The Beast And The Blessed

Fifty-Three: Joselin

Joselin's P.O.V.

His body rose. The oversized, wooden chair fell backward with a loud crack as his feet lifted off the floor. Guards, including Tobias, quickly removed Natalie and Killian from the table. It was his job. But as I watched Cyrus rise until his knees were aligned with the top of the table, possessed by an unknown force, I had one second where I wished Tobias had rushed to my rescue instead.

I scoffed at that thought as quickly as it came to mind. We both knew that I could handle myself, even if I were feeling under the weather.

I'm sure Natalie could too, but I had way more experience with magic than her. She was strong and good with light magic, but I knew light and dark magic thanks to my time with Talia. This... was dark magic.

Cyrus's scream cut off as his head was thrown back. His veins bulged from his body, and his already pale skin turned a sickly shade of grey.

I stepped toward him. Tobias's chair between us had been pushed several feet back during his rush to get the queen out.

My hand lifted, and I slowly approached Cyrus, wanting to feel the magic at play, to taste and familiarize myself with it.

The air was thin until I reached the wall of magic, and while chaos surrounded us from the packed dining hall rapidly emptying, I couldn't hear anything beyond the angry gurgling coming from his mouth.

The magic around him was thick and suffocating. Yet, I wasted no time jumping on the table and trying to force his head down to free his airway. A thick bloodstream spilled from his mouth before the pain-filled yell erupted again. The horror in his voice was haunting...familiar.

Aurora approached from his other side, holding her hands onto his body as she began chanting under her breath.

As usual, the rest of the council had been eating in either their chambers or the private dining room, leaving us to combat this evil on our own while we waited for someone to fetch them.

Cyrus shook, his body convulsing as fat tears slid down his cheeks. His arms were out to his sides, and he flinched as if he were fighting against restraints. His arms and legs were spread, his wrists bent so his palms were forward.

I was very familiar with the position he was in.

His pale yellow eyes were squeezed tightly shut as he gasped for breath." No! No!"

A force shot from his body, sending me flying through the air. I flipped once before hitting the ground on my side.

pain shot through me and then used the air to push me right back up.

him doing it. It was his attacker. The person who tried to drain him in his mountain. Possibly, the person who had tried the ritual

was so close, yet

wet croak from the lanky man made my chest ache and my

the table, I dumped the food onto the

dark magic, she would have to face me, and I

bowl filled with his black-laced blood, I began

his blood, then maybe...just maybe,

feeding into Cyrus's blood like an infection, working its way through his system. It was different than when it happened to me

the thread was barbed. Each time I tried to grab it, it sent a painful stab through my head, encouraging

were arching his back away from something. The sobbing cries for it to stop were

but as I dug deeper into his blood, I

can I do to help?" Natalie's voice called out, but growling returned as multiple guards tried to form a barrier between

I could almost taste it, and I turned my head to glare at the

without knowing what we were up against, it was almost impossible to ensure the safety of Natalie

toward the door. Killian wrapped his arm around her waist, stopping her

to her stomach, hinting at the reality that she very well could be carrying the heir. Even if she could help to save Cyrus, the royal

to go after Agatha and Aurora that day on the battlefield before a dagger was lodged into my back. It was why they always had guards and why every

had a choice to make too. Either try to save an innocent man who wasn't

her face, and my magic sealed them shut. Several guards were stunned and stood frozen as the sound of Natalie throwing magic at the barrier echoed through the room over Cyrus's begging

"Stand guard at the door. If she takes down my spell, keep her

nodded, seeming both determined and uneasy about protecting the

back to the bowl, I could see the crimson liquid boiling in the porcelain. My stomach rolled, and I looked

glinting under the fluorescent lights. "I'm going to try to slow this down. But I am

the wound. His floating body was

healers would be back in a moment with Aurora, and they could heal him before he became critically

until it stopped a few inches short of the stream pooling from Cyrus. I dropped to my knees, moving it the rest of the way, and