The Dragon Queen (Death #4)

18. Talon

Chapter 18

Talon

There was no rest in this place.

Sleep didn’t exist. My mind and body would grow weary from the abominable existence, but there was never a reprieve. Even if I found a quiet corner and leaned against the wall, I would never grow tired enough to sleep. I either didn’t need it as a dead person, or Bahamut’s magic prevented any form of escape from this place.

No wonder time had passed so quickly, without discernment, because there was no sunlight or color, no sunrise or sunset, no sleep or meals. All the simple joys of life were nonexistent in this place.

I’d left Bahamut’s palace when under his orders, and the sky was so dark that it seemed like we were always underground. The only trees that existed here were desiccated wood that could be knocked over with a single punch. The place was inhabited by more than just cursed men. There were other creatures here, like monsters and behemoths, dark elves that served Bahamut willingly. They appeared different from others, because they were the only ones that seemed to want to be there.

I was in the hall when one of the dark elves passed, but our eyes locked and remained that way.

He stared at me, a slow smile moving over his lips.

I’d defeated him in battle, saved Calista from a premature death, and then I’d drowned him in the mud because he deserved to die like a rat.

Astaroth.

The dark elf who served Barron, who enslaved Constantine and the dragons, who had directly taken part in my family’s demise. He was as responsible for Vivian’s death as the man who’d burned her.

He continued to stare at me. “This is a pleasant surprise.” He approached me, dressed in the same armor as the last time I saw him.

“Should I drown that smile off your face again?”

His smile, along with his arrogance, disappeared. “I’ll let Bahamut know I’d like a word with you—in private.” He passed me, slamming his shoulder hard against mine and making me stumble back.

I wouldn’t have moved in inch in my former life, but this place had made me weaker with every passing day. For someone like Astaroth, it seemed to make him stronger, being able to hit like that.

He walked off, his cape trailing behind him.

I watched him go, and something about that moment made me realize the truth—that this agony would never end. This would be my existence until my body had changed so much I wouldn’t recognize myself, that anyone who’d ever known me wouldn’t recognize me if they looked at me.

It was almost enough to bring me to tears. Almost.

Talon.

I sucked in a deep breath and stumbled slightly, the words having enough substance to knock me over as if they were physical. It was a voice that spoke in my head, a voice that I’d heard nearly every day for decades. Even if two years had passed, I would never forget it. I’d staved off the tears, but his voice made my armor start to crack.

I still feel you…

I found my corner in the castle and sat there, leaning against the cold stone, savoring his voice in my head.

Did that really happen? Or did I imagine it?

When I was fused with Khazmuda, I could always feel him. Even when we were on opposite sides of the world, that connection faded but never vanished. But I couldn’t feel what I once felt. That was the first thing I’d noticed when I was taken to the underworld. My connection to him had been severed.

But his connection to me had remained.

I didn’t try to reach out my mind because there was nothing to grab. It was just void, emptiness.

I still wasn’t sure if it was real or not.

Maybe all the horror and the stress made me hallucinate. This place was enough to make anyone go mad, and perhaps I’d reached my threshold of chaos.

But then it happened again.

Talon?

I sucked in a breath through my clenched teeth, felt my eyes smart from the emotion that exploded in my heart.

Tell me where you are.

My hand balled into a fist before it covered my mouth, trying to stifle the tears I wanted to shed, hearing the desperation in my dragon’s voice as he continued to search for me—even beyond death.

I know you’re there. I believe you’re there.

Every fiber of my being wanted to answer. Wanted to feel the connection that felt like home. But I couldn’t…because I would have to tell him what had befallen me. That I was stuck in purgatory for all eternity.

And he couldn’t save me.