Sin deflated, sighing and dragging a hand through his hair. “Fuck. It was her, wasn’t it?”
“But why would she?” Malice asked.
“Is it really so hard to believe? We’ve all seen what humanity is capable of when backed into a corner.” Grim stood to oneside of the corpse, gaze locked on Christian’s eternally screaming visage.
All I could manage was a grunt of assent. Something he’d said struck a nerve within me, unearthing memories long since buried.
“You’ll do it if you want to live. Or we can just end this right here and right now. It’s all the same to me in the end. Your corpse is as good as any other when we release the lions.”
I barely had the energy to sneer up at the Roman guard standing outside my cell, his burly arms folded over his chest.
“I will not perform for you,” I snarled, the shackles binding my wrists and ankles clanking ominously as I shifted my weight. The goal was to keep my muscles loose and ready, but after weeks of travel and captivity with barely any food or water, there was only so much I could do to fend off the pain.
“You will. They always try to resist before we send them out, but trust me, once you are in the arena, there will be no other choice. Kill or be killed.”
The bastard had been right. Memories of bodies swam through my mind. Friends. Innocents. Slaughtered by my hand so I could live another day. Oaths meant very little in the end, especially when all that remained was your mortality. I broke my word time and time again, even after my escape. The survive-or-die mentality was the only thing I held on to.
And once I finally met my death, lying atop a pile of those I’d killed in battle, I found myself faced with one last choice. The ultimate test of the theory.
“Not where you expected to end up, is it, Spartan?”
Blood bubbled up my throat as I coughed to clear it. My breathing was nothing more than ragged, shallow drags as I slowly drowned. I’d killed the man who’d managed to strike a blow before I could dodge his spear, but this time I wasn’t fast enough. He had run me through and dealt me a mortal blow.
“It’s what I deserve,” I spluttered.
The man hovering over me swam in and out of focus as he made a musing sound low in his throat. “That’s a matter of perspective.” More blood dribbled down my chin, and the man squatted down, his body blocking the sun. “You’re running out of time.”
I wanted to say something cutting, but it was getting harder to form words. I settled for a glare and hoped it conveyed all that I couldn’t say. Every beat of my heart came slower and slower, but the sound of it in my ears was overwhelmingly loud. I knew the truth. With each valiant pump, my heart was speeding along my demise, my blood flowing into the earth below, filling my lungs, going everywhere but the places I needed it to.
“It’s very important that you listen to me, warrior. This is your only chance for survival.”
I tried hard to focus on the man’s face, but it was cast in shadow. Why wouldn’t he leave me alone and let me die? Again, I attempted to force the words past my lips, but all that came out was a wet grunt.
“War is in your blood. It is what you were born for. Are you ready to lay down your sword for good, or would you like a chance to continue what you started? To right the wrongs, punish those who deserve it, topple empires, and mete out justice when needed?”
This time I blinked, and apparently that was enough to indicate that he had my attention. Meting out justice seemed pretty fucking great right now.
“You will be immortal, Spartan. But in order to gain such a gift, you will have to sacrifice. You will never again fall ill. Never again know a killing wound. But you also will never again live as a human.”
Humanity had proven to be the most terrible part of the world. Why would I miss it?
“Unfortunately, this is going to require more than blinks and gurgles. I need to hear you accept. A simple yes will do.”
With every passing second, my vision dimmed until all I could see was a pinpoint of light. It was now or never. I didn’t have the luxury of time to weigh my decision.
“Y-y-yesss,” I rasped, just as the light faded.
“He has the same residue on his fingers that I found outside the barrier,” Malice said, snapping me out of my reverie.
“So he provided Merri with the portal spell,” Grim concluded.
“Do you think he helped her willingly?” Sin asked, eyes trailing over Christian’s corpse.
“Doubtful.” My response was low and filled with frustration. “What good would killing him do if he gave it to her?”
“So she killed him, stole the spell, and fled.” Malice paced in front of the body, his distress mirroring my own. “Where would she go?”
“Not to Lilith. Too obvious,” Grim answered.
