Page 45

“ A fucking what?” The words are out of my mouth before I can think better of them, but I’m not sure there’s anything better to say.

A quick glance around the room also tells me everyone else is on the same page, maybe Ryker more than the rest of us.

But that’s to be expected with the crazy that Theo is spewing.

“Well, a half-god, a demigod actually, but he has god blood coursing through him, just like Serena.”

Boom! Just like that, another bomb.

My head is spinning, and I’m worried I somehow never made it to the cabin to find Serena. Maybe I just took a wrong turn and fell off a cliff, and this is just a hallucination?

Somehow, that seems more plausible than what Theo’s saying.

Although, just last week, I would have thought Theo wasn’t plausible. Nobody has seen signs of deities for so long it was believed by many that they were merely legends.

So you can imagine my mother’s surprise when Serena brought Theo back to the castle a few nights ago.

She was beside herself, overjoyed, and full of questions.

Not that Theo answered them. I’m pretty sure the only thing she said that was of any solid meaning was, ‘I’m here to help the realm through a time of great darkness and bring what’s lost home. ’

I have no idea what she meant, and she didn’t stick around to explain, but so far it seems like she’s helping Serena, has helped her more than once now, and that’s all I really need to know.

I’m trusting Ryker to do the very same thing at this point, so why not a deity who was believed to be gone for hundreds of years…

“Wait.” Serena holds her hands up, cutting off whatever Theo was about to say. Probably something even crazier, like us being reincarnations or some shit.

Gods, there’s only so much I can take, and right now I’m at my limit.

“Let’s rewind. Tell us more about Ryker’s mom, please. How did a goddess end up with Draven?” Serena pulls a face, and I don’t blame her. I can imagine how that might have happened, and the slight greenish color Ryker turns tells me he’s thinking the same thing.

“Aranyani is the goddess of the forest. She’s the mother to the dryads and nymphs, who protect all that live in her domain.

She loves every tree, flower, insect, and weed.

She is beautiful, and she is strong, but she is also stubborn and curious, like most gods.

” I can hear the fondness in her voice as Theo talks of Aranyani, and I rack my brain for some mention of her.

From a young age, we were taught about the gods; after all, they are the ones who gifted us with magic and the ability to shift.

“Long ago, when the kingdom was just beginning to grow, Aranyani was upset. In order for the kingdom to grow, the forest had to shrink. Aranyani hated humans, wanted nothing to do with them, but it wasn’t her choice alone to make.

In the end, the gods allowed the kingdoms to grow, and in return, they were granted gods that they would worship, one of which was Aranyani.

For a long time, humans and gods coexisted perfectly and peacefully.

But as time went on, the villages grew, and what were once small areas of trees being cleared, turned into moving enough to create kingdoms, and not just here in Anolas, but in Salona and the other four kingdoms as well.

” Try as I might, I can’t remember ever hearing a single thing about this.

Thankfully, I’m not the only one who looks confused, though.

Sol has probably read as much on our realms history as I have, maybe even more at this point, but when I look to him in question all he can do is shrug.

“They continued to worship Aranyani, though, so she allowed it, despite a deep hate that was beginning to fester. Eventually, the kingdom flourished, and humans began to have numbers that the gods couldn’t dream of achieving.

They offered their children those of the elements; fire, earth, water, and air, and with us came the potential to wield elemental magic based on your region and which god had blessed that area.

We taught them, became friendly, and some even took lovers.

” Theo sighs, her earlier happy mood gone and I don’t need to be psychic to know where this story is going, to know it’s not a happy ending.

“After a while, Aranyani was forgotten. She no longer received worship for allowing them to destroy her beautiful forests. The mortals had been gifted the ability to shift and access to elemental magic, they were busy worshiping other gods now. For years and years, Aranyani festered in her hatred for the mortals until one day she met Draven,” she spits his name like it’s a curse, her eyes darkening.

Blowing out a calming breath, she continues.

“He was strong, one of the few mortals that had been gifted with dark magic. Even at the peak of peace, Salona wasn’t a huge kingdom and, much like with Anolas, not all received the gift.

