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“Where do you live?”

“On the outskirts of Cressida.”

The clerk nodded as she wrote down. “Are you mated?”

“Yes. My mate’s name is Saha Era.” Raan couldn’t help but smile at the thought of his mate. His wife; his soulmate. He wondered how she would react the second she saw the baby. Would she get mad? Would she tell him to take her back?

A soft coo interrupted his thoughts, and he peeked down to see the baby sucking on her thumb.

“Do you have any food I could give her? She must be starving.”

“I will give both of you food soon enough. I need you to tell me her name.”

Raan frowned. “I am sorry. Name? I…”

“I need it for record purposes. You can give her a name right now.” The clerk chuckled for the first time. Her crooked smile brought Raan some comfort. It had been a long time since someone had actually smiled at him. “Maybe something related to her heritage. We wouldn’t want her to forget her roots.”

“Of course!”Raan smiled back and took a minute to think of a name. The clerk had put him on the spot; it was hard for him to think of anything, let alone a name for another human being. He sighed in discontent and turned around to take in his surroundings, hoping something would inspire him.

The waves ebb and splash about the rocks near the dock. Two more ships were nearing the shore, probably filled with even more Sealian refugees.

“How about Maris?”Raan finally suggested.

“Maris? That sounds beautiful. Maris Era. ” The clerk said approvingly.

Raan nodded decisively. “Maris Era.” He liked it as well. It had a nice ring to it.

“Good.” The woman closed the book and stood up. “Stay right here. I will be right back with some food for you and little Maris.”

Raan nodded, watching as she walked over to a pile of wooden crates filled with provisions. Maris blew spit bubbles, her tiny hands pulling at his dirty clothes. The clerk came back with a waterskin filled with cool water and a box with fruits, dry meats, bread, and cheese. Raan tried to take it while juggling Maris in his arms.

“Thank you so much.”

“The Sky Kingdom can only do so much to help our brothers and sisters from the Sea Kingdom. That beautiful baby deserves a chance for a good life, and I am more than sure she will find that with you, Raan Era.”

A knot formed in Raan’s throat. He swallowed it down and bowed his head at the clerk before saying his goodbyes and limping away. He found a quiet spot away from the ships. He sat down and settled Maris against him. She could already sit up straight while he pulled out the bread before offering it to her. Reaching chubby fingers for the bread, Maris took it before shoving it into her mouth.

Raan chuckled and repeated his actions. Maris ate, and it wasn’t until she was dozing off that he ate something himself.

The rushing of the sea swallowed the voices on the other side of the dock. Raan was thankful for it. He wouldn’t be able to stomach the all-too-familiar sound of pained cries. Deciding on getting a horse once he was done eating, Raan wanted nothing more than to be home with his mate and Maris.

Rionach rubbed the tension from her temples as she wrote another letter to the neighboring kingdoms. The letters were short and to the point. King Brontes Aither was dead and apparently the Sealians’ royal family was as well.

It was hard to put the announcement into words. Her own emotions surfaced each time she wrote her mate’s name. She swallowed hard and folded the piece of paper, sealed it with wax, printing the symbol of their patron god Ouranos with it. She addressed it to the Vulcan Kingdom and put it aside before starting her last letter to Harmonia.

Rionach wished she could feel something other than the emptiness in her chest. For if she had a broken heart, that meant she had a heart to heal. Instead, she felt nothing but the heaviness of absence inside of her.

Hearing about the severance of a mate bond was one thing; feeling it when it happened was another. Waking up to that dull, aching pain, and then sudden silence, was something she would never forget. With a heavy sigh, she finished her last letter. She meticulously put her stationary away, but not before wiping her cheeks and nose.

In her bed, Valda lay tangled between the satin sheets, sleeping quietly. She hadn’t slept in her own room since the incident two weeks ago. Not because she was scared (or so she said) but because she didn’t want her mother to feel alone. Rionach had tried to hide her amusement when Valda told her.

Her Valda, her little thunderstorm, with a personality as big as the sky itself, always looked out for her. But with her father’s death, Rionach was worried that her daughter’s larger-than-life personality would wither away.

She believed Brontes when he told her about his dream, about Valda and the heir of the Sea Kingdom, about the union and the revolution throughout Gaia. Although Gaia was diverse, the idea of Kingdoms coming together through a mate bond, or even a regular marriage, was unheard of.

But that didn’t matter to Rionach now. All that mattered was that her sweet thunderstorm had been robbed of meeting her mate.

A soft knock on the door interrupted her thoughts. Rionach turned as someone pushed the door. A tired looking Arwin walked in, his hand resting on his sword hilt. She flinched at the dark circles under his eyes. How long had it been since this man had a good night’s rest?