The Beginning After The End Chapter 356

ARTHUR

The aethereal blade in my hand – no bigger than a simple dagger and hazy at the tips – struck a winged creature made of stone before partially shattering, still unable to withstand the impact.

My hand went around the creature's throat. It looked like a bat with a crushed stone face and a huge mouth. Its wide jaws bit madly just inches from my face as its jagged claws dug into my arms in a desperate effort to get closer.

Holding the gargoyle back with one hand, I conjured the blade again in my other hand and plunged it into the beast's head, which split with a resounding crack.

The blade broke and disappeared, leaving me with empty arms to defend myself as two more gargoyles descended towards me.

Twin bolts of dark fire hit the descending gargoyles and the charged beasts exploded. Its debris fell to the ground like hail and scattered small splashes where it landed in the creek that divided the area.

I looked back to see Caera reaching out, revealing the silver armband she had taken from the Spearbeaks treasure room. It looked slender compared to her wrist, little more than a decorative sleeve covered with intricate engravings.

Two narrow shards of silver swirled defensively around her, glowing with black light. On the next breath, they began to darken as they returned to the armband and reconnected to it, fitting the pattern of engravings.

Regis ran towards us, spitting a chunk of rock out of his mouth.

Behind him, the area stretched out into the distance, covered by the wreckage of our passage.

We were in a canyon with steep, rocky cliffs on both sides. They were so tall that only a patch of sky could be seen above us, like a reflection of the thin, clear stream that ran along the bottom of the canyon. Loose stones and debris – the remains of the gargoyles – covered the canyon floor.

"That was too much," said Regis impassively.

"I admit, it wasn't bad after things started happening," Caera replied, carefully keeping her expression serious, except for the slight quiver of her lips. "Actually, it was quite… marbled."

"I think fun, like beauty, is in the eye of the rock…" Regis replied in a shaky voice as he tried desperately not to laugh.

I faced the exit portal with a deep sigh. "I'm so glad I brought you two."

Caera approached me. "Oh, don't be so serious, Grey."

"Yes Princess. You shouldn't take us because of granite." Regis exploded, barking with laughter.

Ignoring my companions, I focused on the portal, my mind working on a question I'd carried with me since I acquired the compass.

It had to be more than just a portal generator that got us in and out of the Relictombs at will. My mind kept going back to the djinn. As hard as it was to believe, they designed and built this place. They must have had a way to travel through it, and I already knew the Compass could interact with a Relictomb portal.

An image flashed through my mind, the false memory Sylvia implanted with her latest message to me. The clarity of memory had faded over time, but I knew it was one of the zones that led to the djinn's next downfall.

Until now, I had blindly stumbled across the Relictombs, knowing this place was guiding me toward my goals…or so it seemed, at least. But blindly relying on the machinations of a long-dead race of aether holders did not meet my needs. Not if I was going to dominate Fate.

Sitting up, I concentrated on the faded memory Sylvia had left me while I activated the hemispherical relic. It vibrated with aether as a hazy gray light engulfed the portal, replacing the slippery glow of oil that hung like a curtain within the stone frame with a clear view of my room at the Central Academy.

"Damn," I cursed, cutting off the flow of aether on the relic, causing the portal to revert to its original appearance.

"Protein paste for your thoughts?"

I looked up to see Caera holding stuffed nutrient-filled rations in an insulated tube container.

"I'm just thinking about how to use the compass properly," I replied, dodging the strong smell the food gave off. "How do you eat these things? The smell is horrible."

She shrugged her shoulders before squeezing the contents of the tube into her mouth. "Unlike you, I really have to eat to survive. This material is easy to transport in large quantities for long climbs."

"I think I'm glad I don't need to eat," I said, wrinkling my nose.

Caera swung the tube, blowing the scent of cold flesh into my face. I flinched and pulled her hand away, my knuckles grinding against the silver cuff around her wrist. "How is your new artifact?" I asked, eager to distract her from torturing me further.

"Ridiculously frustrating," Caera pouted. "It's like I've grown a new member that I have to learn to use from scratch."

"Hey, he does that all the time," said Regis, shrugging his wolf shoulders.

I tightened my hand around Regis' muzzle before answering. "Looks like you got the hang of what I saw back there."

A slight smile tugged at the corner of Caera's lips before disappearing just as quickly. She lifted her silver armband as she turned toward the portal. "Do you think the compass works as my artifact?"

"Come on," I whispered before turning away. Regis followed me, allowing her a moment of privacy to grieve.. The half-muffled sound of broken sobs resonated in the silence.

Chapter end