The
two
of them dashed down the stairs in earnest, missing a couple at a
time
but miraculously not falling. They were well on their way to end
this nightmare, but... there was something else afoot. A little
voice
was crying out frantically in Shadow's head, It isn't over
yet!
It isn't over yet! She wanted to throttle that voice, but she
couldn't deny it. Those same stomach-tightening, haywire
instincts
that had overcome her before she was brought to Aunger's tower were
getting
stronger with every stair.
Her
companion could almost feel it coming from her skin like a fever--but
now
was not the time to ask. He knew the danger wasn't over.
But
he also knew that if they didn't hurry, they could miss a couple of
exceptionally
important executions.
Add
to that the sight that met them at the bottom of the steps; guards were
simply strewn everywhere. It was certainly enough to give them
pause,
wondering if perhaps the siblings had escaped on their own. Upon
further inspection, however...
"No
wounds." Roan uttered quietly, kicking over a few of the
bodies.
By the look of things, they'd all simply... fallen where they
stood.
It seemed to have been instant. The positions and general lack of
blood made it seem perhaps to have been some sort of spontaneous and
truly
destructive magic--only, there was no residue. Magic of that
potency,
not to mention that nature, always left some signature behind that even
the least magic-inclined of creatures could feel. There was nothing.
And
it
was starting to give him chills.
"Any
ideas?" she inquired, seeing her ax among the bodies. She rolled
one guard in particular over with a careless kick and took it from his
stiff hand without a second thought. You deserved it, you son
of a bitch. Perhaps it wasn't polite to call a dead zombie
names,
but she'd run out of politesse years and worlds ago.
"Not
a one." He admitted, rolling a few more bodies over.
Nothing.
No wounds, no loss of blood. No looks of pain or fear.
Just...
alive one moment, dead the next. Maybe they really were connected
to Aunger in the most intimate of ways. If the madman had been
using
their living energies all along, it'd make sense that when he died, the
rest would be released. He wasn't certain of that theory, but it
seemed to fit in with Aunger's thinking--if "the master" went down, he
seemed pretty sure the rest would go down with him. Roan was
suddenly
quite glad he'd gotten rid of that collar.
Shadow
grinned for a split second as if hearing that thought. "Shall
we?"
"Let's."
He nodded, taking a turn to the left of the stairs. There was a
small
dungeon in that direction, used specifically to keep those who were to
be executed. With any hope, they'd find the siblings there.
He doubted the guards had much time or opportunity to prepare any of
the
ghastly death machines, so that was in their favor.
She
followed closely, keeping her ear perked for any sounds. The
occasional
glance from side to side yielded nothing but more piles of
bodies.
Once again, there were no visible wounds or struggle--they simply
seemed
to have collapsed at the same time, dead by the time they hit the
ground.
Freaky.
Another
turn and they were in front of a large metal door, decorated only by a
keyhole and a small window with criss-crossing bars. Bodies of
the
guards that once protected it lay strewn in such a way that they had to
be moved. Not a pleasant thing to drag half a dozen petrified
corpses
from one end of the room to the other, but they both knew they'd been
through
much worse.
Keys
easily within reach upon an unprotected belt, they used the largest one
on the door's simplistic keyhole. To their great satisfaction,
the
heavy door swung open mechanically the moment the lock released,
revealing
two feet of solid metal that even the two of them probably couldn't
have
budged. Revealed beyond was indeed the execution dungeon.
And
they had hit the jackpot. No sooner had torch light spilled into
the otherwise completely dark hall of cells than they heard, with
utmost
resistance, "Coming back for more, huh? Well--well--fuck
off!
Get out of here!"
The
two rescuers exchanged a glance of amusement more than shock.
That
was Taerlyn's voice, alright. A little rugged with the previous
bout
of screaming and the musty air, but unmistakable. It seemed her
big
sister had taught her much. "Ter?"
A
long, desperate pause. And then a soft and heartfelt, "I'm
sorry."
Grinning,
Shadow walked up to the second cell on the right and peered in. A
little bruised, definitely, but not in such bad shape. "It's
okay."
She assured, making room for another key to be used.
The
girl stumbled a little as she leapt to the door, but even the sore
muscles
had been forgotten. She was rescued, and they were alive!
But,
when
the door was opened... "Where's Evyn?"
"He's
not in here with you?" Roan tried his damnedest not to let concern
color
his tone.
But
he'd failed. Taerlyn swallowed, just trying to keep herself from
shrieking obscenities. She'd found she rather enjoyed the
practice.
