Page 9 of What Beats Within the Tunnels

Chapter

Four

“Hey, are you okay?” Soren drags me from my thoughts.

“Yeah, I’m fine. Tired.”

“You don’t have to stay here. These dinners go on for hours. I don’t think you’re adventurous enough to try the dessert either.” Soren laughs, and I’m about to tell him he’s wrong, because I love anything sweet, but Colton gets to his feet, causing us both to turn toward him. I hold my breath, hoping he’s not going to have an outburst too, but he just extends a hand to me.

“Let me walk you to your chambers,” he says, and normally I would roll my eyes and blow him off, but I can’t wait to get out of this room and away from all the awkward stares after Bella’s confrontation. I take his hand and ignore the warm ripple that spreads up my arm, faint but enough to know it’s not because his hand is warm. It’s a peculiar feeling. I nod to Soren in farewell and glance at Drew as we pass by, but she doesn’t look our way.

Once the dining room doors close behind us, I release Colton’s hand and start to walk to the stairs, anxious to get back to my room.

“What, no ‘thank you, Colton, for getting me out of there?’” he says, and I huff, pulling my heels off and deciding it will be much safer to take the stairs barefoot. I wonder how many people have fallen to their deaths on these stairs over the years.

I finally reach my room, and Colton must sense I’m in a mood, because he doesn’t try to tease me or have small talk. I don’t think he’s going to say anything, and I’m kind of surprised. I push my door open, and Chepi plops down on the bed. When I step inside, Colton grabs my arm, not hard or anything but firmly enough so I turn to face him.

“My room is over there if you need anything. I’ll see you in the morning,” he says, pointing to a room down the hall. He seems much more serious now, and I don’t know whether I should be worried or thankful. I lift my chin and close the door, tossing my heels on the floor and slipping out of my dress and into a nightgown. I climb into bed and get comfortable under the covers. I feel anxious, and my nerves won’t let go of me.

Of all the Fae in Eguina, why would Drew bring Colton here to help me with my magic? I guess Nyx was out of the question after I basically ended things with him and told him to leave. I keep thinking maybe I was too harsh with him, but then I remember all the lies. I don’t think I really know him at all. It doesn’t change the fact that I miss him deeply and the thought of him makes my heart hurt.

Drew doesn’t strike me as the kind of woman to do something without a purpose. Gods, thinking everyone is out to get me is exhausting. I’m tired of all the secrets and deception. I tell myself I don’t care and that it doesn’t matter. I’d be going to Zomea anyways and have more important things to worry about. I grab the book and set my mind on finishing it tonight.

I read until I can barely keep my eyes open, but then I come across probably the most interesting passage in the book thus far, and by interesting I mean disturbing.

When the moon’s shadow fades on the nineteenth dawn of the tenth cycle of the third Grand Cycle, dark power shall reawaken in the blood of the Fae. After countless generations lying dormant, the ancient magic, unseen since the time of the last dark Sorcerer, shall emerge once more. Two bloodlines, both ancient and pure, will intertwine and birth a harbinger of the old magic. She will be of Fae and Sorceress, the child of light and dark, who brings balance or chaos, based on her heart’s choosing.

This child will be the Mirror of Eguina, reflecting the world’s truth and darkness. With the passing of each phase of the moon, her powers shall grow. She shall have the strength to rebuild or destroy, to love or hate, to offer salvation or damnation.

On her skin, she will bear the mark of the cosmos, a sigil known only to the Luminary Council, the silent sentinels of the arcane. They who extinguished the flame of dark sorcery will see it reborn, stronger, more potent, and yet vulnerable all the same. It is their duty to guide or misguide, to protect or threaten, depending on the path the Mirror of Eguina decides to tread.

Her destiny is her own to forge. Her choices will reflect in the heart of Eguina. She must understand that the power she holds is not evil, nor is it good. It is a reflection of the self, an echo of her heart, her intentions, and her actions. As she decides, so goes the fate of Eguina.

