Twenty-Three
Caspar Lennox arrived in the alley about three seconds after Alex, and the moment he saw her—or rather, what was in her arms—his jaw dropped. It would have been a comical expression on his normally stoic face if it weren’t so telling as to what he was going to say next.
“Absolutely not.”
“I haven’t even asked yet,” Alex said.
“You want to keep it. The answer is a resounding and unyielding ‘no’.”
“She was going to be drowned, sir,” Alex said, holding the puppy out for inspection. “Something about her having light and not being able to live here.”
Caspar Lennox recoiled as he took in the white paw of the creature. But still, his reply was resolute. “You cannot take her, Alexandra. Shadow Wolves are not pets. They are weapons.”
He reached for the puppy, but before Alex could change his mind, the puppy growled low in her throat. Shadows sprung up around Alex along with flashes of lightning as the little creature bared her teeth at the teacher.
Caspar Lennox froze. “It cannot be,” he said, his eyes wide and staring at the angry little wolf.
“What’s going on?” Alex asked, concerned by what she read in his features but also distracted by the miniature electrical storm encircling her body.
Caspar Lennox swallowed. “The wolf is protective of you.”
Alex looked down at the still growling puppy and back up again. “And that’s a problem because…?”
“It is not in their nature,” he said. At her questioning look, he explained, “They hunt. They kill. They destroy.” He paused, then finished meaningfully, “They do not protect. Ever.”
“Guess I got a good one then, huh?” Alex said lightly, trying to calm her teacher, her puppy and herself.
Caspar Lennox’s reply was slow in coming, and when it did, it was a single word. “Indeed.”
Alex decided to ignore the now-dissolving storm and pressed, “So, I can keep her, right?”
“I do not believe you have a choice, Alexandra,” her teacher said, his dark gaze pensive as he watched the gradually calming wolf. “For I believe it is she who has chosen to keep you.”
Goose bumps arose on Alex’s flesh because, looking down at the impossibly intelligent eyes staring trustingly up at her, she had a feeling her teacher was right.
“We should go,” Caspar Lennox said. “Did you have any success with the Dayriders?”
Tearing her eyes from the now relaxed and yawning puppy, Alex said, “They’re willing to help, but only if your race is as well. There has to be a balance, they said. All or none.”
Caspar Lennox nodded, unsurprised. “Then let us hope Shirez Ganare can convince the elders to give you another chance, even if I do not believe you will prevail.”
“You’re a real glass-half-full person, aren’t you?” Alex said dryly. “You’d be a blast at parties.”
Caspar Lennox’s only response was to reach out and shadow her and the puppy back to the academy. He left her outside the Med Ward, saying he would brief the headmaster and the other teachers on the day’s events—and warn them about her new canine companion—while she sought treatment for her wounds.
Alex nodded, but as soon as he disappeared again, she turned and headed for her dorm and the laendra she knew would heal her instantly. Better to not bring Fletcher more distress than was necessary.
Fully aware that it was mid-afternoon and students were freely wandering the snowy campus, Alex was careful to keep the now dozing puppy hidden in the folds of her coat. She was also careful to angle her bruised cheek away from view, since the relentless throbbing indicated that the sucker punch she’d received must have left quite the mark.
Thankfully, no one interrupted her journey as she crunched her way along the icy paths and finally made it up to her room.
With D.C. still in detention, it was a shock when Alex closed the door behind her and realised she wasn’t alone.
“Stars, Aeylia, please tell me that’s not what I think it is.”
Alex jumped and turned to the figure seated on her bed. “Niyx! You scared the crap out of me!”
He kept his eyes locked on the black ball of fuzz in her arms. “Do you have any idea what you’re holding?”
“Hello to you, too,” Alex said back, her voice sour. “I’m okay, thanks for asking. A bit sore, but still alive despite being almost burned alive. But enough about me, how’s your day been?”
“By the light, kitten,” he said, unfolding from her bed and walking threateningly over to her. “It’s a Shadow Wolf. Do you know how big they grow? How quickly? And what they do when they’re fully developed?”
“She’s just a puppy,” Alex said quietly, revealing the softly snoozing creature for him to see better.
“Now she is,” Niyx said, pointing to the wolf. “But by this time next week, she’ll be as tall as your chest.”
Alex’s eyes widened as she whispered, “What?”
“What is with you binding yourself to beings you’re better off avoiding—myself included?”
“What are you talking about?” Alex asked, still whispering as she looked down at the awakening pup. “I’m not bound to her.”
“She wouldn’t be lying docilely in your arms if you weren’t, kitten,” Niyx said. “Puppy or not, she’d be trying to rip your face off.”
