The Bond Breaks
1483 Words
Silas's silver eyes gleamed in the torchlight.
Behind him, the throne of bones seemed to pulse. Alive. Hungry.
"You walked right into my home," he said. "Again. I almost admire the stupidity."
"We're not stupid," Damon said.
"No. You're desperate." Silas circled us. "There's a difference."
I held the dagger tighter. The blade was warm. Ready.
"The thing in the cave told us about the bond," I said. "About the bargain."
"Did it?" Silas smiled. "And you believed it?"
"It has no reason to lie."
"It has every reason to lie. It's been trapped in this mountain for millennia. It wants out. And it will say anything to make that happen."
Rina stepped forward. "Then the bond isn't real?"
"The bond is real. The bargain is real. But cutting it won't kill me." He stopped in front of me. "It will set the thing free."
The room went cold.
"What do you mean, free?" Damon asked.
"I mean the hunger will no longer be trapped beneath this mountain. It will be loose. In the world. Feeding on anyone it wants." Silas tilted his head. "You want to kill me? Fine. But you'll unleash something far worse."
I looked at Damon. His jaw was tight.
"You're lying," I said.
"I'm not." Silas walked to his throne. Sat. "The thing can't leave while the bond exists. I am its anchor. Its prison. Cut the bond, and the chains break."
"Then why haven't you cut it yourself?"
"Because I like being immortal." He smiled. "And I like having a pet that eats my enemies."
Rina's hand went to her knife. "We can't trust him."
"We can't trust the thing either," I said.
"So we're trapped."
"No." I looked at Silas. "We're negotiating."
The fire crackled. Shadows danced on the walls.
"What do you want?" I asked.
"From you?" Silas leaned back. "Your blood. Your power. Your place in this world."
"You want me to take your place."
"I want you to continue my work. The curse. The bloodline. The hunger." His silver eyes gleamed. "You're my daughter. My heir. You were born for this."
"I was born to kill you."
"You were born to replace me."
Damon stepped forward. "She's not replacing anyone."
"She doesn't have a choice." Silas stood. Walked toward me. "The blood in her veins is mine. The power in her bones is mine. She can fight it. She can deny it. But eventually, she will become me."
"No." My voice was steady. "I won't."
"Every child becomes their parent. It's only a matter of time."
I raised the dagger.
"Then I'll kill you before I do."
Silas laughed. "You can't kill me. Not without unleashing the hunger. And you're not a monster, are you, Sera? You won't sacrifice the world for revenge."
He was right.
And he knew it.
Damon pulled me aside.
His hand gripped my arm. His eyes were dark.
"We need to talk."
"About what?"
"About the fact that he's right."
I stared at him. "You want me to stop?"
"I want you to think." He lowered his voice. "If we cut the bond, the hunger gets free. Thousands of wolves could die."
"Tens of thousands."
"And if we don't cut the bond, Silas lives. He keeps killing. Keeps feeding people to that thing."
"So what do we do?"
Damon was quiet for a long moment.
"We find another way."
"There is no other way."
"Then we make one."
Rina stood guard by the doors. Her rust-colored eyes never left Silas.
"We can't stay here forever," she said.
"We're not staying." I looked at the throne. At the bones. At the thing pulsing beneath it. "We're going to talk to the hunger again."
"Back to the caves?"
"Back to the thing."
Silas laughed from his throne. "You think it will help you? It only helps itself."
"Then we give it what it wants."
"And what's that?"
I walked toward him. Stopped inches from his face.
"Freedom."
His smile faded.
"You're insane."
"Maybe." I turned away. "But I'm also your daughter. And I know how to make deals."
The caves were darker than I remembered.
The symbols on the walls glowed faintly. Pulsing. Like a heartbeat.
"The hunger knows we're here," Damon said.
"It knows everything."
We walked deeper. The tunnel narrowed. The walls pressed closer.
And then—
The cavern.
The thing waited in the center. Its burning coal eyes fixed on me.
"You came back," it said.
"We need to talk."
"I don't talk. I eat."
