Conquering The Unbroken

Chapter 32

We didn't receive the opportunity to watch the king open the wooden chests that hid the crystals within. So when the lock clicks, I rush forward, ignoring the pain shooting through my body, and pay close attention as Renit lifts the lid with a touch gentler than he has ever shown.

The golden hinges creak with age, stiff and cracking against the tug of Renit's force, but the crystal is revealed. He doesn't lift it out, doesn't touch it, doesn't do anything other than stare at the pale purple crystal with jagged edges and overall ununiformed shape. This crystal, an amethyst merged with the likes of smoky quartz, is not the bright purple everyone expects. Instead, the pale purples are doused by that shade of smoke—a dull grey.

The crystal, coming to a sharp point at the side but a large clump in the middle, sits on a small velvet pillow. The ancient witches laid it to rest hundreds, thousands, of years ago, and everything has remained the same.

"Lift it out," Tesha whispers. When no one moves, she clicks her tongue. Impatient. "If no one will do it, then I will."

Renit lifts a palm towards her. "I'll do it," he gutters. His throat bobs as he swallows and lifts the crystal on its velvet pillow to place on the table. It doesn't glow, doesn't come to life, does nothing interesting. It's just a crystal with the strength of ancient witches. Nothing too important.

I turn my attention back to the book as Renit examines the crystal like it'll catch on fire at any moment. "It says here that all Renit has to do is melt down the crystal and blend it with his blood and a pinch of sugar. When he ingests the potion, he'll harness the power of the crystal and can complete whatever task he is searching to accomplish," I read aloud. Scanning down the page, a list of symptoms and reactions is brighter and clearer than the rest of the page. I search for the word 'death' but find nothing written in stark, black ink. But I hiss.

"What?" Renit asks immediately, hands folding away from the crystal in front of him.

"Vomiting, chills, and fever are all possible symptoms to have after ingesting the potion. You may be unable to do anything for a couple of days after this."

He snorts. "Those symptoms sound familiar."

"This isn't the Grounding. It might be worse." Dust puffs from the leather-bound book when I close it. "But it's a chance you must take if you want to help Silas."

Renit meets the eye of the two rebels at the table in front of him. "Let's boil a crystal."

It doesn't take long. Between the time it takes for Dalis to come help me take a bath and pull clean clothes over my body; the crystal is already boiled down into a pale purple liquid with specks of what appears to be glitter floating within. But it's just the visible magic reminding Renit that there is no going back once he ingests what is an ancient power meant only to be controlled by the original witches.

I walk into the kitchens, freshly cleaned and my hair smelling of soap, to find Renit dropping a pinch of sugar into the potion, now in a small glass vile. Everyone else has gone, the room is empty except for the two of us, and the silence of them not being here brings back all my fears of what can happen. I read through the page repeatedly, even the ones before and after to ensure nothing drastic would come of this. Nothing that Renit can't undergo.

He stares down at the potion before him and braces his hands against the wooden counter. "What if this doesn't work?" He asks.

My limp has subdued since taking a bath and I make my way around the counter to stand at his side. The potion rocks with each step I take, ripples circling around the top of the pale liquid, until I stop and take the small vile in my hand. It's not much, hardly a gulp compared to what the king made me drink to fall madly under his control.