Page 25

Chapter 23

Aaliyah

O ur worlds shifted as the dark faded away, and we were met with familiar walls and the warmth of home . The library came into view, shimmering as though covered in a fine layer of dust before sharpening into the bookshelves and endless novels I'd grown used to. Our feet touched the floor, and a final whisper of Void brushed against my cheek, as if saying goodbye.

There was an eerie silence that followed as I caught my breath, my ears ringing. I traced the book-lined walls, lingering on the long-dead fireplace and the logs that sat inside of it. There were no comforting words or soft conversations. The life that had once flourished in this room felt so far away.

"At least he wasn't lying," I whispered, but there was no real joy behind it. There was no celebration that I'd finally gotten away from Sebek, no hope to hold on to. My nails bit into my palm, my throat closing as I tried to speak.

Azer had been right. We'd made it back. There was a want in me to return to the Void and see what else he might be able to show me, but his cautionary words lingered. "It takes, and it takes, and it takes …"

"At least he left you alive. That man bled death." Magelav's words didn't sound so cryptic this time, though they sulked in from the shadows as they stepped into the light of the room. I flinched away when they reached for me, extending their hand for me to take. A fine layer of gold dust settled on their skin, shimmering when they flexed. "Mags. Now, come, we must go. Sebek wants blood. Yours . The Eternium waits for no one."

I took their hand, hesitant when they squeezed tight, thankful when they barely held on for a second before dropping it. They were different than I was expecting, with the soft wave of their black hair and the masculine appearance that felt almost like staring at a porcelain doll.

"Your words mean little right now, Magelav. Consult the fates if you must; pray if you'd like. Regardless, we will leave when we have Eirik," Osiris said, not even looking up as he turned me back to him and brushed the hair out of my face.

Mags went red, their jaw clenched tightly as aggression flooded their eyes.

"Consult the fates? As though the fates bend to the wills of petty creatures. Fickle be the fates. The fates drag . They use Mags . Not the other way around!" The air flashed gold, a crack like thunder sending a shiver down my spine. "We must go . "

"That doesn't change our answer, Magelav." The frigid tone in his voice had me tensing as he stepped in front of me.

Mags bared their teeth and snarled. "Watch your tone, Vivas . "

Osiris tensed, and he took a menacing step forward. "I'll not abandon Eirik."

The energy in the room spiraled as quickly as their words. The air, once breathable, became laden with power. Heat turned it rancid, and my eyes watered. Pressure pulsed behind my eyes.

"You wretched fang — " Mags started as I reached up and grabbed my throat.

"Stop!" I screamed, the room shaking at the sound.

Or was it the shadows that jolted on the ground like I'd been talking to them? They shuddered, flexing as though trying to get to me. My spine straightened as the decadent whisper of power came forward, like it had in the woods when I'd drained the clearing of life. It poked its head up, as if to play, testing the waters as it reached for Osiris and Magelav. The sheen on my eyes was back, and I was breathing heavily as I tried to rein it in.

They insult you, insult the men who died for you. The voice in my head called, goading. I shook it off, shuddering as a bead of sweat rolled down my neck.

Slowly, too slowly, the shadows remolded themselves to the ground.

There was silence for a moment before Mags shook their head. "Power bleeds from you. Death takes, and it takes, and it takes ."

Mags grunted but didn't rebut again. Instead, they turned and walked out of the game room, mumbling something I couldn't hear under their breath as they did. Red danced around me, seeming to fade in and out of thin air, his comforting chill the only thing keeping me from falling into complete hysterics.

He was still formless, little more than a puff of dust, but he managed to use every bit of that to float around me. His emotions hit me like little waves lapping against my legs. They were more intense now, varied in their nuances.

He almost felt alive, less like that speck of dust that had kept me sane after losing Prince, and more like a person. One I wanted to see more of, one I hoped would continue to get some of his life back. He'd kept me together through some of the worst moments of the last few weeks. He deserved to be known.

I glanced at the door that held Thoth's image. Behind it, I knew what I'd find. The disarray of the rest of the house from the struggle with Sebek … and empty halls that made my stomach twist.

"What time is it?" I asked, noting the soft light that came from the skylight above, the hint of a moon I couldn't see.

Osiris looked at his watch, his face twisting in a grimace. "Nine fifteen PM, December thirty-first … We were in the Void for ten days. I couldn't have expected this was what Azer meant."

