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Zizan turned his back to me for a few moments. I craned my neck to try and see what he was doing, only for it to be revealed as he came back around into view. He held a long thin knife. I could tell it was sharp just by looking at it. A foreboding feeling entered my mind and I tried to keep my composure, but I wasn’t used to being helpless.
“Well, since you have unfortunately not shown the foresight to agree with my direction for the lions, I’m going to have to forcibly remove your talent. You see, I know there are other prides out there who wish to live like we are meant to live. There are others who had differences and left Orestes a long time ago to conquer worlds and I would love to bring them back and have them judge the current Alpha. I’m sure they would make short work of him. Life is war, and we should be fighting right now. The way forward is with you, through you, but you are not deserving of this gift. So, I shall have to get it out of you,” he came towards me, his face glazed with madness. Sweat trickled along my cheeks, but it was cold. I shuddered, suddenly realizing that Naaro wasn’t going to get here in time.
“And what if I told you that I was going to change my mind? What if I said that I agreed and that we could all figure this out?” the words hurried out of my mouth.
Zizan sighed and shook his head. “If you truly believed that then you would have been open about it sooner. I am not going to take anything you say here with any credence at all. I need what you have, and now it’s time for me to get it. And don’t worry about screaming. It’s not as though anyone is going to hear you,” he chuckled to himself. I stole my gaze from him and turned towards Char. She was my last hope, but as I looked towards her, I realized that there was a fanatical gleam in her eyes. She believed every word he was speaking and there was nothing that I could do to persuade her otherwise. Everything she had told me had been a lie. Everything we had been through had been an illusion because she was trying to get me here, trying to get my gift from me.
But there was still one thing that didn’t make sense. “This isn’t going to work, you know? They’re never going to let you into the tower. You aren’t going to be able to make it to the gateway.”
“Oh child, the more you speak the more you show your ignorance. If you were able to harness the strength of your gift then you would understand that you don’t always need the portal. You have been so limited for so long. You have wasted what the gods have given you,” his voice turned to a snarl as he said this and I got a clear sense of his resentment. I made one last try to break free, one last try to shift into my lion form, but I was still unable to do so. The knife came towards me and the blade split apart the flesh on my scalp. I screamed more loudly than I had ever screamed before. It was a rising, guttural sound that actually terrified me. All my life I had been safe, protected, but now I was alone and vulnerable and I was being violated. He was trying to get inside my brain, inside my soul and take out the part of me that was most precious, and there was nothing I could do to stop him.
Nothing but scream.
Chapter Twelve
Naaro
My head lolled against hers. When I breathed, I inhaled the scent of cinnamon in her hair. I enjoyed the weight of her next to me, leaning against me. I could feel myself falling into her and I did not want it to end.
But then I heard the scream. It was far away, and for a moment I wondered if it was just an audible fear echoing in the confines of my mind. Then I heard another one, and I knew it to be my brother.
I rose abruptly. The sudden movement shook Emilia awake.
“We must go,” I said, already striding towards the entrance of the cave. She groaned and had to shake herself from her stupor, but soon enough she was following me. I looked up and snarled at the mountain that stretched between us. Now I felt guilty about wasting time. I set my hands against the rocks and pulled myself up. I glanced down quickly.
“Just go for him! I’ll catch up,” Emilia said. I hoped that Ganang would not prey upon her, but I could not wait. I embraced the strength within my bones and ascended the mountain, jumping from ledge to ledge, my muscles swelling as I pulled myself up. The stone scraped my skin, but I cared not for the pain. Divad’s screams were getting worse, and I could not bear it. I raced up until I reached the cavern entrance and as I leapt forward, I shifted into a lion, knowing that I would need all my strength if I was to fight against whoever had captured him.
The sight that lay before me chilled me to my core. Divad lay there, strapped to a table, while a lean man stood before him, leaning over him with a knife pressed into Divad’s head. A crown of blood poured down Divad’s forehead as he writhed in agony, while Char stood beside him. I roared, a bloodthirsty sound that made my rage echo through the cavern. The man snarled as he glared at me.
“Get rid of him!” he cried.