As if able to understand his words—and maybe she could—the puppy reached up and gently licked Alex’s neck.
“Stars,” Niyx muttered as he took in the sight, running a beleaguered hand across his face. “What am I going to do with you?”
Alex bit back a grin and stepped towards him, holding the puppy out. “Do you want a cuddle?”
Unlike with Caspar Lennox, the wolf didn’t start growling, but she did eye Niyx speculatively, as if sizing him up.
With a sigh of resignation, Niyx took the little black furball in his arms. But not even he was strong enough to resist the pull of her cuteness, and a smile touched his lips as she nipped at his fingers.
“What did you mean about her being that big in a week?” Alex asked, struggling not to melt at the vision of him holding the puppy.
“Shadow Wolves grow into adulthood at exponential rates,” Niyx said, returning to sit on Alex’s bed.
The puppy, curious about her new surroundings, left his arms to explore, wobbling along the mattress before plopping off it and onto the ground, then sniffing all around the room on one great investigative journey.
“Within a week she’ll be fully developed,” Niyx continued. “So enjoy this cute phase while you can, since it’s not going to last long. That said,” he cocked his head at the puppy as she toddled into Alex’s wardrobe, “you have a real beauty on your hands here. She’s going to be extraordinary when she’s finished growing.”
Again, as if she’d understood his words, the puppy looked back at him, her tongue lolling out in doggy pleasure.
“She’s intelligent, isn’t she?” Alex guessed. “Like, supernaturally?”
“It won’t be the same as your bond with Xiraxus,” Niyx said, and Alex felt her heart thump painfully in memory. “You won’t be able to converse with her like you did with him or you do with me. But there will be… impressions. She’ll be able to sense your needs and understand your requests.”
The puppy snuffled her way over to D.C.’s bed and wiggled under it, sneezing quietly. She then appeared again and trotted back over, jumping up to rest her front paws on Alex’s shins. Taking the hint, Alex drew her up into her arms and placed her on her bed beside Niyx. She immediately crawled into his lap and, within seconds, curled up and started dozing again.
“I wish I was a puppy,” Alex said, looking longingly down at the wolf.
Niyx raised an amused eyebrow. “You want to fall asleep on my lap? I thought we talked about this, kitten. I’m flattered, really, but—”
Alex somehow managed to laugh at the same time as cringe while she interrupted, “That’s not what I meant, and you know it.” She rolled her eyes at his ‘Whatever-you-say’ expression and explained, “All she’s done so far is be all kinds of adorable and sleep. That’s what I call living.”
“Adorable or not, you’ll have to quickly adjust to having her around,” Niyx said, running a hand along her sleek, black coat. “She’ll stick to your side like glue for the first few days, but then she’ll take off and do her own thing, only coming to see you when she wants company, senses you do, or is responding to your direct call. No matter where in the world she is, if you cry out for her, she’ll hear you and be at your side in an instant.”
“So she can travel through the shadows?” Alex said, pointing to the blackness swirling around the puppy’s three paws.
“Judging by the look of her, I’d say she can probably move through the light, too,” Niyx said, stroking her one white paw. “When she’s big enough, you’ll be able to catch a ride with her.”
Alex looked at him in disbelief. “Seriously?”
Niyx nodded. “Yep.”
“That is so cool!” Alex said. “You have no idea how much I’ve been missing the Valispath. It’ll be great to be able to get around easily again.”
“Speaking of getting around easily,” Niyx said, carefully transferring the puppy onto the bed so as to not wake her as he stood and moved closer to Alex. “Let’s get you all fixed up. My arm is killing me, and this headache isn’t much fun either.”
Alex grimaced in apology and when he reached for her hand, she allowed him to unwrap the bandage.
“Stars, kitten,” he breathed after seeing the damage for himself. “I told you not to touch the flames.”
Alex had to resist jerking her arm from his grip in irritation, knowing it would only cause her—and therefore, him—more pain. “I wasn’t exactly in a position to avoid them at the time.”
Niyx’s jaw hardened, but she knew his anger wasn’t directed at her. Gently releasing her hand, he sought out her hidden stash of laendra and passed some over. While she chewed on the flower, he carefully smeared some of the nectar along her burn. The wound was so deep it nearly exposed the bone, but the miracle flower stitched her back together in seconds, taking away all evidence of her pain—everywhere.
Unable to hold back a moan of relief, Alex looked up at Niyx and whispered, “Thanks.”
“I wish I could have done more,” he said, shaking his head. “Aven had me in lockdown for most of the weekend, with constant meetings requiring my attention. Otherwise there’s no way I would have let you go off and do anything you’ve done this weekend on your own.”
