Yustitsiya could taste Elana’s horror as she moved from chamber to chamber, turning on the pumps.
You said when you defeated Chernov you’d let me back… Elana said, her voice tinged with panic.
I lied.
If you kill everyone here, the Guilds will come for us.
Then I will kill them and anyone else who threatens the Sila.
But my friends are here.
Yustitsiya snorted. I can see your mind, no one here ever cared about you, so why do you care about them?
Elana didn’t answer, and Yustitsiya shook her head.
By the time she reached the last chamber, dozens of minds had gathered outside the vault. Reinforcements, no doubt.
Yustitsiya formed a wall of Sila in front of the vault door, keeping it gaseous. If they opened the door, she could seal the vault again. But she wasn’t going to sacrifice any of the Sila unless necessary. Too much had already been slaughtered in this city of death.
The soldiers, however, made no move to enter the vault. Yet.
Within minutes, dormant Sila from the tanks below pooled across the cold floor of the vault. A shiver of excitement ran through Yustitsiya as she waded into the Sila and crouched. She plunged her hands into the liquid and gasped as her consciousness expanded, three tanks of Sila joining her mind.
Beneath twenty feet of stone, concrete, and dirt, three massive explosions rocked the Guild as the tanks holding the Sila captive erupted. Dust and small chunks of rock rained from the ceiling. Gaslamps rattled, and several broke free and smashed into the ground, detonating in balls of flame of glass.
With a mighty tug, she hauled the Sila into the vault, completely draining the shattered tanks below. Raw power rippled through her, her skin tingling as Sila filled her human body and continued the work she’d started in the chamber. Muscles strengthened and skin hardened to rock. Every sight and sound sharpened as her senses refined.
Distant, muffled voices of soldiers met her ears, blended with the hiss of leaking gas. The fallen lights had broken free of their pipes, which now spewed highly flammable gas into the vault. In minutes, the vault would explode. A cold smile touched Yustitsiya’s lips.
Please don’t do this, Elana said. Many here have no idea you’re alive. We’re ignorant, not cruel. Give us a chance.
Everyone who learns we’re alive wants to use us or kill us, Yustitsiya said as she turned her attention to the army outside the door. They would soon be dust in her wake.
Sila billowed around her, lifting her and carrying her to the vault door. She paused when she saw the cobalt glow of a tiny human mind on the ground, barely visible amidst the swirling blue of her Sila that filled the vault. The woman lay curled in a pool of blood.
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
As Yustitsiya approached, the woman looked at her, a sheen of sweat soaked her waxen features.
Sofia, she’s alive! Elana said in her mind.
“Elana?” Sofia said, her voice little more than a whisper.
Yustitsiya shook her head. “Elana’s gone.”
Sofia’s eyelids drooped and a soft chuckle passed her lips.
“She freed you, so you stole her body.”
“She gave this body so I could mete out justice by destroying this place.”
“The Elana I remember would never give anyone anything if she knew they’d use it to kill.”
Yustitsiya floated to the ground and crouched by Sofia. “I know what she thought of you,” Yustitsiya whispered. “To her, you were a worthless, manipulative piece of muck that used her to bolster your own success.”
“I know what I am,” Sofia said, a sneer on her face, “and you’re right, Elana knew it too. Which is why she never gave me anything, I had to wrest it from her. The only reason she would have helped you is if she thought you were better than us. But you’re not. You’re as bad we are—as I am. Stealing from the helpless… murdering the innocent.”
Yustitsiya froze. “No. We’re nothing like you.”
“Then prove it, give her body back. Let her take control agai—” Coughs wracked Sofia’s body, flecks of blood flying from her lips. The coughing subsided, and she continued weakly, “She wouldn’t do anything to hurt you, but you’re about to throw her body at an army. You’re about to destroy her home and start a war that will devastate both our races.”
Rage smouldered within Yustitsiya as she stared at the pathetic and feeble woman. Humans had murdered the Sila for decades. Not one deserved to live.
Sofia shut her eyes and drew a laboured breath. “I know you see her mind. You see her compassion, her sacrifice of… her own… family. For… you…” As the last words left her ashen lips, Sofia’s mind dimmed, fading slowly from cobalt to deathly black.
The Sila stilled as Yustitsiya bowed her head, a storm raging inside.
The floor rumbled, and she withdrew from the shield of Sila at the vault door. It solidified instantly, sealing the vault once again. A half-smile twitched her lips as she listened to the yells and curses from beyond the barrier.
You’ll really kill them, won’t you? Elana asked, her voice soft.
The Alchemist, Sofia, was right. Though Yustitsiya longed for justice, dealing that now would start a war from which there’d be no return.
A war the Sila would win.
You hate us, that I understand, Elana said. But do you understand the consequences of this war? Whether you win or lose?
Freedom to live in peace without fear of slaughter from ignorant and greedy humans.
This planet belongs to both our races, and it’s only by our combined strength that we’ll defend the gates. If we fight each other, the gates will fall one by one, until we’re all overrun by horrors; dragons that live only to destroy.
Yustitsiya closed her eyes, and a tear trickled unbidden down her cheek. Weak. Human bodies were weak.
Yet deep within this human body, a core of molten power burned. A power that came not from might and anger, but from empathy and compassion. Yustitsiya curled her lip in disgust. Elena had strengthened herself by caring for others, for her world. How? Why?
With a sigh, Yustitsiya pulled herself from Elana’s body and allowed the small voice back inside Elana’s head. I will let them live. Today.