"You'll talk today."
It laughed. The sound shook the walls.
"You have courage. I'll give you that."
"I have a dagger. Blessed silver. Forged in the first age." I held it up. "And I know what you really want."
The thing's eyes flickered.
"What do I want?"
"Freedom. Not from Silas. From the mountain."
It was quiet for a long moment.
"Go on."
"The bond between you and Silas isn't just giving him immortality. It's keeping you here. Trapped. If we cut it, you get free."
"Yes."
"But you also become a threat to every wolf in the world."
"Yes."
"So we need a new bond."
The thing tilted its head. "A new bond?"
"With me."
Damon grabbed my arm. "Sera—"
I pulled free. "I'm not finished."
"You want to bond yourself to this thing?" His voice was sharp. "That's suicide."
"It's strategy."
"It's madness."
"It's the only way." I looked at the thing. "You bond to me. I become your anchor. But you don't feed on wolves. You feed on me."
The thing's eyes burned brighter.
"Your blood?"
"My blood. My power. My life." I stepped closer. "In exchange, you help me kill Silas. And you stay in this mountain. Protecting it. Protecting the wolves who live here."
"You want me to be your pet."
"I want you to be my partner."
The thing was silent for a long time.
Then it laughed.
"You're insane."
"So I've been told."
"But you're also interesting." It stepped closer. Its massive form towered over me. "No one has ever offered me a choice before."
"Then choose."
The thing extended a clawed hand.
"I accept."
Damon pulled me out of the caves.
His grip was iron. His face was stone.
"You can't be serious."
"I'm completely serious."
"You're going to bond yourself to that thing? To the hunger?"
"I'm going to control it. Use it. Turn it into an ally instead of an enemy."
"And if it turns on you?"
"It won't."
"How do you know?"
I stopped walking. Turned to face him.
"Because I've already died once. I'm not afraid to die again. But I am afraid of leaving this world worse than I found it." I touched his face. "The hunger can be controlled. Silas can't. This is the only way."
Damon closed his eyes.
"I hate this."
"I know."
"I hate that you're right."
"I know that too."
He pulled me against him. His arms wrapped around me.
"If this kills you—"
"It won't."
"Promise me."
I looked up at him.
"I promise."
The ritual took place at midnight.
In the cavern. Beneath the mountain. With the hunger as witness.
Silas was not invited.
Damon stood beside me. The dagger in his hand.
"Are you ready?" he asked.
"No."
"Good."
He cut my palm.
Blood welled up. Dark. Red. Hot.
The thing stepped forward. Extended its claw.
"Give me your hand," it said.
I did.
Its claw cut its own palm. Black blood dripped onto the stone.
"Now," it said. "We bond."
Our hands pressed together. My blood mixed with its blood.
The world exploded in light.
I saw everything. The mountain's birth. The hunger's fall. The first wolf's death. The goddess's tears.
And then—
Silence.
The thing stepped back.
"It is done," it said.
I looked at my palm. The cut was gone. In its place, a mark. A symbol. A chain.
"The bond," I whispered.
"The bond."
I could feel it. The hunger. The thing. Pulsing at the edge of my thoughts.
"You're in my head," I said.
"Only a little. Enough to know you're not lying." It stepped back into the shadows. "Now. Kill Silas. And I will be free."
"Not free. Bonded."
"Bonded." It smiled. "Same thing."
It disappeared.
---
We climbed out of the caves as the moon rose.
Damon didn't speak. Neither did I.
The horses waited. Rina waited. The wolves waited.
"Well?" Rina asked.
"It's done."
"What's done?"
"The bond. The hunger is anchored to me now."
Rina's eyes went wide. "You bonded yourself to that thing?"
"I controlled it."
"You're insane."
"So I've been told."
Damon helped me onto my horse. His hands lingered on my waist.
"We kill Silas tomorrow," he said.
"Tomorrow."
"And then?"
"And then we figure out how to live with a hunger in my head."
He kissed my forehead.
"Together."
"Together."
We rode home.
- Writer