“I wasn’t on my own,” Alex quietly said.
“You would have been less on your own if I’d been with you,” Niyx said. “Even just watching from afar.”
That, Alex couldn’t argue with.
“What did Aven want?” she asked as they both sat on her bed, careful not to disturb the puppy. “What were his meetings about?”
Niyx’s face shadowed and he turned away. “Nothing you need to worry about. Not yet.”
His answer alarmed her, as did his secrecy. “Niyx—”
“Please, kitten,” he said, sounding exhausted all of a sudden. “Tell me about you first. I want to know everything.”
Sensing his need for her to drop it, she did as he asked, but instead of telling him, she showed him, replaying the events in her mind.
“You held up better than I thought you would,” he said, referring to her fight with the Shadow Walkers. “Those who compete in the trials are highly skilled, and that’s without their travelling abilities. You should be proud of how long you lasted.”
“I need to win, Niyx,” she said, running a frustrated hand through her hair. “If I have another shot, I need to not just last, I need to come out the victor.”
He didn’t have anything to say to that. Mostly because there was nothing he could say.
“I think I would have had a better chance if I hadn’t been so disoriented from that first hit,” Alex said, hoping she was right. “I was seeing stars for the rest of the round. Next time—if I get a next time—I’ll know to expect something underhanded like that and not allow myself to be handicapped from the get-go.”
“The more rounds they have, the more opponents enter the trial,” Niyx reminded her. “It won’t just be two against one if the elders let you fight again.”
Alex spread her hands in front of her. “I can’t give up hope. I have to at least try.”
He sighed loudly. “I know you do, you crazy human.”
He said it with clear affection, and that was the only reason why Alex didn’t elbow him for the insult it was.
“And hey,” he said with a one-shouldered shrug, “let’s look at the positives. Maybe you’ll pick up a few tricks you can use when you kill Aven. I’ve heard they can do this thing where…”
He kept talking, but Alex could no longer hear him. She raised a hand and, with wide eyes, interrupted to say, “When I kill Aven?”
Niyx broke off mid-sentence and peered at her curiously. “Uh, yeah, that’s what I said.”
“When I kill him?” she repeated again, just in case she’d heard wrong… twice.
“Ye-es,” Niyx said, drawing the word out and looking as if he was considering checking her temperature. “When you kill Aven.”
Misinterpreting her expression, he added, “Don’t worry, I know you can’t do it until you’ve Released everyone he’s Claimed, otherwise they’ll die too, but once they’re liberated…” He shrugged and finished, “He’s free game then, and you can kill him without consequences.”
Alex opened her mouth and closed it. Then she did so again, before finally saying, “I’m not going to kill Aven.”
Niyx’s body stilled, the action so sudden that the bed jerked under them.
“I’ve never said I was going to kill him,” Alex continued, her shock at his presumption making her somewhat breathless. “I don’t—I can’t kill him. That’s… that’s… Especially now, not after—after—”
After knowing Aven in the past. That’s what Alex couldn’t say, but Niyx heard it all the same.
She watched him swallow, once, twice, before he managed to speak. His voice was hoarse and barely controlled when he whispered, “You said you were going to defeat him.”
“Defeat, yes,” Alex said emphatically. “But kill?” She shook her head. “I’m not a murderer, Niyx.”
“You said you were going to defeat him,” Niyx repeated, much louder this time, his features ravished by emotions Alex couldn’t fully understand. “I’ve given my whole life for this cause, surviving hour by hour only from the knowledge that one day you would end him. And now you’re telling me that was never your intention?”
“Niyx—” she whispered, but he interrupted with a roar that miraculously didn’t wake the now comatose puppy.
“I didn’t rot away in prison for thousands of years just so you could give him a smack on the knuckles and tell him to play nicer in the future!”
“That’s not—”
He leapt to his feet and jabbed a finger down at her. “I stayed there for you, Alex!”
She winced at the name he’d used, a name he never used.
“I could have escaped at any time—but I stayed because I knew, I knew, that when the time came, I had to appear loyal to him so that I could help you!” His finger jabbed the air again, a sharp, violent motion. “And now—now you want to, what? Tell him to stop being a naughty boy and send him on his way? Stars! I can’t believe this!”
“Niyx, that isn’t—”
“Do you have any idea what he’s been doing these last few weeks?” Niyx bellowed. He threw his arms out to the side. “Do you have any idea what horrors I’ve been keeping from you, just so you’ll sleep soundly at night?”
Alex felt cold all over at the ragged look on his face that accompanied his declaration. She mouthed his name, unable to offer any sound.
“I told you, Aeylia,” Niyx said. “I told you.”