Of course, it was not the time. "No... they took him another
direction."
Shadow
did not like the blank look she saw on Roan's face. Or
that
almost inaudible click in his throat.
He
spoke finally, but flatly. "Do you know which direction?"
By
then the girl was a bundle of shivering nerves--but she had the wits
about
her to take a deep breath, trying to calm herself. "No."
Slowly,
he nodded; but that look was still there, unmoving. It was better
to check the worst possibility first, wasn't it? The very idea
made
his guts knot. And those eyes on him... he caught Shadow's
carefully.
"We'll... check."
"Don't
leave me here." Taerlyn whispered instantly.
Her
big sister took one more look at Roan's face and cringed a
little.
The possibilities... were not looking good. Instinctually she
knew
what he did--the guards hadn't had time to arrange an execution.
But they may have had time for more horrific activities... "You
sure,
Ter?"
"Yes."
She answered with no hesitation. "I... I need to be with you."
Maybe
it wasn't a good idea, but the silent agreement had already been made
among
them. Leading only because he was the one who knew the way, Roan
took an all too familiar route. No, maybe none of the interesting
machines of death had been prepared... but there were rooms
specifically
for the torture of particularly difficult prisoners. He'd always
known Evyn would be considered in that category.
Turning
into a wider and better lit corridor, Taerlyn gasped. The other
two
tensed and looked back, hands on their weapons--but it seemed there was
nothing there. The looks of readiness became puzzled.
Taerlyn
pointed a shaking hand, eyes wide with concern. "T-the
blood..?"
She wasn't quite used to seeing either of them bleed. And yet
they
were covered with gore of some sort...
Shadow
took a breath before placing her ax in its place on her back.
While
there was astounding pride in her statement, it was only a momentary
diversion
from the matter at hand. "It's Aunger's."
It
took a moment for the statement to reverberate in the girl's
head.
"Really? Is he dead?"
"He
had better be." Roan cut their celebration short.
Which revealed nothing. A usual fading torch, some scattered bits and pieces of... things he didn't want to think about. Letting himself have that moment of something resembling relief, he lead them right through and into the short hallway that separated the first from the second room. Again his chest felt tight, bile and a rapid heartbeat thick in his consciousness--
The second room was even less of a travesty. There were more torches, but less scattered things on the floor. It seemed that one hadn't been used for a while, having had time to have been more or less cleaned.
Only one more room to go. He knew that. And yet his feet wouldn't move right away. He tried again, but his knees nearly unhinged. Shadow was waiting beside him, looking down the dividing hall, jaw tight against an onslaught of any kind. He knew Taerlyn was right behind them without having to look, her arms tight around herself as though she were cold.
He wanted to let out a groan; a long, arduous, painful sound of... of something. Of that molten iron ball that had formed in his stomach. There was a good possibility Evyn was not in that room. But there was a better one that he was. The metallic scent of blood--that was just his imagination, right? Probably the chains on the wall.
Shadow shivered at that moment. He glanced over and it was almost confirmed there and then; it was not his imagination. Worse yet, the chains inside the second room had been removed to be replaced in the future by new ones.
"Let's go." It was surprisingly Taerlyn to utter the words, her voice darkened by something completely unfamiliar to her. She just... had to see.
Somehow the words got his legs to move, though the first step was shaky. They stepped across the stone floor at a normal pace--it seemed too fast, too strong... but necessary. There were two torches in the next room, they could see from the hall. One on either side, bathing the large dome shaped third chamber in dim light. Burning steadily with hisses and pops, beckoning them like lustful sirens. As they entered the doorway, something took shape on the far wall. Something, but not... not really anything they could make out. The light, the shadows, the shape itself were all alien. They were well over halfway toward it before--
It became familiar. Horribly, irrevocably familiar, in ways that were utterly unfamiliar. Not to mention unwelcome.
Forehead resting against the wall, huge metal pins through his wrists that gleamed in the shifting light, blood matted in his hair... His right forearm had been broken, a fact made more obvious by his body hanging from the pins.
His armor was gone, shirt long since ripped to shreds, his pants turned to ribbons and held to his flesh only by the drying blood. There was a deep gash on his left side--no doubt sliced by his struggling against his own armor being torn from his body. The rest was splashed with crimson, torn open and bleeding with strikes from something that had embedded deep lines in flesh and muscle. Even through the blood there were clear bruises, black and blue in the shapes of fingerprints, hand prints, fisted knuckles.
