My Name Is Adela Kirigan (A Shadow and Bone Season 1 Fanfiction)

Chapter 37: The Fold Expands

The skiff scraped to a stop just shy of the West Ravkan docks, the front of the skiff facing General Zlatan and his cohort. A woman stepped up. 

'Why have we stopped?' she asked.

Below deck... 

'What's he doing?' Jesper asked. 

'Shh,' Kaz said. The Crows, including Mal, readied themselves, listening to the commotion above. 

Above deck... 

General Kirigan circled Alina to face the dignitaries and the crew on board. 

'One more demonstration,' he exclaimed. 'You've seen what the Sun Summoner can do. Now bear witness to what I can do... with her power.' Turning, he came close to Alina until he was just ahead of her. 

'Whatever you want me to do, I won't do it,' Alina said defiantly. He turned to her. 

'You've done your part. Now I shall do mine.' He extended his hands forward and all of a sudden, the front of the Fold began to push forward, towards the docks of Novokribirsk. The deck was swallowed, then it rushed towards the houses on the fringes of the town. The crowd on the skiff gasped in time with the screams of the people on the docks of West Ravka. Attempting to stop it, Alina moved her hands, sending a bolt of light towards the enclosing Fold, halting the progress momentarily. He came towards her, and grabbed her hand, pushing it down forcefully, making her gasp in pain. 'No you don't!' He pinned her to the deck, still holding her hand, preventing her from making a move with her Grisha power. 'They are traitors who tried to kill you. This is retribution,' he snarled. He shoved her to the deck. Zoya, having seen the whole thing, and come down to the deck to watch the horror, stumbled into Ivan's arms, then walked away. 

'What now?' Jesper asked, the screams of the dying echoing even under the deck. 

'We wait,' Kaz said solemnly. 

'Kaz, you can hear him slaughtering a city,' Inej pleaded. He turned towards her with a sharp look. 

'So you understand the scale of his power, then? Good.' 

'The bold move is to strike now,' Mal retorted. 

'And the smart one is to get clear of the damned Fold first,' Kaz snapped back. Mal turned and began stalking towards the grate that led to the upper deck. 

'I never said I was smart.' Inej threw off her coat. 

'Can you believe him?' Jesper asked incredulously. 

'I'm going with him,' Inej said, then bolted off after Mal. 

Moments later... 

Zoya, after having seen the horror, helped Inej defeat the Heartrender that had tried to kill her, then set the skiff off on its way. 

'Zoya?' Kirigan exclaimed, coming to the helm of the ship. 'Zoya!' Alina now lay on the deck, trying in vain to not get distracted by keeping the skiff in the light tunnel and focusing on Mal, who lay dying, with blood spilling from his mouth as Ivan the Heartrender kept cruelly slowing his heart. Jesper and Kaz had intervened, but in vain, as did his sister, having broken free of her captor, but then Kirigan had used the Cut on her, and she had dodged it, but then one of the Heartrenders had found a gun and shot her, and now she lay on the deck too, bleeding from a deep gash in her side. And the dignitaries were dead, killed by Ivan's Heartrending power. After moments of fighting, Inej had thrown her blade into Kirigan's heart, but then he lifted his face to the light ceiling, acquiring merzost power, letting the black veins creep up into his face and neck, then pulled the blade out, revealing inky black, dripping blood. 'It will take more than this!' he screamed, glaring at Inej. He dropped the blade to the deck. He pushed the boundaries of the light tunnel around the skiff, pushing the skiff into the darkness of the Fold and out of the safety of the light tunnel. Volcra growled all around them, screaming with the inhuman sounds of soulless predators. 'You stay in the dark.' 

Zoya came to look over the edge, only for a volcra to swoop over her and knock her to the second deck of the crow's nest, landing her on the hard wood unconscious. Inej bolted over to her, feeling her pulse, any sign of her being alive. 

'Zoya. Zoya.' Just then another volcra swooped and she ducked just in time, pulling out her daggers and releasing them into the night. Spotting another volcra, she launched her dagger at it, only for it to scream in pain, then come around and land on the railing of the deck, screaming at her, opening its mouth wide, filled with rows of fangs. Just as Inej was about to become dinner for the foul creature, Kaz jumped between them, thrusting his sharp crow-headed cane into the creature's eye. He fought with it for a while, the animal screaming in pain, before he finally fought it off. It flew away, screeching. 

On the main deck, Mal and Alina's hands reached for each other. Until, above her, she saw a bright light and looked up. Mal was gone in front of her. Everyone was gone but for the majestic form of the curved-antlered Morozova's Stag in front of her, gazing at her with its calm, noble look. She gazed at the Stag, then looked towards Inej's abandoned dagger, then back at the Stag. It seemed to trust her, but then, the vision faded as the world went to black again. Kirigan strolled up to her, looking down at her. 

'It's just you and me now, Alina,' he said. 'And we are all we need, anyway.' He outstretched his hand towards her, and she put her hand in his. 

'You may have needed me... but I never needed you!' she said defiantly, and raising the forgotten blade, she sliced the piece of bone with one cut straight out of the back of Kirigan's hand. He collapsed on the floor, shaking, holding his bleeding hand. She stood to her full height. 'Your first words to me were, "What are you"? This is what I am.' She raised her hands, touched them together, forming her light, spreading it out to protect those in the skiff from the darkness, pushing the darkness back, a bright white light surrounding her. Kirigan crouched on the floor of the deck, pulling the blade out from his hand. 

'How do you claim such power?' he gasped in pain. 'I am the one who killed the Stag.' 

'I didn't understand before, but I do now,' she said. 'You cannot claim what was not given to you. The Stag chose me.' She intertwined her fingers, letting the antler collar fully seep into her collarbone. He stood, still shaking, holding his bleeding hand. 

'You chose to betray our people,' he snarled. 'I was trying to save us.' He tried to come for her, but just then, Mal stumbled to his feet, tackling Kirigan and sending them over the side of the skiff. 

'No!' she shouted. 'Mal!' The two landed on the sand below, Mal getting to his feet first. 

'You betrayed us first.' It was a fight after that, weak punches being thrown by Mal, very few landing their marks, and Kirigan getting angrier. Alina came to the side to watch, her face growing worried. Just then, she felt a pulling sensation at her chest and groaned, collapsing to the floor, blood seeping out of her nose. She gazed up at Ivan in shock, who was using his Heartrending to choke the life out of her. 

'How dare you,' he said, angrily. 'He gave you everything.' He squeezed tighter. 'Remember your place.' Just then a gunshot sounded, sending Ivan reeling back, and Alina fell to the ground, unconscious, making the light tunnel of protection fall, casting them all in the dark.