Page 27 of Darkness Births the Stars #1

CHAPTER

THE GOLDEN DAYS OF LYRHEIM

Rada

B elekoroz was even more insufferable the second time I approached him amid the verdant hills of Lyrheim.

I had to run to catch up to him as he strode out of the King’s Hall after a meeting of the Council, eager to escape the presence of our fellow Aurea.

When I called out for him to wait, he was all smug grin, displaying too-pointy teeth and sly, glittering dark eyes that tracked my every move.

Like a snake lurking in the fresh green grass around us, biding its time until its prey was within striking range.

And I was surrendering myself to his mercy. Or at least I was pretending to. I knew Belekoroz was clever. He would never act on the resentment I had caught in his gaze so often if he did not think he had the upper hand.

“Tell me what you know about Darkness.” I was fiercer than usual in his presence, demanding instead of polite, unwilling to grant him the satisfaction of realizing he unsettled me.

Something stirred to life in those fathomless eyes. A dark curiosity, a sharp-toothed hunger that made a sudden awareness inside me unfurl like a moth at the beginning of dusk, when the first shadows of night drifted in.

“Some things cannot be told. They have to be seen,” he answered. “I doubt my brother would allow his bride to come with me into the Other.”

Appealing to my pride to get me alone. He probably honestly thought he was subtle.

“I don’t need Aramaz’s permission for anything,” I declared, tossing my head.

With a challenging smile, Belekoroz extended his hand, palm up, fingers curled. The Darkness around him deepened, stealing all the Light as his power responded to the wild anticipation burning in his eyes.

“Well then, are you prepared to touch the Darkness?” he breathed, his too-courteous voice a taunting caress. Shadowy tendrils eagerly reached out for me, causing my flowing white dress to flutter.

Should I have been afraid? All I felt was fierce determination, a violent urge to show him his place, to prove that not everyone would cower before the dark force of him.

“Show me,” I said, placing my hand in his.

His cool fingers closed around mine just a tad too firmly. A strange feeling settled into my stomach as I realized it was the first time we had touched. He pulled me closer with a sharp tug, his smile turning menacing, his magic and the warmth of his body a disconcerting presence. “Come.”

“What? Now?”

I gasped in surprise as the world shifted around us, a surge of his powers transporting us to the nearest point where the Veil between the worlds was dangerously thin, the Other looming just a step away.

We did not often use our magic to transport us farther than we could see, the risk of ending up somewhere unintended too great.

I should have known Belekoroz would not care.

“Why not now?” Those cunning eyes watched me with rapt attention, daring me to back down as he gestured at the telltale reflection in front of us. The air there flickered, revealing brief glimpses of a foreign sky and swirling shadows. “Or is the Allfather’s favorite daughter afraid of the dark?”

In hindsight, I should have informed someone where I was going and with whom. But I raised my chin, determined to mask my apprehension as I crossed the threshold between the bright sunny day of Aron-Lyr and the fragmented shards of reality shimmering in the air before me.

The world descended into chaos. My powers flared in sudden panic as I lost all sense of direction, my eyes instinctively closing against the flashing colors, my ears ringing with a whooshing sound.

The only thing anchoring me was Belekoroz’s unwavering grip on my hand, even as my Light must have seared his skin.

“Keep your eyes closed and breathe. You’ll get used to it. One sense at a time.”

His tall presence behind me was as oddly reassuring as his smooth voice.

“Sound.”

I gasped as his breath tickled my ear with the word. The whooshing in my ears began to fade, replaced by the distant hum of the Other, a symphony of strange, otherworldly noises that seemed to pulse with life.

“Scent.”

With my eyes shut tight, I inhaled deeply. The air was cool and fresh, carrying a hint of something dark and spicy. My panic eased.

“Touch. ”

A shiver ran down my spine as Belekoroz readjusted his grip, his fingers whispering over my palm to the tips of my fingers, lingering longer than excusable.

“Sight.”

Obediently, I opened my eyes at his command and took in the Other for the first time.

The landscape was a stark contrast to the vibrant world of Aron-Lyr.

Excitement coursed through me at the sight of the endless gray plain stretching in every direction, the dark sky above empty one moment, glimmering with wild bursts of chaotic magic the next.

The magic created a swirling canvas of shadows and light, casting eerie, shifting patterns on the ground below.