It was almost more sickening to realize that his boots were still on, and perfectly in tact. But they hung limply, inches above the floor, dripping slowly into puddles of cold blood.
It was Evyn--and yet it wasn't. They wanted to scream, or run, or wake the fuck up from this nightmare. Silent save for the dripping--dripping that served well as a bump, the darkness of the chasm much deeper than the dark of night alone.
The hope of getting away from the monster was fleeting. Roan knew well that only those who never saw the actual beast in the night had a remote possibility of escaping unharmed. But those that stared the monster straight in the face... the hope faded all too quickly.
Shadow, on the other hand, tended to believe that the thing going bump in the night wouldn't give its victims a chance to see it before it struck. Things were bleak. More than just that--it was hard to look, and harder to accept that this... this hung carcass was Evyn. But if there was hope, any such chance, they'd fucking find it.
Taerlyn was catatonic. She remained fully conscious, this time, but... not by much. Her eyes were wide, frightened, glazed--denying and accepting all at once. A silent scream hung limply on her slightly parted lips.
The shock was as dense as any brick wall--but it was cracked by motion. It was terribly wrong, absolutely not something giving hope to the hopeless... but it was there. Evyn's head had slipped and slid downward limply, forcing his cheek against the wall rather than his forehead. Even in the heavy shadows it was clear and terrifying; his lips were bound together with thick black thread.
The horror of that vision... Shadow quickly turned Taerlyn away like an overprotective parent, holding her little sister closely against her. How fucking... awful. Horrendous. But... the fact remained that he had moved. And maybe... just maybe that was something. There was still the possibility... She met the black eyes that gazed back at her, and no words needed to be exchanged. She carefully took Ter's hand and lead her over to the opposite wall. The girl sure as hell didn't need to see this, regardless of how it turned out. If and when she was needed, she would go back and help--but they would leave Taerlyn out of it.
Roan closed his eyes as they walked away, needing a moment to calm his heartbeat and catch his breath. Realistically, this was nothing new to him. He'd seen similar things a million times, and much worse. But those people hadn't been his family. Those people had been faceless; just blank, false people that had severely wronged his almighty master. How things had changed. Opening his eyes again, he nearly recoiled as though he were only then really seeing the whole picture. That was Evyn. That was Shadow's brother and his once-nemesis. And the chance that he was still alive was surprisingly real. But how good of a thing could that be under the circumstances?
Ready as he thought he ever would be, he carefully wrapped an arm around the limp boy's waist, taking the full weight upon himself. With another deep breath, he reached up and grasped the spike's head to his right, then gave a steady yank. Stone and metal ground together and echoed loudly over the dripping, the smell of the blood overwhelming--it took all of his self control not to lose it all right then and there.
Across the room, sitting against the wall with Taerlyn trembling in a crouch in her arms, Shadow cringed. She had intentionally attempted to stave off any sort of reaction for Ter's sake, but... there was just no way. Maybe more stomach wrenching than the sound of the pins piercing Evyn's wrists being pulled from the stone, was the fact that he didn't scream. He didn't make a sound.
Roan was swallowing the scream himself, feeling his legs quiver underneath him as the weight over his shoulder seemed far too cold and dead. That was, until he felt a slight warmth against his neck. Evyn's head had shifted while he was struggling to stand, and that heat had been... breath? He waited, eyes open but unseeing, counting each of his own heartbeats ticking by. Sure enough, dammit, there was another heat--breath. Slow and shallow, hardly real at all, but there.
Taking his strength from that, Roan reached for the last spike and tore it from the wall easily. With the limp boy completely freed, he lay the body down carefully and away from the pooled blood. While signs were pointing in a much better direction than before, there were still things to look for. Much as it sickened him, as tight and sour as his stomach felt, he let the sheer possibility that this would turn out alright drive him onward. Pulling his new sword from his side, he delicately used the edge to slice the thread that bound Evyn's lips. Replacing the blade, he braced himself--he was no stranger to these specific matters. Sometimes the guards had a little more "fun" than they ought to, and sometimes a prisoner's own fingers, toes... and other things were sewn into their own mouths. Granted it was a practice reserved for the worst offenders against the king--but that's what they, his family, were.
Shivers running through his spine, he carefully pulled the bits of thread from the flesh. Only tiny droplets of blood fell after, but they were warm and flowing. With lightly shaking fingers, he parted the bleeding lips... and let the tiniest sigh of relief rush him. Yes, that was an excellent sign. Everything was "in place", so to speak. Healing was possible.
