Borin waved off the talk of voices with a grunt, his impatience clear as he demanded, "What are those crystals for?"
Before Kael could respond, Elara's voice cut in. "Wait, Kael, what voice in your head are you talking about?" Her tone was sharp yet warm, catching their notice. She sat up from the brittle grass, her small frame shifting. Her pink eyes narrowed with a worried glint as she leaned in slightly, the dry blades rustling under her.
Kael's gaze held steady, black depths unyielding. "I don't understand what the voices are. They've been whispering inside my skull since the last experiment," he murmured, his tone low, flat as a blade resting on stone.
Elara leaned forward a little, worry creasing her voice. "What was the last experiment?" Borin, curiosity pulling at him despite his rough shrug, added, "Yeah, and what's the crystals' use?"
Kael tilted his head, "It was about blood transfusion." The words lingered, heavy in the cooling air, and the group echoed them in unison, "Blood transfusion?"
Elara's brow furrowed, her voice tinged with concern. "What did they do in that to you?"
"They replaced my blood," Kael replied, simple and stark.
Elara's eyes widened, catching the last glint of fading light. "So your blood's different now?" Kael nodded once.
Borin scratched his chin, the rough sound breaking the stillness. "Can we see it?"
Elara shot him a glare, her voice snapping like a whip, "And how's he supposed to show it, huh?"
Borin lifted his hands, palms out. "I'm not asking him to hurt himself. Just a little cut would do." Elara crossed her arms, the oversized Valerius robe bunching around her wrists. "And how's he going to make it?"
Borin glanced around, then spotted a sharp stone jutting from the earth. He plucked it up with a grin, holding it aloft. "We can use this."
Anya stood nearby, arms loosely folded, nodding once. "We should check if his blood's truly changed. A monster might seize him someday, so we'd best stay wary."
Elara hesitated, her lips parting slightly, but the group's murmurs of agreement nudged her along. Kael took the stone in silence, its jagged edge cool against his palm. He drew it across his arm, a shallow slice, and black blood welled up, thick and dark as ink spilled from a broken quill.
Borin's jaw slackened, a breath catching in his throat. "It really is different." A chill slithered up his spine, cold as frost on a grave, leaving him uneasy. He turned to Elara, pointing toward the shrinking Vile Gate, a fading scar against the horizon. "Did your father ever mention that creatures from there have a black blood? Maybe they swapped his with theirs?" The thought gnawed at him.
Elara shook her head, her pink eyes distant for a moment. "I don't know." A smirk curved her lips as she glanced at Borin's arm. "What if your scaly limb's from one of those things?"
Borin laughed, brushing her off with a wave. "No way. This is a dragon arm. Look at it. Pure power." He flexed his hand, and claws slid out, gleaming like blades forged in moonlight, then retracted with a soft click.
Elara's gaze lingered, wide with wonder, while Anya tilted her head, her sharp blue eyes glinting. "Why didn't you ever show us that?" Anya asked. "Are they strong? They look sharp."
Borin grinned, teeth flashing. "Obviously they're strong and sharp." Anya pressed, "Then why not use them to cut Kael's skin instead of grabbing a stone?"
Borin chuckled, the sound awkward, faltering. "I forgot." In truth, doubt had coiled in his chest. He'd seen Kael shatter walls with a fist, leap pits as if gravity bowed to him. What if that skin was tougher than it looked? His claws might scrape uselessly, leaving him a fool flexing a hollow boast. The stone had been safer. "Anyway, let's move on. Kael, what's the crystal for?"
"Eating," Kael answered, blunt as a hammer's fall.
Borin blinked, confusion wrinkling his brow. The others mirrored him, heads tilting. "For eating? You sure?"
Kael shrugged, shoulders barely shifting. "I don't know. My body wants it. It's telling me to eat it, I think."
Anya paused, her fingers tapping her knee as she mulled it over. "Wait. If his blood was changed, maybe those creatures beyond the Gate ate these." She gestured toward the rift, now nearly sealed, its edges blurring into the twilight.
Borin smacked his hands together, grinning wide. "Alright, that's settled. He's got his food. Let's find ours and while we are moving."
Anya frowned, irritation flashing in her eyes. "Don't you get it, Borin? If Kael eats this, he might lose control. The creature could still live in his blood, waiting to rise."
