VISION ✔️ || The Keepers of Astraela #1

46.0 || Of Mind-Reading and Altered Plans

EVA

EMRYS WAS ALIVE.

Since Mystia had heard from Bobbi, every step felt like miles as they wound their way through snaking stone corridors, passing row after row of seemingly endless cells. Eva's heart pounded with anticipation until she was sure it would burst from her chest.

"We're almost there," Mystia assured her, gripping her hand tighter once they reached the end of another hall. "One final turn."

At the sound of her voice, another set of footsteps thundered from around the bend. "Mystia!"

Bobbi's echoing voice brought butterflies to Eva's chest. Not only had they almost made it, but the journey had been far easier than she expected for a place like Hell. They hadn't even heard a Demon, whether it was their distant skittering or Tata's obnoxious laughter.

It was too easy.

She pushed the thought away before it could fully surface.

They wound the corner, nearly slamming into Bobbi as she sped at them. Behind her, leaning against the stone wall, was the very man Eva spent the past few days pestering Hell's "finest" Demons about.

Emrys was alive... hardly.

While he was living and breathing, his hollow eyes proved he was not entirely there. Dark shadows had formed underneath, accentuating his gray irises—including the one that had still been an amber shade when she last saw him. Now, only a small fraction had not been overtaken by the same ash that had crept across a larger portion of his body.

Even his hair, which had been salt-and-pepper at their capture, had turned silver with only flecks of black mixed in. The sight brought a lump to her throat that she was unable to swallow.

Eva waited for him to flash his signature consoling smile—the one she often wished he would stop using to give her false hope—but it never surfaced. Instead, he stared through her, as if his mind had drifted so far off that it wasn't even present.

"Where is she?" Mystia's voice pulled both Eva and Emrys to half-attention. "She's not with you yet?"

Bobbi shook her head. "I've tried calling with her new stone, but—"

"I've heard you."

The deep, feminine voice from behind nearly made Eva's heart stop. She snapped her head around to find Amaya behind them, katana gripped tightly in hand. Her knee-high boots clicked on the stone floor.

"Who else do you think kept the Demons at bay?" she asked.

Eva grimaced at the black ichor dripping from her blade and pooling at her feet. No wonder the halls had been so quiet. How many Demons had she slain?

Amaya stepped between the two duos. She practically towered over the four of them—especially Mystia, whose eyes hardened as she glared up at the goddess. Ignoring the murderous expression, Amaya sheathed her sword and held a hand toward Emrys. His trusty satchel materialized in her palm.

While he was hesitant at first, he took it wordlessly. He slung it over his shoulder, struggling under its weight but never complaining.

"You're here now." Mystia's voice came with an edge sharper than Amaya's blade. "Get us back to the tavern before another horde finds us."

Amaya laughed. "The tavern?"

"That was the deal." Mystia glowered at the woman. "You help us rescue our friends and send us back there to recover while you deal with your pain-in-the-ass little sister."

"The deal has changed. As you are well aware, the Guardian is Corrupting. We don't have much time until it's overtaken. I need your friends on Earth to assist me in sealing the Barrier from both sides before it crumbles."

Horror washed over Mystia's face. "No. Oh, hell no!"

"Do you want the worlds to merge, little one?"

Mystia's eyes flashed with murderous rage. "Emrys isn't strong enough for your games. One wrong move and he turns to ash. He can't just be your puppet—"

"Stop." Emrys' soft voice brought the women to a halt. Unsteady on his feet, he stumbled forward with what little strength remained in his body. "If this needs to be done, I'll do it. Reviving Breath cures everything, right?"

"Emrys, no—"

Emrys held up a hand to silence Mystia. "Let Amaya send you to the tavern. Protect your home. We'll handle this and..." He paused for a moment, as if contemplating his next words. "I'll be back before you know it."

For the first time since Eva met her, Mystia was at a loss for words. She stared Emrys down with focus so intense it screwed up her entire face. But the longer her eyes bore into his, the deeper her worry lines became.

"What have you done?" Mystia's voice trembled. "You've blocked me out... I can't hear your thoughts."

"I'm fine."

When Mystia reached for him, he recoiled. He stumbled backward, nearly tumbling over his own feet before Bobbi pressed her hands to his back to keep him upright.

Mystia's face shifted to sorrow as her eyes met his once more. Her hand hovered in the air, and she hesitated before letting her arm fall back to her side. Whatever walls he had built, wherever his mind had drifted off to... he must have let his guard down enough for her to get a glimpse into his thoughts.

"Thana..." she whispered. "She... hurt you... she..."

Emrys flinched, turning away from her. "Go. Please."

Her pitying expression only intensified the longer she watched him, visibly reading deeper into thoughts he could no longer hide—until, finally, her breathing quickened and her eyes widened with desperation.

"Emrys, no! You can't do this!"

Mystia's cry echoed off the walls, but before she could reach for him again, Amaya stepped between them. The goddess unsheathed her sword, her expression remaining neutral despite the escalated emotion.

"Listen to me!" hollered Mystia, trying to look around the woman. "I don't care what's happened. You have to keep your head."

A frightened squeak left her lips when Amaya thrust the blade upward, positioning its tip under Mystia's quivering chin. Tears pricked the edges of her eyes and spilled down her cheeks as she struggled to peer around the goddess.

"Enough!" Amaya's voice silenced the room. With one final glare at the squirming goblinoid, she thrust her free hand upward.

Blinding light emanated from her palm. The shrill drone of Celestial magic pierced Eva's eardrums as a familiar weightlessness came over her body—and, despite the panicked cries from their friend, Amaya transported them away from the suffocating heat of Hell.

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