“You were never going to make it in your current state,” Ajari told her.
“And now I’ll never go home,” she said in despair, resisting the urge to take some of her fear out on him. Lashing out wasn’t going to help anything, not now that the damage was done.
Already she felt marginally better. Clear-headed and alert in a way she hadn’t felt in days. Her body still dragged but at least she thought she could move again.
“Don’t be melodramatic. This tiny bit won’t change you too much,” he said.
Too much. So, it would have some effect on her.
The look she sent Ajari’s way was significant. “Your words are less than reassuring.”
The mythological seemed unconcerned. “He drank directly from the heart. It’s a thousand times more potent than the water I gave you. Even if you were to drink from the heart, who you are influences what you become. Your friend’s heart is as black as night. It makes sense that his exterior has changed to match it.”
Shea lifted herself up, pushing herself to standing. “No offense, but it’s hard to take your word for it. Everything I’ve seen come out of the Badlands has been a predator. Not evil, but not exactly something I’d trust around my people.”
He gave her a very human look of amusement. “And do you think that your kind has seen everything this place holds? Just because something is dangerous doesn’t mean it isn’t beautiful. Such arrogance is to be expected of humans, I suppose.”
Shea’s lips tightened, keeping back her argument.
He leaned closer. “Think on this. Your people have the abilities they do because of this place. The first of your lines drank of it to gain the precious gift of traversing the mist, hoping that same gift would live on in their issue. Perhaps you shouldn’t be so eager to cast it as the monster.”
Shea’s lips parted as her eyes widened. She didn’t know how much of that to believe. If true, it could change much of their thinking at the Keep.
She drew back, conceding that he had a point about her knee-jerk reaction. Her fear had made her little better than the villagers she used to look down on.
Beasts weren’t bad, nor were they good. That was a human concept. Most beasts lived their entire lives without crossing another human, doing what they needed to do to survive. She’d observed them in their natural habitat, gloried in their awesome power, and admired their majesty. Vilifying them just because they tended to cause widescale damage when confronted with humans was like saying a river was evil because it could flood and sweep clean everything in its path.
The mythological didn’t give her time to apologize. He climbed to his feet and moved away from her, his task done.
“Lord, I’m going to go survey our backtrail,” Ajari told Griffin.
“Why?” Griffin cocked his head.
“I don’t want any further surprises.” Ajari gave Shea a sidelong look. “I grow weary of watching mice twist themselves into knots over silly things.”
Griffin’s gaze slid toward Shea and he got a knowing look on his face. “It is hard to resist bloodying up all that pale flesh. Very well, don’t be too long.”
Ajari gave a short bow, moving off and disappearing in moments.
Shea wrapped her arms around herself, watching the two beasts and Griffin, as her only ally deserted her, leaving her to face the enemy alone.
*
Shea padded over silky sand, calves and thighs burning. Any vegetation had long since died, leaving nothing but rock and endless sand. This was the fine, powdery stuff from her dreams.
In the distance a large dust cloud lunged into the air. It would be cause for concern if it hadn’t seemed so far off for the moment, moving away from them instead of towards.
Though the water the mythological had forced her to drink had worked wonders, this close to the heart she was beginning to feel its effects again, although not as bad as before.
Their destination seemed to be a giant butte in the distance. It jutted up from the long, wide bowl they’d found themselves in. It was tall, three tower-shaped objects next to it, the center one spiraling up to stab the sky’s underbelly. The ground surrounding it sloped up to meet its base.
The closer they drew to the monolith, the more giddy Griffin became, his speed picking up until they were nearly running. A giggle floated back to Shea as he clasped the necklace at his neck again.
She condemned herself again for not grabbing it earlier. Yes, she’d seen no sign of the Lux since her capture, the primary reason for this fool’s errand, but he had to have it on him. There was no other option.
Despite its deceptively close appearance, it took hours to reach the base of the butte, the storm in the distance keeping pace with them as it moved slowly away.
As they walked, Shea was grateful for the butte’s shadow as it shielded them from the sun. What there was of it. The sky above was a drab brown which Shea couldn’t explain, since there were few clouds above her, but it seemed as if there was a slight haze stealing even the faintest hint of blue.
