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Epilogue 2

Nithe

Walking among the wounded, I attempted to calm those I could and heal those I knew I couldn’t. Frustration was ever present when I dealt with the results of other nobles' actions. While Calix and those in Night treated their subjects the way a ruler should, the other nobles across the realm left much to be desired.

Case in point: Cyrus Tynan.

The bloody mess he caused us all was almost impressive in its scope.

Panic was spreading through the warriors present. Hardened men and women who’d fought many horrors in their time, but none had ever encountered a situation such as this.

A world without the sun. How long would it last like this? What would be the result? I didn’t know, no one did. And that fear was spreading like wildfire the more they discussed it between themselves.

And then there was the magic.

My own felt muffled and strange. Not gone, thank all the damn gods, but less than it should be, by far. The idea of not being able to use magic at all, to not be able to shift into my beast form and slither through vents and holes to do my job… made a pronounced shudder wrack through my body.

Everything was a fucking mess now. And not a soul seemed to know where Cyrus had run off to like the craven he is. But his absence meant one good thing, and I was determined to get to it as soon as possible. I couldn’t just leave our people to flounder, however, so I spent the time needed to help as best I could.

Not that it did much good, but I tried anyway. That was all a man could do, wasn’t it?

But now, it was time to break into the Tartarus damned palace. I shifted, the process slow and laborious, nearly making me sweat from the effort, but I managed it.

I slithered along, avoiding the boots and pounding steps that hit the ground and remained an ever-present threat in this form. I wound up a column, finding the small hole at the top that would take me through the ceiling and into the upper levels of the palace that the royal family called home.

I moved through the walls, twisting and turning down them, until I found the right entrance and made my way in. He was standing by the window, staring out at the sky with stiff shoulders. I yearned to help him relax. But now was not the time for such things.

There may never be time for that .

I shifted back, the rough process making me groan and causing him to spin around, dagger drawn. Spotting me, he sighed, putting the dagger down and making his way to me as I finally stood upright in my Fae form.

His body hit mine, arms coming around me in a tight hold. I threw my arms around him, holding him as tightly back as I could. I sighed deeply, my shoulders relaxing as a sense of peace overcame me.

“What the fuck happened?” Kian asked, pulling back to look me in the eyes. His blue ones were filled with so much worry that I wished I could tell him anything but the truth.

Kian was a grown man, however, and an accomplished spy. I couldn’t leave him any further in the dark than we were already. This was exactly why one does not fraternize with their spies. It created messy complications that could jeopardize the mission.

I explained to him everything he had missed, fisting my hands to avoid reaching out and easing the crease between his brows with my fingers. He got up and started to pace when I finished, and I relaxed a bit with that temptation removed.

“I think it’s time we got you out, Kian,” I told him honestly, hoping I was making this decision for the right reasons. I thought I was, but as I said— complications .

“What?” He stopped pacing and turned to face me. “Why? You have no one who is as close to Cyrus as I am.”

“Cyrus already suspects you and is keeping you under heavy guard. We have others who can observe him once he surfaces. You’re more valuable where you can actually help. The humans are going to need us, Kian. You can’t help from a gilded cage,” I explained, hoping he would see the reason in my argument.

Kian had always been an excellent spy. From the day I recruited him, I knew he was special. Dusk had been a focus of ours for a while, as the increasingly brutal reports trickled in. Getting a member of the court to spy was essential, but getting a member of the royal family?

It was damned unheard of!

Kian had been the perfect spy, and his intelligence had led us to free more humans than ever before. Not to mention, thanks to him, we got Asteria out. Who knows how long such a task would have taken otherwise? Calix wouldn’t have taken her against her will, and she wouldn’t have trusted us without Kian’s promises.

“Okay,” Kian sighed, jolting me from my thoughts.

“Okay?” I asked, my brow rising in suspicion. He’d fought me on this for months, after all.

Kian rolled his eyes, smirking a bit as he began to gather his things. “Yes, okay . I see your point, and I’m going mad under Cyrus’s watch anyway. I can’t get a damn thing done.”

“Thank Nox,” I said, relieved to finally be getting him out of here.

“We just need to do one last thing here,” Kian told me, distracted as he finished gathering what he needed. Most of it was already ready to go in his standard emergency bag.

All spies knew the day may come when running became necessary for their survival.

“And what’s that?” I asked wearily, tired from the long day and the madness of the battle.

Kian paused, looking up at me critically. He made his way over to me and paused, before lifting his hand and running it through my dark hair. My eyes fluttered closed as Kian continued to massage his fingers back and forth.