Ten days since Fallon and Adrian died, then. My chest caved, my head spinning as I nodded numbly.

Was Eirik all right?

His bond was the only one of the three still standing. The faded black of the mark was like a beacon of hope. Had he felt the others when they'd died? Was he with them? "We have to?—"

"Eirik is stable, lux mea ," Osiris whispered, soft but resolute as he kept me standing. My legs threatened to give as exhaustion settled on me. He brushed a strand of hair away from my face, thumb touching the skin under my eye. "You are not."

"We can't just leave him, Osiris. We have to go —" I started, stepping just enough to fall into Osiris's chest.

His arms secured around me, the weight of them somehow more binding than the grief. I didn't want to stay still, didn't want to do anything but move .

I was afraid if I didn't, then I'd only be left with myself.

My failures and the whispers that came with them.

The reminder of a loss that I didn't want to believe was true.

But Osiris didn't let me run, instead becoming a wall I found myself furious with, irrational as my knees caved and he was forced to hold my entire weight. My hands shook, my entire body demanding I scream as my mind held me silent.

Why?

"Breathe them in," Osiris whispered, his chest expanding, his breath exaggerated over the top of my head. We slipped to the floor, the cold black wood barely registering. Moving wasn't a priority; breathing was barely one as Osiris settled me in his lap, facing him. His eyes held sunken shadows. "Breathe them in … and know that they loved you with every fiber of their beings."

I pulled in a lungful of his subtle scent, forcing it even as emotion clogged in my throat, awash with fresh coffee and mint that helped to calm some of the ache. There was an emptiness in my chest now, a void that sapped what strength I had left into it, as the fear I'd held in came barreling down. I reached for my wrist, unable to look at it, knowing that I'd find a partially blank canvas again.

Would I see their ghosts now? Would they search me out?

Would they want to move on?

My chest heaved with a broken sob, and I curled tighter around Osiris, his powerful arms radiating a chill that had me shivering.

Sebek, Azer, even the rush of death I'd felt at the Gala. It was all meaningless now. My eyes remained on the floor, tracing the intricacies of the black hardwood.

"Aaliyah?" Osiris started, louder now, his voice cracked and muddled from his own tears. "I know it hurts, lux mea . But you need blood."

My next breath was a wheeze. My entire body shook, my head pounding like the pressure that had welled behind my eyes. I'd ignored it and was content to continue ignoring it. I did need blood, had for days since Sebek had taken me and forced me to drink his … but the thought of peeling myself away was borderline torturous. I didn't want to face this new reality yet, even though I knew I didn't have a choice.

My attention pulled to the stitches in Osiris's clothing, the black cloth an immaculate display. His cold hands brushed along my exposed arm, over the few marks remaining at my wrist. Even Red moved, pushing encouragement through the air in gentle waves.

My hand twitched, and I nearly reached to my bra, to see if his little piece of scarf was still there before I wheezed another hard breath and sank farther into the hold.

Any protest I had died as my head pressed against Osiris's neck, directed by a steady hand. There was a rush under his skin, a tantalizing pulse that made my fangs ache, begging to be let down. A hand brushed against my back, rubbing gentle circles as the other wound its way into my hair. My mouth watered, and the hand at the back of my head applied just enough pressure for my nose to brush the delicate cool skin. Osiris jolted when my tongue shot out against my own will. Just one bite and I'd feel better, my headache would clear …

Thoughts of the pain that had shot through me when Adrian and Fallon had died rang in my head like a bell as a cold sweat replaced the hunger in my stomach.

"I can't," I whispered, shaking my head.

Gentle fingers, ones that belied the strength of the man they belonged to, slipped past my tangled hair, unwinding the knots with soft efficiency.

Why couldn't he just let me be? Just for a while longer … I couldn't feed.

I didn't deserve to.

Adrian and Fallon were gone. I'd never get to swim with Adrian again, facing my fears in those clear waters with him by my side. Never see Fallon's lips curl into those little smiles he did when he thought no one was looking. The idea of feeding now, of feeling better when I didn't even know how they died?

I couldn't do it.

