Reapers - Master of Souls (Reapers Chronicles Book III)

9-Hope (2 of 2)

NP in Vincent's Playlist: Dust and Gold by Arrows to Athens

Just tell me what to change.
Just tell me what to say,
'Cause I can't feel it anymore.

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Adrianna ran behind the throne, which Cerberusjustswatted with a paw. She tumbled and hit wall. Shrieking, Adrianna raised her hand tostrangle the dog without actually touching it. 

Cerberus whined in pain. Two heads snapped at Adrianna, making her flinch. With her other hand, she brandished the Helcium shard she stole from me, scraping its snout. Cerberus barked and managed to nip on Adrianna's leg. Like a chew toy, he shook her violently. 

Dark ash poured out of the wound on her leg. She screamed and threw the dagger towards Snotty's eye.

Cerberus howled and dropped her. But before she could even get up, Luci was already on her. To my surprise, she helped Adrianna to her feet.

One second, the room was eerily quiet like a vacuum, like we were inside the eye of a storm. The next, violent winds surrounded the two of them.

Cerberus was bucking and pawing at his bleeding eye, but all that did was push the shard deeper.

I ran to him and reached up for his chest, trying to evade as his other heads snapped at me. Frantically, I climbed up his back. I held on tight before he could shake me off, crawling up until I reached Snotty's neck. It was like bungee-jumping up and down.

As fast as I could, I reached for the shard and pulled it out.

With another howl, he began to charge towards Adrianna.

"The shard!" Luci shouted. "Give it to me!"

I threw it to her.

Once she caught it, she said "Stay back!" and broke it to several pieces before throwing them to the wind that circled angrily around them.

As the winds seemed to concentrate around Adrianna, deep cuts started appearing all over her body.

"I'll rip you to pieces," Luci threatened. "...before you can ever touch him again."

Adrianna let one cry after the other--different voices, curses, languages—out of her mouth as she got cut everywhere.

"Pieces," Adrianna echoed, smiling lopsidedly. "Good idea."

With a monstrous wail, she spread her arms wide, tilting her head back. Her body became translucent. Then she blew apart into thousands of little pieces that gathered up the ceiling like a swarm of insects.

A cackling sound reverberated on the walls before the swarm flew out of the room.

"Babalond!" Luci shrieked.

I was pretty sure she was cursing. She whistled at Cerberus. The dog let me slide down his back before they took off after Adrianna.

They were gone for two seconds when I heard a gurgling sound from behind me and remembered Vincent.

He pressed a hand on the bleeding hole in his shoulder, swaying as he did. I caught him before he lost his balance.

I set Pilgrim's throne up and helped him to it, pulling him by his shirt so I wouldn't poison him.

"Ow," he moaned, wincing.

"Y-you're going to be... okay."

"If you're... g-gonna blow off some steam, at least w-watch your... back every once in a while."