The Last Hope

15 - Fragments

SONG FOR THIS CHAPTER - Shadow Preachers, Zella Day. Linked above! If you enjoy the chapter please vote, it means a lot. Also, I actively encourage commenting and am trying my best to reply to any as quickly as I can. Want a chat? Don't be shy!

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"There's glass in my wings, and I need you to help me get it out," Lincoln explained, gesturing behind him. When Mercy raised her eyebrows he continued, "I tried to do it myself, but I can't reach, and I'm healing too quickly to get at it. I figured with the Rune; you'd be able to stop me from healing."

One brow still quirked; Mercy crossed her arms over her chest. "And you need to be shirtless for this?"

"Well, I'm pretty sure it's in my back too. And the one downside to these wings is I can't reach my own back."

"Must be an absolute bastard if you get an itch." Mercy remarked, making a point of looking only at his face, even if it was an effort not to let her eyes roam south.

He laughed lightly, "it is the worst." Then his smile turned cocky, he met her eyes, "if it makes you uncomfortable, I can put a shirt on."

"No, I mean-" Mercy cleared her throat, casting her eyes away and then back to his very well-sculpted chest. "I mean, it's fine. I'll help." She shrugged, rolled her eyes, and crossed her arms again to show him how unbothered she was. He rubbed at his jaw to hide his smirk. Lincoln grabbed a pair of tweezers from the counter, handed them to her and stood up, turning his back to her so she could get a good look at his wings.

Even on her tiptoes, Mercy couldn't reach the top of his back. "You're freakishly tall. I'm gonna need you to sit, so I can reach."

"Are you sure you're not just little?" His tone was light and teasing.

"Do you want my help?" He nodded fervently. "Then sit. And by the way – I'm not short. I'm of average height." It was an odd brag, but she said it anyway, feeling stupid. And short.

"Not in Ellyheim, or any of Allunyah, for that matter." She gave him a pointed look and he held up both hands in surrender. It did plague her how much taller Ariah was. Only Mona didn't make her feel tiny, and that was only because they were the same height, not because Mercy was taller.

There was a stool next to the bathtub, Mercy dragged it over, refusing Lincoln's help. He perched on it, facing the mirror. "Try not to stare at yourself too much," she mocked him, he only laughed and shook his head, golden strands of hair catching in the light.

Finally, she was able to get a good look at the carnage she'd been the cause of. This close, she could see that his wings weren't actually made of light, but rather a very thin, transparent membrane that pulsed and glowed. Almost like a bats wing. The light flared and danced as he breathed. She shifted closer, trying to see the microscopic fragments of glass nestled within his wings.

A trickle of dried silver blood coated his wing as he spread it out for her to get a better look. Carefully, she peeled a tiny shard of glass out of his wing, dropping it on the counter with a clink. This close to him, she could feel the heat rolling off him. She watched the muscles in his neck and back tense and relax as she removed another minuscule slice of glass. It was very distracting. She cleared her throat, "you know, I usually don't accept my apologies over text."

She watched his shoulders tense as he glanced over his shoulder. Emerald eyes met hers. "I am sorry for what I said about Devin. You were right, I didn't know her, and it was wrong of me to talk about her like I did. And I shouldn't have said the other thing, about how you had to pull it together." He glanced over his shoulder, his face genuinely apologetic. Mercy was generally quick to anger and slow to forgive, but something about the Sentinel in front of her just pushed all her buttons. She ground her teeth and then sighed.