From the darkness around them, Aeron came forward with an arch stare. He wasn’t afraid of Nick, only cautious. “Are you in control, boyo?”
Nick looked around the forest with his intense sight that not only saw, but felt the very air around him. For the first time ever, he was himself in his Malachai’s body. There was no rage beast wanting to consume and devour everything within reach. No desire to kill or to maim.
He was human and beast.
Only more powerful.
Fully in control. United. A single creature that understood both sides of its furious nature. The brutal and the compassion.
Stunned to silence, Nick allowed the enormity of the moment to wash over him. Could it be? He held his hand up to see the marbled black and red flesh. The clawed hands.
Yeah, he was definitely and fully demoned out.
“Nick?” Aeron tried again. “Can you understand me?”
“Yeah. I feel normal. But weird. Really, really weird.” He sounded even weirder. It was the first time he’d been able to really converse with someone as a demon.
Laughing, Aeron winked at him. “You found it, eh?”
Nick nodded slowly. “I think I get it, though. Why you said it could endanger everyone I loved.” He shifted back to his human body and brushed his hand through his hair. “Yeah, definitely, don’t try this at home, kids. Only with professional drivers, on a closed track.”
A slow, knowing smile spread across Aeron’s face. “But try it again? Just to be sure?”
Nick did.
And again, it worked. For the first time, he had complete control over his body and his powers. “Have I mastered it?”
Aeron wasn’t so quick to agree. “You’re getting there. No doubt. It’ll still take more practice.”
He offered Nick a proud smile. “Just remember, your temper will always be the key to unlock those powers, and you’ll have to ride herd on that temper for all your days. As the Malachai, hatred will forever be your weakness. Your undoing. That special place where you’ll want to go for comfort. But it’s the one place you must avoid at all costs, less you want to eat your neighbors and family.”
“Yeah… no. Think I’ll pass.”
“Wise choice, lad.”
Livia straightened and watched him with a peculiar light in her eyes. One Nick wasn’t quite sure about. But he didn’t have time to worry over that. Let her have her tantrum later. Honestly, he was tired of dealing with her and her theatrics. The more he was around her, the more grateful he was for Kody, who never brought drama to his door – other than the demons who followed her there that she couldn’t elude. Yet that wasn’t her fault. She always did her best to get rid of them first.
Right now, he had to save his mom and Caleb. For all he knew, his unknown, mysterious half-brother was nearing the end of his test.
And Nick had to beat him to it. While he honestly would be glad to hand over the reins of Malachai to someone else, anyone else for that matter, he couldn’t allow his mother to stay asleep.
They had to get the berries to wake her. That was his goal.
Nick launched his wings, but kept his human body. Ah yeah, now this was cool. “So… shall we fly to the Nemed?”
With a nod of approval, Aeron turned into the ball of ghost light, and led him through the forest with Lerabeth and Livia trailing behind them.
Now that Nick was able to access his Malachai powers without them taking him over, they were able to reach the tree in a matter of minutes.
Nick also realized that his mission had been a manufactured trick by Chronus and Tiamat. The tree was so tall that without his Malachai wings, he wouldn’t have been able to reach the berries at all. They hung too high. But there was also another problem.
He frowned up at the fruit that was nestled along the leaf-filled branches. “Do I pick the black, green, or red berries?”
“Blackberries,” Livia answered.
“Nae!” Aeron shouted as Nick reached for them. “Nemed blackberries are for death. The green are unripened fruit. The red are what you be needing to revive your loved ones, boyo.”
Livia scoffed at him. “He’s lying to you, Nick. For once, listen to me!”
Nick growled low in his throat, tired of Livia’s eternal bickering and whining. “Lerabeth? Which is it?”
“I was to lead. You’re here. You pick the berries you were told.”
There was only one problem with that. “No one said anything about color-coded berries, crow woman. They just said to pick six.”
“Then pick six and be done with it.”
Nick wanted to wring the neck of that unhelpful red crow. He glanced to Livia, who was glaring at him as if she could kill him herself.
She might be one of his generals, but every part of him said that he should listen to Aeron. “Fine. Then I’m going with the one who calls this place home. If anyone should know which to pick, Aeron should be he.”
He reached for the red ones.
The moment Nick had all six in his hand, Lerabeth opened the portal back to their world.
Nick hesitated. “Can Aeron return with us?”