Chương 66: Soul Burn

When the world returned to light, the cloaked woman was gone, with only her sword left behind, gleaming. Soryn stood where she'd been as he struggled to catch his breath, his aura flickered like a dying ember as whatever he was using to fuel his fire ran low.

"Are you okay? Is she gone?" Grim asked as she crossed the last bit of distance between them. Soryn wheezed, his only reply a deathly croak. He stumbled away from her, his body stiff as he moved towards the Giant. Grim followed behind at a safe distance as he walked towards it. The Giant kneeled alone, barely alive as it bled openly from a gaping wound in its chest.

"You don't have to finish it, you're gonna kill yourself," Grim said.

"Yes," Soryn rasped.

"I do."

"Wait!" There was no reply except the roar of thunder. Then another. A third. Thunder struck until the Giant that kneeled in front of them was reduced to ashes and Soryn's aura burned no brighter than embers. When Grim opened her eyes, Soryn had collapsed to the ground. She looked down at him, his skin blackened and charred, bright blue light shone through the cracks in his skin as he wheezed.

Ahead of her, the translucent energy that had been coating the entrance to the clock tower disappeared, signalling that they were free to enter. It didn't take long for the other aspirants to barrel past her, entering the clock tower. None of them stopped or paid any mind to Soryn as he lay dying on the floor. Soon, three pairs of footprints came up behind her.

"Come. There's nothing we can do for him," Maya said.

"I need to find Solomon," Alyn said as she left them behind and entered the tower. Were they really all going to leave him? After he'd just saved us?

"Grim?" Hazel asked.

"Can you help him?"

"What?"

"I asked you if you could help him." Hazel looked at her hands, then down at his body, his wheezing was faint and full of pain. She knelt down, and gloom flowed into him, but wherever the shadows touched, they caught flame and melted.

"I-I don't think so. I think it's his soul, or something. Whatever it is, it's still burning. We can't help him."

"Well, we can't fucking leave him here, he just saved all of us," Grim said. Maya put a hand on her back, "He knew what he was doing. Don't take this from him." Is this how they looked at Phil? How they looked at him after they took all he could give? They gave a token effort, gave up and wiped their hands clean? Told themselves he did it knowingly? Could she do that? Could she leave him? Grim shook her off, "Fuck off. I will take whatever the fuck I want from him. Everyone else did."

"Grim?" Hazel asked.

"I'm just saying—""—Bullshit. Everyone else took the chance he gave them. If I want to take his stupid fucking heart and shove it back in his body. Not a fucking Saint here could stop me," Grim shouted, her throat raw.

"Why do you care so much?" Maya asked. Hazel grabbed her wrist, "Grim, don't." She thought of Natalie, of SongJae and Carrion, all dead to feed this place. Of Chloe, still suffering because the only family she had left was here. Still haunting her, even as nothing but a corpse was left. No. Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon. She couldn't help them. But she could help him.

"Because if I don't," Grim paused.

"Who will?" The world paused for a moment as if to recognize someone who wasn't there. I am the one who will not let go. The world stilled, its breath frozen to listen. Something delicately patched inside of her, tore asunder. The world waited, seeing if the truth of her words could stand up on a cracked foundation. She held it, even as every inch of her begged her to take it back. To rescind on her promise.

Her authority flickered as a burst of Aura escaped through a crack in her soul, threatening to shatter everything. She didn't care.

"Let it break, I STILL WON'T LET GO." A gust of wind blew across her face as the world acknowledged her, and her soul stabilized. Chains rose from the ground and wrapped around his body, a new pain hit her as the fire that was burning up his soul gladly took to new kindling. She flinched but didn't let go, gladly offering herself to the heat.

"Again and again and again," Grim said as her mind twisted.

"Keep fucking trying, I won't burn. I WON'T FUCKING BURN." She pulled his body closer with her chains, securing it to her back. Her veins burned inside her, tearing what senses she had left away until there was nothing but pain. She didn't know where she was, but she knew what she had to do. Don't let go.

