A twig snaps. Her blood runs cold.
Veda whirls around to see Ariadne stomping through the forest, heading in the direction where Antaris is hiding. For Veda, the decision is easy. She starts running, sending a flare into the sky. Bursting over the trees, the flare alerts Ariadne to her presence. Veda runs harder than she ever has in her life, but it’s not enough. Her lungs burn for air, and her body slows despite her brain screaming for it to keep moving. She slumps against a tree, panting, knowing it’s over. There’s nowhere left to run.
“Well, well, well.” Ariadne’s voice drips with delight from behind her. “It’s a pleasure to see you again. Had I knownyouwere the answer, I would’ve taken you that night in the apartment.”
Veda turns to face her. “Where’s Khadijah?”
“Alive.” Her sickly smile twists. “Barely. I was running low, and she gave meexactlywhat I needed.”
Veda’s stomach turns.
“Oh my.” Ariadne covers her mouth, eyes on Veda’s neck. “Thank the Cosmos I got you alone just in time; I can finally get back what I deserve.”
Veda dodges a blue orb that embeds itself in the tree behind her. Cornered, she charges toward Ariadne, barely avoiding a bolt of magic that glows like the sun. Her fist connects. The force sends Ariadne stumbling back, but she gets back up with a smile, as though the pain is a pleasure.
“Nice.” She spits out red, running her tongue over the blood smearing her mouth. “My turn.”
Like fighting an unstoppable force, the more Veda dodges, the faster Ariadnes comes at her. Curses fly. Veda ducks behind trees and stone, breathing harshly before countering the best she can with what repercussions she can afford. Chills. Cuts form on her skin. A splitting headache. Her lungs tighten when she diverts a glowing red spell, forcing it into a nearby tree. The bark blackens, cracking and falling in a harsh crash, before it ignites. Flames frame the leaves as smoke billows around them.
Veda uses the distraction to levitate the burning tree, hurling it in Ariadne’s direction. The impact sends Ariadne flying backward, slamming her into the base of another tree.
Veda coughs up blood, and her vision blurs. She doesn’t know what hurts more, the waking Sanguis curse or each consequence she pays for the magic she uses. The strain from her effort reaches the marrow of her bones. Sweat drenches her forehead, and blood streams steadily fromher nose. Holding her ground, Veda pours her remaining strength into casting spell after spell to keep Ariadne at bay.
Still, it’s no use.
A gray orb hits her square in the chest, robbing her of breath. She can’t move. Can’t see. Breathing in the smoke, there’s no air left for her to exhale.
Ariadne forces Veda to her knees, stepping closer with a chilling smile. “I’ve been waiting for this.”
White-hot pain explodes through Veda’s body. Black veins paint her skin, threaded with red. Ariadne’s essence flows through her bloodstream.
“Visus.” At first, Ariadne’s spell doesn’t hurt. Then it burns. Veda’s eyes throb. The forest thickens with youth, thins with age, burns with death. Past. Present. Future. Then it fades into Ariadne’s delighted eyes. “There it is.Potential. What lives in you belongs tome.”
Veda feels like she’s been split open. Cracked into two halves of what once was whole.
Everything stops.
“Wait, no. No.No!Not now,” Ariadne screams.
What’s been in hibernation is now fully awake.
Still trapped behind the block, Sanguis roars to life in her cells, tearing through muscles and sinew. Veda’s head swims. Blood thunders in her ears. She grips her chest, struggling to breathe, every muscle locking tight as she curls into a fetal position.
Ariadne drops to her knees beside her, hands moving like she’s trying to capture it. But she can’t.
“It’s ... coming for you,” Veda gets out.
Ariadne’s panic turns into fury as she grabs Veda by the neck, squeezing until her airway closes. Veda struggles, her body writhing, but her hand finds exactly what she’s looking for. One vial slips from her grasp. The other she clutches tightly, even as the edges of her vision darken.
“When I’m done here, I’m going to find that sweet little boy of Grace’s and—”
Veda surges up and headbutts her.
Ariadne stumbles back, momentarily stunned. What follows feels like being electrocuted repeatedly. Veda hears screaming and realizes too late that it’s her own.
Ariadne releases her. Veda drops to the ground, coughing so violently, she vomits. There’s no mistaking the blood. Or the cracked vial next to it. The potion spills, clear and bright, beading like mercury instead of sinking into the soil. A sudden kick to her ribs sends her sprawling on her back. Then a hand grips her hair, yanking her upright as Ariadne begins to chant. With her last burst of strength, Veda slams her hand down onto the broken vial and reaches up, slapping Ariadne across the face, cutting her words off.
They both scream from the pain.
