Shadow's Edge (Shadows Saga bk1)

Prologue

Trees blurred as Urissa ran past, their branches out stretched ready for her to stray just a little too close. Her feet flew under her, carrying her as fast as they could as she dodged the obstacles on the forest floor. She had been chasing after a small group of women for what felt like hours when they finally stopped in the middle of a grassy clearing.

Urissa took a moment to catch her breath, leaning against a tree while she studied the women closely. She pushed off when she noticed the women were about to take off again. She couldn't let them leave. This had to end now.

"There's no point in running any further Muriel," Urissa yelled loudly despite lack of air.

The three women whirled around, their eyes wild. They loved the thrill of the chase and Urissa knew it.

Rain poured down, cascading across Urissa's skin, mingling with her long black hair. Her lungs burned as she fought to sate their hunger for more air, but she couldn't stop now. The hairs on Urissa's arms and the back of her neck stood on edge, every fiber of her being alert and ready for whatever came next.

A calm overcame Urissa, her mind cleared and her body relaxed. She could feel the buildup of power, the energy racing through every cell of her body as it gathered inside her. She had no options left, she had tried reasoning with Muriel, but there was no reasoning with her kind.

She looked into the shimmering eyes of her best friend, or rather the eyes of the woman she had once called her best friend. Muriel had turned against her, she had turned against the entire magical world. They had created a name for the type of creature Muriel had become: Nightshade.

"You don't have what it takes to strike me down, Urissa," Muriel sneered.

"You don't know me anymore, Muriel. I took my oath to serve and protect this world. On that day I didn't make one promise, I made two." Urissa paused, her breathing finally slowing back down to a normal pace. "I vowed to keep this world safe from all threats, and I promised myself I would do anything I had to in order to ensure I kept my promise to our Realm. If that means killing you, then I will do it."

Muriel may have been wrong, but she was also right. Urissa never could have lashed out at her friend. To strike down a loved one would be unthinkable. However, no matter how much Muriel looked like Urissa's friend, she knew that woman was gone, lost to the world.

Memories of the two of them invaded Urissa's mind, causing a tear to roll down her cheek disguised in the falling rain. Urissa mentally pushed the past to the side, she couldn't think about those times if she was going to go through with this.

Urissa opened her eyes, focusing once again on Muriel and the Nightshades she was now running with. She pushed all thoughts out of her head, clearing her mind once again of all distractions and letting the power course through her body.

Urissa took a deep breath and released her magic, directing it towards the three women. The unleash of power was so great it manifested into physical form, a flash of bright light, like the lightning flashing around them.

The strike touched down, and Urissa had to shield her eyes against the brightness as she saw it go straight through the Nightshades. The sound of her power's release shook the ground, disguising itself as the rolling of thunder.

The three women never had the chance to defend themselves against the attack. Even if they would have had the chance, none of them would have had the power, there wasn't much out there that could have deflected Urissa's assault.

Muriel's wide, green eyes stared at Urissa in disbelief; she never believed Urissa had it in her.

Urissa watched as Muriel's knees buckled and her body fell haphazardly to the ground. She waited a moment after they had fallen before running over to check for any signs of life. Her heart pounded in her chest as she hoped yet dreaded what she may find.

The other two were dead. Their breathing had ceased and Urissa could not feel any heartbeat. She moved over to Muriel, and hesitantly reached down feeling the weak puffs of air kiss the back of her hand. Urissa's heart fluttered slightly and she felt for Muriel's pulse in her neck. The pulse was weak, but still there.

She could still do it; she still had time to save Muriel. A war raged within Urissa, a war that she would not be able to win no matter the decision. If she were to save Muriel, then she would just rise once more as the creature she now was, but to kill her would mean giving up on a friend.

There was no going back once you turned into a Nightshade, and Urissa had to accept the fact. She had to let Muriel die.

"You cannot do it Urissa, she poses too great a threat. She is not the person you once knew," a deep voice spoke from directly behind her.

"I know that Makortax," Urissa hissed at the Werewolf King. "That does not make this any easier."

The man placed a strong hand on her shoulder in an attempt to comfort her. She could feel the stare on the back of her head; she could feel his heavy gaze and knew it would be full of sympathy. That was how Makortax was.

Urissa held Muriel's hand as she felt her life slowly slip away. In the seconds before Muriel's death, a small smile spread across her face and her hand went limp inside of Urissa's.

Urissa pushed the wet, clumped strands of hair out of Muriel's face as tears began to flow freely once more. They rolled down her cheeks and fell to the ground unnoticed. She wiped her face to destroy any evidence before she stood. Urissa held her head high as she turned towards the Werewolf King. "We are done here. Send someone in for clean up."

Makortax nodded and before he had time to blink, Urissa had vanished leaving Muriel's body on the ground beside the other two Nightshades, never looking back.

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