Luke’s gaze followed mine, and his breath caught with an audible hitch. "Sunpurge? But how?"
"The bastards took us by surprise. One second, Luke. One! And we would have been out of there. But that damned ship opened fire, and we were–"
He gritted his teeth, eyes scatting away from Luke’s scrutinizing gaze. Luke frowned slightly, his eyebrows drawing together.
"Knocked out of the teleportation circle."
"Which explains why you were teleported here. But why haven’t you left yet? I know how much that damnable stuff hurts, but there’s no demons in my horde who can heal it. Why are you still here? Even without the scars, I thought you’d be long gone, reuniting with that Water Hero and all."
"I, er..." Gayron stared at his feet, kicking them slightly. His tail curled, the tip flicking like an agitated fly.
Luke’s voice quieted. "You weren’t the only one blasted away, were you. What did you mean by ’we?’ Who is ’we?’"
Gayron flinched, lowering his head. Luke’s hand rose, touching his throat. Or rather, the golden broach fastening his violet cloak.
"Who else was lost?" He croaked.
"It wasn’t my fault. Xiviyah told me to–"
Luke’s aura erupted, crackling like lightning. The entire land shuddered, rocks cracking and crumbling across the plateau and surrounding hillocks. Gayron hurriedly got to his feet, backing up with his hands raised.
"Look, it wasn’t like that. We only had one ring, and it was bound to me, so I–"
He gasped, choking as Luke’s hand closed around his throat. Gayron released his own aura, gripping Luke’s wrist, but his fire was swallowed by the darkness swirling around the Curse Apostle.
"I didn’t want to," Gayron sputtered, his eyes flashing with fear.
"I trusted you," Luke spat.
Gayron’s bones creaked, his protests squeezed into shallow gasps. His struggling grew more frantic, but Luke snuffed every spark and ribbon of mana.
"Nothing mattered more than her," Luke shouted above the storm of mana. "Nothing!"
The vision cracked, shattering into a thousand pieces. As darkness closed in, I finally broke my stupor, running to Luke. But it was too late, and he dissolved before I could reach him. Gayron’s gurgled scream was the last sound to fade, leaving me with tears streaming down my cheeks, my hands covering my mouth, smothering my ragged breaths. I was too shocked to register the sudden violence, too scared to think of what it might mean. That Gayron had left me barely crossed my mind.
"Luke..." I whispered hoarsely, sinking to my knees.
Scarcely had the stars of my soul space appeared than they vanished, and I woke with a choked sob. My body ached from a thousand unhealed aches and bruises, but it was the jagged, searing pain that tore my heart that caused the tears to flow, streaming unfettered down my cheeks. I held myself, sobbing, as Luke’s fury was branded into my mind, playing over and over again.
A slight tug on my soul caused me to raise my head. Blinking away tears, I looked around, tilting my head in confusion. The sky was dark, but a thin gray line of light on the horizon marked the approaching dawn. The mountain was still and peaceful, bathed in the light of the stars.
No, not the light of the stars, but the stars themselves. They flowed from my soul like autumn mist, curling between trees and boulders, filling the land for miles in all directions. The golden hue was deep and beautiful, sparkling between trees and seeming to flow down the mountains like meltwater. It pooled in the valleys, all but smothering the small village miles below.
"A river of...stars?"
I gasped, a chill running down my tail. Only now did I recall the soldier’s words in the council, but it was already too late.
My fingers curled into fists as I focused on my aura, finding it running rampant. For how long I didn’t know, but it ate at my mana, stealing the precious drops I’d spent all night recovering. I sealed it with a thought, drawing my aura tight around me, like a cloak.
The flow of stars ceased, but like water, what was spilled continued to flow. I held my breath, heart pounding, as the seconds ticked by. Slowly, the golden light sank into the ground, and the stars flickered out, until the land was dark and quiet.
As I let out a breath, resting a hand on my chest, a jolt ran through me. "Gayron!"
I whirled, frantically searching for any sign of the fiery demonkin. I quickly spied him lying against the central rock pillar, and my heart returned to my chest. I sagged, letting out a long sigh.