Breathing heavily, he didn’t continue, not until Alex pressed in a whisper, “Told me what?”
His eyes cut to her, like purple flames piercing her flesh. “When you first returned here from the past, I told you that Aven is more powerful than you realise, than any of you could ever realise. I told you I’d heard rumours of what he’s done, unspeakable things, monstrous things on his path to becoming who he is. Things no one should ever consider doing.”
Trembling from his intensity, Alex stood up and stepped forward until she was right in front of him.
“Tell me,” she whispered looking up into his eyes.
Niyx’s features hardened. “There is nothing left of the Aven you once knew. The Aven I once knew. What stands in his place is a shell of a Meyarin, a soulless creature full of darkness.”
“Niyx—”
“He’s eating them, Aeylia!” Niyx yelled into her face. “He’s cutting out the hearts of the Meyarins he’s Claimed and he’s eating them. Their strength, the power of their life force, he’s absorbing it all, bite after bite.”
Alex’s stomach lurched violently as she tried to process what Niyx was saying. She didn’t understand—she couldn’t understand. The very idea that Aven was—was—
She couldn’t even finish the thought. Why would he do something so… so… barbaric? It was one thing to watch a zombie movie and joke about how unrealistic it was. It was another thing entirely to be living the experience. She raised a hand to her mouth, fearing she was going to throw up.
“It’s become an addiction for him,” Niyx said, his tone lowering but no less anguished. “The thousands of years he’s spent Claiming other beings have changed him, transformed him into a power-hungry creature with no care for anything but ultimate supremacy. He will stop at nothing to take dominion over this world, following the vilest of paths in order to do so.”
A harrowing sound left Niyx’s throat, and Alex reached for him but he recoiled from her touch.
“To eat the heart of a Meyarin is an act worse than the murder itself,” Niyx whispered, his eyes filled with unspeakable horror. “The heart is sacred, it is the wellspring of life. Everything we are, everything we have ever been, comes from the heart. And if we can’t go to our final resting place with it still in our bodies, we’ll never find peace. Our eternal slumber will be tormented and cursed by darkness.”
During her time in the past, Alex hadn’t learned much about the Meyarins’ beliefs in what came after death, since unless they were killed, they would never die. And since it was so rare for a Meyarin to be killed, death was an uncommon topic—indeed, it was almost considered taboo to talk about it. So to hear such words from Niyx… Alex ached for him. Aven’s actions, while already abhorrent on a foundational level, were now even more abominable.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” she whispered. “Why did you keep this from me?”
“Because I didn’t want you to fear what is ahead more than you already do,” Niyx whispered back. “Who he is now, Aeylia… He’s so strong. He’s so fast. He’s so powerful. Even without the addition of his army by his side.”
“I needed to know, Niyx,” Alex said, still quietly. “You shouldn’t have carried this burden yourself.”
He looked at her with sad eyes. “You already carry enough, kitten. I was trying—” He swallowed thickly. “I was trying to protect you. Inasmuch as I could.”
A long silence descended upon them. But then Alex spoke, knowing he wouldn’t like what she was going to say, but having to say it anyway.
“I can’t kill him, Niyx.”
A muscle clenched in his jaw and he looked away from her.
She didn’t allow him to retreat; she purposefully closed the distance he’d put between them and reached up to turn his head back to her, ignoring his blazing eyes.
“I won’t kill him,” she repeated, her hand at his chin keeping him facing her, “but I swear to you, Niyx—I swear I will do whatever it takes to defeat him. He will remain alive, but he won’t have a free life.”
“You can’t contain someone like Aven in a prison,” Niyx said. “Not even Taevarg would hold him indefinitely.”
“I realise that,” Alex returned quietly. “Especially if he’s absorbing the strength of other Meyarins, like you said.” The idea was so reprehensible that she still couldn’t get her head around the zombie parallels, around the choices Aven had made over the years that led to who he now was—to what he now was. “But there must be a way. And I give you my word that I will find it.”
Locking him in her gaze and hoping he could see how determined she was to prove her words true, Alex waited with baited breath for his response.
Finally, the tension drained from his body and he leaned forward, drawing her into his arms in a tight, desperate hug.
“You’re going to be the death of me, kitten,” he muttered.
“You’ve said that to me before,” Alex said as she pulled away from him, attempting to lighten the moment. “Turns out you’re a survivor.”
“One of these days, my luck just might run out. Or yours, more likely. It’s not enough for you to snuff it in peace—you won’t be happy unless you take me with you.”
Alex frowned at him. “Okay, Mister Morbid. Feel free to stop joking about this now.”
He sent her an arched look. “Who’s joking?”
