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Back Into the Dying Light Save as PDF
Chapters (72)
  1. Copyright Notice
  2. Dedication
  3. I
  4. 1
  5. 2
  6. 3
  7. 4
  8. 5
  9. BEFORE
  10. 6
  11. 7
  12. BEFORE
  13. 8
  14. 9
  15. 10
  16. 11
  17. 12
  18. 13
  19. BEFORE
  20. 14
  21. 15
  22. 16
  23. 17
  24. BEFORE
  25. II
  26. 18
  27. 19
  28. 20
  29. 21
  30. 22
  31. 23
  32. 24
  33. 25
  34. 26
  35. 27
  36. 28
  37. 29
  38. 30
  39. 31
  40. 32
  41. III
  42. 33
  43. 34
  44. 35
  45. 36
  46. 37
  47. 38
  48. 39
  49. 40
  50. 41
  51. IV
  52. 42
  53. 43
  54. 44
  55. 45
  56. 46
  57. 47
  58. 48
  59. 49
  60. 50
  61. 51
  62. 52
  63. 53
  64. 54
  65. 55
  66. 56
  67. 57
  68. 58
  69. AFTER
  70. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
  71. ABOUT THE AUTHOR
  72. Newsletter Sign-up

But this was different.

“We’ll go to Pallas Athos, as we’ve said,” Jude said. “Find the Relics. And when we go to confront the god, instead of binding it with the Relics, we’ll kill it. You’ll unleash the Sacred Word inside me and use it to kill the god.”

She was silent for a long moment, but Jude could see the resolve in her eyes. “He won’t forgive me for this. Either of us. This will destroy him.”

“I know,” Jude said. He couldn’t bear to think of what this would do to Anton. Jude had sworn to protect him, and now, at last, he would break that oath. “I know it’s too much to ask of you.”

The Wanderer laughed hollowly. “Too much to ask of me? You are the one giving up your life, Jude. You are cursed to make this choice because I dared to defy Pallas and the god. The other Prophets, they could have found another way to preserve the Sacred Word, but they chose to make you its Keeper because they wanted to punish me. Maybe it’s fitting, then, that I should be the one to have to do this. Perhaps that was the punishment they intended all along.”

“So you’ll do it,” Jude said, focusing on her words rather than the bitterness that suffused them. “You’ll help me slay the god.”

She sighed. She looked suddenly much older. Wearier. “I will. But Jude, do you really think keeping it from Anton will make this any easier on him? It might be better for him to have time to come to terms with it.”

“We can’t tell him,” Jude said. He had managed to keep the desperation from his voice this long, but suddenly his voice cracked with it. “We just—We can’t.”

The Wanderer searched his face in that familiar, assessing way, until she found the answer she was looking for.

“Ah. You don’t want to keep this a secret to protect him. You’re doing it because you’re afraid that if he begs you not to do this, you just might obey.”

Jude dropped his gaze to the floor, ashamed.

“You want to live,” the Wanderer said quietly.

“I want … time,” Jude admitted. “Even just a little of it.”

A ghost of a smile flickered across the Wanderer’s face. “I’ve had a lot of time in my life. And I can tell you that how much or how little you have doesn’t matter. What matters is what you do with it.”

35

BERU

The colossal stone Guardians of Justice towered over the entrance to Tarsepolis’s harbor.

The god stood on the outstretched hand of the torch-bearing statue, gazing down at the city. Beru felt its will wrapped around her body, dark tendrils of power that pulled at her like the strings of a puppet.