𝕱𝖗𝖔𝖒 𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝖆𝖘𝖍𝖊𝖘, 𝖜𝖊 𝖗𝖎𝖘𝖊.
The legendary Phoenix is reincarnated from his ashes every thousand years... or so the story goes. When Emrys wakes days after his death with bare memories, the vengeful deity responsible for his revival is...
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|| CHAPTER 16.1 || || EVA ||
MYSTIA WAS GONE.
And, for a moment, everyone was frozen. Nox was the first to break their dazed states as his shadows swirled and spiraled with every turn of his head. While no longer a looming monstrosity, he was far from human.
Twisted, onyx horns protruded from blonde hair mixed with a shade darker than night. One by one, the strands lightened to their familiar golden shade. A singular left eye remained, but the right was a gaping socket that shimmered from what Eva assumed was cosmetic magic that made it appear as if he had never lost it.
Most concerning were his lips. Sloppy holes marred the tattered edges of his skin, as if they had once been sewn shut by a less-than-skilled hand.
Eva's brain whirred, taking her back to the day she and Emrys had arrived in Hell's caverns. Three Demons had greeted them: a horrific, deep-voiced leader named Brim, the overly eager one with a hyena laugh called Tata, and a third whose name they never learned. Because he never spoke.
Because his torn lips had been stitched closed.
"You really are one of them." Jade's voice was wavering, afraid, but with a strength that Eva had taken a lifetime to find.
Nox laughed, and it was startling to hear his normal voice come from a Demonic entity. "Hey, isn't this less threatening than the giant smoky column of doom?"
Jade looked unconvinced. "You're weird."
It took insurmountable strength for Eva to look away. If she didn't trust Nox before, she definitely didn't now. Not after he helped capture her and brought her straight to Thana. Why Mystia—the eternal voice of reason—allowed him to travel with her, she had no idea.
Eva tried to ignore her reservations as she knelt beside Bobbi, who examined the steaming ashes where Mystia had once stood. Skid marks trailed into the portal and disappeared in the pulsating colors. She could've only assumed that Emrys must have crashed into Mystia and sent them both tumbling through.
Bobbi swiped her hand across the ashes. She winced, pulling her fingers away sharply. Where her fingers had brushed, metal glistened beneath the ash. After a deep breath, she buried her hands in the smoldering pile with gritted teeth. A pained grunt left her lips as pulled the object out.
It was Mystia's wavy-bladed dagger, shimmering with enchantments even through its dusting of debris.
Soft hoofsteps tapped along the pavement. Sage came to stand beside Eva, leaning with her hands on her knees to inspect the weapon. "If she's in there alone with him..."
"We need to get through as quickly as we can," finished Nox. "Gather your things, and get ready. We don't know what we'll be stepping into. Can't imagine a Phoenix's wrath will be gentle after Eva blasted him into another dimension."