As if sensing my gaze, Gayron shifted, rolling over with a groan. I went to his side and knelt, gently shaking his shoulder. As fine as his senses must be, he didn’t wake or even budge. I shook harder, but it was like trying to shake a mountain. His muscles were harder than steel, his skin not even depressing where my fingers pushed against him.
"...gah...Korra..." he moaned, shifting again.
Suddenly, his hand rose, brushing against my waist. I squeaked, jumping back, but it reacted like a snake, snagging me by the waist and pulling me close. His other arm shifted, caging me in.
"Gayron!" I cried, squirming helplessly.
He moaned Korra’s name again, and his grip tightened. My body groaned beneath the weight of his arms, my breath growing distant. I tried to prod him with my elbows, but my arms were trapped at my sides. Even the prick of my horns wedged against his neck only caused my neck to ache. I might as well be pushing them into a reinforced wall.
Black dots started to cross my vision. As my mind grew fuzzy, I frantically bent my elbow, struggling to push my hand up his bicep. My fingers stretched, and the rough, firm texture of his skin turned smooth and glassy.
Gayron gasped, his eyes flashing open. A choked scream escaped his lips as he jerked, throwing me out of his arms. I barely had time to suck in a desperate breath before colliding with the ground and rolling several times. Pain stabbed into my tail, sending fiery sparks racing up my spine.
"Wah...Korra?" Gayron said, clutching his arm as he stood. He blinked, his eyes slowly clearing.
I rolled onto my side, groaning. The soft noise drew his attention, and his eyes widened.
He was at my side in an instant, lifting me with a gentle hand and holding my head near his chest. I coughed, wheezing as my lungs remembered how to breath, tears brimming in the corner of my eyes.
"Are you alright?" He asked, tail twitching furiously.
I nodded, wincing as another spike of pain drove up my tail. He gingerly rolled me over, and his hand ran down my waist. I shivered, squeezing my eyes shut as his fingers reached the hem of my dress, crossing onto the sensitive ridges of my tail. A blush formed, but immediately vanished as he touched the source of the pain. I bit my lip, holding back a scream.
"Broken," he said. "Can you heal this?"
I started to nod, then shook my head. "I...lost my mana. I only have enough for a sixth-circle spell."
"That should be plenty," he said, brow furrowed.
"Your sunpurge," I whimpered.
He touched his arm, tracing the small blotch I’d managed to touch. "It’s not that bad."
"D-don’t lie to me," I said, though in my heart, I knew there was no point arguing.
"Just heal yourself already," He said, sighing.
I nodded and, holding my breath, soul cast a life spell. As the magic crawled over me, mending cuts, scrapes, and bruises, my tail jerked. I hissed, gripping Gayron’s shirt with both hands as it slowly righted, the bones scraping back into place. When it was finished, I collapsed, panting against him.
I nodded, resting my head against him. My cheeks turned scarlet as he touched the back of my head, caressing my hair down my back.
"D-don’t do that," I mumbled, hiding my face against his chest.
He chuckled, his hand growing bolder. "You never complain when anyone else does it."
I bit my lip, shuddering as he touched my horn. If I had the strength, I would have pulled away, but I was helpless against his teasing.
"Why haven’t you left yet?" I whispered, closing my eyes.
He froze, his hand drifting down from my head, resting on my shoulders. The ridge of his ring pressed against my shoulder blade, painfully obvious.
"I couldn’t leave you alone. Korra would kill me if something happened," he said.
My chest tightened. He hadn’t even denied that he could. "And Luke?"
He shuddered. "Emperors, I don’t know what he’d do, but it certainly wouldn’t be as pleasant as simply killing me."
"I...I was scared," I said softly. "I thought you weren’t going to be there when I woke up."
"Because..." I trailed off, looking at the ground. As I searched for the right words, I caught sight of movement in the village. My mouth ran dry as I squinted, my heart starting to race.
"Are those...lights?" Gayron asked, frowning. "Wow, those aren’t even torches. Who would have guessed such a small village would have a mage who could cast that many light spells? There must be fifty of them."
I grew sick to my stomach, my voice falling to a whisper. "They’ve found us."