.”

  He shook his head—unable to find the correct words to express the anguish he was feeling. We had moments together these last couple of days. He thought I was one thing, probably thought he was beginning to understand me and then I shredded apart everything he believed to be true.

  “You said you would help me,” he said, his voice thick with emotions.

  “I said a lot of things, didn’t I?”

  “Enough already,” Frey interrupted, his patience at an end. “Just kill her.”

  Kalen stiffed, his whole body going rigid. The pupils contracted, engulfing the chocolate brown until they were only a tiny ring around black. He was barely holding onto himself.

  “Yeah, just kill me already,” I said. He tried to find something in my expression and when he didn’t find it, he growled. It was the warning kind of growl. One that was from deep within his chest, warning me to not push him. I ignored the warning. I wasn’t going to give him the excuse he was looking for to not kill me. I needed him to fight and fight hard. I smiled wickedly, showing all my teeth. “Do what your master says.”

  His hand shot out to his back as he fought with his master’s command. But his anger was rising and it didn’t help him at all. His body was moving on its own now.

  “No,” he whispered.

  “No what?” I asked. “No, you don’t believe it? No, you don’t want to kill me? Or no, this can’t be reality?”

  The knife came out. It was still dripping with magic, even more so now than ever before. I caught a glimpse of Paige staring at the knife with want. She wanted it and yet Kalen had it. She was jealous.

  She caught me watching her. “Only Kalen can hold the knife. It is his heirloom,” she said, clamping down on the jealousy that was eating her alive. It was probably a big itch knowing she couldn’t touch something so powerful. Power was what she was all about.

  I looked back at Kalen. Heirloom?

  I could see it now. An intricate design sketched into the blade. I recognized the markings as a language long dead from a long time ago. I could barely remember what the symbols were. Some kind of spell maybe. Either way, it couldn’t be anything good. Not for me anyways. I had a feeling that blade was meant for beings like me.

  Kalen stepped towards me now, the knife pointed right at my chest. He was fighting hard with no avail. We both knew it. He was going to stab me and I was probably going to die. Those symbols said the same thing.

  “I don’t want to do this,” Kalen grunted, his teeth clenched. He was biting down on his lips, trying to use pain to get out of the curse his body was under. Pain was usually useful in breaking trances, some spells, and other’s wills that pressed down on them. In this case, it wasn’t going to work. This spell was deeper than anyone’s will.

  “But you will,” I smiled up at him softly.

  His eyes widened as we both watched the blade cut its way into my chest.

  Chapter 26:

  I screamed. The blade slipped into my chest, between my ribs and right towards my heart, missing by only a hairs length. Every time my heart beat, it pushed against the blade. The blade was yanked out and I cried out as the heat spread across my skin, taking route in the wound and digging its way through my body.

  As my insides burned with fire, I knew it was because of those little beads of light like in my last fight with Kalen. The pain fed my misery and my misery fed my anger. My anger snapped, along with all the bonds to my sanity.

  My last coherent thought was: I hope Kalen is strong enough.

  I screamed with full-out rage, my pupils expanding until my eyes were pitch black. I couldn’t see, the lights too strong for my new eyes.

  I didn’t want to die. I couldn’t let them kill me. Why did I even let myself think I would die for someone else? I laughed a little, wondering just why I thought I could finally die. No way in hell. />
  Never.

  Lights shattered and shadows grew, giving me that last little edge I needed. The little bit of distance left between my powers and me disappeared and I dove right into the abyss, letting it wrap itself around me.

  I was scared. I was angry. I wanted to taste death on my lips. I fought back. Someone screamed in response to the sudden appearance of night. The magic thickened around me, trying to create a cage. I knew I was still in my human form. I could feel my arms as they pulled against the shackles. I could feel my heavy chest as it tried to properly breathe.

  The restraint on my body broke and I knew my shackles disintegrated. They had no chance against my real powers.

  I was free.

  I laughed again, this time in ecstasy. I was free. Hurt—really hurt, but free nonetheless. The rest of the lights broke, washing the entire room in darkness and making everything crystal clear for me.

  The slauve stood a couple of feet from me, holding onto his blade and trying to see. The witch was by the door, chanting something with her hands pointed out to me. The fae was next to her, trying to see, his lips moving quickly.

  The room grew colder as Frey’s magic did their trick.

  Ice formed at my feet, hindering my movement. It slowly rose up around my ankles, leeching the warmth out of my feet.

  A net formed a couple of feet above my head and then dropped around me, the magic-infused rope burning my skin where ever they touched. This time I was able to mist. I misted to the spot right in front of the witch, leaving behind the ice and the net. I heard the net drop down onto the floor as I leered over the black, soul-sucking witch.

  A white light took the place of the couple of torches on the wall. It felt like the slauve’s doing. He was trying to bring light back into my world. I felt it like a hole in my existence.

  No. I patched it up, snuffing out the light and glaring at the slauve.

  “I am Night,” I said. My voice was completely separate from me as I spoke. Even I couldn’t recognize it as mine, not with so much power and detachment in it. I just didn’t care anymore. I was hurt and about to die. I was foolish.