It evoked memories of my first moments on Aron-Lyr’s soil, when the world was nothing but possibilities.

“This is amazing,” I exclaimed, my voice filled with awe.

“Mmm.” Belekoroz’s face twisted with condescending delight as he walked past me.

He appeared different here, more relaxed.

As if he no longer felt the need to hide behind his shadows, his proud nose, prominent cheekbones, and full lips standing out beneath long, midnight-dark hair that blew in a phantom breeze.

“Aramaz found it utterly disturbing the one time he accompanied me here.”

Somehow, that didn’t surprise me. I tilted my head, contemplating our surroundings. “Are our minds simply casting the incomprehensible into a familiar form?”

My words earned me a sharp, astonished glance.

“It stands to reason,” Belekoroz answered slowly, something shifting in his expression, the first stirrings of interest morphing into genuine curiosity. I stifled a pleased smile. Did he think he was the only one who could use his mind?

“And if we never took corporeal form?” I asked innocently, stepping onto the storm-tossed plain.

I made a disgusted sound as my thin slippers sank into the dark mud covering the ground, changing them into sturdy boots with a quick thought.

Remaking clothes I owned, whose pattern in the fabric of being I knew, was not a noticeable drain on my powers.

“You mean if we did not allow our dear Maker to tempt us into these weak mortal bodies?” With a wry expression on his face, Belekoroz trailed behind me.

Of course he blamed the Allfather for this.

And for everything else. “Perhaps you would see a world full of wonders.” Another of those vexing smiles played on his lips. “Or horrors.”

“Do you regret our descent to Aron-Lyr?” The question slipped out before I could hold it back. Not that I cared about his no doubt blasphemous opinion.

“Well…” He stepped closer, his movements fluid and predatory. “Think of all the interesting things I would be missing.” He reached out, one pale finger gently caressing my bare arm, exposed by the shimmering white dress I wore.

Goosebumps rose where he touched me, an involuntary tremble wracking my body, the sensation nearly unbearable in its intensity. I froze, fighting to keep my expression calm, but failing miserably.

“Stop that,” I snarled, batting his hand away, only to curse myself for my open display of weakness.

I had known he would push the boundaries between us the moment he had me in his domain, his very nature thriving on provocation.

Yet I had underestimated my reaction to him, his power calling to mine in a disconcerting push and pull that made me reel.

“Are you always this tense?” He was still too close, barely giving me room to breathe, the shadows around us suffocating. An attempt to intimidate me. How predictable. “Or do you just not trust me? ”

“Of course I do not trust you. I am no fool,” I answered without hesitation, baring my teeth in warning, my Light cutting through the darkness. The glow of my power cast eerie shadows on his face, highlighting the sharp angles of his features.

He ignored my silent threat, brazenly leaning in so close I could have sunk my teeth into his flesh with a twist of my head.

“Clever little queen,” he murmured in my ear, cold amusement in his eyes as they met mine. Something fluttered in my stomach as I realized the enticing dark scent I had smelled earlier was coming from him. It was a heady mix of icy coldness and spice, clinging to him like a second skin.

Before I could formulate an appropriately scathing answer to his insolence, Belekoroz straightened and moved back with an inviting motion of his hand and an all-too-knowing smirk on his face.

“Come. You surely want to see more.”

Without warning, he allowed his physical body to dissolve, darkness engulfing me in a terrifying wave.

Yet I felt no fear at the challenge, only the same violent urge to meet him in kind, to let my own power rise in answer, that I had felt earlier.

I shifted into spirit form as well, wonder flooding me as I took in the wild currents of magic around us.

The air was thick with the raw, untamed energy of the Other, a chaotic dance of lights and shadow.

For an insane moment, I was tempted to let my Light burn bright and unrestrained, a feral flame to rival the force of Belekoroz’s dark fire.

The urge was almost irresistible, a primal instinct that rose within me, demanding release.

I reined in the impulse with difficulty, some of my magic escaping my firm grip on it, flickering and twisting around us, fueled by my agitated emotions.

Instead of commenting on my lack of control, Belekoroz redirected my focus to the vibrant colors flashing in the distance. The horizon was a kaleidoscope of different hues, emerald and amethyst, the bursts of Chaos magic a mesmerizing sight.