(Updates everyday)
Power demands what it's owed, and souls are its favorite currency.
===
When museum curator, Lena Goodwin, receives an anonymous package containing damning evidence of a mistake she thought she buried years ago, her carefully built...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
===
Lena sat across from Hugh at the dinner table. The flame from the candle at the center flickered, an unusual sight as solarae had become the main source of light in all of Eden City. It had been years before she'd been born that they had converted to magical means to reduce pollution.
Whatever the reason for this choice of lighting, it created shadows on Hugh's face, highlighting the sharpness of his features. It made the news of her memory being tampered with much more dire. His hazel eyes pierced into hers, dark and troubling.
He told her the gaps in her memory were too vast and suspicious, and every instinct in him told her that someone had purposely created a wall so she would be able to remember, so no one could do what they had done and learn the truth behind performing the rituals.
Getting back her memory was no simple task. They had to turn to someone skilled in recovering lost echoes of her past. She would never be able to fully recall the events of her father's death on her own. Ever. If she wanted to relive that moment, which she had no intention of, then she would have to continue visiting someone who could help her reminisce.
"So", Hugh began, leaning back slightly in his chair, his gaze unwavering, "we have to go to Drakhar. We have to find a way to convince him to unlock your memories temporarily in a way that serves his interests. It has to be convincing enough for him to take the bait."
Lena nervously bit her lip, considering her options. Like she had many to choose from when there was only one. She didn't want a face Drakhar again. The fear he instilled was almost as overwhelming as the Codex.
She wouldn't tell Hugh, she didn't even want to tell herself, that she could still feel the pull of it in her mind, nagging at her. However, when Hugh was around it seemed to lessen. That was odd, but she wouldn't question it. He wasn't human, and whatever he was, dampened the influence of the relic. He must wield great power, so strong that he had hidden it from her. She hadn't felt any essence of magic within him like he could just lock it away and access it whenever he deemed necessary. He had used it to save her, but she wasn't that naive. She knew the real reason why he protected her, and it was propped on the table right next to the candle.
Lena didn't quite like the idea of relying on Drakhar's twisted magic. It unsettled her, but if that was the only way to retrieve the truth, to help Hugh, then she would face it.
"How do you propose we do that? How do we get him to help us?" She didn't mean to sound skeptical. She just didn't know how they would get him to agree to help her remember if it didn't truly benefit him.
"Help is a strong word." Hugh tapped the cover of the Codex. "He doesn't 'help' anyone unless there's something in it for him. We're not asking him for a favor, we're going to dangle this in front of him. Something he won't be able to resist."
He planned to double-cross Drakhar? She didn't like the sound of that at all. He could easily control her and flip the situation around to them instead. How could he guarantee that that wouldn't happen?