Draven promised Aranyani that they would reclaim the land and make it better.

Together, they could restore the forest and stop future destruction. ”

I can’t stop the huff of laughter, but there’s nothing funny about the situation. I just know that’s about as far from what happened as possible.

Draven doesn’t care about anyone but himself.

“It didn’t work out like that, though. Draven knew just what to say to win Aranyani over, and before you know it, Ryker was here and everything had gone from bad to worse.

Salona had fallen, and with no king, it became the perfect testing grounds.

It wasn't just the forest that suffered under Draven, though, and he didn't only take his wrath out on the mortals.”

Theo trails off, and the room is left in a silence that feels suffocating.

It's Ryker who finally breaks the silence.

"So my mother was evil, too?" He sounds distraught, and I'm not the only one who hears it. Serena looks at him, and I see the concern that shines in her eyes, the urge to comfort him, though she has no idea how.

What do you say to someone who just found out so much in such a short time? His life has been turned upside down, and while I might not like him, I can understand how that feels. My life seems to enjoy trying to keep me on my toes.

As much as I hate it, the best thing for him is having someone, and it looks like that person might be Serena.

I grit my teeth and suck in a deep breath in through my nose before slowly exhaling out through my mouth as she moves into his side, wrapping her arms around his waist and burying her face in his chest.

Nobody else bats an eye. Looking around, I realize they're all much more at ease with him. This can't be their first meeting. But of course it's not; none of them would let him keep them away the way I did.

I trust Serena.

Some of the tension bleeds from my body. I know it will take time, but I'm determined to give him a chance, if only for her.

I won't hesitate to kill him if he tries something to hurt her, but as I watch them, I'm almost positive that won't happen.

Serena holds him tight, as if attempting to hold him together.

I've been on the receiving end of her love.

I know how all-consuming it feels, how world-changing and amazing it is.

There's no way to explain it, and I'm not sure if it's because she's my mate or just because she's Serena, but it doesn't matter.

I can see that he feels it from the dumbfounded look on his face.

Ryker's a monster; nobody can change my mind about that, but maybe he can be saved.

I'm not sure he deserves it, but I'm not the one who gets to decide that; none of us are.

If anyone can save him, it's Serena; same goes for Lyle.

She's always done the impossible, so I won't be betting against her now.

I watch as the shock melts off Ryker's face, and slowly, almost hesitantly, he moves to return her embrace. He's stiff and looks like he's not sure what he's doing, but his face evens out and the deep furrow in his brows from Theo's words disappears, at least for the moment.

Nobody moves as Serena comforts him. Nobody speaks, instead watching them, just as I am.

I'm not sure if either of them knows it, but I'd bet my throne Ryker's in love with Serena.

Hell, she might love him too, but I'm unsure if he even knows what that is. His father's a monster, and from what Theo said so far, his mother isn't much better.

"Mother wasn't bad. She was just upset, and Draven used that anger to manipulate her.

" Theo's words cut through the room, ringing with power and anger.

I've only met Theo once before this, but from what I've seen and heard, she's bubbly and easygoing.

She didn't even flinch when Pike almost ripped her throat out.

Whatever must have happened in the past clearly doesn't sit well with her, and it shouldn't. After all, Aranyani is her mother, which would also make Ryker her half-brother.

What the fuck...

A demigod—I've never read of the gods mixing with the mortals, although with them being around for so long, I guess it was bound to happen.

“Aranyani disappeared after Salona fell. Nobody knew where she went, and because of that, we were forced to leave as well. Trust between the mortals and the gods was broken, the lands suffered, and the forest changed, as did those who inhabited them.”

That’s why the Forgotten Forest is like this, because of Draven. I’d always thought it was because Salona fell, though it would seem everything roots back to him.

“So, if everyone was forced to leave, how are you here? Are you looking for Aranyani?” Sol asks, looking deep in thought. I’m glad he’s following because right now I feel like everything is going too fast and I can’t seem to grasp it.

Everything I know is wrong.