Page 31

Chapter Thirty-one

Asteria

At the end of the long tunnel, we came to another door, this one with a strange device in the center of it. Tieran grabbed the dagger at his waist, making Calix and Eryx both reach for their swords.

Tieran raised his hands in surrender, “I only mean to cut myself, boys. The queen will be perfectly safe.”

“Queen?” Eryx asked, brows arching in surprise.

Tieran turned to me with a smile. “ The Star Queen.”

I swallowed hard as the pressure on my chest increased. Calix retook my hand, and I squeezed it hard as I steadied my breathing.

Tieran cut his hand, leaving a deep gash behind, before he pressed his bloody palm against the door. The blood seeped into the mechanism, flowing through it until it turned dark red. I jumped as the blood caught fire, watching with wide eyes. I leaned into Calix as the fire spread across the deep grooves of the door, until the telltale sound of something unlocking could be heard, a loud click echoing through the tunnel.

The door creaked open by itself, and that didn’t help me to feel any less creeped out.

We followed Tieran into a room that had clearly been carved out of the dirt tunnel. Torches lit up as we walked in, bathing it in light, and bringing focus to the middle of the room. There stood a podium, with a glass case surrounding what looked to be a very old parchment.

“This is why I’ve asked you here.” Tieran waved me over. I couldn’t bring myself to let go of Calix’s hand, so I dragged him over with me. Not that he minded.

Our shared unease beat steadily between our shared souls.

I looked down at the parchment, and found it was written in the ancient Fae language, of fucking course. I sighed. “I can’t read it.”

“Allow me.” Calix kissed the top of my head. “This is an account of?—”

His head snapped to Tieran, his eyes wide. “No.”

“Yes.” Tieran nodded, his eyes knowing, a slight smile on his face.

“What?!” I snapped, looking between them both.

Calix cleared his throat, as wonder spread through the bond. “This is an account of the six Fae kings of old. The ones who united Celesterra.”

“How?” I gasped. “That was millennia ago, right? How could something that old have survived this long?”

“Because my ancestors knew this information would be forgotten,” Tieran answered, his brows rising. “They knew the day would come when whoever ruled Sunset would need to be prepared.”

“It speaks of the agreement forged between them, but it also speaks of the Oracle being present to seal the pact among them with the gods' blessing.” Calix read, leaning over the glass box.

“They knew the balance was in danger of being threatened then, and they knew coming together would be the only way to…” he trailed off, looking down for a moment. “The only way to delay it.”

My eyebrows creased, taking that in. “I thought that the whole point of forging the agreement was to fix to the balance?”

Tieran shook his head, his blue eyes reflecting a mixture of excitement and sympathy. “It was only ever a stopgap to delay the problem, until the time would come when a being would arise. One who could actually do something to fix the balance.”

I didn’t like the way everyone was looking at me. I shook my head slowly, somewhat in shock, despite the pieces of this puzzle I’d already heard from others. Calix squeezed my hand.

“The prophecy given to them spoke of a Star Queen who would rise when the night was darkest. Who would cast down the usurper, and free the people from their bondage. She would bring true balance back to the lands,” Calix continued reading, and looked up with a blinding smile as he finished.

“Asteria.” His eyes were wide, joy brimming in his eyes.

“We can do it,” I whispered, tears coming to my eyes, as pure exhilaration and relief crashed through me. Hope lit my heart, and part of me wished to douse it in my fear for the future, but I couldn’t bring myself to smother it.

“Continue reading, Calix,” Tieran advised hesitantly, and Calix looked uncertainly back to the parchment. My heart beat out of control, and I could feel the starlight under my skin trying to escape.

“But her fate is Celesterra’s. Should she fail, Celesterra will fall with her. Chaos will overrun the world, and blood will reign,” he finished heavily.

My heart fell to my stomach, and starlight leaked out from my fingers. My currently hidden wings felt heavy on my back as fire gathered in my throat. Fear and rage twisted together. I couldn’t let this happen. I couldn’t let the entire world fall.

How could Cyrus even achieve such a thing?

How could he affect the world so greatly that there was no going back?

How was I the one who was supposed to save us all?

I spiraled internally, but thankfully, others were there to pick up the information-gathering slack.

“Blood will reign?” Eryx questioned, a brow rising.

Tieran shrugged, “We assume that to mean blood will continue flowing, more deaths, more killing. But prophecies can be quite tricky. Even when they seem obvious, they often have meanings one doesn’t see until after the fact.”

“But one thing is truly clear: you are the Star Queen the prophecy speaks of,” Tieran declared as he knelt before me.

I couldn’t breathe.

His family knelt with him, though Vesper grudgingly so, as Tieran continued, “You alone can save Celesterra now, Queen Asteria. Our fates are all in your hands.”

“No pressure or anything,” Zakat smirked up at me, his eyes crinkling with laughter.

I swayed on my feet, but Calix was there, a resolute balance to the chaos in my heart and mind. Huh . Chaos in the mind, chaos in the land. Seems like they go hand in hand.