But be warned. Dark magic is a slippery path, for it is ancient, powerful, and yearns to claim her. Its seductive whispers will echo in her ears, offering power, control, and domination. It will seek to consume her light, to draw her into its shadowy embrace, to sway her from the path of balance.

And in this journey, she will not stand alone. For the prophecy foretells the presence of a beacon, a Light Bearer whose spirit remains untainted by the shadow. This guide will shine brightly in the darkness, a testament to the strength of the light. Only with this light can the Mirror of Eguina withstand the temptation of the darkness, keeping her heart true and her intentions pure.

I don’t want to accept that this is about me. Drew must think it’s about me, or at least the possibility of it being me. Why else would she give me this godsforsaken book? I don’t want to inherit dark magic or be the mirror of Eguina, whatever that is. And if this is me, then this council must already be on the lookout for me. This was a very long time ago, hundreds of years. Maybe the council has fallen apart and forgotten about all of this. The nineteenth dawn of the tenth cycle would be October 19th, my birthday. A grand cycle is a hundred years. The third grand cycle would make it three hundred years. Has it really been that long since this dark sorcerer lived?

What Drew said about things dying and the War of the Realms, could that have anything to do with this? The power to offer salvation or damnation, but why me, why now? I hope my father will have answers. Every time I find an answer to something, I get at least ten more questions piling up. It is still several months until my nineteenth birthday. Nothing will be definite until then.

The part about needing a Light Bearer so the darkness doesn’t destroy her everything, that part lines up with what Callum’s journal has, and a sick feeling begins to churn in my stomach. Is Nyx really going to be the one to save me? It says his light can save me, or at least that’s how Callum interpreted it. Fuck, I wish I still had the journal. I’m trying to recall exactly what it said, but all I remember is the last part of it, the most important part, I suppose. “Can his light save her? Or will her darkness destroy him—destroy us all…”

I stare into the darkness, thinking about my darkness.

Something’s coming! The whispers grow louder, more distinct, more menacing. The air is heavy with a noxious odor that clings to my skin and chokes my breath. I look around frantically, but all I see is darkness. Shapes move in the shadows, coalescing into forms that shift and twist as I try to focus on them. The whispers turn into laughter, cold and mocking, and my skin prickles with goosebumps.

I realize that I’m standing at the edge of a bottomless pit, surrounded by tunnels that lead to nowhere. The whispers become screams, filling my mind with terror. I turn to run, but my feet are leaden and unresponsive. Something grabs me from behind, its grip icy and unyielding. I struggle to free myself, but the thing drags me back toward the pit.

I hear the whispers again, closer now, and I know that I’m running out of time. I manage to break free and run down one of the tunnels. I don’t know where it leads, but I keep going, fueled by pure terror. The whispers follow me, echoing down the tunnel, bouncing off the walls and amplifying until they become a deafening roar—then silence. It’s so quiet I think I can hear the beat of my heart, no, not my heart, but something. Every beat is slow and deliberate, each pulse dragging the silence out into an eerie elongation, thickening the air with tension. It sounds primal, as if it’s a piece of me, ancient, like the ticking of a monstrous biological clock, the heartbeat of the tunnel itself, as though the cold stone walls are alive and breathing.

I wake, my hands instinctively reaching for my throat as I sit up, gulping down air, soaked in sweat. Zomea…or some other nightmare. I can’t be sure, but it felt so real, felt like the burning forest but more pressing. I can still hear that sound beating in the recesses of my mind.

I shiver, trying to rid myself of the eerie thumping. What was that place, what happened to the burning, bleeding trees? I need help controlling this midnight mind. That’s what I really need.

My throat feels raspy. I must have been screaming in my sleep. I hope no one heard me. Chepi is still asleep, so that’s a good sign.

I can’t see the sun, and there is no clock in my room. This is extremely frustrating having no clue what time it is. There’s no way I’m going to be able to fall back asleep after that dream. I leave Chepi under the covers and wrap my robe around me. I need to move. I need to distract my mind with anything else right now.