Page 17

Draevyn

A s Draevyn neared the castle, the grand doors swung open, and the guards announced his return home. He stormed past them, aiming for his father’s throne room.

Draevyn’s anger surged, his flames igniting each torch he passed as he made his way through the halls.

The castle was busier than usual, full of faces he didn’t recognize. Mortal women and nymphs stalked about the halls, arm in arm in their intricate dresses, ducking out of the way or gawking at him as he passed.

A growl slipped through his lips each time it occurred—their whispers echoing in his ears. The Phoenix.

He went to turn the last corner when his chest slammed into another’s. “Fucking Irah,” Draevyn huffed, but when he went to apologize, his eyes met his brother’s.

Atlas grinned. His brother’s face was almost a mirror to his own. If it weren’t for Draevyn’s well-kept beard, they would appear as twins—and where flames flickered in his brown stare, wisping shadows lurked within his brother’s grey eyes.

“Brother,” he greeted him.

“Atlas.” The corners of Draevyn’s mouth lifted.

They stood in silence for several seconds before Atlas reached out and clasped him on the shoulder, pulling him in for a hug as a few deep chuckles left them both.

“What in all gods happened to you, Drae? I hate to say it, but…” He let out a laugh. “You look like hell swallowed you and spat your ass right back out again.”

Draevyn raised a brow as he searched for the words to describe the nightmare of what happened after leaving Anchorage Cove.

“Hell would’ve been kinder to my flames, Atlas.”

“Ah, so the depths then!” he boomed as he wrapped an arm around Draevyn’s shoulder and began guiding him down the hall. “I see you’re in your usual enthusiastic spirits.”

Draevyn blew out a breath from his nostrils. “May I have no moments of peace anywhere in my life?”

“Oh, come on, Drae. It couldn’t have been that horrible. You just haven’t found the kingdom yet. Sure, Father will brood over it and be his typical raging self, but it will blow over. It’s not as if you lost your ship.”

Draevyn stopped dead in his tracks at those words, and his brother stumbled as he halted alongside him. Letting out a loud breath, he turned to Atlas and said, “There’s much to discuss.”

Atlas barked out a laugh. “You’re shitting me? Holy balls of Irah, you actually lost the ship?” When Draevyn’s face showed no signs of amusement, all of his own dropped. “Oh gods, what happened?”

He rubbed his temples. “It’s a long story, and one I certainly don’t feel like repeating. So let’s find the king, shall we?”

Atlas gave him a curt nod and their steps continued toward the throne room.

As they walked in, the grand hall of the castle was adorned with tapestries depicting Lephyrin’s triumphs, threaded in vibrant maroon and gold. Guards were posted about the room, all in a perfectly still stance as their eyes followed the brothers making their way to the king.

“Your Majesty,” Draevyn began, his voice echoing through the great hall as they came to a halt at the foot of the dais.

Their father sat on a gilded throne, his rotund frame spilling over its armrests.

The king’s crimson robes strained slightly at the seams as his golden crown sat tilted atop his thinning, dark hair.

Round and flushed, his cheeks puffed out, framing a sneer that warped his thin, cracked lips.

His dark, beady eyes were locked on them as he twisted one of his several golden rings around his fingers.

Draevyn’s eyes drifted to his father’s forearm, halting on the scarred, mutilated burns beneath rolled-up sleeves.

His throat tightened at the sight, and he immediately averted his gaze to the floor.

King Rowe stood, his heartless eyes narrowing. “Draevyn, you were told not to return to Lephyrin until you found what we needed. I trust you’ve obeyed said orders and come bearing the news that the cave’s entrance has been found.”

“My ship has been lost at sea,” Draevyn admitted, each word heavy with the weight of failure.

A murmur of disbelief rippled through the assembled guards, their faces pale with shock. But while King Rowe remained composed, his cheeks flared with heat, giving away his irritation.

“And how could this have happened?” he demanded. “I’ve received no reports of storms at sea.”

Draevyn bowed his head, anticipating the bellowing tantrum his father would throw once he spoke the words aloud. “It wasn’t a storm we encountered, Your Majesty.” He paused as his father’s eyes narrowed on him. “It was The Night Wraith .”

A few low gasps erupted from the guards, horrified whispers following them.

Draevyn glanced at Atlas standing beside him, watching as the color drained from his face.

The king leaned closer to the edge of his throne. “Blackwood?! You’re sure?”

“I am.” Draevyn dipped his chin. “I saw him with my own eyes. Fought his crew alongside my men, but it wasn’t enough. The Odyssey was lost to the depths, along with half my crew.”