By the time I swung my neck around to look at her, Char had already shifted into a lion. She was lean and aggressive, her maneless body sleek and a similar shade to mine. Her claws were bared and her teeth were sharp. I didn’t want to be occupied with her when I had to stop the torture that my brother was enduring. I twisted my ankles and lunged at the man, but Char was agile and she leaped towards me, sending us both crashing to the ground. We were a tangle of limbs and claws. I heard her hissing breath and felt her sharp teeth scraping against mine. I jabbed at her with a thick paw and then used my strength to push her off. I glanced at the entrance to the cave, worried that Emilia might be in danger, but as yet she had not caught up.
I only wasted a moment on this, and then turned back to Char. She was shaking the grogginess away from her mind as she righted herself, but I wasn’t about to give her another opportunity to press another attack. Divad’s screams laced the air. I rushed towards Char and brought my mighty paws down upon her, using all of my weight to slash her. My claws punctured her flank and I felt the warm blood gushing over me, seeping out of her body, creating a crimson pool on the ground. She whimpered and tried to move, but she lacked the strength.
I left her behind and turned my attention to the man. I roared again and this time he had no choice but to face me. He backed away from the table. Divad lay there, twitching, the trails of blood making it look as though his tears were scarlet.
“Begone you vile creature. You have no idea what I’m trying to accomplish!” the man said as he wielded his knife, holding it in two hands. It was thin and sharp, but it was a pitiful weapon. I bristled with anger and breathed heavily. I roared again, blasting him with hot breath. His hair fluttered as though it was caught in a gale, and he continued to move back.
“Naaro…” Divad croaked weakly, but he lacked the strength to complete the sentence. At least he was alive though. That was more than this man was going to be. I stomped towards him and prepared to fight, wondering why he hadn’t turned into a lion yet. No matter. It made it easier for me.
However, just before I reached him, he swept some kind of concoction in the air towards me. It made the air smell sweet and it got into my eyes, making them water. I clawed at them, trying to clear my vision. I could hear his footsteps in front of me. I knew that he was going to stab me. I swept my limbs out wildly in the hope of catching him, but I did not feel any impact. I blinked frantically, but I somehow knew my vision was not going to clear in time. I just hoped that he did not aim for my heart.
Chapter Thirteen
Emilia
The short rest had not helped me recuperate a great amount of strength. My muscles still ached all over, and whenever I looked up the climb seemed arduous. I had just seen Naaro disappear inside a cavern. I dreaded to think what awaited me up there. Part of me thought I should just perch myself on a ledge and wait them out, but then I heard the caw of a bird. I looked around and could not see anything, but the description that Naaro had given me made me uneasy. Around Naaro I felt safe.
I braced myself against the pain and continued the climb, somehow knowing that I would be in more danger if I stayed where I was.
The mountain seemed to go on forever and the worst part was that we were still going to have to get down. I was not looking forward to that, especially not if Divad died. It was clear that despite their differences, Naaro was devoted to his brother and I was in awe of this kinship. It was nice to be reminded that families could love each other without there being forms of betrayal. The loyalty was something that I envied, and I wished could be a part of my life.
As I grew closer to the cave, I heard some roars and cries of pain. I groaned as I used a lot of my strength to pull myself up. I saw a dark lioness on the ground, a pool of blood seeping from an ugly wound. I saw Divad strapped to a table, bloodied and pale. I saw Naaro clutching at his face as the man I had seen in the tower cellar approached him with a knife, ready to jab him through the heart.
Without thinking I whipped out the dagger that Naaro had insisted I take and I flung it towards the man. I had no skill, no training, and no technique, but my instincts told me that it was the right thing to do. All it took was a flick of the wrist, and the dagger was twirling through the air, the handle and the blade dancing. I watched in amazement as it seemed like it was pulled towards its target. I could have thrown the same dagger a hundred times and it would have missed completely or harmlessly bounced off him, but this was the right moment and I was the right person and the dagger stuck true. It buried itself hilt deep in the man’s shoulder, sending him reeling backwards. The impact was so strong that it took him by surprise and forced him to drop the knife he had been wielding. He cried out in pain.
“Naaro! Get him!” I yelled as I made my way towards Divad. By this point Naaro had been able to clear whatever had interfered with his vision and he was now moving towards the man. The outcome seemed like a foregone conclusion, so I gave my full attention to Divad. He was weak and wounded, his mouth moved but no sounds came out. I fumbled with the straps, my trembling hands seeming to be inefficient at doing even the simplest tasks.