"You don't have to do anything but drink," he whispered, his hand moving to cup my cheek. He lifted my head, pushing me back enough to lean forward so he could press his forehead to mine. His eyes were marred by dark rings, the dull blues solely focused on me. "I won't make you. Your choices are always your own. Your will is a beacon I follow, but please drink. If not for yourself, then for me. I cannot stand to see you suffer like this."

My legs wound tighter around Osiris's waist, and I buried my face into his palm. His voice had cracked, his throat closing around the emotion he tried so hard to hide. I'd seen it before, after particularly bad sessions at Ascension, when Prince would do the same.

He hid his hurt. The others were gone, his brothers for centuries, and I was doing Osiris no favors. It took me longer than I would have liked, but I slowly tipped my head in a shallow nod.

Osiris lifted his free hand in an instant, his chest pulling in a shaky breath. His pinky and ring finger fell into a familiar stance as he reached up to his neck. There was a burst of air, and he didn't so much as flinch as a wound bubbled there.

A gentle pressure on the back of my head placed me face to face with the red flowing from Osiris's shoulder. It traced his olive skin, and my mouth watered, my eyes following suit.

I fell on the open wound, and my fangs dropped just as fast. They pierced the skin, and Osiris reacted, his hands tightening around my midsection. Beyond a soft grunt, he didn't make any more sound.

The richness was something I could easily get lost in, such a contrast to the dark acid taste that had been Sebek's, and the desire to devour Osiris was only overshadowed by the guilt that still sat heavy in my heart. He tasted like coffee on a chilly day, making my mouth water all over again as I took another mouthful, and he shivered under me.

I wanted to take more, to take it all, everything that he would give me. He would, too. If I didn't stop, he'd let me drink until he ran dry. I released my jaw, struggling to open it as I licked the wound until it closed. The rush of fresh blood hit me, my pupils dilating as I settled myself back into his arms.

"We need to talk about the Eternium," I rasped, the words buried in the silk of Osiris's shirt. What had felt like a lifetime away started at midnight … We'd get Eirik, and then off we'd go. It felt like a disservice to not take the time to grieve Fallon and Adrian, something so viscerally wrong I nearly puked.

"Not now," he whispered. His head settled in the crook of my neck, his hands rubbing easy circles on my back. "Just breathe; it can wait."

Even that felt like too much, but I didn't argue. I stayed planted in Osiris's arms.

We sat in muted silence, and even mourning felt wrong. I'd lost my lovers, ones I'd known for months. Osiris lost brothers he'd loved for centuries.

"Whatever you're thinking, Aaliyah. Don't. What you're feeling is real. It's raw, and it's yours . Don't belittle the connection you shared just because you don't think it counts next to mine."

"We could have saved them," I whispered.

I'd run it through my head a thousand times. What if we'd left the Void earlier? Would we have made it in time, then? What if I'd fought Sebek instead of stupidly trusting his words? What if? What if? What if?

"There is no lesson to be learned from dwelling on the things we can't change. Feel them, lux mea, but do not lose yourself to them," Osiris whispered. One of his hands found my hair again, his fingers gently threading through the strands. "I know this more than most. It only leads to ruin. Lean on me. I'm not letting you go."

I clung to him at those words, silent tears staining his shirt as I lost myself in his heartbeat … which meant I didn't recognize the footsteps that echoed up creaking stairs, or the pained groan of a man I'd never heard before. I ignored the way Osiris stiffened under me, his head lifting to look toward the door.

My mind played it off for all of a second, before I felt a chill in the air, a brush of something I couldn't place as I tried to find Red dancing across my shoulders like he did. Desolation was cleared by a wave of hope, panic starting in my chest as I questioned if I was dreaming. I knew this feeling.

Osiris's arms unwrapped. I was scared to look up, to be wrong.

Silver eyes. Pale, sweaty skin and a smirk that had haunted me every second since he'd died.

" Prince ."

* * *

Prince

I'd thought about seeing Aaliyah many times since I'd woken up. In truth, she was the only thing I'd really thought about at all. I'd considered every moment … questioning how the light would hit her face and if her smile would be as wide as it was before I'd died.

The way I'd hold her, with all the softness I knew, was reserved for only her .

The things I'd say … the one thing I'd say.

Yet now that I was here, I found myself lock jawed, and shocked fucking stupid, likely looking like a crazy person as I just stared. Unable and unwilling to look away.

Were her eyes always so bright?

