A Walk Amongst Shadows (Book 2)

XXXIX

I stared down at the dagger in my chest and felt a new wave of panic as the pain washed over me. I could feel my body attempting to heal itself, but something was blocking it. It had to be the blade. My vision began to blur and the whole world spun. I could hear Aris scream from somewhere off in the distance.

“Rose!” He cried.

I saw him staring down in horror at the knife he still had firmly in his hand. I tried to speak but all that came out was a choking sound.

“Stay with me Rose! Please, stay!” His voice shook, I felt him pull the dagger from my chest and begin flooding my body with magic. He moved me gently to the ground and cradled me in his lap. Tears streamed down his face. I tried speaking once more, but managed only to choke on my own breath.

“Shh-” he laid a trembling hand on the side of my face, “I’ve got you.”

I could feel his efforts failing and I watched his face blur before my eyes, things were getting dark.

“NO!” I heard him yell. “Somebody, please!” He begged frantically, to whom? I couldn’t say.

He pulled me into him and rocked me softly, sobbing into my shoulder. I wanted to reach out, to comfort him, but keeping my eyes open was impossible. It was as if I had been slipped a powerful sleeping tonic. I was powerless against it and felt myself acquiesce. Was this it? Is this really where it ends? This isn’t so bad, it’s just like falling asleep. I comforted myself. After all, no one ever prepares you for how to die.

“My, my, my” I heard his voice snake its way around me, “Rose Rivyn, in the flesh. After all this time.”

Perhaps this wasn’t death after all. Finding my strength, I opened my eyes. Blinking rapidly my vision came into focus. I was laying down in the same position as before. But as I looked up, I found myself nestled in the arms not of Aris, but of the dark god. I’m not sure how I knew it was him, but somehow, I did. He was beautiful, too beautiful. The musculature beneath his bronzed skin seemed almost chiseled out of stone. He had a strong jaw and distinct cheekbones. His eyes were golden pools that sparkled even in the lack of light. He had dark hair that reminded me a lot of Aris. Looking down I realized he was cradling me in his arms just as Aris had done. I found my body oddly at ease. All of the pain I had felt moments ago was gone.

“You have done well, dear girl” he stroked my face tenderly, familiarly. “But the time has come for our paths to finally cross”

With his help I sat up. He gently supported my back until I was in a comfortable upright position. I looked down at my chest where I had been stabbed and saw nothing. I looked into his eyes.

“Where are we? Why did you bring me here?” I asked him.

“You’re in my realm of course.”

I felt a shiver run down my spine and unease in my stomach. I was on his ground now, the realm of shadows. I glanced around me. This hardly looked like I imagined the shadow realm would. In fact, it looked almost exactly like the forest I had been in seconds ago. The only difference was the lack of anything living. The trees were all withered and bare of leaves and I neither saw nor heard any trace of wildlife.

“I must say, it’s been some time since I’ve allowed a mortal to walk these grounds.”

“So…I’m not dead then?”

He shook his head. “No, you are very much alive,” he answered standing up.

He offered his hand to me and pulled me to my feet. The silence of this realm was deafening.

“Where’s Aris? Why did you make him hurt me?” I half asked, half accused.

“I imagine he’s here somewhere looking for you,” He answered loftily, avoiding my second question.

I stood my ground and stared at him, waiting for him to answer.

“Aris was incapable of doing what I asked of him. So, I brought you here myself.”

I felt a rush of anger in me. He held up a hand and placed it gently on my shoulder.

“Relax.”

I felt my anger subside in an instant and narrowed my eyes. Could he control my emotions?

As if reading my thoughts, he answered, “no, not quite, but I can help you remain calm so we can speak plainly.”

I took a deep breath and nodded. Tread lightly. I repeated in my mind.

“Why do you look so…” I lost my words as I looked into his eyes again.

He flashed a smile. “Is this the first time you’ve seen a god?”

I nodded.

“I’m sure Aris has told you that those of us from this realm are…influenced by it when we walk amongst the mortals, I am no exception to this. If we were in your world, I daresay you would find me far more terrifying than any one of my children.”

“So this is what you look like-”

“Stripped of all darkness,” he answered, “I brought you here so you could see plainly that I, like Aris, am no monster.”

“You are a god, though,” I said.

He grinned and laughed to himself, “Yes, I suppose you would have a bad taste in your mouth for gods after your time with Loeva,” he conceded.

My expression remained unchanged. He’s trying to get in my head. I thought. Aris warned you about this.

“I expect you’re going to tell me that you are different from the other gods then?”

“No, I wouldn’t waste your time with such nonsense,” he explained, “I do not pretend to be anything other than what I am, and that is a god. I rule over this realm.” He flashed me a wicked grin. “But you already knew that didn’t you?”

I stared at him for a moment. “Aris says you value free will.”

“He is correct. I do not make frivolous standards for my children to live by, they do as they please.”

“You lend your power to your followers freely,” I continued.

“Yes, I don’t want my children on their knees begging me for my help, not when they are perfectly capable of helping themselves. If they need my power to do so, I give it freely.”

“But to give orders like what you did to Aris, they can’t refuse you, does that not infringe on their free will?” I pressed.

