The Darkness That Binds Us

Chapter 6: The Fold

Darkness. Shadows swirl around me, mixing with the screams of friends i led to the slaughter.

"Don't let it all be for nothing, Alina."

The darkling's Nichevo'ya tear through flesh, their pitch-black claws ripping effortlessly through the pitch-black darkness before dissolving into nothing. All around me, it seems as though the very fabric of the fold is attacking us.

I look for the light of the darkling's skiffs, but it is nothing but a purple pin-prick on the horizon. Too far, i think, we are too far away. We need to escape, we need to get out of here.

"Please- " my voice breaks.

Mal presses the handle of the knife deeper into my palm, closing my fingers with his own. "Save them, don't let me live knowing i might of stopped this."

"Mal-"

"Save them! Just this once let me carry you." His gaze locks on mine. "End This."

"No! I..." I pull the knife back, away from him. "I can't-" I hesitate. "I'm not going to kill you!"

I repeat the words shakily. "I'm not going to kill you."

"Alina, there's no other option." Around, Nichevo'ya pound on our shrinking dome of light. I cannot hold out much longer. Volcra shriek above my head. "Where out of-"

time.

"This ends here, Alina Starvok." his voice slices through fold as surely as an assassins blade. The darkling stands less that 10 meters away from me, flanked by his shadow creatures and two Inferni. He gestures to the chaos around him. I have no where to run -and no one to run to.

"Come." His summons is unwavering but there is almost something pleading to it. "This is your last chance to let me help you. Take it -or die." He strides forward.

Instinctively, i draw Mal to me.

"Your handy little tracker cannot save you. He is nothing. He is..."

The darkling slows, i realise he has seen the knife in my trembling hands. "Why would you...?" His brow throughs, studying every inch of my face.

"Unless..." realisation begins to dawn on the darkling's features.

We're out of time.

"Impossible..."

Mal gives me a frantic glance. In the panic, my light falters. The darkling's gaze is fixed solely on Mal now.

Out of time.

"Do it!" Mal yells at me. "Do it now!"

The shield of light drops. I lunge forward, raising the knife above my head to take Mal's life. My knife grazes his shirt, i am so close, so close -But before it can sink any further, a shrill shriek sounds right above my head, and i feel the darkling's wound reopen as Volcra sink there claws into my shoulders.

Raw, burning pain shoots threw me. I drop the knife and scream. I try to lash out in the chaos, but i can make no head or tail of it, wings clap me violently over the head and to my horror i feel my feet lift from the ground. No. "No! Mal!" I shoot my hand out -and he his- and for the barest of moments are finger tips brush and then, he is gone.

It all happened so quickly. One minute i had him. Mal -right under my blade- the next, i am 20 feet up in the air, helpless to stop the darkling as shadows pool in his palms. The black general does not hesitate. He brings his hands together in a perfect arc and executes the cut which slices Mal in half right before my eyes...

The moment that followed brought complete stillness. Despite the raging battle, I cannot hear sound. I cannot feel the Volcra's claws drawing me upwards. I cannot see anything, except the image of Mal's shoulders sliding off his torso.

There is a short interval and then, I watch as Mal's lower half drops with a soft thud onto the grey sands were nothing grows...

The next second grief comes over me with the force of a thousand wild fires and i am sun.

I am combustion. I am power. I am ruination. I let the light flood out of me with the heat of hell fire. Shadows shatter and the Volcra around me vaporise. The claws holding my back vanish, i drop and the next thing i know my head hits the sand.

I don't remember falling, all i remember is getting up and charging. Charging at the darkling. My heart is roaring in my ears. Adrenaline rushes my body. I raise my hands ready for the cut. I expect him return the gesture, but he does not. Instead, the colour drains from The darkling's face.

I slow. He starts yelling something at the blue-robe ethereakli standing next to him, sending the inferni running. I can't figure out what's wrong. Then i realise, my head is ring. 'Healer'. The darkling is yelling for a healer. The sand beneath me shifts. I stumble over my feet. I lift a hand to my head. There is blood in my hair, a lot of blood, so much blood... My mind begins to spiral.

The darkling moves towards me, stepping over Mal bisected body. "Alina..."

"No, No, No!" I shriek, keeling backwards, but i am all off balance. The darkling's Nichevo'ya surge around me. I fall and then he is there, stiff arms holding me up.

"Healer!" he yells into the Unsea. "Somebody get me a healer NOW!"

My feet give away and i sink lower.

"No, No, No..." the darkling mutters, looking down at me. "This is not how it ends.." He combs his hands threw my bloodied hair -his trembling hands. He is shaking. He is frightened. The darkling is frightened.

I want to laugh at the sudden hysteria of it all, but all i can manage is a weak groan.

"Stay with me Alina!" The darkling voice slips into begging. "You can't... -I can't lose you, not now..."

My vision rolls in sicking circles and all i want to do is close my eyes... "Don't close your eyes!" He snaps at me. I don't. Instead my sight settles on Mal's corpse. On the intestines slouching out of his chest cavity, and the arities still spewing crimson onto the grey sands where nothing grows...

I whine, eye's widening until it is all i can do to glare.

"No-no-no!" He moves in front of Mal, "eyes on me..."

I lean round him -i can't stop looking. I am trapped. "Look at me, Alina!" He fights to pull my head back.

"Mal..." I croak. "Mal?"

"Mal is gone, Alina." Shadows swirl around me like a safety blanket, i can't tell whether it's the darkling, or my losing conscious, but now all i can see is his face. His, perfect, beautiful, pale face. So very pale...

"Stay with me, Alina, stay with me..." my weight shifts in the darkling's arms as he moves to stand. The sound of Battle fades further out of reach, and i let my head fall on his fur collar. The ground begins to move under me. "Healer! I need a Healer!" The darkling's carries on shouting, heavy breath breathing down my back.

I take in the intoxicating scent of bare winter branches, falling further down the deep-dark rabbit-hole of unconsciousness.

"Hold on, Hold on Alina!"

I am so tired of all of this.

"Just a little longer..."

So tired of fighting this battle that i was never going to win.

"Stay."

Part of me is just glad It's finally over.

"Please don't go..."

I fall into my last sleep, welcoming the warm embrace of death in the darkling's arms.