“There is more to be done after that.” Her voice gets closer. “So much more.”
“I can save them without you,” I shout.
Kalix laughs again, and the sound of the breeze transforms into the flapping of wings. It’s the crows, getting closer to where I stand with every passing second.
“That seems almost impossible when everyone is so quick to turn their backs on you and that exasperating tether. The odds aren’t looking great for you, and unfortunately, if you fail, I’ll be out of a vessel for quite a while.”
“I can save them,” I repeat.
Kalix’s voice whispers, “You can’t, and your constant attempts are getting tiring.”
“I’ll never give up. I’ll leave you in these shadowy realms until I can discover how to destroy you, and when I do, I’ll proclaim from the mountaintops how you have failed. Kalix, the Great Wiitch of Darkness, was defeated by her own vessel.” I move further down the alleyway but continue speaking, “You are nothing but a leech—a desperate ghost of the past, a miserable bitch, and, quite frankly, a huge pain in my ass.”
Her growls turn feral.
“Let…”
The wings flap closer.
“…me…”
They move closer.
“…in.”
Her voice screams in my ears, and I take off down the dark alleyway in a full sprint. I jump over fallen stones and round the corners faster than I’ve ever moved. The breeze picks up, and gusts of wind try to knock me off balance, but I keep moving. The sound of my feet slapping the stone streets resembles thousands of horses charging against an enemy.
“Silas!”
The scream rattles in my throat. I turn left, trying to run farther away from the center of the kingdom, and bound down a narrower alleyway. Filthy water splashes as I move past the large gutters, and I continue forward, covering my nose from the smell. A tug of the connection pulls me down the stone street, and I hear him.
“Briar,” his voice calls. “Wake up.”
I sprint forward, and his shadowy figure comes into view. His eyes are wide, and he sprints toward me with his hand extended.
“Fucking run,” he screams.
I hear Kalix’s thundering footsteps and her army of the sky just inches from my back. The talons of the large birds swipe at my hair, whipping behind me, but I don’t stop.
Kalix’s voice begins to fade, and she stops, knowing she won’t catch me.
“Briar, you will be in this realm again sooner than you think. You will have to come searching for something you hold dear. I will see you soon, my vessel, and I can’t wait to dig my claws into your beautiful body and rip your mind to shreds.”
My chest collides with Silas’s, and he wraps his arms around my body.
“Hang on,” he whispers, and the ruin, the burning, and the thick air vanish.
Chaos surrounds me, yet I know I’m back in my body in Silas’s room. The rustling of clothes and the loud clang of weapons fill the air. I become aware of my surroundings before my eyes open.
“Briar, get up right now,” Silas orders.
I open my eyes, and it’s still dark outside, the moon barely hanging in the middle of the sky. I sit up in bed and hear other people in the house moving around, their loud chatter echoing down the hallways.
“You had to do that right now?”
“What do you mean?”
“We don’t have time for this,” he snaps. “Stop searching for her.”
