Page 75 of Memory of Ashes

“You would destroy everything for your own gain with no care for anyone, not even me,” Casyl said through gritted teeth. “I have been your commander, your son, your slave for centuries. I’ve fought your wars and obeyed you without question. I’ll do it no more.”

“Oh, you will,” the king said. He squeezed Casyl’s shoulder harder, and his grip on his mind also increased. It was all-consuming. His sense of self diminished, as though his consciousness were being forced aside whilst the king took control.

Then he realised with horror what was happening. He watched as his father’s control raised his hand, the rest of his body following, and he was powerless to stop it.

“You will do everything that I want you to do now, and the most fascinating part is that you’ll still be aware, watching, and completely unable to stop it.”

He was trapped in his own body whilst it did things out of his control. A fate worse than death.

He was no better now than the king’s beast. A fighting weapon controlled by the king’s will. This was the obedience that he’d always wanted from him. He’d never defied him, never given him a reason to do this until now. Casyl hadn’t even realised that his father’s powers allowed him to take control of a person’s mind. He had somehow become stronger.

The guards released him, and he wanted to run. He screamed inside his own mind, commanding his body to fight and hurling his consciousness against the mental walls imprisoning it, but his body did not move.

“I will give you enough control over your body that you can function. You need to eat and sleep to be useful, after all.”

Tharos entered the tent.

“I was summoned, my lord?” Tharos asked the king, eyeing Casyl suspiciously.

“Ruven is going to betray us tonight. He is going to rescue the human and help her find the entrance to her world.” Tharos looked stunned, ready to deny that such a thing was possible. The king continued, “You’re going to make them think that they’ve succeeded and that the army isn’t following them.”

Tharos paused before quickly recovering. “Yes, my lord. I’ll go now.”

“Good. Casyl, ready the army quietly.”

They left the tent together. Tharos looked at him but wisely said nothing. He was sure he’d know that something wasn’t right.

Against his will, Casyl turned away from Tharos and walked towards the camp to wake and ready the men.

They waited patiently as Ruven went into Danae’s tent, unaware of the watching army, to talk Amelia into escaping. Casyl was bitterly watching his own plan unfold.

Tharos could not conceal an entire army, and even hiding a smaller force would exhaust him quickly. A smaller group of warriors was assembled, including the king and Casyl, who would follow them, and the main army would follow shortly after from a distance.

Casyl watched as Ruven led Amelia from the tent, slipping past the soldiers they believed were asleep or too drunk to notice. They ran out of the camp towards the mountain.

His heart lurched when his friend stopped to look behind and check that they weren’t being followed.

They followed them into the forest until they reached the base of the mountain. As soon as Amelia found the entrance, Tharos dropped the illusion concealing the king and his warriors.

When he stepped out of the trees, the look on her face ripped out his heart. Ruven looked wary.

He hoped the king wouldn’t severely punish Ruven; he’d only been following Casyl’s orders.

The king was going to make Casyl punish him instead. His stomach sank. Words were coming from his mouth that he couldn’t control. He wanted to stuff his fist into his mouth as he told Amelia how to use her power to break the shield that protected her world from the likes of them. Unable to stop himself, Casyl walked over and pressed his hand to Ruven’s head. Ruven did not resist as Casyl released a wave of pain that sent blood pouring from his nose.

Ruven’s scream echoed through his skull as he mentally screamed inside with him.

Amelia cried, agreeing to their demands as she looked at him as though he were a monster.

To see her look at him like that broke him.

They all watched in awe as Amelia harnessed her ability to block the magic of the shield. He wasn’t even sure that it was possible; it had only been theory until now. The ground shook as the rift that had been invisible to them all opened. He saw her fall to her knees, powerless to help her.

He hurled his consciousness against his father’s control as his body left her lying on the ground and marched, leading the army into a world covered in snow.

Chapter 17

Amelia