His eyes narrowed. “Because I hate you all—every creature who aided the elves must suffer. You are all responsible for the goblins’ oppression in one way or another. You all stood by while we were experimented on, tortured, and then cast away to live a punitive existence in the Northlands.
“As punishment, I will take the blood of one of each of your kind. I have killed Ulizet—the speaker for the tree and a pixie. I have taken the limb of the sky king—a dragon. Now, I will take the life of the Wult king, and last, I will take my revenge on the elves, starting with the high lord himself.”
The princess stepped forward. “What have you done with the high lord?”
Geth’s gaze turned to a hate-filled stare as he looked at the princess. “Give me the bloom, and perhaps I will tell you. I may even spare this man’s life.”
I cradled the bloom to my chest. He was mad to think I would give it to him.
Geth’s grip tightened. “Give it to me!”
My heart raced. Sweat beaded on the back of my neck. I held the bloom close, knowing that to give it to Geth would mean the doom of us all.
I turned to the king. As our eyes met, I saw something there I had never seen before.
Acceptance.
For the first time, the king finally understood who I was. Perhaps I was only a half-breed elf with a lackluster human heritage, but when it came to making the right choices, he knew I would do the right thing.
No matter what the cost, Geth could not have the bloom. I would have to let the king die to keep it safe, and I didn’t know if I could ever forgive myself for that.
The glass warmed in my hands as the magic called to me. Its words whispered in my head.
The magic word spoken by the goblin’s spirit will unleash my power. Utter my name, and my power will live once again.
“Olive,” the king said, his voice stern, yet gentle. “Do not give it to him.”
I looked at him with pleading eyes. I couldn’t let him die. There had to be another way.
Geth’s face twisted with anger. “Give me the bloom now!”
I swallowed, feeling my heart skip a beat as I held the glass. The bauble’s light glowed a soft white. Releasing my magic, I let it infuse with the bloom’s enchantment.
“Remember,” I whispered.
The glass rose into the air and then cracked. The shards broke away one by one in a spiraling torrent of glittering colors to mingle with the stars above us. Delicate silver roots shot into the ground until they formed a tree trunk. Leaves sprouted, growing into branches, weaving and bending in a gentle motion.
Tears misted my eyes as I watched the beauty of nature and magic combine. Watching the tree grow, I barely heard the king cry out.
“Fool!” Geth shouted. “Now you shall know my wrath!”
In a swift motion, he sliced the knife across King Herrick’s throat, deep enough to sever not only his vital arteries, but tendons and spinal tissue as well. Blood pooled from the open gash. The king’s eyes met Kull’s, and then they glossed over, and he fell. As his body hit the ground, the king’s head rolled free from his body.
“Father!” Kull screamed.
My heart broke as Kull knelt over his father. Taking his father’s hand, Kull trembled. I knelt beside him. I could hardly look at the king. I knew he was dead, but my mind had a hard time accepting it.
“Can you restore him?” Kull asked, his voice shaking.
“I wish I could,” I whispered.
“But if—if you used your magic?”
I shook my head. “I’m sorry.”
“Can’t you at least try?”
“It wouldn’t do any good. It’s too late.”
He fisted his hands. “Why?” he cried. “Why can’t you try?”
“Kull—”
His chest rose and fell. As he stood, all sanity drained from his eyes. Only vengeance remained. Bloodbane glinted with a reddish gleam as he turned to his father’s killer.
He rushed at Geth so fast that his body blurred. The sickening sound of his sword impaling Geth’s midsection caught me off guard. He removed the sword, and with both hands gripping Bloodbane’s pommel, Kull swung the sword with deadly accuracy.
Gore spilled from the man’s belly as Kull cleaved Geth in two. The Caxon leader only had time to make a small moan before collapsing. Kull hacked again and again. Without remorse. Without conscience. The iron-rich scent of blood pervaded the air. I tasted it on my tongue.
I turned away.
I couldn’t watch.
Stumbling back, I felt the princess’s arms encircle me. I glanced up at her. The stoic features of her face revealed no emotion, yet I saw the storm in her eyes.
After Kull had finished, he turned to us.
In that moment, I no longer looked on the man I had known moments before. Covered in the blood of his father’s murderer, his eyes were no longer familiar to me. I looked at a stranger.
“Kull,” I said, my voice weak and hoarse.
His labored breathing made his chest rise and fall. Gripping his sword, the madness in his eyes made me shudder. His gaze was that of a killer.
“Kull,” I repeated.
Finally, he turned away. “I need to be alone,” he mumbled. “Leave me.”
My heart broke, a tight feeling that made it difficult for me to breathe. I wanted to go to him and comfort him, but the sound of his voice made me reconsider.
Kull stalked away with his sword trailing behind him, leaving the princess and me to watch over the corpse of his father.
Chapter 36
I watched as Heidel and the other Wults gathered around the king’s corpse. The magical tree bloomed not far from the gory scene. It seemed wrong that such violence was the first thing the newly grown tree had witnessed. Would Faythander’s magic suffer because of it? Would our world ever be the same?
The magic was restored. I felt its newness inside me, filling me with