I’d have to bring my own chaotic thoughts and feelings under control. If the balance of Celesterra was on my shoulders, and mine alone…

We could all very well be fucked.

* * *

We made our way back to Tieran’s study, all of us quiet and stuck in our own thoughts.

“Now,” Tieran began as we sat around the round wooden table in the middle of the room. A red, teal, orange, and yellow rug sat beneath the table, with a large diamond in the middle that had swirling patterns surrounding it and lines of color in each corner.

“Tell me what exactly you’ve been up to Calix, how you’ve managed so far, Asteria, and what the plan is from here,” Tieran demanded more than asked.

Just like with King Gravadain, we went through everything, top to bottom. But unlike King Gravadain, King Tieran listened patiently, asked intelligent questions, and while he was surprised, he didn’t think us insane.

So, that was a plus.

“ And after this, you’ll be journeying to the Otherworld?” Zakat asked, his eyes wide and jaw slack in shock.

I nodded in confirmation. “Unfortunately, yes. I’d rather we just attack Dusk first, but if the gods have information we need…”

“It’s smarter to wait,” Eveleen chimed in. She was quieter than Queen Idalia for sure, but there was a certain strength to her still. “You want the best chance for success, Asteria.”

I agreed with a deep sigh. Calix chuckled under his breath, and I glared at him. “I just want him gone.”

“I know. And we will end him, my réalta.” Calix reminded me. “But we need to get all our dragons in a row first. Arien needs to sort out Day, and Isleen needs time to gather soldiers in Sunrise.”

“And I need time to contact my spies in Dusk,” Eryx spoke up from beside me, putting a hand on my shoulder. “We need more information on the current state of things before we rush in and attack. We don’t want to put our soldiers in unnecessary danger if we can prevent it.”

I nodded, sighing once more. “I know. I do. It’s just…”

I trailed off, but words didn’t seem to be necessary. Everyone understood.

No one wanted the balance threatened. Not when it could mean the very end of us all. The threat of iron weapons alone was a danger we needed to navigate very carefully. I had zero desire to come skin to metal with any iron in my lifetime.

And whatever Cyrus was planning, I knew it went beyond whatever it had originally started out as. This was more than a fight with Night now. More than getting me back. There was something we were missing. I was sure of it.

When I hesitantly brought it up, the others sat in thought for a moment.

“I think you’re right,” Altan said, humming in contemplation. “He’s escalated greatly since this began, and if he’s outsourcing humans from Day, then he’s going through them quickly.”

I winced at the thought, my heart aching for every human life lost.

“And if he plans to keep you,” he continued apologetically, making Calix growl low in his throat at the thought. “But he’s promised Aelius your death, then he certainly plans to stab him in the back. So who will rule Day?”

“I’m almost certain he killed his father as well.” Eryx added, “There’s no way the timing is a coincidence.”

“So we need to figure out what exactly Cyrus is planning now,” Calix began, running his fingers across the table. Itching for his map and figures, most likely. It almost brought a smile to my face, the way he relied on them while planning was kind of adorable.

“If we attack with only half the information, and no sight of his goal, it will only bring failure. We’ll be fighting the wrong war. Understanding your enemy, and their objective, is half the battle after all,” Calix explained, his voice rumbling as his dragon made its way to the fore.

I put my hand on his thigh, and his clawed hand grasped it. We kept each other calm as we discussed the man who had tried to tear us apart—who still aimed to do so.

“I will send my soldiers south.” Tieran nodded decisively. “They will gather at our borders, so when the word comes, we can attack from the North. Unless, of course, you need us in Evenfall, in which case, we can meet you there.”

“You’ll be joining your soldiers?” Calix raised his brow.

“Don’t you?” Tieran countered, a smirk rising on his lips.

“Of course.” Calix snorted. “But too many kings sit their asses on their thrones while they send their men to die for them.”

“Agreed. Which is why I will be there, leading the charge.” The king of Sunset smiled, a thirst for war reflected in his eyes.

We all had it.

Every Fae ruler I’d met thus far had a thirst for bloodshed. It was all about how they managed that urge that made the difference.

* * *

The next day, we found ourselves in Tieran’s study once more, rolling out our plans and adjusting them as needed. Trying to figure out how to assemble all the separate pieces of our growing army into one.

“We need Titan,” Calix groaned, wiping his forehead. The long black tunic and pants they’d given him were making him sweat in this heat. I’d chosen a barely there silver dress that covered everything but was so light and flowy, I felt naked.

Poor Calix didn’t have that option.

I was more than willing to lick the sweat off him afterward to help, however.

“We’ll confer with him as soon as we get back,” Eryx agreed, sighing. “But sending messages back and forth will prove complicated. We need a sure way to get them north past Dusk.”

“Dawn being allied with Dusk means any way across the continent itself is out.” Calix shook his head.

“Wait!” I shouted a bit too loudly, my head shooting up from the map to meet their eyes. Mine were alight with an idea that hit me at the mention of Dawn.

“My mother—my birth mother—Queen Aurelia, was from Dawn. Meaning, I have family in Dawn that could help.” My excitement grew as my plan came together in my mind.

