She turned back to Caelith, leaning close enough that her breath stirred the blood cooling on his face.
“But for him?” She tapped the vial lightly against his cheekbone. “With a drop of this in each eye and the right magical trigger… for Caelith, his perception of those five minutes will stretch into eternity.”
She let the silence hang just a beat too long, watching the flicker of confusion cross Aeren’s face, followed by the slow, dawning horror.
No one spoke.
“An eternity of straining against the bindings.” Emmaline’s voice dropped lower, each word slow and deliberate. “An eternity of feeling the blade slide deeper and deeper into his chest. An eternity of dying, inch by inch.”
Her friends held quiet. No arguments, no questions, just the heavy weight of what Emmaline had promised hanging between them.
Emmaline watched Caelith’s remaining eye, the frantic flicker slowing as tears welled at the corner until one broke free, sliding a crooked path down his blood-smeared cheek.
She leaned in, close enough for her whisper to curl like smoke into his ear. “Oh, no. No, no, no.Shewon’t hear your pleas, Caelith.” Her lips almost brushed the ruined shell of his ear. “Sheheard mine first.”
A sharp clap shattered the silence.
Ursula stood, her hands coming together once more. “That is some seriously unhinged shit, Emmaline.” She turned to the others. “I approve.”
Ursula’s purple eyes went to Cassidy and Aeren. “Any objections? This is technically just potion work—targeted magic that will burn itself out in a single use, similar to the charm. And he still dies from a simple blade to the heart, so no underworld shenanigans. Clean kill. Even Vale-legal, based on mate Law. Technically.”
Emmaline unscrewed the vial’s stopper, her fingers steady as she squeezed the dropper to pull the smallest amount inside. Then she waited, holding it up like an offering, daring anyone to object.
When no one spoke, Emmaline turned to Aeren, the only other one there with a debt to settle. She was not willing to steal the woman’s chance at vengeance. “Aeren?”
The woman’s lips pressed tight, and for a second, Emmaline could swear her skin looked paler against the green shine of her hair. “I got my pound of flesh. This one’s yours.” Aeren moved forward and glanced down at Caelith. “The punishment is well-earned.”
“All right, then. If we have no further objections...” Emmaline lifted the dropper over Caelith’s face. His whole body convulsed, shoulders jerking, neck straining, chest heaving so hard the veins stood out like ropes.
“Nobody’s coming, my Lord.” Her grin pulled at the corners as she watched him.
She let the first drop fall. It hit the open eye, spreading thin and fast across the exposed surface. Then, the second drop, aimed for the ruined socket. And as the liquid vanished into the shredded mess, a low keening sound leaked from Caelith’s sealed mouth, choked and pathetic, like a scream trying to claw its way out through his nose.
Emmaline closed her eyes, breath slow and steady as she reached inward. Light danced behind her eyes, clean and bright, while Dark twisted up her spine, soft and cold as fog. She wove the two together, folding them tight until the edges blurred into something Grey.
Finish it.
The Goddess’s presence settled at her left shoulder, the weight of eternity pressing cold into her skin. On her right, Deyric’s hand closed over hers, grounding her in the warmth of now.
Magic bloomed from her chest, and the potion stirred. First, the room stretched wide and too thin all at once, expanding until the edges dissolved into haze. Then, it snapped down to a pinprick, before wobbling back into place like the world itself had to recalibrate.
Emmaline exhaled slowly as the magic burned through her veins, stripping her raw, leaving behind a bone-deep exhaustion that felt completely right.
“That’s it?” Ursula’s brow lifted.
Caelith no longer struggled. His chest rose and fell in shallow, uneven pulls, his jaw hanging loose, lips slightly parted like a doll left broken on a shelf. His remaining eye stared ahead, the pupil wide, but there was nothing behind it now—no arrogance, no fear—just a hollow stretch of emptiness.
“You’re sure he’s awake? Aware?” Cassidy stepped in, curiosity flickering behind her cautious tone.
“He is.” Lara stayed back, body rigid, hackles bristling down her spine. “We should go, Cas. We heal people. This—” Her ears flattened. “—this is something else.”
“Lara…” Emmaline started.
“It’s nothing against you.” The Corgi’s tone softened, but only slightly. “The punishment was earned—and I can smell the Goddess on you, clear as the crimes on his hands. If this isn’t divine justice, I don’t know what is.”
“The Goddess?” Ursula frowned.
Finish it.The command slammed into Emmaline’s ribs, louder this time, vibrating straight through bone.
