Assassin of Curses: (The Coren Hart Chronicles Book 3) Jessie Eaker (best reads txt) 📖

concentrating. I felt our descent gradually slow, but the resistance only lasted a moment. She looked at me bleakly and shook her head, confirming she wasn’t powerful enough to stop us. Spraggel was smiling and had his arms out like he was trying to fly. I shook my head. He seemed to be enjoying himself.

I turned to Zofie beside me, expressionless as she had been since receiving the charm. This was likely going to be my last time seeing her in this world. “I love you,” I said aloud, the wind eating my words.

And she loves you too. Although I can’t understand why. You’re such a Creator blasted trouble magnet.

It was Abe!

“Can you save us?” I yelled.

Why do you think I’m talking to you, monkey brain. The princess has an idea.

The clouds were getting closer. I wondered what it would be like to pass through one.

“Then get on with it!” I pleaded.

The fluffy clouds rose up, and we plunged into them, to emerge a moment later with the ground looming closer by the heartbeat.

Wish I could, but you’ve really outdone yourself this time. Even the princess agrees. We can’t help you with this one...

I had time to wonder if I would feel any pain when I hit.

But Cabrina can.

“What?” I shouted.

Cabrina, you can hear me, can’t you? The princess did something to let you listen too.

I looked over at her, and with her eyes wide in terror, she nodded.

The princess says that Cabrina was selected for the school not only because she is a powerful myst user, but she is on Zofie’s level.

She’s a myst seer. She can not only use spells, she can craft them.

And she can use myst shields.

I didn’t think someone that was terrified could look panicked, but she did. She shook her head emphatically.

The princess says we’re going too fast to use a portal. The momentum we carry would kill us. Instead, Cabrina will have to catch us.

“I c-c-can’t do it!” she yelled. The wind was too fierce for the sound to travel, but courtesy of Zofie and my curse, I heard her in my head. And since she stuttered, it was the real Cabrina.

Abe switched to a commanding tone I had never heard him use before. No-name! You Avenyts curse! Didn’t you say your purpose was to enhance people? To perfect them! Then by the Creator, help her! It’s the only way she’s going to live.

Cabrina stared at me for just a heartbeat and then closed her eyes tightly, shaking her head.

Then I heard a different voice. It sounded female, and I knew it was the curse inside Cabrina. No-name. And she was talking to her just like Abe did me. Cabrina, it said. You’ve been practicing. You can do this.

“I c-c-can’t! Besides, putting a shield around us w-won’t help!” she cried. “It’ll be too hard. W-we’ll be c-crushed!”

You’re right. No-name replied calmly. A hard wall won’t help. But maybe a pillow would. How about you put us inside a giant pillow.

I eyed the approaching ground. I could make out what looked like water smattered with grass and tiny islands. We only had a handful of seconds left.

Cabrina nodded. She gave a deep breath and squeezed her eyes together. The hairs on the back of my neck stood up, and I could feel the myst gathering.

“I can’t,” Cabrina whined.

I know you can, replied No-name. Think of a big puffy pillow. Pink. You like that color.

“Pink?” Cabrina asked.

Big, fluffy, and your favorite shade of pink. Do it girl! Now!

The feeling of myst gathering increased. My eyes went wide. This was big. Really big. Cabrina’s hair stood straight out, not even moving in the fierce wind. I could see sparks fly around her.

Below us, I could see a bright pink glow spread across the ground. It rose toward us, and we fell into it.

We hit it hard, but it collapsed under us, gradually slowing us down while at the same time enveloping us. It was like falling through pink honey. Slowing us until we were almost stopped, the giant myst bubble popped, and we dropped the last few feet into shallow water.

I quickly untied myself and made sure Zofie was sitting up and frantically checking her for any injury. Cabrina had passed out, and Fumiko was helping her sit up. I went to Oddfrid. He was limp, and his skin was cold, but he was thankfully breathing, although shallowly.

As I cradled him, I finally looked around. We were in some kind of swamp. Tall grass, reeds, and bushes were all around us. And it was hot. Steamy would be a better word.

Spraggel stood and looked around in puzzlement. He summed it up best.

“I don’t think I’ve been here before.”

We pulled ourselves together and splashed through the water, searching for higher ground. We finally found a little bump of a hill that was only a couple of feet above the water. But it was at least dry. Although something preferred not to share it with us, slithering through the tall grass and into the water as we stepped on. It had seemed to be a snake of some sort. But of a variety much, much larger than I was used to.

While Fumiko looked over our little island to ensure no other large creatures were sharing it, I used the lower branches of the hill’s only tree to get a higher perspective of our surroundings.

The stunted tree, a type of pine, didn’t particularly care for my weight on its limbs, but held as I climbed up a few feet. It wasn’t much higher, but it got me over the bushes and tall grass.

The land was quite flat, so even from my short height, I could see quite a ways around me. A clump of