Inferno of Darkness (Order of the Blade #8) (19 page)

Below him Elisha was still falling, plummeting violently into the dark depths, her dress cascading behind her like a curtain of magic. Even as she fell, she righted herself, facing him.
Dante.
Her voice touched his mind, a beautiful, magical voice that filled him with peace for the first time in his life. She held her hand up toward him.
You must take my hand. Only I can show you where the base of the inferno is. It is time to destroy it. It is time for me to die.

There was such acceptance in her voice, but at the same time, Dante heard something else. Fear. Sadness. Pain.And he knew, with sudden certainty, that his brave, courageous Elisha was a liar.

She didn't want to die either.

Elisha was horrified by the sight of Dante as he hurtled toward her past the creatures scrambling for freedom. Black, tainted blood was oozing from Dante's chest, leaking past the blade that was still buried in his ribs. His skin was ashen. His muscles were locked up, frozen with rigidity.

Elisha.
His deep voice filled her mind, and she dragged her gaze off the horror of his injuries. His face was twisted in pain, and yet his eyes were dark and his jaw flexed with determination so fierce it seemed as if he could stop the world from spinning with nothing more than a flick of his finger. The sheer strength of his will seemed to crush the insurmountable odds they were facing, and her throat tightened with emotion as she met his gaze.
You will not die today, Elisha.

For a split second, she wanted to believe him. She wanted to believe him more than anything she'd ever wanted in her life. But how could she lie to herself and to him? She had to be stronger than that. She wasn't a girl who lived in a world of fantasy. She was a woman who had to be stronger than her heritage. This moment was not about how she felt about him, or what she would want in a different life, in a world where she had options. Her throat tightened with emotions she could not bear to feel, not when she had to find a way to let go of him, and their future.

Instead of pouring out her feelings for him, she simply shook her head and stretched out her hand to him.
Do you see the creatures we're going past? They cannot go free. You know this. We must destroy the sword.
She grabbed his hand as he neared her, and she was shocked by how cold his flesh was. Like ice. Like a man moments from death. Despite her best efforts to be strong, terror plunged through her, and she gripped his hand more tightly.
Damn you, Dante! How could you stab yourself? You have to live!

His hand convulsed around hers as he pulled them together, somehow summoning strength she couldn't imagine even as they continued to fall, the wind whipping past them. He pulled her close enough to kiss, his mouth fierce and yet gentle at the same time. Tears filled her eyes, tears of longing for what might have been.

Here's the thing, sweetheart,
Dante said, pulling back enough to look at her, but not releasing her. He smiled, a smile so tender that she started to cry for real.
You're pretty damn sexy, and I'm not really done with you. It's not going to be convenient for you to die now, and if I die, then how am I going to have more uncontrollable sex with you?

She stared at him in disbelief, fighting back her tears.
You're thinking of sex right now? Really?

No. I'm trying to be funny. Lighten the mood. But I'll be honest, making love with you was one of the better moments of my life, so yeah, any moment is a good moment for thinking about it.

She was torn between laughter and tears.
But we're both about to die. The mood is what it is. Not a lot of lightness.

He pulled her closer against him, his body a buffer against all the chaos around them.
Do you love me?

Her heart softened, and she knew there was no point in hiding the truth from either of them.
Of course
I do.

He nodded grimly, as if she'd confirmed what he already knew.
So, then, tell me why you die when the sword is destroyed?

As he asked the question, before she could answer, she felt the wind shift, and knew the moment had come. "Now!" she shouted. "We have to stop our descent now!"

Without hesitation, responding instantly to her command, Dante called out his spear with a crack and a flash of black light. He slammed it into the nearest wall. It plunged deep and jerked them both to a stop, the steel blade bowing under the weight of their bodies. But Dante held onto it with surreal strength, his free arm still wrapped around her. She realized suddenly that the sword of darkness was no longer fused to his hand. It had released him once the veil had been severed. Or maybe the fact it was still lodged in his chest was enough of a connection between them.

Moving with agility beyond comprehension, given the depths of his injuries and the blade still in his body, he swung them to the side, into a crevice in the wall. She fell to her knees beside him, and put her hand on the sword. "Please, can't we take this out—"

"No." He put his hand on hers. "I have a bad feeling about what will happen if we pull it free."

Below them, the darkness seemed to ferment and boil, and streaks of purple light began to shoot past them. "My mother," whispered Elisha in horror. "She's coming. We must go!"

She scrambled to her feet, slip-sliding over the rocks, Dante behind her. "The source of the inferno is over here," she shouted, scrambling along the rough surface. "You just have to plunge the sword into it."

"Why do you die when the sword is destroyed?" Dante yelled again.

She found the opening in the rocky cliff that she'd been searching for, and ducked into it, Dante right behind her. "Because I'm linked to the sword now," she said, even as the sense of loss overwhelmed her. Now that she had found hope, love and kindness in Dante, she wasn't ready to die. He was a gift, the light in a life that had been so dark, that suddenly made life worth fighting for. But it was too late. There was no other choice.