But there was one more thing to take into account. Not entirely certain he actually wanted to know, Roan still forced himself to gently pry one of the boy's eyes open. The pupil was nearly nonexistent, moist and alive... but lacking. There wasn't a single glistening of intelligence there. He swallowed, taking his hand back as though he'd been stung. That... was not such a good sign. There was still a chance, sure... but it was smaller than before. With that kind of torture, not even knowing exactly what had been done, paired with the blood lost...
His worried eyes met the pair of gleaming fire across the room. She had watched every second, taking it all in, every subtle expression, every motion, everything. But her eyes were still wary. She couldn't help but be that way. Natural pessimism, perhaps--but she still held hope. She had to, dammit; he was her brother. She did not hesitate to use that remaining hope when Roan motioned for her to come and help. It was more than worth a try.
She took a deep breath and carefully placed her hands on Taerlyn's shoulders. The girl pulled back and looked at her, tears in her eyes, still shaking. She started to speak several times before the quiet, shaking words finally emerged. "Are you... going?"
"Yeah." She assured smoothly. "But you stay here. We'll be right over there if anything happens. Okay?"
Ter nodded, seeming to physically draw into herself as she realized she'd have to be her own comfort for a while. But she'd learned a lot through all of this, too. She could do it. She could be strong. She nodded again, more decisively.
How odd. Shadow's mind interrupted. And it was, certainly. How the fuck did she get here? She went from being fully, suicidally unsatisfied to a whole other world, a whole different dimension, with a brother, a sister, and a fucking crazy boyfriend, all of which she loved more than she ever thought possible... and then to this. Knee-deep in the possibility of losing such a large piece of it all. Looking back up, her "fucking crazy boyfriend's" decidedly sane eyes seemed to reassure her somewhat. Still a chance, dammit.
She gave Ter another reassuring squeeze, then stood and walked as confidently as possible to the other side of the room. Kneeling, she kept her voice almost too low for her to hear herself. "Well?"
"We can heal him, mostly." Roan responded quietly. "But that's all I can be sure of."
She understood. It was painful, but she knew to what he was referring. No sense in denial--even with his body healed, Evyn might not... be Evyn, anymore. "Let's do it."
It was good to hear, making him just a little more confident. He could really use that much, as they all could. First thing was first: set the broken bone. It was goddamn lucky the break had been a clean one, as he'd had experience with them. All it took was a firm grip on the wrist and elbow, a little pull and a quick twist--
She shuddered. That snap was actually a good thing, but... unsettling just the same. Again there was no sound from Evyn's bloody lips, and that was what really tore at her insides. She found no change in the barely existing pulse, either. But there was a pulse. They'd have to act fast. Worry was starting to get to her, wearing defenses down.
Roan took a moment to steady her, wrapping her hand firmly is his own. They would have to be physically connected while trying to heal the boy, anyway--but it was an act that offered as much comfort as it received. Far from being undoubtedly reassured, she still melted into the motion. Yeah, it was time to get this thing on.
The moment they summoned the blue fire to the surface, it was like a floodgate. No--moreso it was as if Evyn was a vacuum of some kind. The energy was drawn, sucked, absorbed as quickly as it was offered. And for the healers, it was like trying to breathe normally in a wind tunnel.
Taerlyn looked up from her shivering crouch, the whooshing sound of the blue fire seeming like the strike of a war drum as it echoed off of the walls. She witnessed the glowing blue cover her brother's body, going from bright one second to dim the next, almost nonexistent from time to time like a flame that didn't have enough oxygen. Sitting on her haunches, arms wrapped around her body, she promised herself that she would watch everything. She needed to know, one way or the other.
Evyn's apparent need for their healing energy made it hard to judge the passage of time. To the girl watching from across the room, the process took mere seconds. To Shadow and Roan, however, it felt like hours of struggle. Their bodies ached with combat that didn't physically take place, their lungs constricting painfully as the blue fire seemed more ripped away from them than pulled. When at last there was nothing more to give, the energy erupted once more in a crackling, bright blue flame--and they collapsed, spent and unconscious.
Taerlyn gasped as the events unfolded. Ignoring her still unsteady legs, she darted to their side, instinctually checking for Shadow's pulse. There was one, though it moved slow and erratically. Roan was in no better shape, but at least they were still alive. Completely drained, like when they had tried to save Sandy, but alive.
The last thought brought tears to her eyes. Sandy... she prayed her brother hadn't gone the way that she did, poor sweet steed. At least they'd had a chance this time...
