heartbeat // zayn malik AU

chapter thirty-three

"With our backs to the wall, the darkness will fall

We never quite thought we could lose it all."

- Imagine Dragons [Ready, Aim, Fire!]

Zayn landed roughly on the ground, his knees buckling in a way that sent me pitching over his shoulders. I groaned and rubbed my bruised elbows as I got to my feet.

Cringing, Zayn gave me a worried look. "Are you okay?"

"Fine," I managed through my teeth. 

Nearby, Louis was standing shoulder-to-shoulder with his two friends from the rebellion; I'd gathered their names to be Tyson and Oliver, but apart from that, I didn't know much about them. Whatever; they looked strong, determined, and fully invested in taking Klaus down. Good enough for me.

Scanning the immediate area around us, Astral frowned. "Where did you say you saw Klaus, Louis?"

Louis frowned. "I swear he was here just a minute ago..." The angel pulled out a knife, holding it in front of him as he edged forward. 

"Well, then he's here. You can't just hide a demon the size of Keer," Renee said evenly. A glance into her brown eyes, however, betrayed the worry she was feeling, worry that echoed my own.

I felt someone tug at my arm and turned to see Tasha. The grim set in my step-sister's (whoa, when had I willingly resorted to calling her that?) face mirrored my own. "Valarie," she murmured. "I have a plan."

A spark of irritation caught somewhere within me. "Yes, I know your plan. I remember the deal we made. I sacrifice myself to kill Klaus and you get off scott-free. In exchange for the cure. We've already been over this." Impatiently, I shrugged her off.

"That's not quite what I-"

She was interrupted by Klaus's emergence. Our father stood with an insolent smirk on his face. There was no sign of Keer, nor was he holding any weapon, but this didn't seem to concern him. A sharp pang of unease twisted in my belly.

"I think we all know that you have no hope of winning, my dear daughters," he said smoothly. "Stop this foolishness at once and I might spare your lives."

"He's lying," I hissed vehemently, grabbing onto Tasha's arm in case she dared to try to switch sides again. My step-sister didn't struggle in my grasp though; she merely pulled a thin knife from her belt and let her eyes rove our surroundings, searching for Keer. 

"As for your hapless companions, I cannot say the same. I refuse to show mercy to such stupid, reckless fools." Klaus curled his lip as he took in Renee, Louis, Zayn, and the rest of our group. 

The weight of the Infinity Sword was heavy at my hip, a stern reminder of what I'd come to do. There was no use trying to put it off.

I took a deep breath and turned to Zayn. "Did you drink the cure I gave you?"

"I- Yes."

After searching his face for a moment, I hissed, "Liar." Reaching into his pocket, I yanked out the vial and snapped, "I went through hell for this, damn it, Zayn." Uncorking the small bottle, I shoved it into his hand. "Drink it."

He clenched his jaw and muttered, "Val, we have a demon to fight-"

"Drink it."

"-and this is the middle of a freaking battle-"

"Malik, I swear, I will-"

"Fine!" He blew out a gust of air and tipped the bottle into his mouth.