Ashley searched her bag, gripping one of her bombs, but it was too late.
The Demon King raised a hand and power rippled outward, an invisible but merciless force. Everyone dropped to the floor again, pinned as if by an enormous weight. My chest constricted, I couldn’t even lift my head.
The King walked through the wreckage, unhurried. A hand landed on his boot, forcing him to a stop, then Nate drove a dagger straight through his lower leg.
There was no blood. No ichor. We all stared horrified at the display. He was an abomination, sighing as if we were a slight hassle before pulling the dagger out and stabbing Nate’s hand with it instead. His scream echoed through the chamber, but the Demon King’s footsteps continued.
“You disappoint me, boy. You could’ve had everything: my throne, my armies, my world. Instead, you squander it on… thishuman.”
His gaze cut to me like a blade.
The weight on my spine tightened until my vision blurred. I gasped, tasting iron. Malakai strained against the force,crimson threads flaring from his hands before the pressure tried to smother them, but the blood kept spreading all around us.
“Don’t,” Malakai hissed through his teeth. “Leave her—”
“Silence,” the King said, and the word itself hit like a hammer.
He stopped in front of us, eyes glowing with quiet disdain. “She brings out such rebellion in you… such hunger.” He crouched slightly, tilting his head as if examining a delicate artefact. “Perhaps, I should break her, see how much of your restraint remains then.”
A growl built low in Malakai’s throat. “Touch her, and—”
“And you’ll what?” The King’s voice was almost gentle. “Fail again?”
The shadows behind him twisted. He lifted his hand—
Another gunshot went off, piercing the King’s shoulder, earning us a moment of distraction. He turned, eyes landing on Lionel whose breathing was ragged, yet he refused to show any sign of fear. A tendril formed and shot towards him, but Jaden shoved him aside and ducked right before it had chance to strike.
I forced myself up on my feet, the power of his magic was suffocating, my head was spinning.
The Demon King scoffed as he turned back to me and raised his hand once more, the air screamed in response.
Malakai lunged, pulling me down, embracing me in a desperate attempt to shield me, but the spell wasn’t meant for him. It curved around him, deliberate, cruel, and struck me square in the back.
Pain flared hot. My fire roared, then slowly faded as if giving up on me. The floor rushed up towards me. I tasted blood, copper and smoke.
“No!” Malakai’s voice tore through the haze, raw and feral. He caught me before I hit the ground, cradling me as if he could save my life by sheer will alone. “Ethalyn!”
The Demon King watched, eyes bright with mockery. “You see now?” he said softly. “Everything you love dies for nothing… Because demons are not meant tolove.”
Malakai’s breath came in ragged bursts. “Fix this,” he snarled. “Or I’ll haunt you through every life, I will make sure that crown becomes the very leash that chokes you to death.”
“You think I’d waste power on her?” The King’s laughter was like glass breaking. “Let her fade, and perhaps you’ll finally learn.”
My vision blurred. I felt the fire inside me flicker out, the bond between us thinning.
Malakai’s power pulsed against mine, wild, directionless, desperate.
“Eve, wake up!” I heard Lionel shouting in the background. I tried looking for Ashley, but everything behind Malakai blurred, like the world was slowly shattering, disappearing behind him.
The pain that had been unbearable moments ago faded, gunshots were muffled, the ground still beneath us for a moment.
It felt peaceful.
Buthisvoice still broke through, it was the only thing keeping me here.
“Don’t leave me,” he whispered close by. “Don’t leave me alone,please.”
The King turned away, dismissive. “She was a weakness. You’ll thank me one day.”
