General Marcellus led Amaya to safety in the company of the guards. But where was it safe when they were attacked? And danger threatened even from within.
"We'll throw her over to the soldiers," said General Marcellus. "Ciaran won't be able to blame us if his brother kills her."
"Finally we'll get rid of that witch," said one of the guards.
"She's only brought bad luck since she came here," said another.
Amaya ignored their words. She really good knew what they thought of her. And she did not care. Why she should bother with thoughts of stupid humans? So weak and fragile.
A shadow moved in the torchlight. It chased them. It appeared and disappeared. The guards were restless. They didn't like it. There was something ominous in the air. But Amaya was completely calm. She liked the fear flowing in their veins.
As they turned the corridor to the left, one of the soldiers disappeared. He was gone in the blink of an eye. There was only a scream hanging in the air. The guards became more alert. They drew their swords. They noticed the flickering shadow. It was fast. It was everywhere. It crawled along the ground to them and pulled another man into the darkness. The air was filled with fear. Amaya adored that smell.
"Is this your fault?" the general asked Amaya.
Amaya laughed to herself. "Are you afraid, General?" she smirked.
Shadow was taking one soldier at a time. It was dragging them into the darkness. They wanted to fight but it was in vain. The shadow couldn't be killed. Blood stained the walls and floor. Red lakes colored the white stone. Bodies torn to pieces. Guts scattered around.
The only ones left standing were the general and Amaya. General Marcellus put the tip of his sword to Amaya's throat.
"Stop it!" he ordered her.
He couldn't stand watching his soldiers and friends getting killed so easily. He was afraid to die. A soldier who saw terrors on battlefields was now shaking.
"And what if I refuse, General?" Amaya said. "Do you think you'll be faster?"
The shadow peeled away from the walls. It materialized. It rose above them like a cloak of darkness. It absorbed all the light. General Marcellus turned his gaze to him. He looked right into its guts. His body shook with fear and terror. The shadow opened its predatory mouth and bit the general's head off. Amaya was splashed with his blood. His soulless, dead, headless body collapsed to the floor. A growing pool of blood formed around him.
⸸
The royal army of Deira set fire to the palace. King Enzo did not risk his own life by leading his soldiers. Prince Ciaran ordered his soldiers to retreat. The flames had already engulfed the entire palace and his brother's soldiers were outnumbered. They had to get as far away from them as possible. They tried to save everyone they could.
However, Ciaran could not find one person. He did not see her anywhere among the people who fled the palace.
"Have you seen Amaya?" he asked the last ones who ran away.
"No," they answered him.
"She's still in the palace," said one of the maids. "I saw her fought the soldiers who invaded the palace."
Ciaran didn't hesitate even for a second and ran into the flames to find her. The soldiers wanted to stop him, but he refused. He had to get to her before it was too late. He had to find her.
The palace was burning. The flames engulfed all the corridors and the roof. The voracious fire consumed everything. Burning stone and wood crackled. They were falling apart. Pungent smoke and the foul smell of rotting corpses filled the air. Black smoke outshined the brightness of the flames. Amaya couldn't see where she was going, but she knew she had to get out of there. Now was not the time to be frivolous. If she is engulfed in flames this time, it will be forever. She could almost hear Death calling her to herself. She felt the cold touch of Keres.
Her feet led her somewhere into the unknown. Thick smoke hid the road. She inhaled it. It pinched her lungs. It was burning her from the inside. It stung her eyes. Tears sprinkled her face, which immediately dried up in the heat. The screams of the burning people died down. She stayed there alone.
She managed to reach the staircase. She took one step, two, when it fell apart. A chasm opened before her. Her foot slipped and if she hadn't quickly grabbed a hot stone, she would have fallen into it. She burned her palm. She managed to scramble to solid ground.
She had to find another way.
She could barely stay on her feet. Heat radiated from the stone. Tongues of fire caressed her skin as if tasting her before devouring her. The whole world revolved around her. She was attracted by sweet unconsciousness. She thought she heard someone calling her name.
"Amaya!" came from a distance. "Amaya!"
