Court of Nightmares and Ruin

Chapter 41

Icelyn

Morning broke and not at all too soon. There was no way to get comfortable sleeping on the cold ground inside the cave, even with Kohl as my pillow. I sat up, and my eyes danced over Leon and Jen. Something happened between them, but I'm not sure what. Leon was grumpier than usual, and Jen was not speaking, which was unicorn rare.

"Is there any need to stay in this cursed land any longer? We both know I do not have enough power to release the book," Leon asked angrily.

"I will do everything I can to free that book and save Icelyn, even if it means my death." Kohl bent down and pulled me to my feet.

"That's foolish, Kohl, and you know it. I would never allow you to..." Kohl gently placed his fingers against my lips, silencing me instantly.

"We've come this far, outsmarted the Enforcers, and put up with the tiresome company of the Day Realm king. It would be a shame if we did not at least try it."

I could not argue with his logic, but I was still uncomfortable with the idea. There was no predicting what Kohl would do once we found the book, and that fact had my stomach in knots.

"Let's get this over with then." Jen stood up and brushed the dust from her pants. I didn't miss how Leon watched her every move like a hawk.

"How much further?" I turned towards Kohl.

"We are already here," he answered and waved his hand toward the darkness of the cave.

In an instant, the cave lit up from within, uncovering what I thought was a wall and turning into a long narrow pathway deeper into the cave. A shiver ran down the length of my spine just thinking about what lay ahead of us.

Kohl grabbed my hand and pulled me down the winding pathway through the cave. Jen and Leon follow closely on our heels. The deeper we went, the lower the temperature, and my heart dropped.

"Breathe, Snowflake." Kohl's gruff voice echoed throughout the cave, reminding me that I was indeed holding my breath. I tightened my grip on Kohl's hand when the narrow path opened up, revealing a large room, and the book was hanging midair in the center of the room.

"Is that it?" Jen scoffed and walked forward.

"Do not be dense, little Mouse." Leon snatched Jen backward, and her body collided with his.

"What are you doing?" Jen screeched and tried to wiggle her way out of Leon's grip, but he did not release his hold.

Kohl kicked a rock forward with his booted foot. It flew through the air but completely disintegrated once it hit an invisible forcefield. Jen went completely still in Leon's arms, and her mouth draped open. I exhaled in relief. That crumbled rock pile could have been Jen if it hadn't been for Leon. I pulled Jen towards me, wrapped an arm around her, and stepped back.

Kohl brushed his fingertips lightly down my face with a saddened look.

"Don't you dare tell me goodbye." My seriousness was rewarded by a deep rumble of laughter in his chest.

"I would never do that, Snowflake." He grinned smugly and walked forward.

I held my breath as he drew closer and closer to the edge where the forcefield was. Leon mimicked Kohl's steps, and soon they were side by side, facing the book. Kohl lifted both of his hands upward. The room began to shake, and slowly the ceiling of the cave opened, like a trap door, to reveal the clear blue sky.

Jen and I watched in amazement as Kohl called upon his darkness and Leon his light. Both of them were concentrating so hard that sweat dripped down their faces. Leon started to shake like he was bearing the world's weight on his shoulders. The room darkened, and I saw that Kohl had moved the moon, which was now hovering directly above us. He broke his concentration for a second and looked over at Leon.

"Don't worry about me," Leon gritted out. "Just concentrate on what you are doing."

Leon collapsed to one knee, and Jen gasped at my side. Ever so slowly, I see the sun appear next to the moon.

"When the night is over, the day breaks, and when the day ends, the night is born anew." I turned to Jen as she started babbling to herself.

"What?"

"It's the fable that the mirror fairy told me. I understand what she meant now. Day and Night must come together."

I looked at Jen in confusion. She never told me anything about a fable. Maybe she had spoken to a mirror fairy. A shuffling of boots drew my attention back toward Kohl. He, too, had gone down on one knee.

"Please stop this, Kohl. It is killing both of you," I begged and stepped forward.

"Don't...you...dare...I will have that book!" Leon was near his breaking point but refused to relent.

The space between the sun and moon was growing smaller and smaller until, finally, the two orbs touched. A brilliant stream of light came from above and encompassed the book.

"Quick, Icelyn, the book," Kohl hissed through clenched teeth.

I took off without hesitation, not even caring if the forcefield had been deactivated. At this point, I would do anything for this to be over. I moved through the forcefield swiftly. I hesitated for a second, looking at the intimidating book. Even as a human, I could feel the evil radiating from it.

"Move your ass, or you will be trapped in there," Leon yelled at me.

Against my instincts, I snatched the book and rushed back toward Kohl. Both males were trembling so much that I knew I was only a whisper away from being trapped in here forever.

"Icelyn!" Kohl's anguished voice had me moving faster than I thought was possible with these human legs.

I dove toward Kohl, barely breaking the barrier before Leon collapsed. Everything around me was spinning, and my heart threatened to pound out of my chest. It took me a second to realize that I was safely in Kohl's arms and had the book pressed tightly to my chest.

"We did it," I said barely above a whisper.

"Good! Now let's get out of here before we cannot return at all." Leon stood on wobbly legs and pulled Jen to his chest. They both disappeared in bright light.

Kohl stood as his mist started to swirl around us. "Let's go home, Snowflake."