Page 92 of Tides of Shadows

I leapt forward, cutting and kicking through the swarm, my blades flashing. But there were too many of them. I was moments away from being bitten. I had no water anywhere, my movements were fast, but there were too many rats. Suddenly, the figure next to me sliced open the skull of a rat that had jumped at my face.

“Dricus!” I shouted.

We danced with swords and daggers, back-to-back and cleared the space of rats. The girl escaped.

Dricus stopped short, eyes wide. “Nerissa, what are you doing here? You must run!”

“They’re coming from the catacombs,” I said in a rush. “The vases, there must be a fifth one beneath us. It’s poisoning them.”

For a moment, he stared, mind racing as if tracing a map through the tunnels. Then he asked, terse and sharp, “What do you propose?”

“We go to the elements temple,” I answered. “I’ll need your help but you won’t like it.”

Doubt flickered in his gaze, yet he followed. We ran through the corridors, the same path as before. The number of rats grew. We did not fight them, only darted between the swarming bodies.

In one of the halls, Aidenar appeared, sword flashing, fighting beside his men.

“Nerissa!” he called.

I ignored him and kept running. He followed. I snatched a torch from its sconce as we neared the temple, the air thick with shrieking, the rats spilling from its doors like a living tide. They seemed possessed, heedless of pain, driven only to scatter the Plague through the palace.

“Dricus, you know what I will ask you to do,” I said, handing him the torch. “Only you can stop this.”

“I don’t need this,” he looked at me without any emotions and turned to the entrance.

I faced Aidenar, who had caught up to us.

“Force all the air toward the temple,” I ordered. “If Dricus loses control, we will cut his power off.”

I didn’t have any water nearby, I was useless. But if necessary, I would have to incapacitate Dricus, drown him for a moment in his own body.

“Dricus, we have no time,” I said.

He spread his arms and created flames in his hands. He stepped to the temple doors. I nodded to Aidenar.

“Push the rats inside. Hold them there.”

Aidenar thrust his hands forward, a fierce current of wind surged, driving the rats back. Dricus allowed the flames to grow and spread them towards the entrance.

The fire leapt like a living beast, swelling, devouring, until the entire temple was ablaze. The heat struck me like a wave, the ground burned beneath my feet. Dricus guided the inferno through the catacombs, down every corridor. A torrent of flame poured from his body, consuming everything in its path. The shrieks of dying rats filled the air, mingling with the stench of scorched fur and flesh.

The air thinned. My lungs burned. I seized Aidenar’s hand.

“Air,” I gasped.

He understood and shattered the stained glass window with a single, powerful blast. This gust only fed Dricus’s fire more. I felt Dricus’s strength weaken, his arms began to wobble, his muscles losing their tension. I wanted to reach him, but the heat seared my skin. I couldn’t do it.

“Aidenar, help me!” I cried.

He sent another rush of wind, pushing the flames aside for an instant. I reached over and touched Dricus’s face. He was hot and trembling with exhaustion.

“That is enough,” I whispered.

Something broke within him. His body slackened, the blaze receded, and Aidenar’s wind smothered what remained. We stood in the dim glow of ruin, the temple blackened with soot, the air thick with smoke.

I knelt beside Dricus, took his face in my hands.

“It’s alright. You saved everyone, you didn’t hurt anyone. You didn’t lose control,” I told him, looking into his eyes.