The Ascended — Chapter no 36

Chapter 36

Burning Skin

DAWN CREPT ACROSS DRAKNAVOR. I STOOD AT THE EDGE OF THE BLACK sand, watching as the last of the stars faded. A breeze swept in from the obsidian sea, carrying the tang of salt.

My muscles still ached from yesterday's expeditions—first to Memorica, and then to the ruins.

I rolled my shoulders, trying to ease the tension that had settled there.

Sleep had eluded me most of the night, my mind too full of terrible possibilities. Of Thatcher, transformed into a weapon. Of his power being used to reshape reality. And of the way Xül had looked at me in those ruins, his expression unreadable as I'd defended my brother, as I'd stepped back

from the edge of confession.

"You're early, starling."

The voice slid down my spine. I didn't turn.

"Couldn't sleep."

Xül moved to stand beside me.

"I imagine not," he said, studying me with those mismatched eyes.

“Don’t think our brief excursion to the ruins somehow made me forget how you performed in the trial.”

"I got the keys, didn't I?" I turned to face him fully, crossing my arms over my chest.

"Yes," he agreed, the corner of his mouth lifting. "Though if you're going to be foolish enough to get rid of your self-preservation again, your

powers better be strong enough to get you through it. That contestant nearly had you. If Marx hadn't shown up…" He clicked his tongue.

"I'd still be there in the depths," I finished for him, unable to deny the truth of it. The memory sent a shiver through me. "Lucky for me, she did."

"Luck," Xül scoffed. "Luck is for those without skill or power. And you harbor both of those, so you shouldn’t need luck."

I raised an eyebrow. "Is that concern I hear, Warden?"

Xül sighed, breaking the tension. "You have all the potential in the world, Thais, but you still haven’t reached your peak."

"Then teach me," I demanded, turning back to him. "That's what you're supposed to be doing, isn't it? Not lecturing me about my near-death experiences."

His eyes darkened as he studied my face, a slow smile spreading across his lips. "Very well. Let's see if we can channel some of that restless energy

into something productive."

“Let’s.”

Xül stepped back, gesturing toward the sky. "Show me your sword, starling."

I raised my hand, reaching for the fading stars above. The familiar thread of power hummed through me as I connected to the distant celestial bodies. One star pulsed in response, its light intensifying as I pulled.

The starlight streamed down, hot and bright, coalescing in my palm before extending outward. The sword formed—a blade of pure, brilliant light.

Xül circled me. I felt his gaze like an iron dragging across my skin.

"Good," he said, the word dropping between us.

"High praise indeed," I muttered.

He came to stand before me, arms crossed. The fabric of his shirt strained against his shoulders as he moved. I dragged my eyes back to his face.

"You've mastered the basics," he said. "Drawing a single star, forming a

weapon."

"I sense a 'but' coming."

His smile widened. "But it's time you learned to do more."

"Where are your souls, Xül?" I braced myself for battle, for the faceless damned he'd conjured before. “Let’s get on with it.”

But Xül merely shook his head. "It's time to grow." He gestured to my sword, then to my empty hand. "Pull down another star. Form a second

weapon."

I blinked. "Two at once?"

"Don’t think you could handle it?" His eyes flashed wickedly, and I realized we weren’t talking about swords anymore.

“Hilarious.” I shot back.

He gave me a knowing look. “Do as I said.”

I turned my attention skyward again, raising my arms. The sword of starlight hummed in my right hand as I reached with my left, searching for another connection.

A distant star pulsed in response. I pulled, feeling its light begin to stream toward me—a silver thread stretching across the crimson sky. For a heartbeat, it seemed to be working. Then the light wavered and dissolved among the morning clouds, like smoke carried away on a breeze.

"Shit," I hissed through clenched teeth.

Xül clicked his tongue. "Try again."

I did, muscles tightening with the effort. Another star responded, but again, the light dissipated before fully forming.

"Why isn't it working?" Frustration clawed up my throat.

Xül moved closer, his head tilted in consideration. "Why do you think?"

