A Soul For Chaos (The Soulbearer Trilogy) (35 page)

“Run for cover,” Loku urged. “This isn’t going to be pretty.”

Arden stumbled back, falling beside Kell. She wrapped her arms around him and cast a shield.

The light grew brighter and brighter until it blinded her. The ground had rumbled during their battle, but now it shook as though the earth itself were being torn apart. Nelos’s voice roared through the room in a cry of pain and frustration.

Then the priest’s body exploded. The remaining columns crumbled into the dust, and the roof they’d been supporting fell in a giant sheet of stone.

Arden covered Kell’s body with her own and shaped her shield into a dome. A second wave of magic wrapped around them as Loku added his own support. The impact of the ceiling made her head swim and left her breathless, but when she regain her senses, she realized the dome had held.

Only now, several tons of rock threatened to collapse it.

She flashed back to the earthquake on the night of eclipse. It had been so easy to protect Kell then. The bricks of the tower had bounced off her shield, and she was able to end the spell in under a minute.

This was different. It took every ounce of magic she possessed to counter the sheer weight of the rocks above her. She dug her elbows into the crevices of the floor and stiffened her body as though it would help strengthen the invisible barrier of magic that kept her and Kell alive.

A hand grabbed her arm. “Arden?” Kell rasped.

“I’m right here. I have you, and I’m not going to let anything happen to us. Just hang on. Help will be here soon.”

Even though they were enveloped in pure darkness, she closed her eyes. The sound of Kell’s labored breaths taunted her. She released a slip of magic into him to heal his injuries, but the dome flattened under the weight of the rock, taking her breath away in the process. She redirected all her magic into the shield and let a tear slip from her eye.

“Loku, help him, please,” she begged. “I can’t lay here and listen to him die.”

“I’m sorry,” Loku replied, his voice cracking. “If I help him, I lose you.”

A sob broke free from her chest. It seemed no matter what she did, she’d lose Kell. Her heart ached with the same feeling of utter helplessness as it had when Gandor stabbed Dev. “What’s the use of having all this magic at my disposal if I can’t use it to save the people I love?”

A shock tore through her. She loved Kell. Maybe not in the way she loved Dev or in the way Kell would like, but he still held a special place in her heart.

She kissed his cheek. “Kell, hang on. Please keep fighting.” She hesitated before saying the words she’d always found so hard to say before. “I love you.”

Kell answered with a sharp gasp, and she knew he’d heard her.

“That’s right, Kell. I love you, and I’m not ready to lose you. Help will be here soon. Please don’t give up.”

She pressed her forehead against his and kept repeating those words over and over again.

***

Dev pushed the last rock out of the way, creating an opening large enough for him to pass through.  They’d almost cleared the debris from the last quake when a larger one sent them all scrambling for cover. The taint of Nelos remained long after the dust cleared, and his heart feared the worse.

Varrik came up to him, a trickle of dried blood cutting through the grime on his face. “I’m not going to rest until I know she’s safe.”

But what if we’re too late? What if Nelos succeeded? He shoved his fear aside. “I feel the same way. Let’s go.”

He heard the Empress and his father behind him, but he couldn’t afford to wait any longer. His gut told him something bad had happened, that a god had died tonight. The question was—which one?

They came to a wooden door hanging loosely on its hinges. When he opened it, his heart skipped a beat.

A large room lay on the other side, similar to what Arden had shown him. Only now, the room had caved in, taking a section of the imperial gardens above with it. And somewhere under all that was Arden.

Lady Luck, please be on my side tonight.

“Where do we start?” Varrik asked.

“I have no idea.” The destruction was so vast, it buried any trace of her. He rubbed his chest, wishing he could soothe the ache forming inside it. As he ran through his options, one stood out. “Do you still have her necklace?”

Varrik pulled it out from under his shirt.

Dev held the pendant and focused on Arden. The months he’d known her seemed to fly past in a blur. Every smile. Every glance. Every saucy comment. Every fight. Every moment he’d held her in his arms. He’d give up everything just to have one more of those moments with her.

“Dev?” a voice replied out in his mind.

