❛power isn't everything. it's the only thing.❜
[complete]
wattys 2018 winner ❧
Lin is a hunter, one of the magically enhanced witch slayers that roam a flooded world. Under the laws of four Kings and Greymark, who rules them all, Lin is unto...
"But what shall I do when instead of a heart this fear is beating in my body?"
— Franz Kafka
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
"I'm fine, Raz."
"Oh, is that why you're sulking right behind me like a stalker pigeon?"
She glared up at him. She'd sat down some time ago, legs sprawled out across the floor as she stared at the page of a fantasy novel without actually reading it. The fact that she'd sat down two feet away from Razo's chair was irrelevant.
"No. It's just warmer in here."
He smiled. "It's alright if that witch has you rattled. She's got me too."
"I'm not rattled."
"Y'are."
"M'not."
Razo lifted his eyebrows and turned his attention back to the front of the cabin. "If you weren't rattled, you'd have turned the page by now."
She whipped to the next page. The paper squeaked in her grip, tearing at the stitches.
"And you'd've noticed that we've docked."
Lin looked up. Stray bits of hair floated free of her ponytail, scratching at her temples. She swiped them back and lurched forward to look around him. The sight of an island's windows catching the light greeted her. "Why didn't you tell me?"
"Tellin' you now," he said. He shrugged with a smirk.
"You are useless. The most useless thing to ever useless." She stood up and shoved her book onto one of the shelves, knocking aside a dust bunny and several spent bullet casings.
He scoffed. "If you're thinkin' of the witch, I ain't stepping between you 'n that for anything on this bloody planet. Quite like my innards as innards, thanks."
She wrinkled her nose, kicking his chair hard enough to make the metal ring. Lin spun away from his retaliatory strike and sauntered down the ship in the same breath. "How long 'til you come back?" he called after her.
"I'm just grabbing a friend and then we're going," she threw over her shoulder.
He might have said something after that, she wasn't sure, because she was already opening the door. The smell of water hit her like a sledgehammer. They'd docked along one of the major islands, a neutral merchants' trade center between Yelena and Wilson's territories. She frowned and jumped the gap betweenSirenita and the docks, the wood thudding hollow under her boots and sagging.
Nearly forty ships lined the docks, still and silent. Even when Lin's sigils curled gently over her skin, she couldn't hear anyone.
"Razo?" She raised her voice.
His footsteps thudded through the metal hold as he stomped to the hatch, sticking his head out and leaning against the frame. He crossed his arms over his chest. "Yeah?"