I glared at him. "If I knew, I wouldn't be asking you."

"Think, starling. When have you successfully pulled multiple stars before?"

I opened my mouth to say I’d never tried, but stopped as memory crashed into me. That evening so many weeks ago, when I'd flooded the arena with starlight, turning night into day.

"During the Proving," I admitted reluctantly. "When I was trying to save Thatcher."

Satisfaction flared in Xül’s eyes. "And what was different then?"

I frowned, trying to put it into words. "I was desperate. I wasn't thinking about it—I just needed the power."

"Precisely." Xül began to circle me again, his voice dropping lower.

"You've spent your entire life containing your power. Keeping it hidden.

Keeping it leashed."

My throat tightened. "I had to."

"And now that control is holding you back." He stopped behind me, close enough that the hairs on my neck rose in response. His breath ghosted over my skin when he spoke. "You need to let go, starling."

I turned to face him, refusing to let him intimidate me. "Easy for you to say. You've never had to hide what you are."

His eyes darkened as he studied my face. "No, but once again, I’m not the one competing for my life. If you’re going to survive—to withstand the scrutiny of Olinthar’s forge, you’re going to have to find some middle ground. You cannot keep suppressing your power."

“I’m not doing it on purpose,” I said. “I simply don’t know how.”

“Then I suppose we’ll need to create a situation in which you must.”

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means," he said, voice dropping to almost a whisper, "that you’ve only given up that perfect control under a few circumstances. At the Proving, yes. Out of desperation and fear. But the other times you’ve surrendered have been much more fun, wouldn’t you agree?"

Heat hit like a punch to the gut when his eyes dipped to my mouth.

Something wild and molten twisted to life inside me.

"I suppose it’s time for me to deliver on my threats." His voice was rough.

I couldn't look away. Couldn't move. Couldn't breathe.

"Do I have permission, starling?" He leaned closer, his scent filling my

lungs. "Can I make you burn?"

Gods help me, I nodded.

He smiled and began walking toward me with slow, deliberate steps.

Instinct had me backing away, my heart slamming against my ribs so hard I was sure he could hear it. One step, then another, until my back hit something solid—the rock he always leaned against.

Before I could move, Xül lifted a hand. I gasped as fingers emerged from the stone behind me, wrapping around my wrists and ankles. Another ghostly hand tangled in my hair, pulling my head back.

"What are you doing?" The words came out breathless.

Xül's eyes raked over me. "Magnificent," he said, voice like gravel.

"The restraints suit you."

It flooded me then—heat, hunger, something dangerously close to surrender.

"You like being held down, don't you?" Xül murmured, taking a step closer.

Above us, the stars pulsed brighter, responding to the surge of whatever betrayal was coursing through me.

"You don't need that control, starling," Xül continued, his voice a dark caress. "Give it to me."

Then a crack—that wall I'd built around my power, around my desires.

The stars burned against my skin, calling to me, begging to be used. Every nerve ending in my body was alight, aware of him, of the diminishing space between us.

Xül moved closer still, until his body pressed against mine, pinning me to the stone. He was fire wrapped in flesh. The full weight of his presence— the dominance and overbearing aura of a fully ascended Aesymar holding me in place was maddening. Absolutely fucking maddening.

And gods help me, it felt like freedom.

One hand came up to grip my waist, fingers digging into my flesh through my thin shirt.

"You feel that?" he whispered, his lips a breath away from my ear.

"Cling to it. Then lose yourself in it."

His thumb traced a slow path along my jawline. The simple touch sent fire racing across my skin, and my breath hitched. The corner of his mouth lifted in satisfaction.

"I’m curious," he murmured, his voice dropping to a register that vibrated through me. His fingers slid into my hair, tightening just enough to send shivers cascading down my spine. "What sounds you'd make if I touched you… here."

His other hand drifted down my side, tracing the curve of my waist, my hip, leaving a trail of fire in its wake. I bit my lip to keep from whimpering, but he noticed—of course he noticed—and his eyes darkened further.

