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“They’re ready to take Whales of Tauh by the end of next month. We have seven weeks… If we can find my heart and I can break free of Emerai’s hold, humanity might still have a chance.” I say it as if I’m giving a soldier orders. Emotionlessly.
“You keep saying that.” Terra lowers her hand from her mouth and looks up at me. I raise a brow. “You keep saying humanity as if we aren’t human anymore.”
We aren’t though, not really.
I ignore her comment. “Let’s get to the cellar. I think that’s where Emerai keeps them.”
The halls are cold and the lack of life spills from every crevice of the stones. The silence is eerie. I wonder if there’s a single soul left here. Perhaps the Darkflies have already left this place too.
“We’re not going to run into Dr. Cein here, are we?” she asks barely above a whisper, like someone might hear.
I shake my head and hold the door for her as she steps through into the stairwell. “I’m trying to keep him away from you for as long as I can,” I admit.
She looks up at me, flashing those emerald eyes. Oh, how I envy her light. “Why’s that?”
“Because he’s an evil man, Terra.” She levels me a look that says, But so are you, and I chuckle. “Way more than me, sweetheart. Who do you think raised me?” I shove my hands into the pockets of my tactical vest and keep my gaze on the steps as we descend.
“That must have been terrible to go through,” she says in a quiet voice after a few moments. There’s sympathy in her tone. I’m not sure there’s much more I hate in this world than pity, but oddly, when it’s from her, I find that it’s easier to accept.
I sigh. “Yes. It… was.”
Stolen at a young age and being raised by a monster—it makes you one in kind. I don’t remember my real parents or the village I was born in. All I have are memories of torture and intense training.
The first Shadow. The start of all of this. Maybe that’s why Cein keeps me so close. I’m his son in some ways.
My head hangs heavily upon my shoulders as I think of Cein. I’ve come to think of him as my father. How many times have I relished in the desire to rip that man’s heart out? To watch him die slowly and let all his work come to an end?
But when all’s said and done, I’m not sure I’ll be able to kill him.
Terra pushes her hand into my vest pocket and wraps her warm hand around mine. A soft smile spreads over my lips.
She’s still so human.
“I am in no need of comfort. The darkness holds me.”
She doesn’t retreat and only walks closer to my side. “Shut up. If I’m offering comfort, just accept it,” she says with that cute attitude of hers. I want to shut my eyes and be in her presence for a while. Perhaps once the war has ended I’ll have that little amount of peace. Should we be so lucky.
We reach the main floor and have to walk through the foyer and extravagant halls to get to the cellar stairs. Terra looks around in awe of Za’Afiel, her eyes shimmering with sadness. A place such as this should be filled with laughter and life, not the dark wail of a cold winter breeze.
She stops at the mess hall and releases my hand to explore. I guess we aren’t pressed for time, so I follow her and watch her bright green eyes take in this haunted manor.
“Is this really where Arthur spends most of his time?” she asks sadly. There’s so much longing in her voice for him—I envy that about the man. He pulls her heart in entirely.
“It is. Though he rarely walks through the manor. His study is on the third floor and that’s where he stays most days,” I say drily. She takes one last look at the massive windows that pillar the far wall of the mess hall. The view opens to the forest and the sea beyond, a cold and frozen world.
The cellar stairs are drab and covered with a fine layer of moss and dirt. A mildewy scent hangs in the air; Terra’s nose crinkles at the smell of it.
“Why would Emerai hide the hearts down here?” She looks up at me with those green eyes and I stare for a second longer than I should.
“I thought the same thing at first. Velis led me down here and I was certain it was mistaken, but then I felt something strange in the room. I couldn’t see anything, but I could feel it.”
She raises a brow. “Is that why you brought me here? You think I’ll be able to see them?” I nod and open the cellar door, the wood creaking on its hinges.
The cellar is a simple room built with discolored stones. Moisture hangs in the frigid air. A large furnace sits at the end of the room. It’s the first time I’ve seen it unlit. Wooden crates line the walls, filled with palm-sized rocks.
I can’t see anything that would suggest the hearts are here, but every nerve in my body is burning and screaming.
“They are here, I’m certain of it,” I say as I let the shudder of the heavy air run down my spine.