He shook his head, sure he’d dreamed it all up. But then he heard her muffled voice again, this time from underneath the rubble. “Dev, are you there?”

Relief washed through him, and he released the breath he’d been holding. Arden was still alive.

Varrik raced toward the source of her voice. “Help me get to her.”

Dev joined him in pushing back the rocks, the patches of sod and the broken pieces of a fountain that had once graced the garden. His fingers ached and bled, but he continued digging like a thirsty man desperate for water.

“Look out,” Marist cried as soon as she entered the room.

A ball of golden mist rose from the rubble and raced toward him. A rush of magic flew past him, locking the ball up in a silver cage of magic.

The Empress walked past him, her face strained as she focused her magic on the ball. The silver ring returned to her eyes, and her magic intensified. When she spoke, her voice was not her own. It rang with the power and authority of a goddess. “I’ll deal with Nelos. Get the Soulbearer out of here as quickly as possible.”

The air left Dev’s lungs. What secrets did the Empress hold?

His father joined them, pulling him back to the task he was given. Levitation spells lifted the heaviest pieces out of the way. As they got closer to her, he could hear her saying, “Hang on, Kell. They’re coming. They’re digging us out right now.”

He was fine until she said, “I love you, Kell.”

Dev froze, his pulse pounding through his weary body. A primal scream built up inside his chest, but he refused to release it and let everyone know his anguish. He’d waited too long to tell her how he felt. And despite the bond between them that supposedly was built on love, she was uttering the very words he longed to hear to another man.

“Snap out of it, Dev.” His father jostled him. “We’re almost there.”

He resumed digging. The first glimpse he got of her was her tattered dress. They moved out from there, slowly revealing a leg that was bent at an odd angle. Then the first strands of her yellow hair appeared. As they removed more of the debris, he realized she was lying on top of Kell.

“Arden, are you hurt?” Varrik asked.

She shook her head. “Just please hurry. I don’t know how much longer I can keep the shield up.”

Dev reached out to touch her but ran into the invisible barrier of magic which buzzed along his fingertips. How she’d managed to keep her shield up against the layers of rock that cover it astounded him. He swapped a glance with his father, who seemed to share the same impression.

They finally cleared the rocks that presented the largest threat and reinforced a wall of magic around the surrounding rubble to keep it from caving in on them. Dev crouched beside her. “It’s safe to lower your shields, Arden.”

As soon as the buzzing vanished, he swooped down to take her into his arms. The sensation of her breath on his neck was the closest thing to paradise he’d ever known. He held her close to him, thanking the gods over and over again for keeping her safe.

But then she pushed him away, and he saw her tear-streaked cheeks. “Dev, we have to heal Kell. He was wounded, and I couldn’t…” Her voice faded into a sob.

As much as he wanted to take her away from this place and never let her go, he couldn’t ignore her grief. He handed her to Varrik and leaned over Kell. The prince’s breaths were shallow, and blood spilled out from his mouth. A bright red stain bloomed across his chest.

Dev pressed his hand against the wound. Warm blood bathed his skin. He sent a small thread of magic to explore the severity of the wound and winced when he saw the damage. It would be so easy to say he couldn’t do anything to save the prince and eliminate his rival, but his soul rebelled against the idea. It stood against everything a knight was supposed to be.

Kell opened his eyes and stared at him. They both loved Arden. And they both deserved a chance to see which one she would eventually choose.

Dev poured his magic into Kell. A thick purple substance bathed the inside of the wound, preventing him from knitting up the torn tissue of Kell’s lungs. A tremor rattled through his body as he continued to heal the prince, warning him that he was approaching the limits of his power. Blots of blackness slowly spread in front of his eyes.

Someone pulled him away from Kell, breaking his spell and leaving him stunned for a few moments. As the world came back into view, he saw his father bent over the prince, finishing what he couldn’t. Two other robed figures had joined the Empress off to the side, their hands raised as they tried to contain the ball of golden mist with magic. Varrik knelt next to Dev, watching him with a creased brow.

And a small arm was wrapped around his chest, holding him close to the person behind him. “Thank you, Dev,” Arden murmured in his ear.

