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No, Balthazar, no buts. You are Eyros. The great Eyros. Make him know it!Caemorn insisted.I can’t reach his soul until you do this!

At that same moment, he felt Christian reaching for him. Loving him. Wanting to give him strength even as the young man was still trembling from the experience of a few memories.

Memories… Roan is doing this… bringing them up… making them real again… except they weren’t real then and they certainly aren’t now.Balthazar’s eyes narrowed.I have to make him angry. Make him lose control to find that edge.

“Did you know that Caemorn brought the Harrows back?” Balthazar asked, grinning. “It was quite a thing! Wasn’t it?”

He asked this of Caemorn. Caemorn grunted and nodded.

“The power of the Kaly Palace is legendary so that’s--”

“They’re going to become Vampires. In fact, they’re thinking of asking Caemorn here to be their Master,” Balthazar said.

Caemorn’s head snapped towards him, unable to hide his shock. Roan-Kaly’s forehead furrowed.

“But we killed them. We kept them prisoner--”

“But they understand thatyouand Artemis aren’t really Kaly. Caemorn is Kaly. TherealKaly. Thecoreof Kaly,” Balthazar said. “And they like him. Because he’s nothing likeyou.”

“That’s not true! I am the true Kaly! Not that neutered, pathetic wet wipe!” Roan-Kaly yelled. His face grew redder with every word.

“Wet wipe?” Balthazar repeated and lifted his eyebrows as he gave Caemorn a grin. “I really don’t think that King Daemon wouldlovea wet wipe.”

“What? Love--”

“Oh, yeah, and Caemorn is Prince Julian’sparticularfriend,” Balthazar went on. “Both of them hugged him. Hugged! Can you believe it? I’m sure you can’t. Nobody hugs you. Nobody ever would.”

“I’ll make you hug me. Bring you close and rip out your goddamn throat, Balthazar!” Roan-Kaly yelled.

And in that moment, when he switched his full attack from Fiona directly at him, Balthazar felt the edge. He smiled as he slipped underneath it and ripped it off. Roan-Kaly’s eyes widened as he felt his mistake. He sent intimate memories of violence at Balthazar. Not the pain, but the way that Balthazar had begged Roan-Kaly tolovehim, to reveal that he still needed and wanted his love despiteeverything.

Rage suffused every ounce of Balthazar’s being as he remembered being rebuffed. Again and again and again. Until he was bleeding out. His heart ripped out. The remains of it were in between Roan-Kaly’s teeth.

No more. I am Eyros!

There was a visible wave of power that came off of him and struck Roan-Kaly. The creature was thrown back from Fiona and slammed against the ground. He skidded a few feet before going still. He was completely unconscious.

Fiona gasped and brought her hands up to her throat.

“It’s--it’s over? Yes, it’s over,” Fiona got out.

Arcius and Christian hobbled over to her. Balthazar pulled Christian into his arms. He kissed Christian fiercely.

“I’m sorry, Christian. I didn’t mean to let you experience that. I--”

“Shhhh, it’s all right. You were amazing. You stopped him. He did that to you over and over… and you were able to stop him,” Christian murmured against his throat. “You ended it.”

“He did more than that!” Arcius grinned. He and Fiona were embracing. “Can’t you feel it? This whole place is saying hello to us. Hello to you, Balthazar. Oh, I’m sorry,Eyros.”

“Yes, yes, I am an Immortal. I am the great and powerful Eyros,” Balthazar chuckled weakly. “Do not look at that man behind the curtain! Just gaze upon my heavenly glory!”

Caemorn stood over the unconscious Roan-Kaly. “We should finish this before he wakes again.”

“It wouldn’t matter if he did,” Balthazar said. “The connection between him and I… well, it’s gone.”

Caemorn nodded. “Good. I hope you forget it. All of it.”

Balthazar kissed Christian’s temple. He hesitated before saying, “Do you really want this part back, Caemorn?”