Read Online Descend (Awakened Fate Book 2) by Skye Malone - Free Book Online Page A

on my stomach change.
    Nothing happened.
    Ina’s brow furrowed. “Are you trying?”
    “Yes,” I said, fighting to keep from snapping.
    “Huh,” she commented.
    “The Sylphaen gave me something. Neiphiandine.”
    Her confusion faltered. “Oh. Uh, I’m sorry. I didn’t…”
    “It’s fine,” I said tightly.
    “Well, after that clears up then. You just think of what you want, and it’ll happen.”
    I nodded for lack of any other response to give. Hopefully the neiphiandine would wear off. Sometime soon anyway.
    “But still,” she said, regrouping. “You have no idea how good things are down here. Drugs or not, you can still enjoy it. And if you ever do get bored, you can always head topside once that neiphiandine goes away and just hang out there for a while. Come back when that gets boring, but meet all kinds of fun people in the meantime.” She grinned again. “Just make sure you don’t get too carried away. You wouldn’t want to slip up and make someone fall for you.”
    My brow furrowed.
    “Eh, magic,” she explained with a wave of her hand, as though she didn’t really want to dwell on it. “Aveluria’s what we call it. Makes things all heightened and exciting with other dehaians, but humans react to it like a drug. You get too caught up with one of them, you might lose control of it. Get them to fall for you, hard. And then that poor soul’s going to pine away, not wanting food, water, anything till they just die of longing for you. Which totally sucks, and also will get you in heaps of trouble down here, since it’s super illegal and basically murder.”
    I stared at her.
    “Don’t worry,” she assured me. “You mostly have to want magic to happen for it to work. And if you’re careful and you don’t let yourself get too wrapped up with them, you’ll be fine – and so will they.”
    I managed a nod.
    Her grin returned. “Okay, well,” she continued, setting the topic aside. “I don’t know what you had planned, but you really should let me introduce you to some people. Show you how dehaians have fun, eh?”
    “What about the guards?”
    She gave the door a dismissive look. “Oh, they can come. Probably do them some good, not just floating in the hall all day.”
    I hesitated. Given at least half the dehaians I’d met so far, I wasn’t really sure I wanted to get to know any more of them.
    But I didn’t have a good excuse to stay.
    “Alright,” I allowed.
    The guards fell in around us as I followed her from the room, and they didn’t once question Ina for bringing me with her. At the massive central corridor between the many levels of the palace, she turned downward, weaving a path through the bowing servants and guards toward a wide archway on the first floor.
    I slowed in shock when we reached it. Easily five stories high, the cavernous chamber beyond was lined with white marble and gold accents. Dehaians were everywhere, resting in groups on cushions on the ground or secluded in booths perched high on the walls. Lights shone far overhead, illuminating the people scattered below, while on the opposite end of the room, a woman hovered above a platform halfway up the wall as if she was on a stage.
    She was singing. I could hear it, despite the buzz of myriad conversations between us, and somehow, her voice wove them all into her song. Dropping below the murmurs and then rising above them again, she seemed to anticipate every change around her and turn it into something beautiful.
    I looked to Ina. She grinned. “Nice, huh? Siren song. Part of that aveluria thing I was telling you about – though unless you’ve touched someone with magic first, the vocal stuff is mostly just for show. Pretty and attractive, but won’t really do much. Touch is where it’s really powerful.”
    Ina started into the room, only to pull up short as the crowd parted ahead of us.
    “What?” I asked warily.
    “Oh, nothing,” she replied as several nearby dehaians rose from their cushions and