Page 56 of Beyond the Treaty
His lips captured mine in a searing kiss that spoke of unspoken desires and promises made in silence. I melted into him, my hands tangling in his hair, pulling him closer as if we could freeze this moment. His hands gripped my waist, anchoring me, grounding me.
When we finally pulled apart, his forehead rested against mine. “Tomorrow, we fight. But tonight, let me hold you.”
I nodded, allowing myself this moment, this breath of warmth before the storm.
But once dawn broke, there would be no turning back.
As dawn’s first light crept through the stone archways of the Keep, I rose. Azrael and Darius were already waiting in the hall, both armed and ready. Azrael’s expression was unreadable, but his energy was focused, lethal. Darius looked like he’d rather be anywhere else but here, yet beneath his usual bravado, his grip on his weapon was firm.
Azrael met my gaze. “Are you prepared?”
I let out a slow breath, steeling myself. “Let’s go.”
Without another word, we set out.
The journey was gruelling, the terrain growing darker and
more treacherous the closer we came to Ebonshade. The air thickened with something unnatural, something ancient. The land’s magic seemed to twist and coil, sensing our approach.
The journey was gruelling, the terrain growing darker and more treacherous the closer we came to Ebonshade. The air thickened with something unnatural, something ancient. The land’s magic seemed to twist and coil, sensing our approach.
Azrael walked a step ahead, his focus unwavering. Despite his usual snark, Darius remained quiet, his shoulders tense with unease. I kept my grip firm on the crimson tome, the weight of it grounding me. Each step forward felt like walking deeper into something forbidden, a place not meant for the living.
Azrael suddenly halted, lifting a hand. “We’re close.”
Darius exhaled sharply. “You don’t say? The air feels like it’s trying to suffocate me.”
I ignored him, glancing at Azrael. His expression was unreadable, but the intensity in his crimson eyes told me he was already working through the next step.
“We don’t have the time to approach on foot,” he said. “The longer we stay exposed, the more likely we are to be
discovered.”
I nodded, already anticipating what he was about to do. Azrael turned to me, his voice firm. “This will not be
pleasant.”
Before I could respond, shadows coiled around us, stretching weightlessness gripped me, followed by a gut-wrenching pull as the world around us twisted. Darkness surrounded us, thick and cold, as if the air had been stripped of warmth. My body felt like it was being pulled in all directions at once, an unbearable pressure compressing my chest.
And then,
We landed.
The moment my feet hit solid ground, my knees buckled
slightly. Darius let out a strangled noise, staggering beside me. “I hate when you do that.”
Azrael remained composed, his gaze fixed on the structure ahead.
Ebonshade Keep loomed before us.
Even in the dim light, its darkened spires twisted unnaturally, the fortress itself looking more like a wound in the landscape than a place built by hands. The obsidian stone gleamed under the faint moonlight, pulsating as though it were alive. Shadows clung to its walls, moving unnaturally, shifting when no wind stirred them.
A chill ran down my spine. This place... it wasn’t just dark. It was wrong.
Azrael stepped forward, voice low. “We don’t have much time.”
I nodded, pressing my palm against the tome once more. The runes flickered to life, shifting, forming new words across its surface.