Borin stiffened, stepping back, senses prickling. "Would it kill us if it takes over?"
Elara interjected, her tone softening like a breeze through thorns. "I think Kael would be fine." Anya raised an eyebrow, skepticism etching her face. "How are you so sure?" Elara huffed, "I just know." Annoyance edged her words, but conviction held firm.
"He risked his life for it," she added, reaching into her robe. She pulled out a small pouch, turning it inside out to spill its contents onto the grass: silver coins clinked, trinkets glinted faintly, and two white crystals shimmered, soft as starlight trapped in frost.
Borin's brown eyes widened. "Wait, you had money?" Elara shrugged, kicking at the dirt. "Found it near the robe when we scavenged to escape the lab. But that's not the point. Look at these." She pointed to the white crystals. "My father called them Lumen Crystals. Said nobles use them to hasten knight training, rare and precious."
Borin scooped one up, rolling it in his palm. "Really? So eating this makes me stronger? Why are these white and Kael's black?"
Elara shrugged again, her pink eyes drifting to the black crystals. "No clue. Noble luxuries, beyond my family's reach."
"Then Valerius must've been drowning in wealth," Borin mused.
"Maybe those black ones only grow there," Elara replied, glancing where the Vile Gate once loomed. Only dead grass and skeletal trees remained now.
Borin bent down to pick up a white crystal, brushing off the dust before sinking his teeth into it. "Ouch!" he yelped, a sudden scream escaping as he rubbed his stinging jaw. "These are tough. Are you sure they're for eating?"
Elara gave a lazy shrug, her gaze sliding to Kael. "Maybe he can try."
Borin nodded toward the black crystal in Kael's hand. "Go on, give it a go. Let's see what happens."
Kael broke off a piece with a faint snap, the shard glinting like obsidian kissed by shadow. He swallowed it, and after a while a burst of energy surged within, a storm igniting in his core. His stomach clenched, then steadied, as if the abyss itself stirred beneath his ribs. He sank down, legs crossed, placing the rest of the black crystal on the ground. The others watched, breaths held, as faint tendrils of black energy coiled around him, weaving through the air like smoke from a dying flame.
Hours slipped by, night cloaking the world in velvet black. The group kindled a campfire, its crackle a heartbeat against the silence. Elara sat near the flames, her leg wound nearly healed, hands outstretched to catch the warmth.
Then Kael jolted, eyes snapping open. He lurched forward, retching, and the black crystal shard spilled out, clear now, shining wetly in the firelight. The group turned, startled.
"What's happening?" Borin sputtered, meat dangling from his fingers.
Elara hurried to Kael, kneeling beside him. "What happened?"
Anya stepped closer, plucking the shard up with two fingers. She held it to her blue eyes, squinting as the fire played across its surface. Borin lingered by the flames, chewing slowly, watching from a wary distance.
Kael wiped his mouth, voice steady. "The black crystal's not meant to be eaten if you can't digest it. So it came out."
Anya frowned, turning the shard. "So it's not for eating, but you ate it, and it came out?"
Borin swallowed his bite. "Then how do we use it?"
Kael pointed to the other black crystals, their luster dimmed. "Sit near them and meditate. Their energy's lower now, my body took some." The group peered at the stones in the flickering light. Anya lifted the whole stone of black crystal, holding it to the fire. In the dimness, black crystal in it seemed dark, but the flames revealed a hint of transparency, less opaque than before.
"So, are you stronger now?" Borin asked, leaning in.
Kael nodded. "Yes."
"What rank are you?" Borin pressed.
"I don't know."
"How strong are you now?"
"I don't know."
Borin groaned, exasperation tugging at his voice. "Can I take one of your black crystals? I want to try."
Kael inclined his head, but Anya stepped in. "I wouldn't try that one." Borin scowled. "Why not?" She gestured to Elara's white crystals. "They might be different. Start with the normal one, see what shifts."
Elara handed Borin a white crystal, cool and smooth in his grasp, while Kael passed a black one, heavier with a faint pulse. As the girls settled to sleep, curling into the grass, Kael and Borin sat by the fire. The flames dwindled to embers, casting long shadows beneath a sky pierced by stars, sharp as the edge of a blade. They slipped into meditation, crystals in hand, the night a vast shroud over their fragile hopes.