Immortal Consequences(105)
“Anger is a normal reaction. I expect you to feel this way. To be frustrated. I’ve dealt with it before. Hundreds of times. This isn’t the first time the truth was revealed earlier than intended, but students always come around. How else would we have the talented group of Ascended currently helping preserve order in our halls?”
“Then they’re just as sick and twisted as you,” Masika snapped. “Any sensible person would rather cross over to the Other Side than support an institution that thrives on the ashes of its students.”
“Really?” He cocked his head to the side. “Look around, Ms. Sallow. Think about it. I am quite certain that if presented with the choice, each and every one of your fellow nominees would choose to stay. That this sacrifice, terrible as it may be, doesn’t change what you are all fighting for.”
Masika ripped her gaze away from him and glanced around the group.
She didn’t want him to be right. He couldn’t be. But as her eyes scanned the others, one by one, an inescapable truth settled in her bones. All of them were desperate to stay, to save themselves. Whether it was for power, or for love, or simply because it was better to survive than throw themselves into the unknown.
They’d all stay. Each and every one of them.
The tension in her muscles slackened. Her body gave in to August’s restraint, and his arms loosened their grip. He must have felt it too.
Defeat.
“What does this mean for us?” Irene asked, stepping forward. Masika was desperate to speak with her in private, to have a moment alone.
“Nothing changes,” Silas explained. “You all signed the soul vow that tethers you to the Decennial…which means you must complete all remaining trials.”
“But we could break the soul vow,” whispered Emilio, a hint of hope in his voice. “We’d be thrown into the outskirts of purgatory…but we wouldn’t be destroyed. We would still have a chance—”
“My apologies, Mr. Córdova.” Silas offered a coy smile. “There were…additional conditions intertwined within the soul vow.”
Olivier cursed under his breath. “Of course…”
“If you break the soul vow, you won’t just become untethered from Blackwood,” Silas said. “Anybody who decides to forfeit, to not participate in the remaining trials, will be considered eliminated.”
“Eliminated?” Carter echoed, voice wavering. “What does that mean?”
“It means if we don’t participate in the remaining trials, if we break the soul vow, he’ll feed us to the Ether anyway,” Wren said, eyes locked on Silas. “Isn’t that right, Headmaster?”
Silas smiled. “Correct.”
Josie burrowed her face into Carter’s chest, a sob racking her throat. He placed his hand protectively over her head, drawing her closer. The others all seemed to collectively wilt as the realization slowly dawned on them.
“There’s no escaping this,” whispered Emilio, his voice broken and hoarse. “Only one of us will survive.”
Silas nodded. “It is the only way.”
Masika wanted to scream. She stared at all of their faces—these people she had grown to know…to care for. This couldn’t be the conclusion to their story. A brutal end, nothing but sacrifices destined to be forgotten.
“I’m afraid I have one more surprise announcement…，” Silas said, cutting through her thoughts. He began to walk forward, deeper into the garden. “You all must leave the ball immediately and follow me.”
August tensed, his expression darkening.
“What for?”
Silas glanced over his shoulder, a flicker of anticipation sparking behind his eyes.
“For the third trial, of course.”
48
Olivier
Olivier had always prided himself on his ability to find loopholes. He was capable of slithering out of situations most people found themselves paralyzed by. It was just a part of who he was—a quality ingrained in the very atoms of his being. He was whip-smart. Nimble. Fast on his feet.
But this…this was perhaps his Achilles’ heel. The one situation he would never be able to get himself out of. There was no conceivable way around it. No loophole to be found. There was just the inevitable conclusion waiting for him.
He would win…or he would face destruction.
But what was an eternal existence without Emilio? What was the point of surviving if he would be forced to endure the torment of knowing his victory had been paid with the price of his soul?
Nobody had time to ask any questions as Headmaster Silas darted into the night, leading them out of the garden and back toward the main path. He made his way across the grounds, his steps brisk.
But the farther they walked, the more it became clear that Silas was taking them straight to the main gates.
Emilio looked up in confusion. “Are we—are we leaving the grounds?”
“We are, Mr. Córdova.”
“But—” Emilio glanced at the others with a bewildered expression. “I thought…we weren’t allowed.”
“The circumstances have changed.”
August stepped forward. “Where are you taking us?”
Silas stopped at the large arched gate carved into the entrance of Blackwood, the hem of his coat fluttering in the wind. He reached into his pocket, an amused glint in his eyes, and revealed a large iron key.