She had no idea if she was just dreaming or if someone really came looking for her.
"Amaya!" the voice was too far away.
The heat radiating from the fire shattered the windows. The glass shattered. Shards of glass flew into Amaya's face. They cut open her skin. The explosion knocked her to the ground. She touched her cheek, her fingers red with her own blood. Her heart was pounding nervously. She gasped.
That's when the ceiling collapsed. Massive rocks fell, luckily they didn't hit her. Liquid fire seemed to pour out of the hole in the roof. It flooded everything below. Amaya crawled away from it, trying to save herself. She didn't want to burn.
She was lying on the hot floor. She was weak. She couldn't breathe. She felt her destiny making it clear that her time had come. She felt as if the gods had trapped her.
"Amaya!" came that voice calling her name again. She heard him even through the crackling of the flames.
For some reason, she felt she had to follow it. She has to get to that voice.
As if by a miracle she saw the balcony. She scrambled to her feet. She moved towards it with an uncertain step. She saw the night sky. It wasn't night. It was already day. Even through the smoke rising into the sky, she could see a disk of light in the black sky. Solar eclipse. She breathed fresh air into her lungs. Every breath hurt her. Below her, she saw a pool running along the entire side of the west wing. She thought of jumping into the water. It was the only way she could see.
She climbed over the railing. She felt a tremor in it. The balcony moved. It was collapsing. She jumped. The balcony fell with her. She broke the surface. The water deafened her. She got hit by the wreckage. She felt pain. She hit her head on the bottom. She didn't have the strength to swim. Her body gave up.
She saw a shadow approaching her from the surface. He held out his hands to her, she to him. He took her in his arms and helped her float to the surface.
She was coughing up water. Water was dripping from her hair. A cool sea breeze mixed with the heat of the flames caressed her skin. The whole palace was burning around them. She looked at Ciaran, who had just saved her. He looked more devastated than she did.
"It was stupid of you to come back for me," she told him.
"A simple thank you would do," said Ciaran.
"Thank you," Amaya said.
Ciaran helped her to her feet. She was fragile. She shivered as he held her in his arms. And in one sudden moment, she pushed away from him violently and took his sword. She aimed it at him. Ciaran sighed.
"Give me one reason to not to kill you," Amaya told him.
"I don't have one, but at least listen to me," replied Ciaran. "I came to Amorite to kidnap you for a reason. I expected you to be just another girl out of millions, but you are different. I fell in love with you the moment we fought. I fell in love with you when you were fearlessly taming ghosts in the forest. I fell in love with you when you made my father fear you. I fell in love with you every second I spent with you, Amaya. It was all supposed to be a lie between us, but it was real to me."
Ciaran tore his shirt. He took a step closer to her, two. He allowed the blade of his own sword, in her hands, to sink into his chest. Not deep, but deep enough for a trickle of blood to run down his body. Amaya took a step back from him as if she was afraid that Ciaran would kill himself.
"If you want to kill me, do it. Rip my heart out of my chest and take it, Amaya, because it belongs to you and will always be only yours."
Amaya lowered the sword. Ciaran noticed how her mask of cruelty and anger broke. He saw her desperation.
"You know the worst part of it all, Ciaran?" she said. "That you made me feel something. I can try as hard as I want, but I can't stop it. It hurts, Ciaran."
A single tear ran down her face. Ciaran wiped it away with a gentle touch.
"I'm sorry you're crying because of me. Please let me fix it," he asked for a second chance.
"I don't even know if I can trust you," Amaya said.
"At least try it. I will do anything in the world to earn your trust back."
"I don't think we have time."
"Then at least let me die by your side, my little goddess."
Amaya couldn't bear the gentle words. She couldn't stand his closeness. She looked away. She backed away from him.
"We should go or we'll burn alive here. The fact that time no longer has much control over you does not mean that you are immortal," she said coldly.
"And where are we going?" asked Ciaran.
"Into the shadows," Amaya replied.
"Why?"
"Because it's the only place where Keres can't go after me and Arawn is already waiting for you."