The King's Remorse

Unbound - Jabez - Chapter 7 - Lost in the Current

It's a stupid question, I know, but if it won't kill me, why do I have to feel it?

The snake jerks me back again. This time, I cry out as my body locks up and spasms. The pain coupled with another dose of venom is too much, and the sensations push me past what I can tolerate. I squeeze my eyes shut as I pant, mouth open and lips wrinkled to bare my teeth. The snake's chains wrap around one of my hind legs, and the links catch on my skin around my ankle, pulling my leg to the side and twisting my spine until I'm forced to my back. A growl rumbles in my chest at how exposed I feel, how vulnerable, belly-up beneath the Amethyst Throne.

I push my head back to shove the snake's head against the marble. Maybe if I can smother it enough, it will suffocate. Maybe I can make it panic enough that in a self-preservation attempt where it's scared enough it can't think, the snake will let me go and I'll be free.

The snake writhes beneath me, and its fangs tug and yank on my skin.

I press my head back further. I sigh. There's no way. The snake won't feel the fear it and the Amethyst Throne have brought. There's nothing I can do to make it that afraid. But the thought still feels nice.

Upside down, I see Astra turn around. Her blue eyes are so wide, so worried, so brutally honest, and I can see every bit of her emotion. Nothing is hidden, unlike the King.

Phoenix steps between Astra and the Amethyst Throne when Astra lunges, weaving around Brook's hooves and skidding across the marble. She stops before she hits him. I roll over, and the snake shifts so it lays heavy across my back, a permanent weight reminding me of what's happening. That the Amethyst Throne is always there. That I'm trapped with it. That I can't escape. That my best friend has become someone I do not know, someone I cannot forgive, someone I can no longer understand.

"Go!" I roar, putting as much force behind the word as I can.

Grey, Alex, and Ky have all left, although I know they haven't gone far and won't, not until everyone leaves. Half the group is gone. The other half still has to go.

"Astra," Phoenix snaps. "Get out of here! Brook will take you to safety."

She flinches. "But Jabez-."

"Isn't coming this time," Phoenix interrupts. "Next time, ok? Go. Leave."

"Go, Astra! Please," I plead.

Astra remains far too still. She looks between me and the Amethyst Throne, then at Phoenix and back at Brook, who keeps asking her to please come to her. I hold my breath, feeling the snake slither over my back as I hope with everything within me that Astra will just go. I want her to stay. I want to get to finally talk with her. I want to hear what she has to say. I want to know who my daughter is after so many years.

But I can't. Not yet.

My stomach drops when Astra starts looking between me and the Amethyst Throne in a calculating sort of way. I get my legs beneath me, ignoring how the snake bites down harder in a warning. Behind me, I feel the Amethyst Throne start to rumble, as if some creature awakening from a slumber.

Grey, Alex, and Ky all return. In her wolf form, Alex shoves a Soldier out of the way as she leads her brother and Ky back into the Throne Room. Another Soldier tries to stop them, but Ky crushes his throat. No more Guard or Soldiers come after them, and it seems the King has decided to let the group remain.

My skin prickles, and my fur stands up on end. I shift on my paws. The snake's chain body hangs heavily to the side. It throws me off balance, and I lean to counteract its weight.

The snake works its fangs in my neck. I hiss in response.

Alex whispers something to Grey, who leans into Brook's side. Brook replies as she walks closer to Astra.