Rune Mage [Fantasy/Adventure | Book 1 +2 | Complete]

Chapter 98: Rowan's Revenge

"It's over now, Kristen," said Kommora. "Give up. How far does the inner circle spread?"

Kristen said nothing, keeping her eyes trained on Seiren. Seiren continued to retreat, her heart squeezing so tight she could barely breathe. Kristen was her mother, and not her mother at the same time. There was no warmth to her. It was as if a demon had taken over and masqueraded with her mother's face and pulled these terrible stunts. She gripped the rune Kommora gave her, trembling all over.

Seiren, do you hear that?

Seiren frowned and turned her head. She wouldn't have heard it if Madeleine hadn't pointed it out. A thick pile of rubble lay at the main door opening into the front garden. She was certain it had been intact when she first passed it. On the other side came the low voice she knew well: Rowan. Except she had never heard such a callous tone before.

"Now you'll truly know the pain."

A shrill scream followed, sending shivers down Seiren's spine. She tugged out chalk and, having ran out of rune paper, kicked the rug aside and sketched directly on the stone ground. She snapped her fingers. Her magic reserve dipped again, leaving her short of breath and with double vision. The red rune glowed and shot into the pile of rubble.

Seiren's mouth dried the moment her red rune blasted the pile out of her way, revealing the doorway that opened into the main courtyard. Disaster. The topiaries she'd passed earlier were incinerated to a crisp. Half the wall to her left had collapsed, with deep craters on the surface.

And standing amongst the rubble, torching Karis Bonneville with each clap, was Rowan.

She had never seen his face like that before. The lively glow in his blue-green eyes was dull, his cheeks sunken, his movements rigid like a statue. He clapped rhythmically, without passion, releasing burst after burst of increasingly hot fire, scorching Karis Bonneville, who was only recognisable by her white-blonde hair. The rest of her body was mangled: one arm was a bloodied stump, the other was missing completely, and both her legs were charred until they were black strips across white bone. She continued to scream, but Rowan appeared to not hear her, carrying on with the slow and steady torture.

"Rowan! Snap out of it!" begged Tylene. She knelt beside an unconscious Dent, both of them battered and bruised. Seiren staggered down the steps towards him and slammed a hand over Rowan's as he raised them to clap again.

"Rowan, don't!" she yelled.

He jerked his hand, and then whirled around, turning his arm as if about to strike her. He hesitated, recognising her face at last.

"This isn't you, Rowan," Seiren said, breathless. His eyes were hollow pits. His hand shook. She almost expected him to slap her, but he froze in his position.

"She killed Loren," he said in a broken voice. Seiren nodded, anxiety swirling in her stomach. Bonneville no longer stirred. "I couldn't stop her. It's my fault. This is all my fault."

He's hurting.

"Killing Bonneville won't bring Loren back. And she wouldn't have wanted this. Not you. Not like this."

He paused, and for a moment, Seiren thought she'd gotten through to him. He ripped his hand out of her grip, eyes ablaze, an expression so tortured she didn't recognise him for a second.

"She deserves every bit of this!"

He slammed his hands together. A pulse of powerful magic tore down his arms. Seiren recognised the flux: it was flash magic.

Seiren, don't!

Without a second thought, she leapt in front of him, arms spread.

"This is not what you're fighting for!"