[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
.Her legs refused to move, although her mind was screaming at them.The air rushed back into her lungs, giving her the breath she had been seeking."Mariah!" she screamed, her voice shaking with urgency.The creature took a step toward her, and said in a voice like a hissing snake, "Mariah can't hear you."She looked helplessly at him.For the first time, really, she took a good look at the creature before her.He was as tall as a man, and his outline was that of a man too.But his body was nothing more than a dark shadow.Bryn yelled for Mariah again as the creature continued to advance slowly toward her.With her heart pounding wildly in her ears, she realized that he was right.There was no way that Mariah could hear her all the way under the cabin.Even if Mariah would be angry at her for going into the chamber she would have given anything to have Mariah next to her.She took a deep breath and struggled to assess the situation the way Damascus had taught her.She forced herself to look away from the creature's red eyes.The door, it was open, but no, it was too far away.She would never make it in time.She took a step backward, away from the icy breath of the creature.Cold steel pressed against her neck.The sword.Even a weapon that was too heavy for her was better than none at all.She pulled it off the wall and grabbed the hilt with both hands."Stay back!" she warned in the strongest voice she could muster."Or what?" the creature mocked."I'll cut you! I swear I will!" she yelled desperately at him.He only smiled, but it wasn't a smile, merely just an opening of his shadow of a mouth.With one fluid thrust, Bryn slammed the sword, up to the hilt, into the creature's chest.The shadow rolled his eyes and pulled the sword out, a look of annoyance, crossing his face."Look at me, Bryn.Do you really think a simple little sword could kill me?"She shook her head, furious at herself for believing that it could.Franklin had said the same thing to her that time she had tried to kill him.She believed that a sword would work then too, but it hadn't.And he had mocked her, just as the shadow creature was doing now.He held the sword up with his fingers, the blade pointing down."What are you?" she asked, her voice no more audible than the flapping of a butterfly's wings."I am a shadow demon.My name is Ceylon," he replied softly.As she retrieved the sword from him, he took a seat on the stone floor.Bryn returned the sword to its resting place and joined him, her legs folded in front of her."I don't want to kill you.Even if I did, it is impossible for me to.Killing you would bring me no closer to my goal.""Which is?""To kill Mariah."Bryn raised her eyes to his.He had said it so bluntly, so quickly, she couldn't be sure if he had really said it at all.But as they stared at each other, she knew that he had."I won't let you," she said darkly."You will try to stop me, of course, but you have no defense against me Bryn.You are still so inexperienced in all things magical.You wouldn't have the slightest idea how to kill me."She folded her wings around her body.Chills ran through her, but whether they were caused by Ceylon or the chamber being cold, she couldn't tell."You are evil, aren't you? And more just a little evil, almost everyone is a little evil.You are pure evil." She had felt it, almost like being kicked in the stomach when she had first realized he was behind her.Ceylon nodded and grinned."Yes.I am evil.""Then I do know how to defeat you," she replied.Her nerve hardened as she stared into his red eyes.If he was evil, she knew exactly how to defeat him."Oh? I am surprised.Mariah must have taught you well," the creature said dryly."Mariah did not teach me this," Bryn said with a smile.There were few creatures that she knew how to destroy, and this was one of them."Anything evil can be conquered with good.It is the balance of all nature.But if there is more good than evil, the evil will then be destroyed."Ceylon laughed and shook his head."Even if you were pure, little Strytas, there wouldn't be enough good in you to do that.""Who said I was talking about me?"He was confused, but only for a second.His eyes shot to her stomach, to the glowing circle just under her dress."A unicorn…" he softly said as the red orbs of his eyes widened.She thought she could almost see fear in them.Bryn nodded."Next to newborns, unicorns are the purest form of good imaginable.I think I know what would happen if one were to touch you, Ceylon.""Then why don't you do it then?"She sat back, her head resting against the stone wall."First, tell me why Mariah keeps you down here." There were many questions she had for the creature.That was only the first.She had overcome her fear of him and her curiosity had taken hold.He was right, killing her was impossible for him.Shackles, made of nothing more than shadow, hung on his wrists.From them, shadowy chains held him to the floor.He could move no more than a few feet in any direction.She chided herself for not noticing them sooner."Mariah keeps me here for her own sick amusement," the creature replied with a wave of his hand."What did you do, that she would take such notice of you? There must be many creatures like you." Bryn hadn't seen anything like him of course, but she was sure that he wasn't the only one.Ceylon smiled at her."I know a secret of hers.""Oh?""I know who killed that pretty little wife of hers."Bryn sat forward, her attention brought to a sudden point."Jasmine?" The creature nodded."Who killed her?"Ceylon's shadowy face turned upward into a wicked smile.Bryn suddenly realized that she didn't want to know, but the question had already been asked.She couldn't take it back now."What did she tell you about it?""Only that a monster killed her," Bryn replied."Yes, a monster did kill her," the creature hissed."That monster was Mariah.""No…"Ceylon nodded."Of course, Mariah regretted it later on.But she did kill her."Bryn quickly rose to her feet."I've had enough of your lies, creature," she said as she walked past him and back into the other chamber.She closed the door behind her and leaned against one of the bookcases."I know you are out there, little one," Ceylon called after a few minutes.His voice was as smooth as glass.If she wasn't so afraid of him, she might have thought he was beautiful."No, I'm not!" Bryn yelled back.Her hands instantly went to her mouth as she realized her foolishness.She could hear him chuckling from behind the door."Come back in here.I won't hurt you."She was hesitant to trust him, but he was chained to the floor, so she opened up the door and sat down.He was a good ten feet from her, and her back was to the trapdoor, so she felt safe.Safe for the moment anyway."That's better.Am I really that scary?" he cooed.Ceylon was sitting on the floor, his back straight, his hands folded in his lap.She quickly nodded."I didn't mean to frighten you; it's just that I get visitors so rarely down here.This place feels so much like a prison."Bryn brought her knees up to her chest and rested her head on them
[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]