I couldn't move, could barely breathe as the love of my life wiggled out of a shocked Osiris's arms … watching on like she couldn't quite believe what she was seeing.

The trek to her had been grueling, every step and attempt to flit as I followed the pulsing in my chest that I knew would lead me to her enough to make a weaker man curl up and die. I didn't move fast—barely moved at all if I was truthful with myself—the aching, sickly feeling a burden I couldn't shake.

Not that it would ever be able to stop me.

The red stained white dress she wore billowed out around her as she stood on shaking legs, Osiris keeping her steady by her side. She seemed thinner, skin pallid and covered in a fine layer of dried blood. The pressure behind my skull distracted me for just a second before I pushed it down.

All at once, she was here, feet from me, barely a couple of steps. My heart stuttered in my chest, my body pulsing with the need to move, and like I'd been begging since the moment I woke in my tomb; I said something.

A name that was ingrained in the fabric of my fucking soul.

"Aaliyah." A whisper, one I wasn't sure would even manifest when I opened my mouth. I said her name like it might not even be real. Was I alive?

She didn't fade away in some cruel trick of the light, like I half expected. Everything that had been my life since I crawled out of that crypt came into focus. She was here , the one who'd given me meaning in death, the one who gave me life again and breathed love into my lungs.

Her eyes filled with tears, her next breath coming out on a haggard sob as she took a stumbling step forward, one I mirrored.

"Aaliyah," I said again, louder this time, my ears ringing.

I choked on the heaviness that sank to the back of my throat. I tried to say it again, the sound drowned out by the roaring in my ears. Another step, then another .

I caught her halfway through the room, lifting her off her feet and hauling her up so she was pressed against me. Her arms wrapped around my neck, and I anchored her to my chest. Sparks lit up under my skin where we touched, and I marveled at the warmth of her. My legs shook, giving out beneath me as I slid to the ground, hers wrapping around my waist, never letting go as we sat. I held her like I'd never get the chance to again.

Everything else faded away, and nothing, nothing , not even Sebek, could have pulled me from her. And I took a moment I'd waited decades for, as I breathed in that soft lavender scent I knew I'd find, the floral lightness making me dizzy in the best way. I memorized it, noting every detail I'd yearned for, the familiarity that told me she was my home. From the moment I'd woken up, I'd known that seeing her would fix everything I felt. Every pain, every memory that returned from the Rends . Every ache and every wrong within me would be better if I saw her.

I was damned proud to know I was right. The soft brush of her fingers through my hair skin was the medicine I needed to stay alive. Her breath against my shoulder was my oxygen as I continued to pull in greedy breaths. In all my memories, all of my dreams, this was all I could ever remember wanting. To hold her.

To say her fucking name .

"Aaliyah." This time like a prayer as she held her arms around my neck, squeezing so tight we both shook.

"Prince?" she mumbled on a wet laugh. "How are you here?"

The details around my death were still clouded by moments that didn't feel quite right … but I had bits, emotions more than anything. Like the visceral horror that had hit me as that faceless fucker held her captive, and the worry at leaving her alone as my soul was erased and reborn … or knowing that even with me gone, my brothers would be there for her.

"You," I whispered simply. "At the hot spring … you didn't send me on, Aaliyah. You brought me back. "

Her entire body jolted as her arms wound even tighter. "I thought I killed you. I thought—" She pulled back, just enough to see my face as she lifted her hand. She hesitated for a moment, flinching like she was worried what might happen if she touched me. I closed the distance between her palm and my cheek, taking that fear away as her breath caught. She ran her thumb over the skin under my eye, mapping my face like I was hers, lingering on the crooked bridge of my nose and one of the many scars I'd found myself with. "I thought I killed Nero again."

The way she whispered my old name cut me open, sounding so wrong coming from her. I was many things—Nero, one of them—but it seemed wrong coming from her lips. I was her Prince, something I wore like a badge of honor. The fact that she said it, so sure …

She had always been the perceptive sort, and there was no way I would have told her who I was knowing there was nothing I could do to change it … so, she learned after I was gone, and had kept it buried to stop the pain of my brothers.

Osiris startled me with a gasp, and I felt like a piece of shit for forgetting he was even here. Damned, silent bastard. He was in shambles, the remains of his familiar black suit coat now torn and tattered. Aaliyah looked up at him, her eyes softening for my eldest brother, a man with enough power to topple kingdoms and enough cruelty to smile while he did it. I didn't need my memories to recall that, a whisper in my mind more than enough.

