Page 27 of Cursed By the Dawn

“But what about the Corrupt who are still alive?” I asked, wondering something that had been gnawing at me. Corruption was worsening, and there was only one Light Bringer. The Corrupt would be kept imprisoned in each village, but they’d still be alive; and if they were still alive in Noctis, their souls would be in the Dream Realm, too, likely wandering in the bodies of the demons that Corrupted them. “Where do they go in the Dream Realm? Some find their way here, to our domain, but not all. Surely there are hundreds.”

Xander’s mouth tightened. “If not thousands. Though it’s difficult to say. The Nocturne is riddled with demons and their Corruption; our access to ordinary dreamers is all but gone. But as for the Corrupt who are still alive, we have reason to believe they are now being held at Citadel Evernight. It has become infested with demons.”

“And some of those demons could be the missing dreamers,” Theia noted.

“If demons are flocking to Citadel Evernight, then—” I stopped, sharing a quick meaningful look with Erebus. He nodded, encouraging me to go on. “Then Raelion might be there as well.”

“Raelion?” Theia questioned, pursing her lips.

“The demon who haunts Erebus and me,” I said nervously, all too aware of the colossal monster that could seemingly appear at any moment. I wondered if Raelion could tell when we used his name. “He claims to be a god among demons.”

A slow beat passed as the Weavers took this in. Some appeared eager. Others looked ill.

“Perhaps this creature is the key we’ve all been searching for,” Lelantos finally offered. “The messy beating heart that reigns over Corruption.”

“A heart. I like that,” Fenrir said with a dazzling grin. “A fleshy organ just waiting to be ripped to shreds when the timing is right.”

“It is certainly a fascinating theory,” Somnus offered, shooting a vague look of revulsion Fenrir’s way. “It would be all the more useful if we had a better understanding of the situation at Evernight and Noctis’s Corruption levels. But alas, our Light Bringer is unreachable.”

Theia’s bright, discerning eyes met mine. “Out of everyone at this table, you were the last to see Mithras, weren’t you, Esmer? What did you notice?”

The Weavers all turned to me.

As if I held the answers they so desperately sought.

My breath caught. For a moment, I was no longer the cursed girl clawing her way through shadows to survive. Now I was somethingmore. Something that could bepowerful. And yet, beneath their expectant stares, doubt curled like smoke in my heart. Their ancient eyes, heavy with hope and history, pinned me in place. I wanted to rise to meet them. To be the leader they sought. But a sad, hateful part of myself whispered that I was still just a broken girl pretending to be important. A girl who couldn’t stop her mother, father, and sister from falling into Corruption. A girl who was too weak to prevent her brother from being taken and who still mourned parts of the life she once had.

Erebus dropped a hand to my knee, giving it a gentle squeeze.

Come on, Esmer. They’re waiting.

I gave them as many details as I could remember, starting from the beginning. The deaths of Eden and my parents. Corruption in Norhavellis. Dreaming about the Shadow Bringer. Mithras’s pursuit of Erebus’s tomb. The protection Mithras promised me if I kept Erebus locked away. For the most part, they seemed to believe me, though I couldn’t be sure if that was simply because Erebus scowled whenever someone tried to interrupt. When I reached the part where Mithras slaughtered his own legionnaires, however, the Weavers looked visibly disturbed.

“Mithras killed his legionnaires because he wanted toprotectErebus?” Fenrir asked, utterly confused. He twirled a dinner knife idly between his fingers. “Are you sure you understood him correctly? Because what you’re suggesting is blasphemous.”

“Ifshe’s lying, Fenrir,” Nephthys shushed. “Calm yourself.”

“She isn’t lying,” Lelantos offered. “I can sense the grief she feels for her village and her family. It’s real. As is the love for her brother whom she so desperately wants back.”

I nodded, thankful for his support. At least I managed to convince one Weaver I was telling the truth.

“But why would Mithras want the tomb protected?” Fenrir mused. “Better for him to ransack it and gut the Shadow Bringer. All it would take is one blade to his frail stomach. One tiny twist of a knife.”

“It would take more than that,” Erebus said darkly. “Much more.”

“If Mithras had wanted to kill you, you’d have been dead before youeven rolled off your burial slab.” Fenrir ran his thumb down the knife’s blade, and I shuddered, involuntarily picturing it slicing into Erebus’s stomach. “But he didn’t. What could our golden lord be plotting?” Fenrir suddenly asked, pointing the knife at Erebus before swinging it back to me. “Care to hypothesize?”

“I don’t know why Mithras wanted the Shadow Bringer’s tomb protected,” I answered honestly. “He just insisted that I join the Shadow Bringer and keep him locked away as a service to the kingdom.” I remembered that dark, bloody night and nearly gagged. It wasthenight—out of many dark and terrible ones—that changed the trajectory of my life forever. “I wish I knew more.”

Erebus gave me a long, expressive look. We had survived so much alone and together. When would the nightmare end? Was it even possible for us to someday live in peace, separate from Corruption?

Xander cleared his throat, calling our attention.

“Before we go any further, I must apologize on behalf of every single Weaver sitting around this table,” Xander began gravely. “We were wrong to condemn you as a villain, Erebus. It was a grave error, and not one we’re keen on repeating. We are not so arrogant as to require your forgiveness, but we do want you to know that.”

We were wrong.

We don’t require your forgiveness.