“And why in all hells did you not light that bloody ship on fire?!” King Rowe barked, brows furrowing.

Draevyn cleared his throat. “He said if I called on my flames, he would call his beast, and my crew would be lost. I played fair until I couldn’t, and by then, it was too late.”

The king let out a few lifeless chuckles. “You took the word of our realm’s most brutal criminal? What the fuck is wrong with you?”

Draevyn’s jaw ticked, trying to keep his retort in. The truth was, technically, Draevyn went back on his word first, and that was why he met Blackwood's beast.

His father didn’t give a damn about anyone besides himself. He would never understand the brotherhood that Draevyn shared with his crew, nor would he show them the same loyalty, feeling the need to keep each of them safe.

Draevyn had prided himself on always making his best effort to be a man of honor, but perhaps the king was right in a way.

He bowed his head in shame. “It was a mistake. It won’t happen again.”

His brother placed a hand on his shoulder. “Tell us what happened.”

Draevyn sucked in a sharp breath. “Regardless of Blackwood going back on his word, The Odyssey took on several cannons and was well on its way to the depths before he called his beast on us.”

The king leaned closer again, his beady eyes raking over Draevyn. “You saw the beast? You’re sure it was that?”

Draevyn gave a curt nod. “We’ve never witnessed anything like it before—tentacles the size of our castle’s spires rose from the sea and consumed us out of nowhere. Despite our best efforts, the ship was swallowed and dragged to the depths.”

Truthfully, the realm wasn’t even sure what the creature was.

Only that it was colossal and sank ships within minutes.

Draevyn knew better than to try to explain to his father that the monstrous creature was forged by the sea itself.

The king would call him a liar—it had always been his assumption of Draevyn and the one thing he swore to never be.

King Rowe’s eyes flared. “Tentacles?! You believe the beast he’s tamed is a kraken ?”

Draevyn blinked. “Correct. ”

“Those monsters are nothing but legends and ghost stories told around ships’ decks,” he barked.

“Well, let me assure you…it appears some legends hold truth.”

The king’s jaw clenched, his hands balling into fists at his sides. “This failure is unacceptable, Draevyn. You may be my son and the captain of our sea’s armada, but that can change at any moment.”

Right . How could he fucking forget?

“So Blackwood got away? And his monster?”

Draevyn cleared his throat. “Unfortunately, yes.”

His father let out a low growl as he pointed his stubby finger down at Draevyn. “The beast that haunts the depths needs to be destroyed. And you will be the one to do it.”

Draevyn had laid eyes on the creature made entirely of the sea itself. It would be impossible to defeat. If Blackwood could conjure the kraken at will… He didn’t even want to consider what that meant for all who sailed those same waters. He barely made it out alive himself.

He lifted his stare back to his father’s. “I’ll add it to the never-ending list of your requests of me and my crew.”

“Speaking of the crew…what of them?” the king demanded. “How did you make your way back to Lephyrin without a ship?”

Samwell, Tommy, and what remained of his men stayed down at the docks, awaiting Draevyn’s command on what the king would demand of them next.

Draevyn blew out a breath and turned to Atlas, who silently watched their interaction. “Those who survived the attack made it to the pinnaces before the ship went down. The only near casualty from the beast was myself.”

“Drae,” Atlas interjected, but the king was unfazed.

“And how did you survive, then?” his father questioned.

His jaw locked as he stood beneath the king’s gaze. “I was lucky to have washed up on some of the larger pieces of debris. A ship of merchant sailors found us floating in the middle of the sea not long after. They dropped us off in Lephyrin’s harbor an hour ago.”

“Lucky indeed.” He paused, his eyes raking over Draevyn as he scratched his beard.

“Well, since you’re here, you may as well stay until the end of the month.

Your brother is to take a bride and create a marriage alliance with one of the other two kingdoms of Rymelle.

Families of each court from Terrana arrived a few days ago, and the elven of Sumnae are on their way to Lephyrin as we speak.

Our people will want their Phoenix present for it.

After that, we can discuss a new strategy as to how you will go about finding Maerinys. ”

Draevyn’s eyes flew to his brother.

“We have much to discuss,” Atlas said, his jaw ticking.

The king stalked down the steps of the dais, clasping his hand on Draevyn’s shoulder before shaking him. “Don’t disappoint me again, boy.”

Draevyn gave a curt nod before turning on his heel to head for the doors.

“And Captain …”

Draevyn reluctantly turned to face the king.