“My children doing as I ask respects my free will,” he sneered at me, “and they are more than welcome to deny me, not that any have ever dared.”

I furrowed my brow and pushed down another surge of anger I felt building in me as I remembered the way Aris had been returned to me and took a deep breath.

“I’m not saying that it’s fair Rose, I’m saying that’s the deal my children make when they come to me.”

“You give them power and eternal life,” I surmised, “In exchange for their service.”

“Precisely,” he smiled. It made sense enough I supposed.

“Why did you send Aris to me?” I asked.

“You needed to be kept safe from Loeva, and Aris needed you.”

“Loeva wanted me dead?” I asked.

“Loeva is convinced that magic in any sort is perverse. A mage as powerful as you would not have lasted long.”

“Why does she think that?”

This time he looked confused. “Do you not know where magic comes from my dear?”

“I know legends say it was created by gods intermingling with mortals.”

“Yes, and if there is one thing I’m sure you know about Loeva is that she is quite the prude,” he scrunched his face in disdain. I nodded and rolled my eyes. “Do you know what magic I am responsible for giving to you mortals?”

I narrowed my eyes. Surely not life magic. I thought to myself.

“That’s right,” he said, reading my thoughts.

“How?” I asked.

“In the era of the early mortals, before I was cast out, I was a god of vitality and life. I was one of the most powerful in the heavens,” he began, “then we started to notice you mortals and things were never quite the same from there on.”

“What happened?” I asked.

He dropped his gaze, “I got too close.”

I was quiet, “Who was she?”

He smiled, I was surprised to see sadness on his perfect face, “Merilyse” he said softly. “If ever there was a perfect mortal it was her.”

I felt a warmth in my heart at his sweet sentiments. Don’t let him fool you Rose. I thought to myself. A fake love story would not be out of the realm of possibilities for him to curry favor with me.

“What happened?”

“We fell hard for each other, she was a goddess among mortals,” he trailed off for a moment, lost in his thoughts. “She is the mother of all life mages,” he looked up at me, “including you.”

I smiled, uneasy. This was not the story of an evil god. I was conflicted. But I remained quiet.

“Anyway, the gods were angry with me. They maintain that dalliances with mortals are perfectly permissible but what she and I had was unnatural.”

“Let me guess,” I interjected, “You made Loeva angry too.”

I saw rage flash across his face, “Oh yes, how do you think she earned her title?”

I nodded, that much made sense at least.

“She took her from me.” he clenched his fists, “Summoned her legions of halfwit mortals to cleanse the earth of our perversity.”

I felt a surprisingly deep sadness watching him recant his experience. It felt all too familiar.

“It wasn’t enough to take her, they wanted our children too.”

“So that’s why life mages have been hunted over the centuries,” I concluded under my breath.

“Exactly” he replied softly.

“What did you do?” I asked, regardless of its validity, I was enthralled by the story.

“I personally descended to Earth and rained hellfire upon all of her followers. I tore each one of them limb from limb. I made sure they felt as much pain and suffering as their feeble bodies would allow.”

I pictured his words in my mind, imagining an apocalypse on Earth.

“That was the final straw. I was banished by the gods and sent to rule here.” He gestured before him. “So I created a sanctuary for my children to come home to.”

I felt oddly touched as he wrapped up his story. If he was in fact telling the truth, then I was much closer to evil living in Wren’s Glen than I was here in the shadow realm.

“So, you sent Aris to keep me safe from Loeva.”

“Regardless of whether or not you choose to worship me, Rose, you are still one of mine and I will not stand by and watch Loeva take any more of you.”

“How many of us are left?” I asked.

“You were the first one to be born since Aris.”

I raised my eyebrows, “Seriously?”

“The intermingling of mortals over the millennia have severely diluted life magic. Your existence is an enigma, even to us gods. You come from a strong lineage of life mage’s sure, but to be as powerful as you are…it shouldn’t be.”

“You said Aris needed me.” I remembered.

He nodded, “I’m sure he has shared with you how he came to me.”

“He has,” I answered.

“I don’t know how much he has told you about his early days as a shadow walker, let’s just say he lost himself. So when I saw you,” he paused, “and I remembered Merilyse, you could be her twin you know,” he added, “I thought you might be able to bring him back,” another pause, “and based on his behavior recently, I’d wager that I was correct. That he would defy me…” he trailed off. I couldn’t tell if he was angry at Aris or not.

“So, you’re not planning on using me as a ploy to keep him in line?” I braved asking.

His mouth twisted into a smile. “On the contrary, I needed Aris to get to you.”

I regarded him carefully unsure what to believe or how to feel. “So then, what are you truly wanting from me? Surely, it’s more than just bringing your children home.”

“I see why he likes you” he muttered to himself, “I understand it’s a lot to ask, you have already done so much more than you could possibly know…” he trailed off.

I felt my heart sink. “What do you mean?” I asked.

He twisted his face in a sort of mock concern. “Has dear Aris not told you?”

“Told me what?” I could almost hear my heart thumping in my chest.

“Hmmm,” he started, “perhaps we should ask him.”