"Don't hold back," he commanded, his face lowering until our noses almost touched. His breath mingled with mine. "I want to hear you."

The hand in my hair tugged gently, exposing my throat. The ghost fingers holding my wrists tightened in response, and a moan escaped me.

"There it is," he growled, his lips now hovering just above mine. The anticipation was unbearable, a physical ache that spread through my entire body. "Give me more."

His thumb brushed across my lower lip, catching on the sensitive flesh.

My eyes fluttered closed at the sensation, my lips parting involuntarily.

"Look at me, starling," he demanded.

I forced my eyes open to find his gaze burning into mine—gold and black, night and day, fixed on me. The hand at my hip slid to the small of my back, pressing me closer. Every point where our bodies touched was a brand on my skin.

"I can feel your power," he whispered against my lips, not quite touching.

I felt it too. It simmered just beneath my skin, fire racing through my veins like liquid starlight. But just as it began to crest, it slammed against an invisible barrier. My magic crashed against it, hissing and spitting like waves against a cliff face. But it wouldn’t splash over.

"Xül," I breathed, my voice cracking.

“You’re such a stubborn little thing,” he growled.

And then his lips claimed mine.

The kiss shattered every expectation, every experience that had come before. This wasn't the tentative exploration of the boys in Saltcrest. This was possession, pure and primal. His lips were firm and demanding, coaxing mine open. When his tongue swept into my mouth, tasting me, a sound escaped my throat—half gasp, half moan.

My body pulled against the restraints. I wanted him closer. To feel more of him. His hand tightened on my waist, pulling me harder against him as the kiss deepened, grew more desperate. His teeth grazed my lower lip, sending sparks roaring through my veins.

I was drowning in sensation. The hard press of his body against mine.

The way his hand slid from my waist to my hip, fingers digging in possessively.

As I surrendered to the kiss, to him, my power swelled, threatening to burst from my skin. The stars above us pulsed in time with my racing heart, responding to my hunger—to my desire.

Xül smiled against my mouth, his hips pushing forward against mine.

The hard length of him pressed into my stomach, sending a shock of need through me.

"That's it," he growled against my lips, his voice rougher than I'd ever heard it, "now be a good girl and let go."

Images flashed in my mind—his body over mine, under mine, his hands on my bare skin, his mouth everywhere. I moaned, unable to stop myself, and his kiss grew fiercer in response.

I was burning from the inside out, ready to combust, to surrender

everything— And then he pulled away.

His sudden absence left me cold. I sagged against my restraints, chest heaving, mind reeling, body screaming for his touch.

Xül stood a few feet away as if nothing had happened. If it weren't for his swollen lips, I would have thought I'd imagined the whole thing.

"Now," he said, his voice unnervingly steady. "Use that power."

The hands released me, and I stumbled forward, flustered and embarrassed and annoyed and oddly bereft. But beneath all that churned the power he'd awakened. It was a torrent now. I reached for it, no longer grasping but surrendering to that wild energy that threatened to consume me.

The wall caved in on itself—a barrier I'd reinforced with every fearful moment, every time I'd pulled back instead of pushing forward. It shattered like glass, and power surged through the breach, flooding every cell, every nerve ending, every corner of my being.

I threw my head back and screamed as the energy ripped through me.

My skin glowed from within, light seeping through my pores like I'd swallowed the sun.

I lifted both hands toward the sky and pulled the heavens down.

But no swords formed. Instead, seven motes of starlight descended, each blazing, scorching the air as they spiraled downward to circle my head.

The ground shook. Wind whipped around us in a frenzy, carrying my hair upward as if gravity no longer applied. I felt weightless, boundless, untethered from everything but this moment and this power.

"Fascinating," Xül breathed, the words almost reverent as he shielded his eyes from my radiance. "I've never seen anything like that."

I stood there, heart pounding, body still thrumming as the stars danced around my head, as the earth trembled beneath me, as the very air seemed to bow to my will. I had done more than access my power—I had unleashed

it, embraced it fully.

