Total pages in book: 151
Estimated words: 147649 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 738(@200wpm)___ 591(@250wpm)___ 492(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 147649 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 738(@200wpm)___ 591(@250wpm)___ 492(@300wpm)
“You asked about Pressia earlier.”
Fear. That’s my first reaction. But I get a hold of it. “What about her?”
“She’s been taken care of.”
“How?” My voice comes out with the rumble of power.
This makes Apis smile. “There it is.”
“There what is?” I decide to play dumb.
“The power. The next level. The destruction.”
I can’t breathe at the moment. Because he’s right. That is the purpose of this voice.
Destruction.
“Let’s get to the point, shall we?”
“That would be great.” My voice is still booming. “What happened to Pressia?”
“Funny thing, actually. She”—he shrugs—“seems to have disappeared.”
“Disappeared how?”
“Through a door. And that’s another funny thing. No one has had door magic in millennia. And suddenly, there are two of them in two days. First your little lioness Pie gets pulled through one”—he sneers her name—“and now your little broodmare conjures one up out of nowhere. Isn’t this a coincidence?”
“Maybe.”
“Or maybe not.”
“I thought you wanted to get to the point?”
“I do. But… not quite yet. Because this is the pre-show, Pell. The main attraction is still upcoming.”
And then a hand comes over my mouth from behind, and before I can stop myself, I suck in air. Only to get a healthy dose of poppy oil.
I’m falling backwards. And Apis is looming over me as my head begins to spin. “Don’t worry, brother. It’s all gonna turn out just the way it should.” He smiles down at me. “And don’t worry about the little lioness. We have ruined her forever. She will not be a problem. And by the way, just so it’s clear, she was never yours, Pell. And now she never will be.”
The poppy oil kicks in hard, dulling his words and making him fuzzy.
The next thing I see is blackness.
7
I wake up slowly to the sound of drums. Loud, thumping beats in a slow, almost suspenseful rhythm that bounce off the insides of my brain, making me cringe. My eyes are closed, not quite ready to cooperate, and I don’t try to move. Can’t, actually. I’m upright, standing, but I’m tied to something. A pole, maybe. But even without opening my eyes I understand that there are flames all around me. I can see the flickering yellow and orange through my eyelids and the heat coming at me from all directions is intense.
It doesn’t hurt, though.
And I’m not surprised at that. I am a man of fire, after all.
The drums abruptly stop and a voice booms out, taking the place of the beat. It is Apis and he is spelling something into existence.
“A horn, a hoof, an eye, a bone.
Forgotten gods will now be known
Two thousand years we bred them well
Beasts of magic, blood, and spells.
The bloodhorn of the monster Pell
Full of might and the fires of Hell
He gives it to us, he makes us blessed
And we take it from his beastly flesh
So hear us now, you overlords
We did your bidding, we endured
The gods of future and of fate
Will grant us power to create.”
Even though my eyes are still closed and the poppy oil, not to mention the words of Apis, have subdued me and made me slow and foggy, I can sense that there is big magic going on all around me. I don’t need the sudden rise of flames and heat to signal that. Whatever is happening in this room, I am… connected to it.
“No.” This voice in my head is so clear. And it belongs to Tomas. “No, Pell. You’re not connected to it. You are it.”
I struggle, just trying out my bindings. But the chains are tight, their strength perhaps even magnified with magic. I am unable to move.
“Not true.” Again, it’s Tomas. “You’re the biggest power in this room, Pell. Chains? Please. When have chains ever contained you?”
Never, actually. I can’t remember a single time I’ve been in chains.
“Exactly. Just… take a breath. Clear your head. You still have about two minutes before they cut it off and take your horns—”
What?
“Yes. Your magic is in your horns. They’re just going to take the whole head, though.”
“I thought I was getting married?”
I didn’t mean to speak out loud, but it happens. It’s not loud, barely a moan, but it captures the attention of Apis, because he answers me.
“That was before your little lion girl escaped through a door, my friend. That threw us off the track. So, apologies, brother. But this is how it has to be.”
I take a deep breath, like Tomas suggested, and then force my eyes open. It takes several moments for me to even focus, let alone find the face of Apis.
“There he is.” Apis is grinning at me. “Welcome back, friend.”
“Friend?”
Apis chuckles, then looks around, which makes me look around too. All the gods and goddesses are there, a ring of power standing around the edge of the small, circular room. The flames are coming from their palms, dancing along their fingers and rising up into the air.