Then she saw it. A silent, black pool that looked like ink. From it billowed vapors so translucent they were almost invisible, the vapors that would twist and contort when they got to the earth's surface. It was the inferno's source, the thing that would destroy the sword and free the world from this threat. It was also the thing that would kill her, and tear her away from the man she loved, and the son she would never know. "I linked myself to the sword to get out of the queen's darkness, so if it is destroyed, it takes me with it. I can't support myself out in the earth realm—"

Dante grabbed her suddenly and flung her back against the wall. His face was twisted in pain, and he was breathing heavily. With a roar of fury, he grabbed the hilt of the sword and pulled it out of his chest. His scream of agony filled the tunnel, and she cried out as he fell to his knees.

She went down beside him, holding his head off the rocks. "Dante," she whispered, tears streaming down her cheeks. "How can this be our fate?"

He was on his side now, his chest heaving desperately for air. "The curse. The darkness. Does it hurt you? Would my father's curse hurt you?"

She frowned, trying to grasp his question when all she wanted to do was cry and mourn the loss that was so imminent. "No, of course not, it's who I am—"

He gripped her wrist. "The earth...it supports me. I can live in the earth realm." He could barely get the words out. "I can provide the life support that sword was giving you."

Purple flashes began to fill the tunnel, and she sensed her mother was rising to the veil. "Dante, we have to go." Unable to stop the tears, she grabbed him under the arms and began to drag him across the uneven ground toward the pool. "Rohan won't be able to hold it closed against her."

Dante's head lolled back, his body weak, so weak. The curse was up to his chest now, blackened and twisting, mixing with the blow from the sword. She couldn't believe he was still alive, that he was still hanging on. "You can do it," she whispered, as they reached the pool. "You can live. I know you can. You must, for our son."

"No." He was inert on the ground, barely moving, but his eyes were fixed on hers. "I won't live, and you won't either. Not alone. Only together." His eyes fluttered shut. "The runes," he whispered. "The runes keep us apart. We are bonded by blood. My energy runs in you. Yours runs in me. If we combine...you give me your protection against the queen's darkness and I give you my ability to live in the earth realm. We help each other."

She stared at him, as sudden, fragile hope flared inside her. "Or," she said, "we give each other our vulnerabilities, and we end up with no protections from anything."

His eyes opened a slit. "Then we die."

"And our son?"

"If we don't try it, we die anyway. For him, we must try. For us, we must try." His voice faded, too rough and weak.
I love you, Elisha. That gives me strength. Help me.

There were screams from outside the tunnel, and suddenly orange flames and blue light reflected on the walls. "They've reached Rohan and Zach," he said. "Now!"

She looked into the eyes of the man who had given her hope. The warrior so strong that the sword had chosen him. She thought of the life she'd lived in hell, and the son she didn't want to ever give up.
I love you, no matter what.

And I love you.
Then, not taking his gaze off her, he grabbed the sword. He was weak, too weak to lift it, and she helped him. Together, they dragged it down his arms, tearing off the flesh that carried the runes that prevented the
sheva
bond from developing. She cried for his pain, but he didn't even flinch. He was simply focused on her, his eyes blazing with so much emotion that her heart seemed to come alive. The moment the last rune was cut away, something seemed to surge to life within her. Suddenly, she felt like she was a part of Dante. She could feel his pain, his courage, his guilt, and so much love that it blinded her.

Now!
Together, they grabbed the sword and hoisted it over the edge of the pool. For a split second, it hovered over the glassy surface, fighting their efforts, and she thought they weren't going to be able to penetrate the surface.

"In the name of love!" Dante bellowed as he leapt to his feet, throwing all his weight onto the sword. With a crack that shook the very earth, it plunged into the pool, shattering the surface of the water. The walls shook, and the earth screamed. Noxious fumes flooded the small cave and streamed out the entrance. Screams of anguish and fury filled the air, and the mountain shook violently, rocks tumbling down around them.

Triumph rushed through her and she grabbed his arm. "Can you feel that? You did it! The veil is closing!"

Dante gasped and fell to the earth, his flesh blackened and twisted as the curse took him. "Dante!" She grabbed for him, but at the same moment, sudden, debilitating pain overwhelmed her, and she cried out in agony as she fell beside him.

Pain filled her, a searing of her very soul, and she knew the bonding between her and Dante hadn't succeeded. She was still dying. They were both still dying.
It hadn't worked.

Elisha shielded her head against the onslaught of rocks, her body twisting in agony as life was ripped from it.
Elisha!
Dante's arm wrapped around her, and he dragged her beneath him.

His face was twisted in pain as he tucked her underneath his body, shielding her from the cascading rocks with his own flesh. Even in death, he was trying to protect her.
It didn't work, Dante—

We're not done yet.
His voice filled her mind again, the same words that he'd spoken before, only this time they spread through her like a golden healing light. His voice was full of wonder and love, and he filled her with his heart and his spirit.
Mine to you. Yours to me. Bonded by blood, by spirit and by soul, we are one. No distance too far, no enemy too powerful, no sacrifice too great. I'll always find you. I'll always protect you. No matter what the cost.
I am yours as you are mine.

And just as before, the words came to her as well, but this time their importance filled her, and she felt the weight and power of each word as she spoke it.
Mine to you. Yours to me. Bonded by blood, by spirit and by soul, we are one. No distance too far, no enemy too powerful, no sacrifice too great. I'll always find you. I'll always keep you safe. No matter what the cost. I am yours as you are mine.

My dearest Elisha.
Dante's body shuddered above her, and he sank more heavily onto her.
Merge with me. Let us share our strengths and our healing.