Page 72 of Blood Red Woes
“The empresses believed they could contain me. They were wrong. I was brought forth to end Laconia—and I will do so, after I end you.” Even though he has no face, I can feel him staring at me, watching me, waiting for me to do something, to say something.
What is there to say? He tricked me, got me to do his dirty work. I am at his mercy, and I have the nagging feeling something like him has no mercy to speak of. What magic I thought I had never belonged to me. It was always his, and now I’m powerless in the face of something so strong, so overwhelming.
His metal feet meet the floor as he no longer hovers in the air. His monstrous nature is undeniable, and yet I can’t look away. He sweeps down before me, his transcended figure even larger than his human one. Eight feet tall, maybe, with golden, clawed hands to match.
One of those golden hands grips my jaw, and he angles my head back so I gaze into the void that is his head. “Any final words, Rey?” His deep, inhuman voice echoes out of nowhere, creeping inside me with power of their own. “Any conversations you wish to finish, now that you have seen the truth of your destiny?”
A low sound emanates from him, a chuckle, maybe, though it’s hard to tell. “Do you wish to speak more of what I’d do if I had a body again?” He might not have a face, but I can hear the dark amusement in his tone.
Ancient weapon of destruction he might be, but he’s mocking me all the same.Mockingme. Asshole.
When I don’t say a word, he hisses out, “Pitiful, useless girl.” His golden hand is so large it engulfs my entire jaw. I don’t dare move lest he decide to pull it off or something. “You thought we were friends, perhaps more. You were so desperate, so willing to believe every lie I fed you. You were too easy to fool. Pathetic, truly.”
“Maybe I am pathetic,” I whisper, hoping my hatred is plain on my face, “but at least I’m not a big, golden dick like you.”
Okay, the sound he makes after that is definitely a chuckle. He releases my jaw and stands tall above me, his six-wingedfigure dwarfing mine utterly. “You infuriate me, Rey, but you also amuse me. I think I will make your death last. Laconia can wait a bit longer while I focus on you. It’s already waited twenty years. What’s a few more?”
Years?
He’s going to takeyearsto kill me? Fuck that. Fuck no.
That’s exactly what I tell him: “Fuck you.”
“There’s that mouth of yours. It must be a trait of your world. It matters not. You are here now, and with no empresses to save you, you are mine.” His golden aura glows a brighter before he says, “I think I will enjoy this more than I should.”
I get to my feet, unsteady, but I manage. Shooting a glare his way, I tell him, “Give me your best shot, bitch.” Before my taunt is spoken, the world around us fades to black. Everything turns dark until I can only see myself and Invictis.
Surrounded by darkness, his golden image pierces my mind’s eye as the shadows work to worm their way inside me.
The last thing I hear before my world turns completely black is his dark, demonic voice whispering, “Surrender to me, Rey. Give in to the inevitable. Become one with eternity, as all mortal beings do. You’re mine now. Your life belongs to me.”
And then it’s nothing but pure, sweet blackness.
