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Chapter Fifty-three

Arien

Hours and hours were spent in Calix’s war room, hashing out the plans for attack. Ideas bounced back and forth as experienced warriors with years of experience and fresh blood with new ideas all contributed to the final plans.

I had to appreciate the immensity of what was happening here. There were representatives from nearly all the kingdoms around the table, working together toward a common goal. All except Dawn Kingdom.

King Tariq had sided with Cyrus, and his forces were brought with him to Dusk before we could get word to any of our relatives there. I could only hope the messages would be received, and welcomed. Uncle Dali was lord of Chryse, and had always been on our side when we needed him before.

We’d never asked him to betray his king before, however.

I knew he took great pride in his role. I also knew that chaos had already begun affecting Dawn and its rulers. I could only pray to Hyperion that Dali wasn’t similarly affected. I couldn’t imagine Aunt Elaner, one of the sweetest beings I knew, being corrupted. If nothing else, I had hope she would ensure our plea was heard. She always spoke up for me, even to my father.

Which was part of the reason Father didn’t allow them to visit us anymore.

Even without Dawn’s involvement, however, we had quite the force behind us for this. King Tieran would meet up with us outside Evenfall, bringing Sunset’s forces to bear. Prince Altan’s sister had apparently been working behind the scenes in Sunrise to turn more soldiers to our cause as well, and they were expected to link up with Tieran’s army before joining us.

Nithe and Vikal were able to give us an almost too vivid picture of the current situation in Dusk. It was hard to imagine such horrors actually being committed. It was a difficult concept to wrap my mind around. Despite the standard skirmishes we Fae all inevitably found ourselves in and our plans to overthrow my father, I’d grown up in a time of relative peace.

It was all an illusion, I realized now. An illusion that did nothing but make the Fae of this realm complacent. It allowed corruption to sink deep into the very bones of the realm.

Peace had proven as dangerous as a blade, and it cut just as deep.

We would all have to deal with the inevitable fallout from it now. I prayed to any gods I thought might hear me. The Blessed Trinity of Hyperion, Earendel, and Asteria. The god of war, Anann, and the god of death, Arawn. And Tartarus , I even prayed to Erebus. Begging them all to let us succeed in our quest to rout out the chaos that had infested our lands.

Cyrus was at the very root of that chaos.

While he was once but a small contributing factor to a slow decline, he was now the grand architect of its destruction.

Something was in the air. We could all feel it, evidenced by the shifting feet and fleeting looks, but no one said a word. The auspices of fate were always felt, but rarely did one recognize it for what it was.

It almost felt as if fate was sitting up and taking notice, watching us all with avid interest as its grand plan played out.

I shivered at the feeling. Such grand destinies were for storybooks, not real life. And yet, here we were. My twin sister had ascended her throne. The king and queen of two different kingdoms were mated. Humans were being rounded up and slaughtered for their blood to fuel a maniac’s magic. And the balance was perilously close to tipping to chaos forever.

Fear was a danger in battle. That was one of the first things I learned. One must always be in control, lest their fear rule them and see them dead on the battlefield. But it was next to impossible to not fear now.

This was a scale I had never considered in all my days. My twin sister was at the apex of it all, and I—I couldn’t lose her. Not after we just found her. The very idea caused an ache in my chest, and Asteria’s eyes creased as she rubbed her own, as if she could feel the pain echoing through our blood.

As the plans for tomorrow were finalized and the meeting finally broke up, Asteria made her way over to me. A bright smile lit up her face, making her eyes twinkle brightly with starlight. It was still so strange to see those familiar sky-blue eyes lit with the stars instead of the sun.

“Come on,” she said, grabbing my hand. My eyes briefly shot to Harpina’s as we passed, and those amber orbs pierced through me. I shook myself, following Asteria through the halls. What happened between Harpina and me was a one-night-only deal. We both knew that.

While Asteria and Calix may believe they could find a way, Harpina and I both knew we had separate responsibilities. Even if those responsibilities occasionally crossed over. But that crossover would be the most difficult to navigate, I imagined. She was Constable of Night, not to mention my sister’s friend, and therefore, not someone I could have any kind of future with.