Kingslayer.

Aaliyah stood, holding my hand for one more second, squeezing it in support before she gravitated toward the ancient, who watched her with wary eyes. It was like each step she took lessened some of their strain, and when she was finally close enough, she wrapped him in her arms. So close she didn't see when his expression crumbled.

Aaliyah didn't budge, just reached for my hand the same.

This story could have had a thousand endings; we could have lost another brother, lost her, but by some grace of whatever God was watching … we'd all made it back. Some a little more busted than others, Fallon surprisingly one of them, but for the first time since I woke in that fucking crypt, I could breathe.

I felt at peace, if only for one second. It was all I allowed myself, swearing a promise on the life that Aaliyah had given back to me that we'd make it out of this. Sebek wanted a fight, Sebek had earned a fucking fight, and it was about time we gave it to him.

Aaliyah squeezed my hand, lacing our fingers together as she looked up at me with ever open eyes. The need to kiss her nearly overwhelmed me, enough that I couldn't stop myself from leaning forward and pressing a kiss to her forehead. I wasn't sure yet what she'd accept from me, and I wasn't about to steal it from her after I'd already surprised her once. The warmth that bubbled up under my lips, the spark that lit in my blood at the touch of her skin, was enough. In truth, it was everything.

"The others?" Osiris whispered, and Aaliyah looked up at him with wide eyes. A glimmer of hope she wasn't brave enough to voice burned there as she held her breath.

"They're alive. Sent me ahead to see if you'd made it back," I said, avoiding the part where I'd suggested very nicely that I was going, and they'd be wise to not get in my way. "Based on the fact that you're here, and with Aaliyah, I'd say you did your part too, brother."

Osiris took a breath, one that stuck in his chest as he gauged my words. He didn't confirm it, but he didn't need to. Osiris won, that much was certain in the fact that he was still standing. Instead, the first thing he did was ask about the brothers he'd feared might not be alive to see this night. "All of them? Their bonds … only Eirik's remains."

My lips split into a grin, and for a moment, Osiris lost that razor-sharp edge. Their deaths weighed on him, the shadows in his eyes alive as his head fell back. A smile found its way to the corner of his lips.

" All of them," I confirmed. "There's a lot to explain, but they're at Eliza's, waiting for us now."

Aaliyah pulled out of Osiris's arms for a moment, taking a long second to look between Osiris and I. She gnawed on her bottom lip, something passing behind her eyes that I couldn't quite catch, not until she spoke. "You knew? That Prince … Nero was alive?"

Osiris went rigid, letting out a breath that looked like it hurt. He didn't look away as he nodded once, watching the way Aaliyah jolted.

"Yes," he whispered, dipping his head and giving her his neck as a show of shame and remorse. Even then, he didn't stop speaking. "He came after you were taken."

Aaliyah took a long breath, hesitating for only a moment. "Why didn't you tell me?"

I could have answered for him, and that was without every memory I knew I was missing. It was as clear as the morning sun.

"I feared he died with them," Osiris said, shouldering what that would have meant with a calm facade that betrayed the horror of the words. "I could not place that pain on your shoulders, Aaliyah. Not again. Not so soon after you lost him the first time."

Osiris didn't seem like the type of person to back down, which was why it was rather jarring to watch him slip down to one knee. He placed his elbow on his thigh, and leaned forward, an obvious submission that went leagues past what he'd already done.

An ancient on his knees like he was born to be there, as long as it was at her feet.

"I apologize for keeping it from you," he said, his head down, tone low. So, he didn't see when Aaliyah walked toward him. "But I would not change my path, could I go back."

She leaned down, cupping his cheeks, and for a second I worried I was watching a show I probably shouldn't have been privy to in the moment, at least not with my shirt on. She didn't go to kiss him, though, instead pulling him to his feet. He kept his shoulders slumped, as eye level with her as he could even with their height difference.

"You took it on alone, Osiris. If I'm upset about anything, it's that," she said, clearly and with a backbone stronger than most men I knew. Osiris shivered, closing his eyes like he was waiting for the collapse of her touch. "We're in this together, remember?"

