The Crystal Mines

24 Callion

Nik remained asleep across the room. She had transformed into a godsforsaken dragon two days ago. I recalled her scales which shimmered hues of silvers and blue. Her belly, dark charcoal like knights' armor, freshly polished from an armory. In the moment, she clearly had no idea what she had become, or the power she held, or she would have torn the place wide open.

The rest of us we forced to shift so that the vials of blood could be taken. Erix had only one of my bone cuffs removed so I could shift. He knew that I had been left unchained, no one would survive. I had managed to bring my lion out, keeping the wings unshifted. In the past, he would use the wings to torture. His favorites, were clipping them, plucking the feathers, and breaking the bones inside repeatedly. It had been a long time since I had shifted, chalking up being too weak to bring my wings out. Erix huffed and didn't argue, accepting the excuse.

Faolan had become a very large brown wolf. His tawny fur thick over his powerful frame. Before then, I didn't know what his animal form was. His namesake of the god Faolin was apparent. Once his blood was taken, Sorin was much slower. Though Nik had brought him hope, the tortures of our past haunted him. Scylla had approached him, threatening to enter his mind. The motivation was enough to force him. His panther was taller than Ameer's but wiry and wild.

Nik shifted in her sleep, the chains scrapping along the stone table with her. I was going to kill Erix. It was a permanent thought already. But when he had dragon bone manacles fitted around her front legs, I saw red. It was vile. Not just to be chained but chained by the bones of your own kind. Dead ancestors, holding her strength at bay. A growl sat at the pit of my stomach, threatening to bubble up as my thoughts drifted.

For just a moment, I wished the little monkey sprite was here. But I shook it off, annoyed at the gross thing already. I hoped he was being more help than nuisance to Ameer. Though, I very much doubted it. He was probably off picking his nose somewhere.

"How long have you been awake?" Reed's face hovered over mine, blocking the light in the ceiling.

"Long enough to know that you came in to get away from Scylla torturing Sorin for fun," I glared at him. I didn't like the male, but I couldn't get his admission to Nik out of my mind.

Reed's only response was a grunt. I heard something being dragged along the floor to my left. I turned my head the small amount the I could manage to see that he had pulled a stool of some kind over to my bedside. Great. He wanted to make idle conversation. I groaned inwardly. He wasn't the cruelest of guards in the mine, but I still blamed him. When Viorica assigned him to me after destroying the third cell, he was to stay outside my door every day for weeks.

We never really talked much. I mostly ignored him and slept. On the days that I would feel Nik the strongest, I had to pretend to have Iron Sickness. She would pull energy from the golden strand and nearly drain me of every strength I had. Of course, I'd never tell her that. There is no way she'd have know that. Ameer caught on and tried to advise her against it. It was the trial with Aquamancy if I recalled correctly. Later, he said that she had lifted the whole damn lake to save her friend from drowning.

The few times Reed and I did talk, he would give light warnings of Viorica's presence. The other times, he was following orders. Viorica got a sick pleasure from making sure he was the one that delt out the whippings when I was too weak to mine enough. He was broken. We both knew he was. I understood more so now. Erix saw to that. I had to make sure he never has the chance to repeat the process with Nik. Mate or not, the things he was suggesting were unthinkable.

"He's going to make her shift again. You know that right?" Reed leaned forward on the table, his voice stern.

"Yes." I looked at the ceiling, having memorized every crack and bump already.

"How do you know her?"

Ugh. "I don't. Not really." I didn't want to get into the logistics with him. He was still a man that followed orders. I was the prince. I knew how men that followed orders were. For all I knew, he was sent to play the 'best friend' role and see what information he could get out of me.

"Not well then."

"Don't you have something to do?" I scoffed, trying to deflect his wondering questions.

He scratched at his long red beard. "Only watch over you four."

By watch over, I knew he meant avoiding the horrors in the other room.

I risked a question, not able to stop myself from showing that I care. "Are they alive?"

"For now," Reed sighed. "Scylla was cutting Sorin's gut open over and over, healing in between. The way she used to."

I had forgotten. My mind had shut out many of the details of this place. An animalistic instinct to protect itself from further damage traumas bring. The things I've had to do, had to witness, had to endure... They were unspeakable.

"And the other one? Her friend?"

"He passed out after the second gutting."

Gods above. I wasn't sure if he was going to make it. Sorin had endured and he would do so again. He was afraid. Any sane person would be. But his fear made him appear weak. But I knew better. Past memories of Ameer and his brother flooded my mind and I shut it down.

Trying to distract myself, I risked another question. "What's coming next?"

"You already know." Reed stood from the stool and over my face again. "Prepare yourself. Best you can."

My limbs began to shake. I didn't have the frameof mind to feel self-conscious at my body's natural response to the adrenaline fearcaused. Yes. I knew what came next. Erix would use the crystals.