I just wanna be free.
I know,he answered.You will be soon enough.
When I didn’t answer, the flushed hands on my cheeks tightened, fingertips digging into my skull.
Trust me, Chrome.
A rush of energy flooded my body, taking me to new heights. I jolted from the floor, my body spasming upward. Valik’s hands guided me to a sitting position as I sucked in breath after breath. The pressure crushing my diaphragm from being back in my body was too much. Disappointment and heartbreak ravaged me. Why? Why make me live this life? How fucking cruel.
“Open your eyes, Prince.”
At the unwarranted title alone, my eyelids snapped open. “I’m not…”
“You are,” Valik demanded, leaving no room for question. “Look at me.”
I complied. His haggard jade gaze stared back at me, ancient wisdom glowing brilliantly. Urgency blazed within his eyes, almost transforming them into something supernatural. Well, more supernatural than usual.
“Now,” Valik pressed, his eyes wild yet droopy with exhaustion. “You feel that?”
The panic powering through my bloodstream wouldn’t let me see what he was talking about, so I paused and focused on my body. The slowing of my heartbeat, the fortification of my will and strength. I felt so much stronger, like I could take on an army if I wanted. Like I could evade death. “Yeah,” I said, meeting his frenzied stare. “What did you do?”
“Saved you. The princess. And potentially the world.” Valik’s shoulders dropped a fraction, showcasing the amount of power he’d used.
“What did you doto me?” I whispered.
The strange but familiar man sighed and finally broke my stare. He fell back on his heels. “I just made you indestructible. Should’ve done it a long time ago…”
I tipped my head, feeling clearer than I had in weeks. “What do you mean?”
Valik tilted his chin upward, biting his bottom lip as if debating what to tell me. “I just made it really fucking hard for you to die.” He exhaled a heavy breath, then leveled me with a hard gaze that I refused to break. “Now, don’t make me regret it.”
Days had passed since Valik’s appearance. I’d remained semi-lucid, feeling every hunger pain and blow since. It was nice but also a curse, as I had to fully endure the torture that Iwas doomed to suffer. At the least, I knew I could trust my mind. So, for that, I was grateful for whatever Valik had done.
I paced the cell with anxious thoughts of the princess and my sister. I wasn’t sure how long I’d been down in the prisons for, but I worried for their well-being. I wondered if Slate had been sent out on any missions, and if he’d be okay without my aid. But I did my best to focus on getting the hell out of there.
I couldn’t linger on the fact that Valik had literally stopped me from dying while my soul left my body. Otherwise, my thoughts would fall into a tailspin, and nothing good ever came from that. Instead, I focused on the things I could control.
The cell door creaked open, followed by the click of the locking mechanism. Sitting with my back pressed against the concrete block wall, I pulled my knees to my chest as King Forest entered the cell.
The silhouette of the king’s pompous posture loomed above me. I could practically feel his smirk. “You’re awake. You’re getting stronger, I see.” Pride rang in his voice. “Good.”
My weakened limbs hung in their shackles at my side. I felt nothing as I dropped my focus to his shiny loafers before me. The cold numbness had settled in deep. I honestly didn’t care what happened to me at this point. As long as the ones I cared about most were okay, I would be fine. The king had gotten what he wanted out of me long ago: for me to have my spirit broken as if I were a fucking derby horse.
“I see you’ve finally learned to keep your mouth shut.” Even the arrogance dripping from his tongue didn’t rouse any emotion. “Well, now that we know what your body is capable of withstanding, we can see how strong your willpower is. That’s most important. Can’t have you running off and becoming Endarkened now, can we?”
The hairs on my arms raised, feeling a different type of “test” coming. A test that I was vastly unprepared for. A test thatwas more malicious than the physical and sexual brutality I’d endured while starved, magic-deprived, and depleted. I snapped my attention to meet the gaze of the charismatic leader who had the majority of Kinetics fooled into thinking he was a benevolent ruler. I searched the shadows masking his face to spot his intentions, but it was no use.
“Bring him,” Forest called out into the frigid darkness.
Neither of us spoke as the sound of two pairs of footsteps walked down the hallway. One was a strong feminine gait, judging by the heels clicking across the floor, and the other was shuffling rather than taking assured steps.
I sat up, my spine pin-straight as I studied the cell door, awaiting whatever fate came before me. My senses were as wide open as they could be with the rest of my magic sealed away and emptied.
“Let’s see how strong you really are, boy,” Forest said, his baritone voice smooth like honey as the threat slipped from his lips.
The door creaked open, and I recognized my mother’s perfume assaulting my senses. “Here he is,” she said, excitement filling her tone. “Surely, my Chrome will do just fine. As always.”
Forest chuckled. “Your faith in your son far surpasses mine. I hope you’re right, Amethyst.”
