afflicted

29: The day of the final battle...

They'd run out of time. Maeve had advanced much quicker than they'd hoped she would, drinking the magic of the land of Prythian like faerie wine. As they prepared for their last standoff against her, Callie felt sick from the anxious roiling of her gut. Fear twisted her insides, eating away at her resolve.

She watched Azriel as he strapped his weapons to his body and couldn't help but attempt to memorize every last detail of him. She planned to hurl herself in the path of danger in his stead, but she had no clue if her plan would actually work. If it didn't...

She physically shook the thought from her head. She didn't have the time or energy to wind down that pathway of thinking yet again. She'd mulled it over plenty in the last few months. She knew as well as anyone the risks of this plan. The weight of responsibility was unbearable on her shoulders.

She and Rhys had spent many midnights staring at the Elentiya Stone, hoping some answer would magically come to them. Nothing had. They had no fucking clue how to use it, and now, they'd run out of time to figure it out.

Pulling on her boots and tying them tight, she stood and brushed off her leathers. She let Azriel know she'd be back and left him to converse battle strategy with Cassian. She bolted as quickly as she could down the hallway, trying to lighten her footfall to make as little noise as possible.

Stepping into Rhysand's office, she found him frantically bustling about, attempting to make all the arrangements he could to keep as many of his people safe as possible. When he saw her, his anxiety seemed to peak. He marched over to his desk, shuffling through his top drawer until he pulled out a necklace.

Callie's brow furrowed. He placed it in her palm, and she looked it over. Wired metal crossed across the small orange stone, keeping it trapped inside the necklace. The stone had the same texture and coloring as the Elentiya Stone, but was much too small. Had he broken it? Would that tamper with its effects?

"It's charmed," Rhysand said, his voice strange and hoarse. "The stone is inside. Once you remove the metal bindings it will return to its original form. You can't put it back once it has been removed, so be careful." A pit formed in her stomach. She nodded and secured the necklace around her neck.

She tucked the stone beneath her fighting leathers and checked to be sure it wasn't visible. Of course, it wasn't. Rhysand had taken care to make the jewelry small enough to not be easily detectable.

"I won't let you down," she assured.

"We don't even know how to use the stone, Callie," he sighed. "Please let me change the plan. We can figure something out, find more time-"

"There is no more time," Callie argued. "When the time comes, I'll know what to do. I just need you to trust me." He stared at her for a minute before looking down at his desk and the litter of papers and maps that were nearly useless by now.

"We owe you our lives," Rhys managed to get out, looking pained.

"I owe him mine," she said solemnly. "Please take care of him." Rhysand nodded. She knew she could trust him to watch out for Azriel. She couldn't imagine her death would put him in a good place mentally.

"You'll come home," Rhys said, not even sounding like he believed himself.

"Maybe," she nodded.

She gave him a long, hard look. The two didn't speak, but they didn't have to. Their eyes communicated everything they should have said. They said thank you for saving the people I love. I understand the burden you carry. I hope to see you on the other side of this.

Before tears could well in her eyes, Callie turned and left, shutting the door behind her. Surprisingly, she wasn't afraid for what would happen to her. All of her fear was centered around losing Azriel. She was sure he likely felt the same, which made her heart squeeze painfully in her hollow chest. It was worth it, she thought, to know she had done everything she could to save them from harm. It had to be enough.