The moment of peace was more needed than I could express. The horror of everything I’d seen in Dusk the last few months was constantly swirling in my thoughts, waking me up in the middle of the night in a rough sweat, with panic and vomit both racing up equally.

After a few minutes, my pink eyes fluttered open, finding Kian’s intense blue stare on me. A charged moment passed between us, and I wasn’t at all sure what I wanted to do. Temptation had been distant with everything going on, but whenever I was with Kian, it came barreling right back.

His body swayed toward me, and I couldn’t help leaning a bit to meet him. We passed a beat in heavy silence, our eyes locked on one another as possibilities raced between us. But a beat was all we had—all we could have. Kian’s fingers paused as his eyes turned stormy, and he pulled himself away quickly. I sighed heavily, standing up as Kian stepped back. We remained quiet as he grabbed his bag, then he turned toward the door, determination on his face.

He still hadn’t told me what we were doing.

I rolled my eyes but pulled my sword, trusting Kian had a good reason for this. Between the two of us, we cut down the guards assigned to his door and quickly slipped down the hall.

I paused for a moment outside Twyla’s door, noticing the lack of guards. I looked at Kian curiously, and he smirked back at me.

“I got her out before he locked me up, before Vikal and Carrina even,” he scoffed, shaking his head. “Cyrus hasn't even noticed she’s missing. She didn’t want to go south, so she flew off somewhere. She wasn’t sure where she was going. But she’s been locked up in this palace her whole damn life. It’s time for her to finally fly free.”

His small smile was sad but content in the knowledge his little sister was safe and protected from the court she never fit quite right in.

“What about Weylin?” he asked suddenly. “Any news?”

“He still hasn’t been spotted,” I admitted, hating to see the light dim in his eyes. “I’m hoping with your help, we make our way to the border camp and see if he’s just busy, or if Cyrus has stashed him somewhere.”

“He’s Cyrus’s heir until he has a legitimate one,” Kian murmured as we continued through the halls, slipping into the dark passages meant for the slaves to move around unseen by the nobles.

“Perhaps. Who knows who the gods may choose,” I reminded him with a raised brow, “Our queen certainly wasn’t expected after all.”

“True.” Kian conceded with a nod. “But Cyrus won’t consider the rest of us. Weylin has been enemy number one in his eyes for years. Our father antagonizing him by using Weylin led to both of them seeing the other as being in their way.”

“A dumb move,” I told him bluntly.

Kian snickered quietly, nodding in agreement. But he paused as we slid around the next corner, coming to a familiar door.

“The dungeons?” I asked, and Kian sent a smirk back at me before charging through the door. I sighed, rolling my eyes upwards before darting after him.

Only a few guards were on duty, and upon seeing Kian and I, they moved to grab their swords. But the blonde guard paused, removing his hand from the hilt and instead put a hand over his fellow guard’s, stopping him with the sword halfway out of its sheath.

“You have pink eyes,” he observed quietly, and Kian and I looked at one another in confusion. This was definitely not how I expected this to go. “That means you’re from Night Kingdom. You serve Asteria.”

“That’s Queen Asteria to you,” I growled, not willing to take a Dusk soldier's disrespect for my Queen.

The fair-haired Fae smiled, shaking his head. “Of course. Queen Asteria deserved better than what she got here; I’m glad she’s found it elsewhere.”

I blinked quickly in surprise before narrowing my eyes at him, but he rushed to speak before I could.

“I helped her when Night attacked, gave her a knife to defend herself when Zerlina forced us to leave her outside.” The guard’s eyes darkened at the memory. “She didn’t deserve a damn bit of what happened here. But I— we are stuck serving under a madman who hunts a woman who’s made it abundantly clear she wants nothing to do with him. Whatever, or whoever , you’re here for, let us help.”

His vocal patterns revealed no obvious lie. The tones changed naturally throughout, from anger to admiration to sadness and regret, then back to anger before a plea entered his voice. His face was earnest and open, his eyes active and not practiced. I was forced to believe it.

And I could. There were good Fae out there, even if they were stuck serving shit kings.

“I think I know why you’re here, Prince Kian,” the guard said as we deliberated trusting the stranger. “Follow me.”

He led us forward, and we stayed behind a few feet, with room to draw our swords if needed. He led us into a back room, where a large rack was set up. On it, a male was hanging limp. Golden-tanned skin was smudged with dirt and dust, and messy brown hair covered his face until Kian stepped forward and lifted his head to meet his eyes.

The man blinked his open, and golden orbs stared back at him.