Only a heartless person would be cruel upon hearing such a tragic tale. Even though Aziel was crass and brutish, he also experienced heartbreak. He lost his mother, possibly the last person to have ever cared for him deeply in a world where feelings were currency. She felt sorry for him. It wasn’t pity, but she understood. Losing your mother, at any age, left a gaping wound in your heart that could not be filled.
“It was out of the goodness of his heart that I was allowed to stay in the palace after her death." Aziel chuckled dryly. "But it was his stupidity that made him believe that I would be a loyal subject after watching him slit my mother's throat."
"I'm sorry." Nymiria sighed. "Truly, I am, but what does this have to do with me, Aziel?"
"Because he is doing to you what he did to her—manipulating you with a cycle of degradation and praise. Over and over again until there is not a single uniquethought left in your head. He makes you fear that there is no one else out there who would care for you and makes you believe that you wouldn't survive without his love and his protection. It's how he keeps you there, moonflower. By him offering his praise and his love on a platter. The only problem is, he never discloses just what you have to do to earn it, but you always know that his love comes with a price. Everything comes with a price."
“Which is precisely why I am skeptical about your offer.” She shrugged. “If you took my pain away and made me some fearsome killer who is unafraid of the aftermath… what is the price for that?”
Aziel stared at her for longer than she would have liked. For each second that passed, her heartbeat grew louder. She reclined away from him when he rose to his feet, looming over her. “Your help.” She prepared to roll her eyes, to immediately agree because it seemed simple enough, but then his smile changed. “It’s just the same as what I told you in the forest. Greia has died and I need help finding the next Anam. If I don’t, the world as we know it, will end. Without her power being regulated… anyone can take it. Perhaps even someone with far more nefarious intentions.”
“Dorid?” She asked. Aziel nodded in response. "You think he knows her power is available for anyone to take?" Another nod. "And you think he will take it for himself?"
He shrugged. “I don’t justthinkit, moonflower. It's the kind of man that he is. It is a fact. I want you to know the truth. You cannot trust him. No matter how he praises you or shows pride in you, it's not real. He'll do whatever it takes to get what he wants, so you cannot show an ounce of weakness. If you want the world to change, if you want to be fearless, I canhelp youthe same way that I helped you before."
A flicker of green eyes flashed at the corner of her eye. She could feel the phantom of her past watching her, but there was not a single word of encouragement or warning that it offered. What would life be like to feel nothing? To walkthrough each day without the aching heart inside of her chest… would it get rid of her ghost, too?
A life without feeling this ache was one only imaginable. She simply couldn’t fathom never feeling pain again—never grieving, never mourning, and never waking up in the lonely hours of the night, aching for affection and, dare she say it, love. Simply guarding her heart had resulted in death.
“Why are you so scared, Nymiria?” His voice was soft. Too soft. The way he looked at her, the tenderness to his voice, reeked of pity. Her stomach rolled. “What good is a heart if all it does is kill you in the end?”
“Everything kills us in the end, Aziel.” She mumbled.
Logic told her not to. Everything told her not to. From the way the trees danced outside the balcony, to how the moonflowers that curled around the railings seemed to tremble as she extended her hand towards him. Nymiria figured, most illogically and blinded by her desperation for retribution, he’d helped her before. He could help her again.
Was there truly any harm in helping him find the next goddess? It was inconsequential.
"Alright." She gave a curt nod, shoving her hand towards him until it was merely inches away from his body. "I will help you."
Aziel smirked down at her hand before slowly pushing it aside. "No need for that." He sighed. "You have my word and my word means more than any handshake ever could." Before she could argue, Aziel was placing his hand over her chest. Her heart pounded against his palm and while she expected for his skin to be as cold as death, she was shocked to find that it was warm. "Death is rarely cold." Aziel said lowly. "It is a warm embrace that swallows you whole."
"Will it hurt?" She didn't know what to expect. She could hardly remember what happened when he'd done this before. Looking up at him with wide, fear-filled eyes, Nymiria finally let a single tear fall down her cheek. Aziel watched the trail it made over her flushed skin, using the thumb from his other hand to smooth it away.
He shook his head. "You won't feel a thing."
There was no pain. The only thing that signified what was happening was the faint glow of white light that appeared under his flattened palm. Her chest swelled with a peaceful warmth, one that spread over her body—pulsing through her veins until she felt intoxicated. And thatwaswhat it felt like, the same heavy weight that settled in your limbs after drinking too much.
Her lips parted, releasing shuddered breaths as she stared at him. And though she was coming close to feeling nothing at all, there was a fainttug, deep in her core, that nearly took her breath away. But the moment she felt it's wickedsnap, there was nothing that she felt at all.
Aziel stepped away from her, looking over her body from head to toe before he picked up one of her hands. "This is going to be a bit of a problem." He sighed.
Nymiria looked down at where his gaze now lingered. Sure enough, the same moonflower that was on her chest now twisted up her arm, much like the moonflowers that decorated his balcony. And while she should have felt fearful of Dorid's wrath once he saw those fresh silver markings branded into her skin, Nymiria found herself feeling absolutely nothing at all.
"Will it always be this way?" She asked in a voice that was not her own, one that lacked emotion—lackedlife. For a moment, all Aziel could do was look at her. He would regret this. He did not like the way she sounded. He didn't like that lifeless look in her eyes.
He didn't ask permission before pressing his hand to her chest again. The vines and flowers flared with his light, his mind crawling with the names of people he believed she could be safe around. And despite what he knew was best for her, he made sure to include himself. This time, as he slowly pulled his hand away from her, Nymiria's brow furrowed in confusion.
"What was that?" She hissed. "You said you'd take it all away!"
"I did." Aziel shrugged. "I took your weakness away, Nymiria. But I am not taking your heart."
He stared down at her like he wanted to say more. Like there was something that bothered him about what he'd seen only moments before, but he said nothing. He only traced over the small budding moon-flower on her wrist before he turned away from her and left the room, slamming the large onyx door behind him as he went.
Aziel slumped to the floor outside of Trio's room, his head falling into trembling hands that he had hastily stuffed back into his gloves upon leaving her. His heart pounded rapidly in his chest, his stomach turning over and his jaws pooling with saliva.
He'd achieved what he'd set out to do—the very first step was complete. He had her. Using the tactics that his father had taught him, he'd managed to swindle her into helping him, only to leave out the most vital piece of information . Even if his plans had a successful end, he'd lied by omission. And there was nothing to be proud of because of it.
The door behind him opened and light spilled out into the hall. Aziel lifted his head from where it rested against his palms, eyes moving up Trio’s strong form until they trained in on his shadowed face.
