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Dagger Head Box
I’ve heard Olyvia say often that the bond is not something easily established, nor easy to bear. You have to be careful who you bond with, she’s told me, because if it’s not a compatible pairing you might as well have strapped a stick of dynamite to your head and lit the match. More than one marwolaeth has gone insane due to the pairing being ‘ill-suited’.
Once I stuck my hands in the middle of their bond, I got a first-hand taste of why she insisted a bond was not to be taken lightly. It was like sticking a fork into an electrical outlet. My hair stood on end for a few seconds, the magic binding them suddenly coursing through me.
With a loud SNAP somewhere back in my mind, I could feel every shock of electricity Olyvia received, every twitch of Layla’s muscles, and hear every single shooting thought between them.
As I worked to isolate the energy connecting Layla and Olyvia’s consciousness, I was immediately greeted with pain, isolation, and an overwhelming amount of emotion. Abandonment. Fear. Shame. Guilt. I could see through Olyvia’s eyes, even as I was aware of my own surroundings. I took a moment to look around, taking in the room Afanasiy had her trapped in.
I knew it as soon as I saw it. I had been inside his torture chamber before; harsh overhead light glanced off the metal molded to the cavern walls, vials of solutions burned on a table nearby, and there was a flash of a needle going into my arm and my body going rigid. Something was pressing on my wrists, legs and neck. I flexed my fingers, paying attention to the canvas of Layla’s jacket in order to reground me. It took conscious effort to remember this was all happening to Olyvia and not me.
Damn that fox. He had injected her with a small dose of silver to ensure she wouldn’t be able to heal or transform. An extra layer of protection, because apparently the silver cuffs in the room designed to suppress wild magic wasn’t enough. He had proceeded with beating her, cutting her, burning her, and had just now completed his first round of electric shocks. He had taken a break, talking to her and monologuing about the things he was going to do to her further. Reminding her of her bond and wondering how loudly Layla had been screaming.
His voice trailed through my mind like a soft song, and I sensed through Olyvia’s tired eyes that he was walking away. His voice was distorted and fading in and out, Olyvia trying desperately to ignore him and fight off her endless fatigue.
Good. She was still fighting. After everything she had been through already, it was a wonder she hadn’t given up and let herself pass out.
Olyvia? Gods, tell me you can still think.
...Rod?
I felt Layla’s chest and mine let out a simultaneous breath of relief.
Good, you’re still in there.
Why...what? Why can I...what are these...memories?
I could feel her probing my mind. I did my best to cut her off, but it was harder than I thought.
Am I...did I...?
No, I answered, I’m doing this. I entered your bond in order to cut you off from it. I can help. Let me help.
Bastard! The thought streaked across our minds. Sorry, she immediately apologized. Not here to hurt. Not here to do wrong. Trust you.
Temporary, I thought back. Sending Layla somewhere safe. An image slipped out, to which both of the girls recoiled. Trust me! I shouted over the sudden chaotic mental noise. She’ll be safe and we’ll be right behind her.
Can’t break out, Olyvia thought. My fault we’re here.
My fault for not being fast enough, I responded. My fault you’re here.
Not strong enough, came Layla’s trailing thought. Should have fought harder. My fault.
It’s all our faults, I thought to both of them. Not working as a team. All our faults.
Never been a team player, Olyvia scoffed. Not since Ally died.
Layla’s attention perked, but I tied the knot before that went any further.
Not necessary, I thought, sending a shock through the magic to cause feedback between them. In the space of the sudden silence, I thought through my entire plan. The girls agreed and I finished knotting the current before we could get any more distracted by each other.
I suddenly respected Olyvia; controlling Layla’s random spurts of thoughts and emotions was harder than I would have imagined. If I were the she-wolf I would have gone crazy by now.
As I pulled myself free of the magical energies, something niggled in the back of my mind. There was something not quite right about the experience in Olyvia’s mind, the obvious aside. When she caught some of my memories, I must have caught some of hers in return. There was something wrong with them...though I wasn’t quite sure what.
I shook my head. Couldn’t focus on it now. The magic was fading, taking the memories with it. I would probably have a bit of a headache for the next few hours accompanied by memories that weren’t mine. Despite the oncoming headache, I had to get to the next stage of the plan.
As I took my hands off Layla, standing and stretching slowly in order to get reacquainted with my own body and senses, Layla gave off a shudder and looked up at me.
“Who’s...who’s Ally?” She asked quietly.
“Not someone I can talk about,” I answered, stretching my sides and twisting.
“But...” Her eyebrows dug a trench in her features as she thought. “But Olyvia's never...I’ve never...”
“Olyvia’s withholding about her past,” I answered, grabbing at my hat. “Big surprise.”
“No, it’s not...” Layla grabbed at her head, running hands through her hair and muttering. “It’s...there’s something...not right about her memory...”
I hesitated, hat in my hand. Of course this happens now. Of course it does.
Layla looked back up at me. “There’s no emotion. When Olyvia mentioned that...that name...there was nothing. No attachment...no emotion. What does it—” She flinched, grabbing at her head again. “I can’t see her...can’t feel her...I don’t like this.” She looked back up at me. “I don’t like being alone.”
“Sorry kid,” I said, flicking the hat under her. It opened, sucking her into the portal before snapping shut again. “...and this time I mean it.”