Trembling, heart beating far too quickly for her held breath, she reached for Evyn's neck. The initial touch was freezing cold and still--but only a moment more revealed moving heat beneath. One single, steady, healthy pulse. Seconds later came another. And then another.
She pulled her hand back and turned toward the only way out of the room. Almost comfortably she simply sat, there and then, trying to make sense of this thing. What should she do? What could she do, other than wait for someone to wake up? That didn't seem... appropriate. Or safe. Or in the very least--
A godawful shriek erupted. She gasped and jumped, completely caught off guard and startled beyond anything she thought she'd ever experienced in her life. The adrenaline pumped so hard she thought she'd drown in it, flinging her head around in the direction that mind numbing sound of fear had come from.
Evyn sat, hunched over in a trembling heap, eyes wide with something far too close to empty insanity. He seemed in another time and place completely, frozen except for the intense shaking. It looked as though he were caught halfway between screaming and weeping, but didn't really know which way to go next.
Taerlyn, kneeling on legs that felt liquefied under her, covered her mouth unconsciously. Tears welled up in her eyes, but she saw his form well enough. Alive, her brother was alive... but was he... was he..?
The eyes that had been staring deep into a nothingness that may as well have been the depths of hell, blinked. The shaking still gripped his body, but it faded into shivers, little by little. At last he blinked again, much slower as if savoring the action. Then he turned his head--
She thought she'd drop in a dead faint, never to wake again. As that head turned in a slow motion arc, however, she felt the full effects of the adrenaline. Should she run? Would her legs hold her if she tried? Should she fight? Should she scream? Maybe all of the above? Maybe go absolutely mad from the intensity of the moment, alone--
"T-Ter..?" came a scream-roughened voice.
Tears ran freely, as did she. She collapsed onto her newly bruised knees in front of her brother, sobbing openly and wrapping her arms around him. She was careful, as careful as she could be, but she had to hold him, had to make sure it was him, he was real, he was alive and not just part of a cruel trick of her mind.
Confused, partially numb, short of breath and very cold, Evyn's hands slowly came to rest against her back. He didn't know where he was, and he had no idea why she was crying--then it struck him all at once. His muscles tightened painfully, almost reaching a tearing point. Everything came back, everything he didn't want to remember; the whole thing, the process, the pain--
"S-sorry." He croaked quietly, realizing he had been holding her far too tightly for a second there. He really wanted to break down and cry a bit himself, but... there were missing parts of the equation that would not allow it. Taking a quick look around, he wasn't quite sure what those were...
Until his eyes fell on the collapsed, right by his side. He opened his mouth, but no words formed in his mind to be spoken. A curse, a question, a reassurance--he didn't know what he would have said, anyway. Shadow was completely covered in dried blood, and Roan had a good deal of the stuff on him, too.
His body tremored again, and he held onto Taerlyn with tightly closed eyes as if she were the only thing left in the world to grasp onto. He couldn't make sense of it in his current state of mind. Something felt so empty, so gone... and then a quick, unexpected heat licked at his side. A familiar tingle, a familiar sound...
Weakly forcing his eyes open again, he let his head fall to the side. A blue glow was just dying from their bodies--alive! Both of them! He could see the increasingly rapid rise and fall of their chests. And, come to think of it, they didn't seem to have any wounds. The blood was still there... and it wasn't theirs. He felt elated--and possibly a little more confused. The numbness was beginning to give way to a steady thrum of pain, though one that wasn't even a fraction as bad as it had been before. It occurred to some part of his mind that a little bit of the energy they had given him was "on loan", so to speak, so that they could recover themselves. He sure as hell didn't mind.
Shadow coughed. Taerlyn gave a little jump at the noise, but neither let go of her brother nor opened her eyes. She got the general idea, and that's all that mattered. The tears became less of dire concern and fear than of pure, absolute joy.
Evyn didn't speak. His throat still hurt, and he was a little worried about waking either of them up prematurely. He wished fervently that he hadn't remembered the events leading up to that moment--but he was just glad things were shaping up to be alright. It was about time, dammit.
Roan grunted softly, having found, half consciously, that he'd landed in an awkward position and his arm had lost blood flow. In his condition, moving just slightly to the side was like trying to lift a mountain all by himself. He did so, finally, but that little act resulted in a bit of panting afterward. Yes, recovery was going to take a little bit.
Satisfied and feeling a fucking lot better, Taerlyn finally released her deathgrip on her brother. She pulled away and smiled, wiping the tears from her eyes. "Are you okay?" she dared, sniffing.
