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Let the perpetual sickness begin.
“I suppose we’ll start with a simple question. Let’s call it a warm up.” There were no simple questions. Any question he asked would exhaust her just as much as the next. “Are there any imminent threats to my life?” Artem asked.
Typical question for a madman,Eva thought. “Let’s see,” she said as she positioned her hands in front of her face, bending her fingers to form a ball-like space between her hands. Soon, power began to flow from her fingertips in the form of blue mist. Small at first, the mist grew in size, the now visible ball enlarging. The stagnant air around her suddenly became active, wind from the power she was wielding tossing her loose strands of hair back.
Then, inside the blue fog, a scene played in front of her - a scene only she was capable of seeing.
And then she became lost to the scene unfolding in front of her.
A familiar girl stood over Artem while he laid on the ground, writhing in pain. The girl was wielding magic, green light encircling her fingers. “How does it feel, Artem? Do you enjoy feeling pain as much as you enjoyed inflicting it?”
He didn’t respond, he only continued to convulse, unable to mutter a word.
The girl’s eyes wandered off and Eva noticed her attention was drawn to a dead, mutilated body surrounded by overgrown grass. She frowned as if she was looking at a lost friend.
Then, she looked back to Artem. “Death is too good for you. I will make sure you suffer for eternity. For Eva.” She glanced back at the dead, almost unrecognizable body. “May she rest in peace.”
Eva let her hands fall to her sides, the image in front of her disappearing. She blinked several times as she worked on bringing herself back to reality. As she did, fatigue washed over her.
Her knees went weak and she collapsed, falling to the ground. Strong hands wrapped around her, preventing her from hitting the hard floor.Darius.Lifting her up and cradling her against his chest he whispered, “I got you,” as if he were some sort of hero.
She wanted to tell him, You’re not the hero in this story, you’re the villain,but she knew she needed to save what little strength she had left to tell Artem his fortune. So she just mumbled, “Mhmm,” in the most sarcastic manner she could manage.
He looked down to her with amusement, obviously picking up on her sarcasm.
Admittedly, she needed his help right now. Standing on her own seemed like a much too impossible feat.
“And?” Artem asked, impatiently tapping his finger against the arm of his throne.Click, click, click…
Before Eva said anything, she thought back to the scene she saw and the familiar girl her vision focused on.
Who was that girl?
Eva raced through every memory she could conjure to put a name to the face, coming up short. “Who was she?” Eva whispered to herself as she continued to run through two-hundred years worth of memories.
“I’m waiting,” Artem was beyond impatient.
Still wrapped in Darius’ arms, Eva directed her attention to Artem. There was absolutely no way she could tell him the truth or else become victim to his wrath. She knew how others reacted when they heard fortunes they didn’t exactly want to hear. She wasn’t prepared to see Artem’s reaction.
Do what you’re best at,she told herself.Lie.
“Another sorceress will threaten both you and this castle. Soon.”True.“But you will be prepared. She will fail.”False.
After using the last bit of strength she had to speak, she allowed her head to fall against Darius’ chest. It felt surprisinglyright.
It was then, as she thought over the vision that just played for her, that she recognized the familiar girl.
It was the human girl she sent to the Appalachian Mountains months ago, the one who was meant to become a sorceress herself.
At least Eva’s vision revealed that she would finally find a friend in another sorceress.
Unfortunately, it also revealed that Eva’s life wouldn’t go on much longer, because in her vision, she was already dead.
Chapter Nineteen
Darius Fischer
“Take her away,” Artem commanded Darius, waving them away, irritation plastered on his face. “Maybe next week she’ll tell me something worth hearing.”
