Rykka (Beastborne: Book 1)

Part 18: Revelation

Song: Always Forever - Cults

Stepping back the three all took a moment to assemble their thoughts before slowly they began to move again. They picked up pace as they went. This valley was hardly more than a thin crack in the world. It was hard to see during the brightest day but nearly impossible at night. Lithias supposed the only benefit to her unending flames was the light it provided. It also meant that anything alive in the valley could see them from any point with ease. She tried to dampen them constantly but she got a pulsing head ache each time. She was endlessly feeding to the others but they were at their limit unfortunately quick. They hadn't done much spellwork other than wards and Lithias's enhanced movements.

Finally she was able to quench the flames all together but it came at a cost she had not planned for. She found herself pushing the essence into Othanis and Aakine. What happened in return was rather indicative of her true identity. Her ears sharpened and morphed into a sharp point. Her teeth elongated in her jar and claws slid down her fingers. She knew if she wasn't careful she'd start sprouting fur. The furthest she'd ever changed she had a tail and both ears were fully Kilthra. Her face had elongated and she'd felt a pressure begin to form in her limbs before she could stop herself. It was grotesque but that wasn't what horrified her. There wasn't much information about beastborn, at least that her father and aunt could find in their extensive searching, but there was one truth that echoed through every piece that exited.

The price of overusing beastborn abilities. If one drew too much beast into themselves they would become one. They slaughtered kingdoms. They nearly ended humanity several centuries ago. A magkin beast with the intelligence of a human and the ability to use an incredible amount of essence. They were monsters. The worst part was, they were all normal people before. Warriors just like her, travelers like her aunt, or even traders like her father. Some were just kids when it happened, orphans who had no one to warn them. Innocent souls became something else and the army of beast that followed them would do so to the death. A horrifying thought rang into Lithias's mind. What if the reason she had reacted to the Althira's oath because it liked the idea of having such a powerful soul bound to it. What if that was why she felt so drawn to the pair of them in the first place?

Lithias felt sick and found herself tucking herself into her scarf and hood with hasty fingers. As if hiding what she was was going to change anything. She was like the ice on the river they'd been sheltering at. It looked thick enough on the surface but the dangerous current would drag the strongest swimmer to a watery grave in moments. Her stomach clenched but she just ducked her head and moved further. In most places it was wide enough for them to travel in their diamond formation only this time Lithias stood in the center with the kilthra on either side and Lynsias in front with Althira behind. She wanted to protest now that her flames are out but she couldn't speak with her jaw in it's half open state. Worse, was the realization Lynsias could sense something had changed.

She saw his shoulders tense form under the edge of her hood but for his credit he did not turn to look. She took him as someone who would always know more about herself than she did so she was positive he knew how she managed to get her flames out. He knew what it would cost her. Her heart rate sped up and she looked down at her feet as they walked. The path narrowed in places and they were forced into single file. Lithias took the opportunity to try and move places but someone beat her to it. Lynsias swapped places with Othanis in formation so that he was now on her left. She could feel him staring at her, trying to catch her eye. She couldn't make herself look, focusing on how her breathing had become shaky with the emotions flowing through her body.

She'd had moment's like this since she was a child. Her father had said she was prone to getting overwhelmed after a large release of essence. It was another price of what she was. She briefly wondered if the other beastborn had been like her before they changed. If they'd spent nights curled up in the floor shaking with tears rolling down their faces. If they lied awake for days staring at nothing and being consumed by the painful clenching in their chest. She wondered if their minds were as fragile as hers. If they had been so unable to grasp or controllable their feeling as she was. Then she wondered what it would mean if they weren't.