The Seelie Curse

Chapter 39

Rowan gulps. "What do I have to do?"

Astrila pulls something from the pouch at her side, along with a strip of cloth. She places the cloth in Rowan's hand, making sure it covers her palm. Then she lowers something onto the cloth. When Astrila pulls her hand away, Rowan stares down at the orb in her palm. It's a strange colour, shifting between several shades of blue.

It's about the size of a large marble, the colours swirling inside it. She stares at the small orb, watching as the colours move inside it. With her other hand, Rowan extends a finger to touch it. Quick as a flash, before Rowan's heart can beat even just once, Astrila wacks her hand away. Rowan's eyes widen and she breathes in sharply.

"What was that for?"

"Don't touch it!"

"Why?"

Astrila grimaces. "It's dangerous. If you touch it, it could kill you!"

Rowan gasps. "You want me to . . . to kill him?"

Astrila sighs. "I don't know if it would kill him, I just know that it almost killed me. But Ro, this is the only choice we have right now. We don't have much time, either. If you want to stop him, we have to do this."

Rowan shakes her head. "But why do I have to kill him? Why kill him, and why me?"

Astrila frowns, her eyes shadowed. "If I could do this for you, I could. But all my energy needs to go into holding him back, and I need to do that now."

As if on cue, there is a tearing sound from where the Seelie Lord is contained. Rowan stumbles, feeling like something's been ripped out of her. Soe doesn't know if it's the freeze rune or the roots, but it hurts. Astrila pushes at Rowan.

"You need to go now, before its too late."

Rowan gulps. "What do I do with this thing?"

"Just let it make contact with his skin. That's it. Now go!"

With a push from Astrila, Rowan stumbles back out of the shadows. Her sense of time is twisting in her, clouding her head. It feels like it's been both a mere few heartbeats and several minutes. The Seelie Lord's face is drawn and straightened, he's fighting the rune. Wind is whipping around him, tossing the short strands of his hair. Rowan can see the slightest hints of the air moving around him, pushing against him from all sides.

The wind is keeping him restrained, Astrila's doing. It must be. Rowan's not sure how the rune has held this long, even with Astrila's aid. She doesn't think her gift with the runes is strong enough for that. There's another ripping sensation and the Seelie Lord shifts in place. He grimaces for just a moment before his face smooths over again. Even when he's hunting her, he refuses to show weakness. He snarls at her.

"You can't stop me. In a moment, I will break free and I will take you."

Rowan gulps. "No, you won't."

Her eyes widen for a fraction of a second. There was no pain of a lie in her words. She may not have realized when she said it, but she will not let him take her. Then she darts forward and moves to press the tiny ball against the bare skin of his arm. The Seelie Lord screams, his eyes burning into her core. Heat flares in her palm and Rowan whimpers.

It isn't the ball that's burning, not on its own. He's channelling his fire into it. He's trying to stop her, even as the ball works against him. The pain grows and grows in her palm, burning through the cloth and into her flesh. She can feel the heat reaching deeper and deeper, all the way to her bones. It may only be her hand, but it's one of the worst things she's ever felt.

The Seelie Lord lets out another cry of agony and collapses. Before Rowan can react, another burst of heat lances through her hand and she falls as well. The ball slips from her hand, dropping toward the ground. Rowan's legs crumple beneath her just moments before her leg erupts with fire, the tiny sphere burning through her knee.

Rowan screams, barely able to register it when the Seelie Lord crumbles into dust and ash. Rowan screams again, her whole body fills with fire. There is a muffled sound from beyond her awareness and a cool touch on her skin. Someone murmurs in her ear, but Rowan can't hear the words. She's just burning and burning, trying to hold herself together.

In what remains of her mind outside the struggle, she can't help but think. Is this because of the strange, shifting ball, or is it the fire the Seelie Lord poured into it? Or is the combination of both? She can barely think against the molten rage pushing against her very thoughts, the remnants of a cruel, ancient consciousness. She's just surrounded by flame and fury, drowning in the inferno.
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What do you think is going to happen? What does the fire combined with the Ludeag's heart mean? Will she die? If she doesn't how could they save her? Tell me your thoughts!

Happy reading and I'll see you next chapter!

~Goddess of Fate, signing out.