Taryn didn’t want to leave Airess alone in this world, just as he had been. She deserved better–morethan that. His heart pounded incessantly, and the ringing in his ears grew louder as he strained against the compulsion. Taryn gritted his teeth, and in a split moment of free will, he twisted the blade, and plunged it into his own stomach. Taryn’s scream mixed with Airess’ as he fell onto her, his body convulsing, blood inking across his tunic.
“Bastard!” Eryx exclaimed, claiming his grip on Taryn’s mind through the Oathmark, torturing him. Heat flared within every pore of his body. So hot.Toohot. His vision ran red. It was as if his body was on fyre. Taryn screamed in Runean. To anyone, everyone, to help him. Perhaps in the distance he heard Airess screaming. Perhaps he felt her utter terror as Taryn’s mind began to unravel as he defied Eryx’s compulsion.
Eryx approached them, grabbing Taryn’s body and yanking him off of Airess. Pain seared, the dagger sliding out of his flesh as he was tossed to the side. Though the world seemed to shift, Taryn caught a glimpse of the dagger that rested in Airess’ hand.
In the split-second Eryx’s back was turned, Airess sliced the knife through the air, right across Eryx’s achilles tendon.
Everything happened in a blur after that. Eryx tumbled to the ground, shouting in pain as Raiden advanced towards Airess, his Haelethblade out. Seeing a weapon heading towards Airess’ direction was all the fuel Taryn needed to fight on. Fear for Airess’ life quickly overpowered his pain from his knife wound, driving him to move.
Taryn forced himself upwards, tackling Raiden to the ground, Raiden’s blade inches away from making contact with Airess. Taryn held Raiden in a headlock, snarling, seconds away from snapping his neck.
Eryx rolled over to face Airess. She was one step, one plunge downward from killing the Guildmaster. Eryx simply lifted a hand and commanded, “Stop!”
Airess froze as commanded, blade still in hand, as if she were stuck in time. Eryx’s lips trembled as he spoke, a hatred shone in his eyes, “Youbitch! You will pay for what you have done.Come here.”
“You touch her, and he dies.” Taryn threatened, his forearm squeezing into Raiden’s windpipe. Eryx’s gaze slid over to Raiden, weighing the situation. Without acknowledging Taryn’s threat, Eryx looked back to Airess with a greedy smile as she lowered to her knees in front of him. Her brows were furrowed in resentment at the compulsion, now on her knees in front of Eryx’s fallen position.
Eryx lifted himself up, holding out his hand, “Hand it over.”
No.
Taryn screamed out to Eryx, “I’ll kill him! I will fucking kill him if you hurt her!”
Raiden squirmed for breath underneath his arm, his face now turning purple. A messy mix of rage and regret budded within Taryn. How has it ever come to this? Could it have ended differently, or would Taryn have always been destined to betray his own best friend?
Airess’ hand trembled with rage as she began to lower the blade down into Eryx’s palm. She breathed heavy breaths, squinting her eyes closed as she tried to fight the compulsion.
When she opened her eyes, it was as if the gold in her irises burned slightly brighter, a look of newfound determination overcoming her. Suddenly, a smirk grew on her lips as she yanked her knife back and plunged it into the side of Eryx’s neck.
Raiden tried to scream out as Eryx met his silent death, blood splattering onto the floors, the walls, and Airess. The side of Airess’ face, neck and chest bore splatters of crimson, the remnants of her murder evident.
Eryx looked up to Airess in pure shock at her ability to resist his compulsion, falling to the floor silently.
How–how was it possible? How had she resisted?
Taryn didn’t remember letting go of Raiden. He onlywatched Airessstand over Eryx, cruelty on her perfect face as she bent down, and ripped the blade out of his neck.
Raiden shifted to grab his dagger that had fallen to the ground. Taryn drew his broadswords from behind his back, rushing in front of Airess and pointed the blade at Raiden, stopping him in his tracks.
“I’ll let you go just this once.Leave,” Taryn bellowed, pain laced in his voice,
Raiden stared at the body on the floor in horror, his eyes looking between Taryn and Airess. Taryn watched the last of his brotherly love wash away as Raiden’s eyes hardened.
“I don’t know you anymore,” Raiden spat as he took a step back. “Fuck you. You both deserve each other.”
Raiden fled out of the crumbled opening in the wall. Taryn heard his footsteps fade off, until the adrenaline started to fade, and the pain from Taryn’s stomach wound surfaced. They stood there, panting, as they both gathered their bearings.
She killed him.
She killed him
She killed him.
The silence was overwhelming, the both of them heaving for breath, covered in blood. Taryn’s tunic was soaked from the knife wound and he fought to ignore the pain, as he noticed the miniature arrow still stuck in Airess’ arm.
He turned to face her. “We need to get that arrow out of your arm.”
“Do it,” she said weakly, glancing down at the arrow.
