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“There’s no need for that,” Attes’s voice rose from the steps. “It’s only Aurelia. She will harm none of you.”

“Yeah, well, can’t blame my people for being wary.” Ash shifted his stance so half of him blocked me. At his side, his hand fisted as there was a round of hasty bows that neither Ash nor I joined in on.

Bele didn’t either.

She cut off another chunk of apple and popped it into her mouth.

I pressed my hand against Ash’s back as Attes crested the top of the stairs.

“I can’t.” Attes glanced out to sea as his draken grew closer to Ehthawn, who rumbled a low warning. Attes’s jaw tensed. “I hope your draken is just overly friendly.”

Well…

“Ehthawn will not strike at Aurelia unless he’s given reason to,” Ash advised. “But it’s not him you’re really worried about.”

Nektas snorted smoke from where he remained on the cliff.

Attes tilted his head. “I assume Seraphena is all right and still in possession of The Star?”

“The what?” Bele murmured.

“I am.” I sidestepped Ash, looking behind him and seeing no one. “Keella?”

“She’s here.” Attes did a double-take as he spotted Elias. “I had her give us a couple of minutes just in case we needed them.” He looked pointedly at Ash. “Hopefully, those minutes aren’t needed.”

“They’re not,” Ash replied, folding his arms over his chest. “Yet.”

“They won’t be needed.” I shot Ash a look as Ehthawn veered toward who I assumed was Crolee.

“It’s nice to deal with someone reasonable.” Attes’s smile softened the scars on his face.

A growl came from a much, much closer source.

Attes’s smile kicked up a notch as he ignored the warning of violence building in Ash. The Primal of War and Accord scanned those on the Temple as his draken flew overhead, her scales a mix of green and brown in the sunlight.

“Um,” I murmured as the draken cleared the Temple, dipping low. The end of her spiked tail skimmed the side of the cliff directly above Nektas, sending a shower of dirt down on him.

Wait. Wasn’t that the draken Nektas had visited to get information from? And hadn’t Reaver said he thought Nek was sweet on her?

Nektas grumbled, shaking off the dirt as he raised his head. Eyes narrowing, his head swiveled, thin wisps of smoke wafting from his nose. Aurelia tucked her wings to her sides, landing on a cliff above and off to the side of Nektas.

She was larger than both Ehthawn and Crolee, but Nektas dwarfed her as he rose onto all fours, baring his teeth—

Aurelia was fast, stretching out her neck and snapping at Nektas as the frills around her neck vibrated.

I tugged on the back of Ash’s shirt. “Should we be worried about this?”

“Should we? Probably,” he replied dryly. “Since this is their idea of flirting, and it tends to get a bit…aggressive.”

“Kind of like how you two flirt,” Saion tossed out as he strode past us.

“Rude,” I muttered.

Ash chuckled, sending a little quiver of surprise through me. Normally, he would’ve threatened Saion, or at the very least, shut him up with a glare, but the Ash I’d first met in the mortal realm? He was more relaxed, more playful. I was seeing a bit of that now, his more teasing nature—

Nektas yelped as Aurelia nipped his neck when he got too close. He jerked back, his chest rumbling.

“Just think,” Attes neared us, “if they hook up, we’ll be kind of related.”