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PROLOGUE

S houts. They pierced through the warm air, sweeping up the overall sense of anticipation. The Arena on Helion was renowned for its public events; today was a big one.

The Celebration of the Dead.

The oval-shaped open-air venue was buzzing with life, the stands were overcrowded. In its circle stood uniformed, armed members of the Luminary, the Imperial family’s security guards, waiting for their arrival.

The double doors opened, and six iron cages were dragged inside, their caretakers sighing under its tremendous weight. The crowd cheered and hollered, throwing apples and eggs onto the sand. Some even made it through the bars, hitting their targets in the face.

Six men, dressed in purple jumpsuits, were hauled outside their protection on the arena floor. They were prisoners, dressed in Helion’s national colour, and they stood, facing the crowd, and received their wrath.

This was the final celebration of these men, of those who were forsaken by their planet. Today, in front of all these witnesses, they would die.

Someone announced their names and crimes, the voice amplified and reverberated through the arena, where it was swallowed by the cheering crowd.

Because the people didn’t care. Not anymore. The only thing that mattered today was the festivity.

The Luminary took off the prisoners’ cuffs and positioned them in two lines of three, facing each other.

And then the bell rang, followed by a deafening outcry.

“We will celebrate the dead!” The crowd shouted.

Down, in the heart of the arena, the Luminary used the sharp end of their spears to force them forward until they had no choice but to attack their opponent and hope to die quickly.

The audience celebrated as they watched the criminals fight. They drank wine and feasted on cheese-filled tiganos . Grieving family members or loved ones sat huddled and alone as they watched in horror.

It didn’t take long for one of them to corner his opponent. With fists, he kept on driving the other man back and against the board as the man struggled to stand.

Waves of punches littered his opponent’s face, jaw, and temple until it finally knocked him out. Then, he reached for a spear that was handed by a soldier, and held it in the air with a guttural scream.

The crowd went feral.

He plunged it into the other man’s heart and killed him instantly.

What followed was an announcement, another wave of cheers, and a second death.

“Celebrate the death! Celebrate the death!” The crowd chanted, watching as a pair kicked and punched each other. Chasing down this moment, one of them fell face flat onto the sand. He barely had time to roll over onto his back before he got stabbed in his gut. This time, it took longer for the victim to die.

There was a blare of a horn, and once more, the double doors opened. A thick silence fell over the crowd.

Luminary guards removed the dead, and the three remaining criminals lined up once more, panting and helpless. The earlier adrenaline had faded.

“Fellow citizens of Helion,” a voice echoed through the arena. “I present to you, your Imperial Princes!”

The crowd erupted.

Three men came walking inside the arena.

One had features as black as the night, including a black cape and black boots. The other two wore white capes over their blond hair, accompanied by white boots.

“Kylix, leader of the Luminary, we are thrilled to welcome you to your Aureate.”

Aureate, the Imperial way of naming the contests in the arena.

The Imperial way of leading their nation. By strength and cruelty. By proving their superiority.

The dark-haired prince bowed to the cheering crowd.

“Helianth, future right hand of the Luminary, and Moargan, future leader of Helion, we a ? —!”

The cheers of the crowd engulfed the rest of his words.

The two blond men bowed.

They were hungry. Programmed to enjoy violence, the Imperials were regularly offered their fun in exchange for the fair way they led the planet.

And today would be no different.

Across from them, the three remaining criminals looked terrified and exhausted. The earlier battle had demanded a lot of their strength, and they all knew this next battle would be futile.

Still, it didn’t have to end in death. Aureates were known for their different outcomes, although none of the options sounded attractive.

The Imperials licked their sharp teeth. Silver gems glittered on their incisors, making the young men look even more striking…and dangerous.

The horn blasted.

Kylix didn’t waste any time. He ran forward, letting out a battle cry as his opponent ran. There was no escape; the double doors closed, and the crowd on the first row pushed the man away whenever he tried to climb the walls. When Kylix took out his knife and swung it casually in the air, the crowd cheered him on.

He threw it in the man’s back with full force.

The crowd was deafening as the defeated man crawled, leaving a blood trail. Until his body and mind gave up.

Meanwhile, Helianth held a victim tight, whose arms were cuffed behind his back, while the other prince laughed as he attacked. When the man finally died, his facial bones were broken, a knife hanging out of his chest.

The final criminal was hunted by a spear.

“Celebrate the death! Celebrate the death!” The crowd chanted.

The man ran, panting raggedly, eyes wide with fear. Realizing there was nowhere to run.

That’s how he died in the end—the spear slashed through his back, stringing him against the wall, wide eyes filled with agony as he stared right up into the crowd.

Dead.

“Long live the Imperial family!” The crowd praised. “Long live Helion!”