RISEN || The Keepers of Astraela #2

13.2 || EVA

|| CHAPTER 13.2 ||
|| EVA ||

THE MOMENT EVA STEPPED into the floral-wallpapered corridor, the walls seemed to close in around her. She had no idea where she was going.

Thankfully, Nox stepped past her before she could admit defeat. She followed him through the tight hall of dizzying pink and yellow flower walls, willing her trembling legs to keep her upright.

Hushed voices buzzed in the cramped living room. While it was refreshing to find  more modern furnishings than the outdated home they'd squatted in before, the layers of dust, dirt, and grime made it appear much older—almost worse than their previous location had before Sage used restorative magic to clean it up. But now, there was no restoration. There was only darkness, aside from one flickering lantern in the center of the fingerprint-smudged coffee table.

Sage looked up from her seat cross-legged on the floor, where she had been furiously crocheting a long, lilac scarf with silver speckles. As a smile stretched across her lips, the silver glittered and bounced from the fabric, scattering around her with a dusting of Radiance.

Bobbi, Mystia, and Jade followed her gaze from their huddle on the worn, gray couch, and their whispers ceased.

"Oh, thank gods." Bobbi stood and made a beeline for the entryway. She looked Eva up and down before giving her a hug. "I'm so glad you're okay. We were worried we'd lose you to her again after..." Her voice trailed. "I'm sorry."

Eva pulled away slowly. Even in the dim light, Bobbi's eyes were unmistakably bloodshot and puffy. But despite every part of Eva that wanted to assure her friend that it was okay, she couldn't.

It wasn't okay. None of it was.

Bobbi didn't prod. Instead, she led them to the couch and let Eva take the empty space, while she balanced herself on the arm.

With near-silent steps, Nox moved swiftly toward a blanket-covered recliner nearby. Just before he could sit, however, Mystia snagged his sleeve with a quick hand.

"I wouldn't if I were you," she said. "Sage already learned her lesson."

She leaned past his legs and ripped the blanket from its spot. A hole—roughly the same size as Sage's backside—gaped beneath, ripping straight through the stained yellow cushion.

A mixture of defeat and frustration crossed Nox's ever-stoic face. He took the blanket from her, balled it up, and shoved it down the chair's hole. Gone was the patient and almost caring man that had greeted Eva upon opening her eyes. Now, he was the same irritable, unreadable man that had her questioning him from the start. Even Bobbi eyed him warily as he leaned against the wall with folded arms.

"I'm lost," continued Mystia, as if she had never paused their whispered conversation. Her voice wavered, and she swallowed hard. "I've never seen Emrys like that."

Nox shifted uncomfortably. "He'll be on top of us before long."

"He's not good at tracking. Never had been. If I didn't send Sage or..." She hesitated. "Thana with him on missions, he'd get horribly lost."

"In his last life." Nox's tone was serious. Flat. As if even the mention of Emrys was an inconvenience to the strange man. "You don't know what he was like before. He came to you with no memory."

Mystia was silent. Her expression turned cold, and Eva almost expected her to challenge him, but the half-goblin faltered. In the brief time Eva had known her, Mystia never had a short supply of answers or sarcastic retorts.

Eva wasn't sure what happened before their reunion—and it wasn't like they'd had the time for proper catch-up chatter—but it had clearly taken a toll on Mystia. Her quick wit and evil genius level plans had been reduced to a point where she almost seemed... human.