AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Cord rubbed his hand across his face. “I just woke up,” he grumbled with a scowl. “Did he interrogate them?”
“No, Salem told Cornelius’s Elite Sentinels that he was going to skin the flesh from their bones if they didn’t stand down.” Lucas grinned in remembrance. “They did. He also reminded them he was their Principal.” Lucas had enjoyed watching the Principal of the Northern Territory finally remember who he was. “It was quite something to behold, especially when he had Michael and Tegan on either side of him.”
Cord nodded but jerked when he felt the pulse through his Mark. What was it telling him now? Would it speak to him again? Had he imagined it? He had been so empty towards the end, and exhaustion did cause hallucinations. The Mark pulsed softly as if in humour. Cord stood abruptly and strode over to his mirror. He pulled his shirt off and hastily removed his bandages. Garrick returned in the middle of Cord’s undressing, and placing the plate of food down, he waited patiently for the unveiling. Cord stood and gaped. There was no other word for it. He was open-mouthed like a fish out of water. The Mark had spread. He shook his head at the wordspread. The Mark had not spread, the Mark had grown. What had covered half his back before now covered his back in its entirety. It was reaching up the nape of his neck and curling over his shoulders onto his arms.
“What in shade’s name?” he whispered as he studied it. The intricate knot that every Akrhyn knew the Mark to be had evolved. Swirls and whorls ran over his skin, tattooed onto his body in fine black ink. Before, he could trace the knot and try and decipher where it stopped and started. Now, he could not. Areas of pure black were shadowed into his skin. The Mark looked like a 3D design he had seen on human computers. Towards the top of his Mark, the lines gave way to vines and stems.
“Is that a flower?” Cord asked with a strangled whisper.
Lucas nodded. “Tove went to the nest. It is completely regenerated as if nothing has ever disturbed it.” Lucas watched the young Castor closely. “You healed the land?”
“I burned it to a scorching crisp.” Cord’s eyes did not leave his back.
“And then?” Garrick asked him.
“Then I put my hands in the soil, and I felt a soothing magic leave me.” Cord turned to look at them both. “The grass started to grow.”
“You have the Mark of Velvore.” Garrick’s voice was heavy with resignation. “But the flowers and the vines? That’s Arflyn.” Garrick regarded Cord with something akin to wonder. “She blessed the land where you made such a heavy sacrifice for her.”
“I didn’t know that was possible,” Cord admitted as he picked up his shirt and pulled it on. He reached for the plate Garrick had brought. “Thank you for this.” He looked up at them both and grinned. “What? You think I was raised in Delilah’s household and not taught manners?”
“Oh, we know you were taught them, we just didn’t know you could use them,” Garrick said with a sly grin to Lucas, who snorted in amusement.
Cord huffed out a laugh as he started to eat his meal. “What does it mean?”
“I think it means you have been blessed more than any Akrhyn that ever lived,” Lucas said solemnly.
“Is it a blessing or a curse?” Cord asked as he ate quickly. The Mark burned slightly, and he winced. “Fine, no harm in asking,” he muttered to it.
“Do you…” Garrick glanced at Lucas uncertainly. “Do you talk to it?”
Cord regarded the two Prime Castors. They had helped him so far. They had kept his secret, and they had gone out of their way to assist him. Could he trust them? The Mark pulsed softly. Cord was not a big believer in trust in others. He trusted his little brother because Sloane would kill for him, and Cord him. He trusted Tegan, although he had no clear reason as to why. He definitely trusted that she would skin him alive and wear his skin for boots should she wish if he were to make an enemy of her. Over the years, he had grown to trust Salem because Salem kept Sloane far from Cornelius.Castors?Castors, Cord did not trust.
“Sometimes.” Despite his inner turmoil, he opted for a sliver of honesty.
“Does it speak back?” Lucas asked excitedly.
“No.” Cord lied whilst looking straight at them both, nothing on his face to suggest he wasn’t being completely truthful.
“Pity, imagine the honour,” Garrick said mournfully. “Of course, you have been honoured enough.” He smiled tightly. “Why have you not told the Great Council?”
“I do not trust them.”
“They are the Great Council, Cord,” Lucas admonished him.
“They are not gods.” Cord finished his food. “The Three know.”
“You told the Sisters?” Garrick asked in surprise.
“No, I just know that they know.” Cord sat back and watched the two Primes.
“I suppose there is nothing they would not know.” Lucas nodded thoughtfully. “It is a wonder they did not tell the Great Council.”
“Is it?” Cord stretched his arms over his head. “There are too many politics and games around that table.”
“Meaning?” Garrick asked him.
“One of them, if not two of them, talk to Cornelius,” Cord told them flatly.