He covered her hand with his own, pressing her palm against his heart. Tomorrow, after a good night’s sleep, he would ask questions. Tomorrow, he would piece together tonight’s events into some coherent structure. But right now, all he cared about was knowing the woman he loved was safe.

“You know I will do anything for you,” he said.

She squeezed him tighter. “Yes, Dev, I know.”

Chapter 32

Dev bolted from the bed as soon as he realized he wasn’t in his normal chambers. “Where’s Arden?”

Someone shoved him back onto the mattress. The pale light of dawn concealed the person’s face in the shadows, but there was no mistaking his father’s voice. “Calm down. She’s safe in her quarters.”

Dev leaned forward, bracing his elbows on his thighs while he waited for the room to stop spinning. “What happened?”

“You were weak after trying to heal Kell, so I decided to bring you here so I can keep an eye on you.” A lamp flared to life, illuminating the room with magical light. “Forgive me if I want to take care of my only son.”

“Were you able to help him?” The question startled him. All these months, he’d viewed Kell as a rival, and now he found himself wanting to know the prince lived.

Arano nodded. “Whatever wounded him was coated with a type of poison. I can only assume it was the serum from the Flower of Lireal, but it made healing him difficult. Once I was able to remove it, then things stitched up nicely.”

“And Arden?”

His father sat in a chair beside the bed. “Arden is… caught in interesting circumstances.”

Dev snapped his head up. “What does that mean? She’s alive, right?” When his father nodded, he asked the one thing he dreaded. “She’s sane?”

“Very much so. Almost too sane, considering what she did last night.” His face grew serious. “It seems your little Soulbearer tried to destroy Nelos.”

Dev sucked in a breath through his teeth. “And the consequences of her action?”

“They remain to be seen. The Empress was not amused, however, and I think it has nothing to do with the destruction of her gardens.”

A note of bitter laughter broke free. “Now they understand why she’s called Trouble.”

“Indeed.” His father pulled out his pipe and started to pack it. “The Empress has ordered her to remain in her chambers until we sort this mess out. I was able to convince the Empress not to bind Arden in the mithral chains, though.”

“How?”

“By bringing you here,” Arano said with a grin. “Arden was worried sick about both you and Kell, and she won’t go anywhere without knowing you’re well.”

“You’ll only keep her contained for so long.” He stood, his sore muscles protesting the slightest movement. “I should go see her, let her know I’m all right.”

His father lit his pipe and nodded. “Perhaps you should.” The mischievous twinkle in his eye told him it was all part of his plan.

Dev exchanged his dirty, torn clothes from the night before for something clean and went to her quarters. The sun was rising over the palace walls, bathing the gardens in its pale golden light. Stillness hung over the grounds as though the world was still recovering from last night’s turmoil.

Dev found two guards standing on either side of the door when he reached the Soulbearer’s quarters. “You can go now. I’ll make sure she doesn’t leave.”

The two men exchanged glances before following Dev’s order.

Inside, Arden paced the main room, her arms crossed over her chest. She stopped when she saw him. “Dev!”

He almost fell backwards when she flung her arms around him. So far, though, she appeared as normal as the day he met her. He indulged in enjoying the warmth of her body pressed against his for a few moments before he pulled her away. “Are you hurt?”

She shook her head. “I’m just irritated. They won’t let me leave here, and they refused to tell me anything about you or Kell. I was worried sick all night.”

He searched her face from the wrinkled brow to the bottom lip that jutted out in the slightest of pouts. No signs of insanity. No signs of injury. No signs of any lingering damage from everything she experienced last night. “Arden, answer me truthfully—did you kill Nelos?”

 She took a step back, chewing her bottom lip and lowering her eyes. “Define kill.”

He silently cursed. “Did you even think about the backlash you’d get from that?”

The yellow-green halo in her eyes flashed, and her mouth pressed into a hard line. “He was trying to kill me and Loku. It was kill or be killed, and I wanted to make him pay for what he did to Kell. Besides, I didn’t completely destroy him—just his body.”

Dev closed his eyes and tried to count to ten. He only made it to eight before he realized there might be some hope of getting her out of this mess. “What do you mean by not completely destroyed?”