Darklight 7: Darkfall by Bella Forrest

Author:Bella Forrest [Forrest, Bella]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Nightlight Press
Published: 2020-05-16T18:30:00+00:00

25

Lyra

Irrikus clapped his large hands together. It was a drum beat of condescending, shallow humor. He aimed a vicious smile at the row of revenant vampires. His sneer held no humanity in it. If there was evil incarnate, I had just seen its face in Irrikus. Then he turned his attention to Alan, who stood just behind the revenants.

“What an excellent display of poor decision making,” Irrikus drawled. “It’s delightfully entertaining to watch humans attempt to outmaneuver me. You’ve shown your true colors. Did you think I didn’t know I was housing a snake?”

Alan stared back, still frozen, but somehow ground out, “Yet, I have control of your precious project.” He played his trump card well. Although I hated him, he had a way of working that matched Irrikus’s own.

“I’m almost impressed.” Irrikus smirked wickedly. “You convinced me to experiment on that colleague of yours and willingly sacrificed him for the council’s use. It was a nice touch; after that, I almost believed in your dedication and loyalty. I enjoy playing games of strategy with those who are willing to make ruthless moves.” The ruler of Itzarriol looked delighted to unveil Alan’s traitorous ways.

Icy fear slipped down my spine as I considered Irrikus’s words. Alan had sacrificed the other council member. Honestly, I had forgotten about the man, in all the madness. The sight of Elena was enough to make me focus on just her and Alan. A lump of emotion settled in my throat. I loathed his trickery, and yet, I also knew that playing a dangerous game like this was exactly what made Alan precious to Irrikus. The sway loosened around our lips more easily, now.

“I did what I had to do,” Alan said simply.

Monster. I glared at him. “You gave up your own friend.”

Irrikus’s eyes slid to me. Perhaps Alan had told him of our familial connection, or he remembered that I’d once tried to fake bribe my way out with that information in my dealings with Zeele.

“He was no friend of mine,” Alan said. “He was planning to betray my escape plans to Irrikus, in exchange for his favor. He was simply a temporary ally who’d outlived his usefulness.” The layers of evil in the old Bureau board disgusted me; every time I thought they’d hit rock bottom, they drilled deeper. At least this time, they’d only victimized each other.

Given a moment to rest, my body was starting to slow down. I felt exhausted after creating the fog. I gave up struggling against the invisible bindings of Irrikus's words. God, how his cruel gaze loved seeing us all frozen, helpless.

"I'm most pleased that my almost-worthy adversary brought so many leaders of the rebellion right to my feet." His sadistic joy passed over me with a nauseating wave. “I can control everybody like this.”

I hated him. Something clicked inside me, something that Irrikus's sway could never reach. I saw every face taken from me during this awful ordeal. I heard the cry of every fallen warrior. We had lost so much to this monster, who’d started this entire journey centuries before I was born.

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