But at what cost?

"How does it feel?" Xül asked, his voice gentler now.

I took a deep breath, assessing the sensation. Power coursed through me, different from the focused energy of my sword. This was wilder, singing through me violently.

"Different," I managed. "More… everything."

He nodded, as if my incoherent response made perfect sense. "You've been containing your power for so long, you've never fully experienced what you're capable of."

I raised a hand, feeling the starlight respond to my movement. The motes shifted, dancing around my fingers now. "What are they?"

"Pure celestial energy," Xül explained. "Not formed into a weapon, but simply manifested. More versatile than a sword, if you learn to control them."

"I thought the point was to lose control," I said, raising an eyebrow.

His lips quirked. "The point was to break through your self-imposed limitations. Now that you have, you can learn to work with your true potential, not against it."

I nodded, trying to absorb the lesson beneath the lingering ghost of his kiss. "So what now?"

"Now we practice." He gestured to the stars circling my head. "But I believe that’s enough for today," he said. "You've done well, and I don't want you to burn out. Besides, I’m needed in the Eternal City."

“Again?” I asked, trying to keep my voice steady.

“Unfortunately.” He sighed, walking towards me. “But I’ll be back tonight,” he said as he reached up to brush a strand of hair behind my ear.

“If you need me.”

"I should… I should go clean up," I said, gesturing vaguely to my sweat- dampened clothes.

Xül nodded. "We'll continue tomorrow." He turned to leave, then

paused. "Oh, and Thais?"

"Yes?"

His eyes held mine, intense and unreadable. "What happened today— the power you accessed—that's just the beginning."

With that, he strode away, leaving me standing alone on the black sand.

I made my way back to my chambers, mind reeling. I shed my clothes and slipped into the hot spring tub inside my quarters. The steaming water

welcomed me as I sank into it, hoping to wash away my confusion along with the sweat and sand.

But as I soaked, my thoughts kept returning to Xül. To his hands, his mouth, the weight of his body against mine. To the way he'd looked at me when the stars had formed their crown around my head.

I closed my eyes, letting the water envelop me, and unbidden, my mind conjured his image. His stare pinning me in place, gaze igniting a flush I couldn’t hide. The hard lines of his jaw, the curve of his mouth when he almost smiled.

My breathing quickened as I imagined those hands—hands that could command death itself—moving over my skin. Gentle, then not so gentle. I sank deeper into the water, the warmth surrounding me transforming in my mind to the wildfire of his touch.

I pictured him here, in this room, watching me with that predatory stillness. What would he do if he saw me like this? Would he turn away? Or would he finally surrender to whatever smoldered between us?

In my mind, he chose the latter. I imagined him approaching the bath.

His hands on my shoulders, sliding down my arms, leaving trails of fire in their wake. His lips at my neck, my collarbone, lower.

My fingers drifted across my skin, tracing paths I imagined his would take. The water rippled around me as I moved, my breath coming faster now. I bit my lip to keep silent.

It had been weeks now since we'd begun this dance, this flirtation that walked the edge of destruction. At first, it had been a game, a welcome distraction from grief. Something to occupy my mind when darker thoughts threatened to drag me under.

But today felt like a turning point. And that terrified me more than any trial could. Because I was starting to want things I couldn't have. Starting to

feel things I shouldn't feel.

You can’t fall for him, Thais.

It was impossible, of course. Whatever attraction he felt toward me was physical, perhaps tinged with some kind of sick satisfaction or lust for the forbidden. Even more, he wasn’t mine, could never be.

I rose from the bath and dried myself, pulling on clean clothes. This was foolishness. Dangerous foolishness. I needed to focus on survival, on the goal, on everything I‘d learned and everything I had yet to.

Not on sultry eyes and wicked smiles. Not on the way my body and power both responded to his touch. Not on the dangerous spark that had ignited in my chest.

I braided my wet hair with sharp, angry movements. Tomorrow, I would be better. Tomorrow, I would remember my purpose.