Bereft: Demise

63 | Of Flesh and Blood

Snow clung to the Sin of Wrath's hair and lashes, providing a startling, monochromatic contrast to the bloody hue of his glazed eyes. He and Darius stared at one another with quiet, sinister intent. Sethan curled his fingers in upon his palms.

Then he was gone.

Darius collided with my side and we were abruptly several yards away. The ground where I'd been standing burst in a cloud of debris as cold and hot air writhed against one another. Sethan was briefly visible before vanishing again.

"Run—," was the only word to come out of Pride's mouth before he hurled us through the Realm again. We reemerged beyond the edge of the trees and I choked at the pressure Darius's grip was putting upon my middle. Sethan's scream lifted from the clearing. "Run!"

I clutched Darius's arm in pale fingers and forced him to look away from the clearing, if only for a moment. "Don't go near the bunker," I said, the words tumbling together in my rush to get them out. "Don't go near it. It's a trap."

Darius's brow lowered, but he threw us through the encumbering pines before he could respond. The sound of old, solid branches being ripped from the trunks was like rapid gunfire followed by Sethan's enraged howl. "You sniveling coward, Darius! You won't run from me this time!"

Pride threw me forward and I managed to not fall flat on my face. He jabbed two fingers in one direction and, without further explanation, disappeared. Ignoring the fearful pounding of my own heart, I ran.

Leaves rustled in my passage. The low, spindly boughs of the bare trees reached for me as I ran into the waiting unknown of the mountainous forest. Twigs scratched my skin, but I rushed onward, concentrating on my footing and putting as much distance between myself and the Sin as possible.

The crash of trees breaking and being torn apart chased me. The earth trembled and groaned at my heels, pieces of bark biting into my flesh. I leapt over a fallen log and pain lanced through my side when I twisted at an angle. Falling, I ducked to wrap an arm about my middle—and narrowly avoided having Sethan break my neck.

I gasped and slipped on dead leaves. In the flurry of resulting motion, Sethan made another grab for my throat and missed, his nails raking over the bare flesh. Darius slammed his knee into his brother's chest and flung Wrath into the nearest cluster of trees.

"He's trying to distract me," Darius breathed, speaking more to himself than to me. Blood ran from two slashes already splayed on his brow. "Keep running."

I barreled through the underbrush, heedless of direction or the exhaustion in my muscles. I knew Sethan trailed like an overzealous shadow, remaining just inches out of reach. Wrath knew I was a weakness. If caught, Sethan could try to manipulate Darius—and by trying to kill me, he forced Pride into defending my life, putting Darius at a disadvantage.

Run, my thoughts screamed. Run. I have to run faster.

I can't outrun him.

I have to outrun him.

No. Stop. Think.

I couldn't physically stop, of course, but I buried my blind panic with my hunger and thirst and wrung every sensible thought I could from my mind. Can't outrun them. Not fast enough—but I'm small and darkly dressed. If I can find the right opportunity....

The calm, faux-civility Sethan had assumed when speaking to my family and me was gone. He exuded rage and an utter lack in restraint as he and his brother fought and chased my footsteps. Where Darius's movements had precisions and an inherent efficiency, Sethan lunged and threw his body and power into every strike with unparalled furor. Trees shattered like glass. The mountain rumbled with his screams.