“Whoa, angel, it’s me,” Riven grunts as he wraps his fingers around my wrist. “What happened?”
I gasp for air, thanking the Valories that he found me but also can’t see me.
Fuck, Thayla. You should’ve turned the torch lamp on the second you started searching.
“I couldn’t hear you anymore. When I turned around, I accidentally slammed your lamp into the wall, and it shattered. I couldn’t see you.”
“Yeah, I smell it.”
“I’m sorry.”
My words are softer than I intended them to be, and I cringe at how shaken I sound.
“Don’t let go of me.”
He laces our fingers together and I embarrassingly cuddle as close to him as I can possibly get without jumping on his back.
His glowing, mostly blue eyes, must act as a light source for him. He guides us through the cave without a single stumble or trip, while if I didn’t have him in a death grip, I’d surely have already face-planted.
I’m both pissed off at myself for getting so far away from him to begin with, and at him because damn if he ventured all the way over here already, he most certainly was leaving me behind.
“Holy shit,” I mumble as we step into a large chamber.
Sparkles intensify around us, providing me with all kinds of light, but all I can focus on is the massive, five-spire Angel Aura Amethyst in the center. It’s surrounded by varying sizes of clusters that spread out everywhere.
Its power literally pulses through the space—beckoning us forward.
My mind, body, and soul hum as the energy vibrates my skin.
This is the rawest form of power I’ve ever felt.
“This is what we came for. Stay beside me as I harvest it. I’ll need both my hands.”
“Don’t leave me, Riven,” I warn.
“Never.”
I reluctantly let him go as he bends down, pulls something out of his backpack, and focuses on some of the smaller spires sticking out of the ground. My feet pull me toward the largest piece as he starts up a rhythmic chiseling and I hover my palm in front of it.
My mind grows hazy and my heart pounds against my ribcage relentlessly. Yet, the pounding isn’t in a fretful, panicked, or fearful sense, but a…safe one that’s full of comfort.
Angel Auras have always been rumored to harbor the most intense divine connection and protection, but I never understood that.
Crystals can’t cast out their powers on their own or swing a sword, yet standing in its presence, my hand nearly touching it, I feel invincible.
Like nothing could ever hurt me here.
The natural luminescent light in here doesn’t do the coloring justice.
There are parts of the crystal that almost look black, but when we get outside in the sun, I’ll be able to see the deep rich purple it really is.
My eyes narrow on the strange formation on the side of the crystal. There’s an empty space on the ground where a single, small spire is starting to sprout.
“Riven, are you sure no one has harvested anything from this cave?”
“Not entirely sure, but given the abundance of crystals and this massive beauty, I highly doubt any other gods have been in here. Why?”
“Nothing. The formation over here is strange. Like there’s barely any growth here.”
