Jasper's touch remained a steady comfort as he stroked the back of my head. “We’re going to kill the bastard, goddess.”
“He’s in his monster form, so he should be here sometime tomorrow. We evacuated all mages in his line of travel to the castle so there shouldn’t be any casualties if we wait for him to come to us,” Casper said. “And when he does, we kill him.”
“And we’ll make sure you’re safe,” Bastian said softly, his hand gentle on my back. “I’ll make some more potions.”
“Something feels off.” I rubbed my forehead as an odd notion knitted its way into my brain. “I don’t know what it is, but the spirits are warning us.”
“We’ll stay alert and keep our eyes peeled for anything out of the ordinary,” Aimon told me, his gaze sweeping the room. “We won’t let anything happen to you. Your safety will always be our main concern, bug.”
I nodded, feeling the weight of their protection and love. The bond between the six of us was stronger than ever before, and I knew that no matter what happened, we would face it together.
I allowed my eyes to flutter shut as I leaned against the twins, inviting the embrace of the spirit realm.
The connection between my spirit and Hexarium thrummed with an intensity unparalleled, a symphony of presence that sought to convey a message. I could feel their presence stronger than I’d ever felt before, but I couldn’t determine what it was they were trying to tell me.
A vexing obstruction clouded my tether to them, an invisible barrier that muted the spirits' desires. My suspicions were pointing toward Matthieu, his dark essence responsible for the veil of uncertainty.
Matthieu wielded an insane amount of power from siphoning from the pool of magic all of these years, but I was fortified by the spirits and an unbreakable bond with the powerful mages of the Lethium Empire’s shield.
In their company, I resonated with the strength to decimate his vessel and extinguish his insidious spirit.
Our bond blazed bright, and I knew we would face the horrors ahead of us united as one. Together, we would make sure that his vessel and spirit were no longer any part of Hexarium.
14
FAWN
My eyes snapped open,and I sucked in a sharp gasp for breath as an onslaught of bone-chilling roars and thunderous bangs reverberated through the stone walls of the castle.
Each resounding boom pounded against my eardrums, mirroring the frenzied cadence of my heart as it battered wildly against my chest.
“Matthieu’s here,” I choked out, my voice quivering with a mix of terror and raw resolve. His malevolence had infiltrated the very heart of the last empire standing, a maleficent presence that radiated corruption and malice.
Casper leapt from the bed, a blur of motion as he took charge with an urgency that matched the disarray around us. “Let’s get to the throne room, sunshine.” Cas cast an illuminating spell that wavered orbs of light around the room for us to see.
The rest of us scrambled out of the bed, our frantic movements casting eerie, flickering shadows across the walls.
"Robes, now!" Silas's command sliced through the tense atmosphere, his voice a sharp whip crack of authority that spurred us into action. “Follow the plan!”
The familiar act of dressing became a frenzied rush, my hands trembling as I hastily donned my clothes and robe, each garment a shield against the encroaching evil that was Matthieu.
"Throne room with Emperor Lloyd at any notice of an attack,” Bastian's voice echoed the plan with an urgency that matched the expression etched upon his handsome features.
As I struggled to clothe myself, a swarm of apprehension coiled and tightened within my gut, its grip unrelenting. I’d been in countless battles before with countless dreadful mages.
Yet, the weight of the situation bore down on my resolve, a crushing pressure that threatened to suffocate me. Anxiety clawed its way through my veins, and I sucked in another lungful of air.
Aimon's gaze locked onto mine as I finally shoved myself in my robe. “Ready, bug?”
I managed a terse nod.
“Hang tight, goddess.” Jasper's darkness coiled like a living thing, twisting and enshrouding us before yanking us into its shadowy embrace. The sensation was disorienting, a whirlwind of sensations as the world around us twisted and distorted. Yet, it was familiar.
We emerged from the shadows within the hallowed confines of the throne room, a sanctuary now tainted by the malevolence that hung in the air like a noxious fog.
The oppressive weight of Matthieu's presence bore down on me, his spectral tendrils snaking through the spirit realm almost teasingly. The air was charged with his dark energy, and it was suffocating. It was insane that I’d never noticed just howmadhis spirit was.
The darkness whispered its dread-laden secrets, an ominous prelude to the inevitable confrontation that awaited us.