“We don’t know if they’d side with you or their king, Asteria.” Eryx cautioned, shaking his head.

“Lord Dali, my uncle, rules Chryse, and my cousin, Lord Kiran, rules Nysa. That’s two families in Dawn we can try to sway,” I insisted, knowing this could work. “We can ask my mother for help. But if they could get a messenger up through the Slievenamon Mountains, they could get it to Sunset without tipping anyone off.”

“If we ask your mother,” Calix began, looking sternly at me. I could feel his urge to protect me in the bond, and it made my shoulders relax, knowing he didn’t disagree, but he would always put my protection first.

“And she makes contact for us, then I could see it working. As long as they have a bird shifter of some sort who can fly it up. Going through the mountains would be too difficult and take too much time otherwise. I would have sent Eryx, but we unfortunately need him for more than message delivery.” He finished, and I smiled brightly.

“Thanks ever so,” Eryx remarked, dryly.

A knock on the door interrupted us before anything else could be said. Tieran called out for whoever it was to enter, and Dysis came in, wringing her hands, with anxiety clear on her face.

“Dysis?” Tieran asked, brow creasing. “What’s wrong?”

“It’s Vesper, Father.” She bit her lip and looked between us all.

Tieran sighed heavily, leaning forward with his hands on the table, “What has that damn boy done now?”

“He’s gone,” she choked out. “All his closest friends and personal guards are gone, and the men they command are too. Several hundred soldiers, all gone.”

Tieran straightened, rage lining every inch of his face. Zakat’s face, on the other hand, fell. But his voice was as dry as a desert when he chimed in. “What a surprise, he heard about a prince killing others to be king and immediately ran to his side.”

“We don’t know that!” Tieran yelled, turning to Zakat, fury lining his face.

“Yes, we do!” Zakat shouted back, a snarl on his face. “Don’t pretend, Father. We both know he’s been unhappy since the day I was born! He’d do anything to see himself the heir instead of me. Cyrus will offer him a way.” He laughed dryly, “Though, it’s just as likely Cyrus will stab him in the back. Seems like Vesper thinks himself intelligent enough to outsmart the madman.”

Altan’s hand landed on Zakat’s shoulder, and he shifted toward him. “This isn’t on you, Prince. Vesper made his own choices.”

“He wouldn’t have without me.” Zakat despaired, throwing his hands up.

“Wouldn’t he?” Altan countered, raising a brow at him. “He wouldn’t be the heir regardless, and that’s clearly been eating away at him.”

“This is madness!” Tieran interjected, his hands nearly shaking. “He’s going to get himself killed! Or get you killed! Over what? A damn crown?!” He ripped the crown of Sunset off his head, looking at it disdainfully for a moment before throwing it forcefully at the wall.

It bounced off, landing unharmed on the carpet after several rolls. The silence in the room was deafening, and I looked between Calix and Eryx, unsure what to do or say. This undeniably complicated everything.

It seemed like almost every kingdom was splitting apart. Chaos was encroaching, and its insidious reach was stretching far and wide.

“It’s chaos, isn’t it?” I asked quietly. “The balance shifts more to chaos by the day. Those who wouldn’t have done something before, merely had passing thoughts—say about wanting to be heir. Chaos is pushing them to do it.”

Silence followed my words, but the bowed heads said more than any words could have.

“Cyrus will be feeling that most of all. Constantly being pushed farther, escalating more and more.” I added after a few minutes of us all absorbing what had happened.

“And now Vesper will be by his side.” Zakat snarled, and his father shook his head helplessly. But a moment later, he looked up at Zakat and placed his hands on his shoulders, bringing his face, set in harsh lines, close to his son’s.

“You must be the heir I know you can be, my son,” Tieran said forcefully.

“Father.” Zakat shook his head, his mouth opening to argue.

“I do not speak of betrothals and children!” he yelled, a fierce look on his face. “I speak of you stepping up to lead.”

That made his son stand up straighter, the adolescent disagreement fading from his face, replaced with a much more determined look.

“You must go with the Star Queen and Night King. They will be leading this war, and we must follow,” Tieran insisted, eyebrows rising. “Sometimes, being a ruler means knowing when to take charge, and when to step back. There is just as delicate a balance to ruling as there is to all of Celesterra.”

“What do you want me to do?” Zakat asked quietly, eyes riveted on his father.

“You represent Sunset, and you support the queen,” Tieran told him, a smile beginning to peek out. “Everything else will follow.”

Zakat turned to me with a smirk, “Well then, Star Queen.” He bowed with a flourish. “It seems I’m at your command.”

I gulped, looking quickly at Calix before I was able to wrangle my wild emotions into a small box inside me. I straightened my shoulders.

I could do this. I would .

Just because everything seemed to be spinning wildly around me didn’t mean I couldn’t take control of it.

After all, we’d gone from having no allies outside of Night to having half of Day already secured behind me, and now part of Sunrise and the majority of Sunset were with us.

We had much better odds now.

There was only one thing left to do.

It was time to go meet the gods.