Chapter 128 Chapter 128: The Despair of Grief

Chapter 128 Chapter 128: The Despair of Grief
Zadok’s body collapses to the sand like a rag doll, heavy and lifeless.
Tears run down my cheeks without me even realizing it, but it’s the physical pain in my heart that prevents me from reacting.
For a brief moment, I feel breathless, as if all the oxygen in my lungs has been sucked out of me.
A scream of despair gets stuck in my throat.
I can’t move as I watch the man I love dying, all because I thought my plan was the best idea to save the kingdom.
What was I fucking thinking?
My fingers curl into fists so tight that my nails sink into my palms, drawing blood from my skin.
The rage and desperation that consume me are more than I can handle.
At this point, I no longer have any control over my emotions. No matter how hard I’ve practiced with Amser, none of it prepared me for losing someone I loved. 
Especially not Zadok.
A wave of intense energy courses through my veins, but it’s something different and unfamiliar this time.
Something stronger, overwhelming, and consuming.
I can hear the waves lapping behind me, the tide changing, the sea agitated because of the storm forming around us.
My feet move on their own accord, but instead of forward, they take me backward, into the water.
As soon as my boots hit the ocean, another flood of energy hits me, causing my entire body to tremble.
My eyes don’t lose Zadok from focus. It’s like the entire world has shifted to that single spot.
I don’t try to prevent the tears from falling, but they are being quickly replaced by the shaking of my limbs, the rage inside me boiling to a point I can’t hold back.
Guilt threatens to eat me alive as I stare at Zadok, his beautiful eyes closed, his pale face frozen in pain and fear.
The creatures that attacked him are no longer close to his body, but rather continuing on their mission to get close to me.
Good, let them come.
I clench my fists harder, a new plan forming in my head at a frightening speed.
My heart slams in my chest, consumed by desire for revenge.
I can’t let these monsters win again.
They took my mom from me. They took my father from me. They took the life I was supposed to have since I was born. And now they have taken away the only man I could see myself sharing a life with.
I have lost everything because these fucking creatures decided they are better than us. Because they decided they want more.
When the truth is, they deserve nothing but to be wiped off the face of the earth.
Forever.
Taking a deep breath, I force my brain to shut off the heartache and grief. It is easier said than done, but I manage to do it once I peel my eyes away from Zadok.
Moving my hands up, I force invisible shields to protect the guards in my sight, blocking them from being attacked but also from attacking back.
Time seems to slow down again as I watch the king’s men freeze, terrified by their lack of will and movement.
Everything else happens in a matter of seconds.
Amser’s gaze finds mine from a distance, and her beautiful face shifts to a shocked expression as she realizes what I’m about to do. I managed to block her too, preventing her from doing anything else.
Her eyes widen with terror, but I have no time to reassure her that I know what I’m doing.
Because, in fact, I don’t. I’m acting on pure instincts and rage.
Every mystic, healer, and soldier has been paralyzed by my invisible shield, but the Shades don’t look bothered by it.
They no longer have to waste their time fighting others. They now have their path clear to get to their only goal—me.
“Come on, motherfuckers!” I yell, my entire body shaking aggressively as a new wave of energy flows through my feet into my heart.
My powers consume me, my skin glimmering so bright that it’s almost blinding.
The Shades are clearly annoyed by it, scrunching those ugly faces as they approach me.
Gathering the most amount of magic I can, I wait for them to come closer.
And closer.
Sweat drips from my forehead. My legs are trembling so badly that I fear my knees will give out before I have the chance to attack. My heart is pounding so hard that my ribs are hurting.
But they need to come closer.
Just a bit more…
When the first dark creature steps a few miles from me, their face so close that I can see the way their red eyes take me in, assessing the source of energy in my hands, I let it all go.
I release all the power I managed to muster, letting it spread throughout the beach like a huge blade swiping everything in half.
For a moment, I hold my breath, letting the adrenaline dissipate from my system as I watch the scene in front of me.
My shields worked.
None of my friends and allies seems to have been hit. Instead, they’re all looking at me from behind their shields with scared faces. 
Alive.
I can’t say the same about the Shades, though.
Shaking, I watch as the upper halves of their bodies fall to the side, having been literally cut from their lower parts.
Their red eyes are still open, but they no longer carry any sign of life, if there ever was one in the first place. I don’t think they had any souls left in them at all.
Even the trees in the distance haven’t been spared, looking dead as if stripped from the roots, dissected entirely.
As if by magic or some other supernatural force, the Shades’ corpses turn into piles of ashes right before my eyes.
I stare at it, unable to move.
It’s just when a sob leaves my mouth that I realize I’m still crying.
And precisely at this moment, I fall to my knees, no longer able to hold myself together.
The waves lap at me, as if comforting me, but I have no strength in me to care.
My hands sink into the cold and wet sand, and lifting my head as much as I can, I notice the shields disappearing slowly. 
Soldiers, mystics, and healers look around, confused and scared.
Amser runs toward me as soon as I release her, her eyes widened. I can still see the hint of pride in them, although she looks terrified, like I’ve never seen before.
Before she gets to me, before she can hold me and tell me this is all over, my brain shuts down. 
Darkness engulfs me, taking me to a land where I feel nothing but peace. I gladly welcome it, because the pain in my heart is too much for me to bear.
I can’t cope with what I just lost.
Not even victory will make me see the good part of this.
Because I’ve lost Zadok.
And I simply cannot accept that.