Page 86 of Up In Flames
“I'm going back, Rath,” I said firmly. “I'm going to face Death and free Ara as I've done before. Except that this time, I'm going to make sure that he's completely free.”
“All right.”
I paused in pulling on my boot. “All right?”
“Yes, all right. Let's go back. We will stand at the Corrupter's ward and then what will we do?”
I slumped. “And then . . . then I will shout until Death comes out, just as you did when I was taken.”
“And what shall we do when the Corrupter appears?”
“I'll send my wraith into him.”
“Through the ward?”
“I'll force him out. I'll taunt him until he comes out. Then I'll send my wraith into him.”
“As you did when he first took you? What happened to your wraith, Ember? Without Aranren helping you, using his will to welcome your wraith, what will happen to it again?”
“All right, you don't have to be an asshole about it.” I slumped onto the bench.
“I'm not trying to be cruel,” Rath said as he sat down beside me. “We all want to save him now, Ember.” He took my hand. “Aranren has proven to be a good man, and none of us want to see him tortured by Death. He would have given his life for you, and that makes him one of us.”
“But I can't save him right this second,” I concluded.
“No, I'm sorry. We need to figure this out. Wait for an opportunity.”
“But there will be one,” Xae said as he walked in. “And now we know he can be saved, Ember.”
“Do we?” I whispered. “I was certain he was clear of Death, but he wasn't.”
“Then you'll have to be more cautious next time.”
“We have a new goal,” Taroc said. “To conquer Death by saving Aranren. This is a setback, but it has also been a step forward. We are finally fighting our true enemy.”
“Thank you,” I said. “You never bonded with him, so I know you don't feel as strongly as I do.”
“We can still feel what you feel, Ember,” Kel said. “And I'm sorry we chose not to bond with him. Maybe that was our biggest mistake. Next time, we won't let you stand alone. You're not meant to.”
I bent my head and let the tears fall. “Ara's alone now. All alone in that cage of bones. He begged me to hold on. He said he couldn't go back there. And I failed him.”
“No, you haven't. It's not over yet. And until it is, you will give him hope.” Rath took my hand. “Every time you see the Corrupter, you will speak to Aranren. You will reach through Death and tell Ara that we are not giving up. You tell him to survive because we are coming for him.”
I turned into Rath's embrace and the other men closed in around us, all of them offering me their strength and comfort. Taroc was right. We had a new goal. A new path to ending the war. And I was destined to win. It was a setback and a step forward.
Chapter Forty-Four
“Holy shit!” I declared as my lovers and I walked out of the arrival chamber and into the citadel's entry hall.
We had faded down to the first floor to get some lunch. Though still aching with sorrow, I was now calm and resolute. It helped to know that none of us were giving up on Aranren. It may take some time, but I would save him. At least with Death consuming him so fully, he wouldn't feel alone or sad over what he'd lost. He wouldn't even miss me. Yeah, that stung a little, but I wanted that for him. It was better than the alternative.
That being said, it wasn't an epiphany over Ara that had brought about my outburst.
“What is it?” Xae asked.
“Lord Vexen is the one who's been writing to me.”
Xae grunted and strode past me, into the dining hall.
