"The gods will find you soon, and when they do..."
Aurelian's broken voice dragged through the air, wet and faint, but still carrying that disgusting arrogance even as the void blade pinned his throat to the shattered mountain.
His ruined fingers twitched desperately toward the broken book lying not far from him, trying to reach it, trying to call it back, but the book only trembled weakly in response, its golden pages flickering like a dying flame that no longer had enough strength to burn.
Max watched him without blinking.
Aurelian's hand stretched a little farther, his nails scraping against the stone, but the book never came within his reach. The light in his golden eyes began to fade little by little, draining away from the edges first, as if something was being pulled out of him from within. He tried to speak again, tried to finish that sentence, tried to leave behind one last warning, one last curse, one last decree from whatever gods stood behind him.
