I nodded and returned my gaze to the giant tree.
Quickly, we plunged holes into the spider eggs with our blades, killing whatever offspring she might’ve conceived, not willing to risk them haunting us for revenge. The humansthat she had caught were not alive; she had drained their magic into the eggs and their blood along with it. I wondered why she had kept them like that… It was horrifying and I felt bad for not being able to save them, for being too late.
“Ethalyn?” a familiar voice shouted, and I knew it was Lionel, worry sharpening his tone.They must have searched for us for a while. If they had heard all the gunshots, I wouldn’t blame them, I would’ve been worried sick, too.
The fog parted just enough to reveal the path back.
I tightened my grip on Malakai and nodded towards Jaden. “Come on, the others need us.”
Ashley’s cries hit us before we saw them.
We burst back through the fog, heat still burning in my lungs. Ashley sat in the grey sand, her hands drenched in Nate’s blood, fingers trembling as she pressed against the wound.
“He, he passed out—” she choked, voice cracking. “I can’t stop the—”
“We wrapped a bandage over the wound, but he bled through it in moments,” Eve filled in.
“I’ve got it,” I said, already kneeling and Ashley moved away to make room for me.
I pressed my palm over Nate’s shoulder. Flame pulsed beneath my skin, not raging, but controlled and precise. My magic found torn flesh and sealed it shut, sizzling blood into dark scars.
Ashley flinched at the smell but didn’t let go of him.
She didn’t dare.
“He’s alive,” I whispered as the fire faded. “He’s alive.”
She exhaled a sob that hit deeper than the demon’s taunts ever could.
“What happened, did you get the demon?” Lionel asked, his voice coated with worry.
“Yeah,” I stammered, trying to push the pictures of the spider away from my mind. “It’s gone.”
Malakai crouched down beside us, silent, assessing, and then he did something none of us expected.
He slid his arms under Nate and lifted him gently. Ashley stared like she’d just witnessed a miracle, and Malakai raised a brow. “What?”
“You are helping someone whoisn’tEthalyn?” Ashley said, voice raw and hysterical. “Wow, character growth. I’m proud of you, demon-boy.”
Malakai’s eye twitched. “Say that again and I’ll drop him.”
But the corner of his mouth softened, just a hint.
Enough that she gave a tear-choked laugh.
Jaden hovered nearby, hands shaking. He couldn’t look at Nate, couldn’t look at any of us.
“I killed him,” he whispered. “I killed Caleb. I didn’t even… Gods, I didn’t even think.”
No one had stopped him, but no one had encouraged his decision.
There was no comfort to give.
“It’s not your fault,” Eve said finally, quiet but razor-sharp. “It could’ve been any of us.”
Her eyes shifted to Malakai, guarded, but not hateful.
“And we shouldn’t be so hard on ourselves,” she added. “To be clear, you’re still terrifying… But you’re not like them, you’re not evil.”