Not that I thought she wanted that. She was clearly a flirt, and who could blame her when she looked like that ? The memory of that wine-red hair tumbling down her back in luscious curls, caressing over the curves of her body as her narrow waist expanded into perfectly graspable hips that my fingertips indented into as she rode above me…

It would certainly stay with me for a while.

But I had my priorities. And right now, that was the short brunette pulling me out of Tairngire’s palace and striding across the lawns to a destination unknown. I could only assume she was giving Calix some time to speak with his sisters about their meeting with his deceased parents.

What a strange world we live in now.

“Where are we going?” I asked, amused as her head whipped back to me with a mischievous smile.

“We’re having twin bonding time, of course!” she responded, her bubbly tone so at odds with the harder tone she’d used around the war table.

Grief rose in my throat. We both should have had the chance to grow up playing together, not bonding for the first time while at war. Rage at my father was a familiar feeling. Like the well-worn shirt that I refused to part with and wore over and over again, despite my mother’s teasing. But now, that rage focused in on everything Aelius had stolen from Asteria and me.

Our childhoods.

And if things went badly tomorrow, possibly our entire lives.

No matter what fate had in store for me tomorrow, I swore by Hyperion I would not leave Adamah without seeing my father dead.

Asteria’s concerned expression had my rage clearing, and I forced a smile upon my face.

“Alright, lead the way, sister,” I told her indulgently. There wasn’t a thing I would deny her anyway.

* * *

I strapped on my armor, looking at myself in the mirror. After spending a few hours with Asteria at the menagerie, I felt more focused. It was amazing to be able to just spend time having fun with my twin after a lifetime of being kept apart.

It was a firm reminder of what was at risk. What had to be protected at all costs.

I sheathed my sword as I looked at the dark hair reflecting my mother, the blue eyes a copy of my father’s. Would Mother look at me the same once my sword took Father’s head?

I knew she wanted him both dead and alive, equally. The business of soulmates was a messy one, and theirs more so than most. Mother wanted her child protected. She wanted the power Father denied her. She wanted a safe world for us to live in.

But I knew, deep down, she wanted Aelius, too.

Mother and I had always been close, a result of the situation I was raised in and the role I’d had to take. I couldn’t shake the feeling that our relationship would change forever if I killed her mate. I thought of how Asteria would react to losing Calix, and grimaced at my reflection.

There would be Tartarus to pay.

Did Mother even allow herself to acknowledge her conflicted feelings? Or did she bury any hope she had for her mate entirely? We’d never discussed it, not really. She’d only told me that the gods had said Father would have to go, so go he would.

I wished I’d hugged her a bit longer before she left for Avalon. Just in case.

She was holding the city now, and I’d sent a relatively sizeable force to hold Avalon against any further attacks. Hopefully, we wouldn’t have to worry about that. If we took Cyrus and Aelius down today, we could all finally begin to move on.

My life had always been on pause. Waiting for this moment before it could truly begin.

I walked out of the rooms they’d given me in the Fallen Star Palace, making my way through the star opal-lined halls. Tapestries of past royals were matched by tasteful decorations that lined the halls, nothing so extravagant as Father would have done.

I paused as I went around a corner and came face to face with the woman I’d been desperately trying not to think about since that night at the camp.

“Prince Arien,” Harpina nearly purred, raising a brow.

“Constable Harpina,” I greeted her as blandly as possible. She tutted, shaking her head as she twined her arm around mine. Her armbands were on, and the strange material rubbed against my skin as she did. Harpina immediately began walking, forcing me to move with her.

My eyes couldn’t help wandering, no matter how hard I tried to keep them forward. Her armor fit her like a second skin. The leather pants shaped perfectly around her arse and thighs, while the corset pushed up her generous cleavage, and her narrow waist was more pronounced from how tightly her corset was laced.

“Are you ready for today, sunshine?” she asked, that flirtatious note still in her voice, but giving way to something more genuine. Her amber eyes were warm as she glanced quickly at my face, before shifting her focus anywhere else.

“About as ready as you are, kitty-cat,” I told her, a surprised laugh bursting from her mouth. A small smile played around my lips, but I forced them to straighten, reminding myself why another taste was dangerous.

Why she was dangerous.