"Forgive me, my light," he whispered, reaching up to grab her hand, kissing the skin of her wrist. Taking comfort in that addictive scent.

Aaliyah smiled, nodding once. "Always, Osiris."

The moment, as sweet as it was, was interrupted by the most obnoxious sound I'd ever had the displeasure of hearing. It split the air, making Aaliyah flinch away as we looked around the room to find it. Only to realize it was coming directly from Osiris's pocket. Some catchy beat and a high-pitched voice that squealed above the tune.

Well, that had Adrian written all over it.

Osiris scrunched his nose, reaching into his pocket and fumbling with the little device he pulled from it, struggling in a way that almost looked like a toddler finding a new toy for the first time. A point that was further driven when he lifted it to his ear.

While it was still making that horrid fucking noise.

"Why isn't it stopping? I thought I told Adrian to get rid of this," he grumbled, pressing the button on the front of it again, and sweet silence filled the clearing.

What sounded like a voice came from it, too low for me to hear.

"It's not working," Osiris grumbled, messing with the buttons on the side, looking increasingly frustrated.

He grumbled, turning it over, touching the back, even shaking it like it was going to do anything to help him. I couldn't remember having seen the damned thing either, but sweet fucking Zeus … it was driving me crazy to watch him struggle.

I reached for it, trying to snag it out of his hands. "Here, just let me?—"

Osiris's eyes flashed red, and he swatted me away like I was reaching for his snack before he snarled at me. The only saving grace was the snort that had come from Aaliyah as she tried to hide her laugh behind her hand.

"Bring it up to your ear," she said softly, directing Osiris to move, albeit reluctantly.

Only for him to snap his head away and slam his finger against the big red button on the screen.

Ah, silence again. There was an itching in the back of my mind, a hint that this was a commonplace with Osiris. He didn't seem like the sort to just roll over and learn new tricks. Go figure.

"Why did you do that?" I groaned, rubbing my temples as Osiris shook his head.

"They were revoltingly loud."

Whatever it was began buzzing again. This time I decided to risk the consequences, reaching over to press the green circle that looked like it might do something, rolling my eyes when Osiris glowered. Aaliyah was quick to follow, hitting another spot on it that suddenly had the voice echoing much clearer.

"You're on speaker!" Aaliyah said, mirth in her tone as she bumped into Osiris's side affectionately.

For the grumpy expression he wore like a crown, he sure did look smitten there for a moment.

"Ali! It's so good to hear your voice!" The change in Eliza's voice was instant. "Oh, thank fucking Himal, I'm so glad you answered. I thought my baba was bad with new tech."

My heart skipped, and Aaliyah took the phone from Osiris's hands. She held it close to her, wetting her lips with a shaking breath. "Are they there, Eliza?"

"Yeah, Ali, they're here. Direct from Lord Fuckwad Archon himself," Eliza said softly, her voice fading away as Aaliyah hugged the phone to her chest, tears lining her eyes. "They wouldn't stop hounding me to call. Mind coming to get them before there's another firefight in my living room? Baba is already mad we're this late."

Aaliyah nodded to herself, her shoulders dropping, before realizing Eliza couldn't see her. "We'll be there soon, Liz. Thank you."

Eliza hummed from the other side of the phone. "You sure you're okay, Ali?"

The way she smiled was a damned miracle, and she wiped away her tears with the back of her hand. "I'm perfect, Liz. We'll see you at the Eternium, okay? Give Grigen a hug for me."

Eliza seemed to accept that, as her tone picked up the next time she spoke. "Of course, but be sure to save one for him, okay? You know he loves you more than me."

The joke was given in good fun, and Aaliyah's lips split into a quiet laugh.

"Love you, Liz," she said, and I wrapped my arms around her shoulders, giving her support as her voice cracked.

"Love you too, Ali. Be safe, sister. I'll see you soon." Eliza made a kissing sound before her voice went silent.

The chill in the air barely registered as I swept Aaliyah into my arms. Nothing had ever felt so right, even as they shook from the strain. Just holding her seemed to give me a boost, as energy amped up my blood, soaking in as I popped my neck. Pressure still lingered in my head, but I ignored it, blissfully happy to pretend I was perfectly healthy.

Nothing was going to ruin this moment.

I grinned at her, then nodded to Osiris, who watched on silently. "Well, can't very well keep those bastards waiting."