He smiled, feeling a stiffness in his lips as he moved them... and then he began to wonder how much she'd seen. Her eyes were bright and cheerful, but... "Yeah." His voice slipped, but it had grown stronger. Clearing his throat delicately, then swallowing, he finally put together a question of his own. "What about them?"
"I think they're okay." She kept her voice low, as if not wanting them to hear.
"And the..." a swallow, both to wet his throat and to keep his voice steady. "And the blood?"
His little sister's smile became slightly devious. "It's Aunger's."
He wasn't sure he heard her correctly. But when he smile turned steadily into a waiting grin... "Really?" Elation was apparent in his strengthening voice.
Taerlyn nodded, quickly and excitedly. "I don't know details, but..."
He gave her a big hug, his muscle aches starting to ebb. This was fantastic to hear, to put it lightly! Releasing his sister, he turned his whole body to the other two, still laying limply on the floor. While Roan was struggling to get the pins and needles out of his arm with the least movement possible, Shadow had put her waking effort into opening her eyes.
"Evyn!" she gasped, sounding like she'd just run a marathon, her voice barely above a harsh whisper. "Good to see ya, kid." She'd have sat up and hugged him if she could have. Honest.
He smiled back like everything in the whole freaking universe was nothing but good and pure. Aunger was dead and his family was alive! The rest of the world didn't even matter then and there!
...But there was a draft. A coldness. He realized he could feel the stone underneath him. And, perhaps worse, he realized only then that he really wasn't wearing much. In fact--he covered himself and pretended like he'd known all along, blush or no blush.
Shadow had used up her energy for the moment, but Roan allowed himself to chuckle. It was a flat, unobtrusive sound thanks to his condition, but the meaning was all too clear. "Take... the cloak." He offered almost breathlessly. It's not like he needed it, himself.
Yes, I think I'll do that. Evyn didn't argue. Instead, he tried to forget the fact he was practically naked, making damn certain his legs were in an excellent position to hide himself as he shifted to take the offered clothing.
Now Shadow found strength to laugh. It was weak, but damn she couldn't help herself. The picture was just... disturbingly funny. Especially after all they'd just been through.
"Shut up." Her brother joked quietly, wrestling with the clasp. Even when that was done, there was still the matter of most of the article still laying underneath Roan's body. "Sorry." He apologized in advance, before leaning his full weight into yanking the cloak out from under him.
Well, that worked the tingle out of Roan's arm, alright. But now the other one was starting to suffer. Ah, what a series of events.
Shadow continued laughing quietly, thanks to her sick mind, and even Taerlyn had joined in with a giggle here and there. This just... it wasn't right. But it was funny.
It wasn't a shirt, it wasn't a pair of pants, but it was something he could cover up with. Finally Evyn sat back, looking a little more comfortable, giving mild glares to everyone around him. Not that she deserved to be helped--but he couldn't resist his need to give Shadow a hug. It was simply necessary.
She could hardly return it, but somehow she found a way to flop an arm over his shoulder. The breathing was getting a little less strenuous, but all of the muscles in her body still ached. That would pass, she knew. She just wished it would hurry up already.
"Arm." Roan croaked, feeling abandoned. "Circu-lation... losing..."
Well, what the heck. He did lead them all here... and Taerlyn owed him a favor, anyway. She helped him to sit up, letting him lean against her until he was able to stay upright on his own.
"You alright?" Shadow had to assure herself more than anyone else.
Evyn took a deep breath. In all honesty, he was in pain, nauseous, and certain he'd have nightmares for years. But... "Yeah. I'm going to be."
She relaxed for a minute in his arms, gaining strength and letting herself be reassured. When at last she could sit up under her own power, she looked at the grotesque mess on her yet further destroyed Guns N' Roses t-shirt, and sighed. No need for a fake field of blood around the insignia anymore... She wondered, just for a moment, what price it would fetch on Ebay now.
They sat amongst one another, absorbing the cool quiet of the chamber. Awful things had happened there, but it didn't matter. It was going to be okay. It was all going to be alright--maybe better. They could find a way to free the beasts trapped in stone. They could find Aunger's severed head and put it on a pole. Or, better yet, Shadow thought she could teach them a modified version of baseball. The thought made her chuckle, feeling her strength returning.
"How charming."
That fucking voice--Evyn and Taerlyn flinched away from the very sound of it. But the other two... they were sick with familiarity.