She punched him in the arm. “Now you need to stop joking about joking.”
His lips twitched, and as they did, Alex felt the strain leave her own shoulders. His earlier fury had shocked and alarmed her. His declaration that he’d remained imprisoned for her had slashed her heart with guilt. And his anguish over Aven had torn her apart. She hated what Niyx was doing—she absolutely hated that he had to act loyal to Aven and witness the horrors occurring at the hands of his former best friend.
“I need you to tell me if there’s anything else you’ve been keeping from me,” Alex said quietly. “Even if you think it’s for my own good.”
Niyx loosed a reluctant exhale and moved to sit down again. “I can’t tell you much, but that’s because I don’t know much. Aven’s keeping everything close to his chest.”
Alex sat beside him, casting a quick glance at the puppy who was still sleeping soundly, oblivious to the yelling match they’d just had. “Go on.”
“I know he’s planning something,” Niyx said. “And I know it’s… big. Whatever it is, it’s not going to be in our favour. And I know he’s… pleased.”
“Pleased?”
“With how everything is working out,” Niyx answered, running a hand through his dishevelled hair. “Him ruling Meya. His plans moving forward. Whatever it is he intends on doing. All of that is making him… happy.”
Alex rubbed her arms, chilled.
“Aeylia,” Niyx said, turning to capture her eyes, “I know I told you to leave the Shadow Walkers to their fate, but I was wrong. You need to get them and the Dayriders on board. They have enough sway with the Flips and Jarnocks to rally them to our side. Everything is riding on this.”
Alex lowered her eyes and admitted the truth—to both of them. “Even if Shirez convinces the elders to give me another go, you said it yourself, Niyx. It’s impossible for me to win.”
He tipped her chin up with a finger. “I know for a fact that when it comes to you, kitten, nothing is impossible.”
Heartened by his confidence in her, Alex nodded and sent him a small smile.
“I should go,” he said, albeit reluctantly. “I needed to see for myself that you’re okay, but I can’t risk staying any longer.”
Alex brushed her hair behind her ear and forced herself to ask, “Aven’s not… He won’t… Uh…”
Niyx looked at her when she trailed off and said, “A complete sentence might help.”
Her mouth curled but then her amusement wilted when she whispered, “You’re a Meyarin.”
Brows raised, Niyx said, “Those are some stellar observational skills you’ve got there.”
She bit her cheek and forced herself to finish, “You also have a heart, Niyx.”
His own humour fled as he understood her implication.
“I’m safe, at least for the moment,” he said softly. “There are a few Meyarins who are resisting his Claim on them. Not breaking it, like you can do, but fighting him enough to be causing him some irritation, since he has to work harder to keep them under his control. It’s them he’s… harvesting.”
Harvesting. What an awful, yet fitting, word.
“Since I’m playing the good little soldier,” Niyx said in a bitter voice, “and since he still considers me one of his closest friends, the risk to me is small. For now.”
“For now,” Alex repeated quietly. She reached for his hands. “I want you to swear to me, Niyx, swear by your stars, by your light, by your mother or unborn child if that’s the kind of thing you do… But I need you to swear that the moment you think Aven suspects you of disloyalty, you’ll get out of there.”
Niyx barked out a laugh. “I’m not suicidal, kitten. I can only help you kill—defeat him if I’m alive.”
The word correction was tinged with bitterness, but he didn’t rail at her again, and for that she was thankful.
Stroking the puppy one last time, Niyx looked from the snoring wolf to Alex and said, “She’ll need hand-feeding for the next three to four days, but as she gets bigger, she’ll start to take off and hunt for herself. Milk for today and tomorrow, then solids after that. Fresh, raw meat is best.”
Alex sent him a grateful smile. “I’ve never had a dog before, but I’ve always wanted one.”
Niyx made a groaning sound. “Wolf, Aeylia, wolf. She’s not a dog—a dog would be considered normal. But having a wolf for a pet? And a Shadow Wolf, at that?” He shook his head. “Decidedly not normal. Only someone as mad as you would—”
“Yeah, yeah, I know, I know,” Alex interrupted as she shoved him off the bed. “Now get out of here before Aven notices you’re missing. Or Dix returns.”
At the last, Niyx grinned a wide, brilliant smile.
“What?” Alex asked, seeing his unguarded humour.
“Promise me you’ll show me her reaction later.”
Alex’s brow furrowed. “Huh?”
“The princess,” Niyx said. “I want to see how she reacts to your new puppy friend.”
For the first time since deciding to adopt the wolf, Alex blanched.
Niyx burst out laughing at her expression, the sound still echoing in her ears long after he took off on the Valispath and vanished from sight.