"Oh no, do it faster Maya. We need to hurry," Hazel said. Grim wouldn't forget her voice, even as she forget where she was. Even as she was guided forward, a hand on her back.

"Here, there's two A-rank dice for you two. I'll make sure if anyone else lived they'll get one too." Grim laughed uncontrollably as the light dimmed and she was somewhere else, something about that was funny, but she didn't know what.

"Out of the way!" Something threatened them, or was in their way, or was just there. She grabbed it, her chains squeezing until its bones—"—Grim stop. We're okay." She let go.

"Here, dog tags. They'll get you through the portal." Notifications(1) Someone placed something around her neck, and the next thing she knew, the air had changed. Chemicals and sterility but it was nicer than before, wherever that had been.

"Witch, please drop your Authority and allow us to take the wounded," an older man said. She looked up, colours swirled in front of her, mixing like a mosaic. Their colours sharpened as she raised her chains.

"Stop! She's okay. Grim, it's okay. It's okay. Yeah, there you go," someone said to her, someone she trusted.

"What's wrong with her?"

"She's holding both their souls together right now, can you help?" The older man swore, "Not good. Niles I want [ORDERED HAVEN] activated and don't you dare drop it for a second. Jakobs, are you prepared to take over stabilization? It's going to hurt." [ORDERED HAVEN] A strand of sanity returned to Grim as she used it to knit her mind back together.

"Of course, Sir," a man said as he got too close, her chains slithered towards him as he drew a green string from his chest. Hazel stood in front of them, forming a path for the man to reach Soryn. He held out the green string and attached it to Soryn, finding a gap between the chains holding him. Her body went from being in a dying throe to a tolerable agony. The doctor turned his attention to her, because that's what he was, a Doctor, "Thank you, we'll take it from here. You can drop him now."

She tried to but her chains withdrew slower than she wanted. A part of her resisted, but she knew this wasn't what her authority was, she was the one who wouldn't let go, not the one who couldn't. She wasn't mindless obsession, but resolution. The change in her mindset helped her gain control and finish dropping her Authority. At the same time she cut herself off from that power, her legs gave out from underneath her, and she collapsed.

The only thing that stopped her from falling was Hazel and Maya grabbing her before she could. Her soul pounded in her chest, nearly burnt to a crisp.

"Sorry," the doctor said as his two assistants picked up the gurney, and they all left with Soryn towards one of the tents.

"Hey! Where are you going? She needs help too," Hazel screamed at them. One of the four soldiers walked in front and raised his weapon to a ready position, "Grim Ward? You are under arrest for the unauthorized use of an Architect Tier Boon. Place your hands behind your head." Hazel jumped in front of her while Grim did her best to stay conscious, every part of her hurt.

"What? You can't do this. She's a Witch, she has rights."

"Both of you step away from the girl now, this is your last warning," he said.

"You don't have the authority to do this, do you know who my dad is? He's A-rank Alabaster." Maya said. The witch who'd been silent until now spoke, "We have explicit evidence of an Architect Boon being used. I don't care who your daddy is, all of you can rot in the crater if that's what you want so bad. Last chance, move aside." She was grizzled and looked like she'd been on the wrong side of a fight many, many times.

Her hair was tied into two white, graying braids, and her nose was permanently crooked from being broken.

"No, I won't let you—" Hazel tried to say before the butt of a rifle smashed her in the mouth. Maya looked like she was about to attack before two guns were pointed at her face, stopping her in her tracks. The woman walked up as the other two soldiers pinned Hazel and cuffed her, "Good girl. Know your place. Now you? Are you going to make this easy or hard?" Grim looked up, barely standing as is, "What the fuck are you talking about?"

A punch to her stomach dropped her to the ground and left her lying there, struggling to breathe. She watched as a pair of boots settled right by her as an ugly face bent down to talk to her.

"I don't take orders from you," the woman said. Before Grim could reply, she felt an impact behind her.

"Where's my son?"