KaelMy heart was drumming a frantic, uneven beat against my ribs. Seeing Aveline suspended there, her body being used as a literal meat-hook for the underworld, turned my blood into acid. I wanted to lunge, to rip that bone-faced thing’s head from its shoulders, but every time I twitched, the chains around her neck tightened.“Kael, don't,” Aveline gasped, her voice sounding like it was being pulled through a grinder. “It’s a... trap.” “I know it’s a trap!” I shouted back, my claws leaving deep gouges in the hardwood floor. I looked at the creature.“You think you’re the first monster to use my family against me? You’re late to the party.” “Arrogance is a common trait among your kind,” the creature said, the rags of its shadow-cloak fluttering in a wind, “But the math is simple. The portal feeds on her life-force. When she expires, the door opens fully. If you kill her now, the door snaps shut, but you lose the sister. Which death would you prefer to carry?” “Neither,” Darius s
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