And then he was out.
His entire body went limp underneath her, arms dangling over the arms of the chair. Nymiria stared down at him, cheeks burning. Before she could stop herself, she reared back her handand brought it down upon his face with such force that the cartilage in his nose shifted. She stared down at her work, a smile spreading across her face as blood began trickling from his nostrils.
Satisfied, she climbed off of his lap and headed to the washroom.
Making quick work of cleaning herself and dressing in something comfortable, she rushed towards the balcony. But the moment she threw her leg over the railing, it was as if an invisible force pushed back against her, sending her sprawling across the floor.
She turned, groaning as she looked over her shoulder to see that Everand was still sleeping. Finding that he was, Nymiria pushed herself back to her feet and walked towards the door. She jiggled the handle, tried picking the lock, and even took to throwing herself into the frame in desperation, but with no such luck.
“Please,” she whispered to the heavens. “I know I’m not the most loyal god you have, Cadaith, but I need to get out of here.” She glanced around the room for any sort of subliminal sign, but saw nothing. It was typical, really. Perhaps she’d been too lacking in her faith since she discovered her godhood, having not prayed enough or offered enough. Perhaps she’d just been far too corrupted for Cadaith to want anything to do with her. “I have to leave this place.” She tried, frantically tugging at the door handle again.
When the door didn’t budge, Nymiria lifted her fist and punched the door as hard as she could. Repeatedly. Over and over again until just throwing punches was not enough, her feet joining into the frey. “You bird-brained, dilly-doddled motherfucker!Open, gods-dammit!”
Something large and black swooped through the open door to the balcony, dipping so close to Nymiria’s head that shecould feel the wind off of it’s body. She let out a small squeal, staggering back until she was pressed into the corner behind the door, her eyes quickly flickering around the room in search of the creature.
The distinct clicking sound of a beak sounded from the chair in which Everand still slept. The crow’s wings flapped wildly, its head dipping in the direction of Everand’s body. On the other side of the room, Nymiria slowly peeled herself off the wall and took slow, staggering steps in Everand’s direction, carefully not to disturb him or frighten the crow.
“Alright,” She sighed, her eyes and the crow’s eyes finally meeting. “Tell me what I need to do. You’ve never been wrong before.”
She imagined that it would be a shock to anyone’s system if they walked in and saw her conversing with the crow, it was highly unlikely that anyone would believe just how intelligent they truly were. This one, in particular, she was almost certain was the very same one from Yaar. The one that’d been perched outside of the tower nearly every waking moment of the day.
He had a very familiar gleam in his eyes that was unmistakable. Coy, almost. Perhaps a bit of a know-it-all.
The crow hopped onto Everand’s shoulder and though Nymiria flinched, the prince’s body remained unmoved. In fact, he was snoring. Beady black eyes stared up at her and then twitched down to the breast pocket of Everand’s suit jacket. Drawing in a deep breath, she stepped forward and slipped her finger inside of it. She kept her gaze focused on Everand’s face, searching for any signs of arousal. When she brushed against something metallic, she hooked her finger around the object and quickly pulled it out. The prince did not stir.
Practically throwing herself as far away from him as possible, Nymiria darted to the door, unlocking it and opening it with ease. Her stomach felt as if it was in her throat, her heartpounding as she took a small step over the threshold. Unsure if there was anything that could alert anyone in the palace, she stood there, waiting for what seemed like ages.
The crow landed on her shoulder with such gentle grace that she didn’t even feel its claws digging into her skin. She peered up at the creature, both of them content with one another. She would be lying if she said she hadn’t been afraid of them six months ago. Now, though, the winged thing actually looked…adorable.
“Alright,” she said quietly. “Since you know so much about everything, I need you to help me with something.” The bird clicked its beak, a small trilling noise sounding from its chest. She took it as a good sign and continued. “Do you know Aziel, the God of Death?” Another click and trill.
“Is he in Eadyn?”
Click and trill.
“Is he at his palace?”
The bird squawked, flapping its wings angrily.
Nymiria let out a frustrated sigh, licking her lips. “Where the hellishe?” She said, mostly to herself. “Do you think I can get out of here?”
She groaned loudly when the bird launched itself from her shoulder, flapping its wings and heading down the hall to the large, stone staircase at the center. Throwing a glance back at Everand’s room, Nymiria followed as fast as she could without breaking into a sprint. By the time she caught up to the creature, it was perched upon a candelabra that was placed beside an altar of sorts.
A table at the center of the foyer had been decorated with various items, ones Nymiria could only assume to be offerings. Red wines, body oils, candles, and sweets covered the stone surface. Underneath them, carved into the stone top, were runes. Nymiria didn’t need to have Aziel’s book of runes to knowthat Everand’s sigil had been carved into that table. And there, at the very center of the altar was a small God Stone, much like the one she’d found on Aziel’s altar in Yaar.
It was no wonder that his power was so strong—that his sickly, sweet presence was so horribly strong in this place. He’d made her father’s palace a beacon of his power. Everyone, whether they wanted it or not, was under the influence of his deception.
They believed him to be infallible, completely and utterly without fault. And if they believed that much, there was no telling what other things he was capable of convincing them to think and feel. She had the most horrible feeling that anyone who stepped through that door would be immediately enraptured by his spell. She had no idea how to undo what had been done—she and Aziel hadn’t made it that far into their studies for her to know how to override another god’s power. Though she wasn’t well-versed in the art of godliness, she knew for a fact that it wouldn’t be as simple as offering her blood to this stone. And if she did, she wasn’t sure if it would bind them to one another or not.
Cursing under her breath, Nymiria looked at the crow. “I take it that you are trying to tell me that I am nowtrappedhere?” She swore that the bird nodded, but her body was filled with far too much anger for her to feel any semblance of joy about it. Nymiria fell to the ground with a soft cry, pressing the palms of her hands into her eyes to stop the flow of tears. “Are you trapped here, too?” She felt silken feathers brushing against her elbow and when she looked down, the crow was rubbing its face against her arm, as if to console her. “You risked your freedom to come and help me?” She asked.
Click and trill.
She nodded slowly, feeling defeat settle into her bones. It was enough to make her feel sick. Even with the ability to use her powers returned after Phyona removed the witchlocks, shewasn’t sure what a duel with Everand would entail. She didn’t know his strengths or weaknesses. She didn’t know if he had some sort of physical manifestation of powers like vines or roots or shadows.
And even if she did fight him, she knew that his army would attack. She wasn’t foolish enough to believe he was ill-prepared in his attempt at acquiring her. Eadyn was just collateral. If she refused him, he would destroy everything she loved, that much he’d promised.
Her only plan had been to run to Aziel, but she was trapped. Every door in the palace could open, but the moment she reached that invisible border that separated them from the world, that feeling of hopelessness returned.
