“Having experienced your Combat classes at the academy, I for one know there is much you must learn before you are ready to cross blades with Aven again,” Zain continued. “Not the least of which is allowing yourself to yield to your Meyarin instincts. And without hesitation.”
Alex only just managed to suppress a shudder at the reminder of just how abnormal she now was thanks to the psychotic, banished prince’s blood running through her veins.
Musing out loud, she said, “So, from what I’m understanding, this varrungard thing is less like the Running of the Bulls and more like a peaceful stroll in the woods to see how I handle the scenery?”
Roka shared an uncertain glance with Zain and said, “I’m not sure I understand your reference to oxen, but in essence, I believe you are correct. At least for the stage of the varrungard that you’ll be completing.”
“And you promise to step in if my fingers and toes start to fall off from frostbite?”
“You have our word.”
Alex sighed deeply. “Fine. Bring on the fun times.” She then had a thought and turned to Kyia with hopeful eyes. “I don’t suppose I can borrow some of that myraes fire stuff to take with me? Just a pinch?”
Kyia’s green eyes sparkled. “Sorry, Alex. Even if I had any to spare, rules say you can’t take anything but the clothes on your back.”
Resigned, Alex said, “Well, let’s make sure I have plenty of those and I just might survive the weekend.”
Roka offered a hum of agreement and stood to his feet. “Now that’s settled, you should get to bed. You have an early morning tomorrow—we leave at dawn.”
“Can’t wait,” Alex said with clear sarcasm.
Failing to hide her smile, Kyia took Alex’s arm and escorted her from Roka’s chambers and back through the palace to her room. Their journey was made faster when the Meyarin activated the Valispath yet again, transporting them through the walls and up, around and down the floors until they reached the hall outside Alex’s quarters.
“Sleep well, Alex,” Kyia said, leaving her at the door. “I’ll see you in the morning.”
Left to her own devices, Alex changed into a nightgown that was even more comfortable than the dress, as impossible as that should have been. Shaped perfectly to fit her body, it fell to just above her knees and felt like silk against her skin.
“I could get used to these clothes,” she murmured to herself, twirling in place like a little girl.
Knowing she looked ridiculous but also not caring, Alex continued circling until she was dizzy and then sat down in front of the myraes flames, allowing the multi-coloured blaze to lull her into a relaxed trance. She pulled out her ComTCD to touch base with her friends only to notice she had a message notification glowing on her screen, so she activated the link and watched as a miniature D.C. appeared.
“Just checking in, Alex,” D.C. said, her voice whispering. “Things here are a bit tense—I think William knows it was us who broke into ChemTech today but he hasn’t said anything, so Bear and I are laying low and hanging out with Johnny, Blake and Evie tonight. Gammy made apple pie for dessert, which sucks for you because we know how much you love it.”
D.C. looked over her shoulder as if making sure no one was there, then turned back to face Alex again, her voice lower than before. “Zain said he doesn’t think we’ll see you until the day after tomorrow when we’re all back at Akarnae for dinner. He didn’t say why, just that it was for your training and we shouldn’t worry if we don’t hear from you. He promised they’d all look after you, but please be careful, Alex. I know you always try to be, but let’s face it—”
She was interrupted by a high-pitched giggle and a little girl calling, “Dikthie! Are you playing wiff me? We haff to beat the boyth!”
“Evie, come say goodnight to Alex,” D.C. said just as Bear’s sister ran into view. She was currently missing her two front baby teeth, making her even more adorable than normal, especially when she tried to speak and all she could do was lisp.
“Lekthie! Are you coming home to play with uth?” Evie asked, her rosy cheeks and bright eyes adding to her irresistible cuteness.
“It’s a holomessage, baby girl,” D.C. told Evie, drawing her up into her arms. “Alex will have to play with us some other time. But you and I, little missy, are going to go and kick some boy butt. Am I right?”
Evie nodded enthusiastically. “Leth go!” She turned to face front again and waved wildly, saying, “Buh-bye, Lekthie!”
“Remember what I said, Alex,” D.C. said solemnly. Then she offered a hint of a smile and finished, “Now go and show those Meyarins what you’re made of.”
With that, her friend disconnected the communication and Alex’s TCD turned dark again.
Shaking her head with amusement, Alex quickly sent off a written message, the Medoran equivalent of an SMS, that simply said:
All good here.
See you on Sunday night.
Will try to stay alive until then.
Can’t promise anything once back at academy.
Karter + Finn + Hunter = Death.
A. xx
Knowing she had an early morning and a huge weekend ahead of her, Alex allowed herself five more minutes in front of the hypnotising fire before she dragged herself to bed. She quickly discovered that it was, like everything in Meya, beyond luxurious.
“I could get used to this, too,” she mumbled, closing her eyes and sinking into the softness beneath her.
It was the middle of the night when something pulled Alex from her sleep. One minute she was dead to the world, the next she was lying there wide eyed and impossibly alert. Heart thudding in her chest, she turned her head when she saw movement in the corner of her room, a shadow outlined by the glow of the city from her balcony view.
Alex leapt out of bed, ready to scream bloody murder until the owner of the shadow stepped into the light of the glowing Myrox. Even when recognition hit her, she still wondered if she should scream.
“Queen Niida?” Alex was proud when her voice didn’t wobble, especially considering the fear-spiked adrenaline rushing through her system. “Is everything all right?”
“Is everything… all right?” Queen Niida repeated in her whispery, musical voice. She let out a quiet laugh, but there was no real joy in it. “With you here, how can anything be all right?”
Alex felt the temperature in the room drop and she shivered as nervous goose bumps arose on her skin.
“I’m sorry,” Alex tried. “I don’t—”
She broke off when the queen started coming towards her. As much as Alex wanted to retreat, there was no place for her to go, wedged as she was beside the bed and the wall.
“Heed my warning, mortal,” Niida spat, her voice low. “You are nothing. Nothing. I cannot fathom why my son tolerates an abomination like you, nor do I know why my husband indulges Roka’s desire to keep you here and train you like a pet. But what I do know is that I won’t endure your presence along with them.”
Eyes aflame, Niida stepped closer and continued, “I don’t care how you do it, but I expect you to make up some excuse, some reason to not come back here after you return from your varrungard. Go back to that school of yours, go back to your insignificant mortal life, and most importantly, stay away from my family.”
The queen was already invading Alex’s personal space, but she leaned in further to deliver her parting threat, her melodic voice at odds with the hostility of her words. “I’ve already lost one son because of your race. I won’t allow you to take another from me. If you don’t do as I have asked, you’ll find I’ll do it for you, with or without your consent.”
Speechless, Alex could only watch as the queen speared her with one final glance before she spun on her heel and silently glided from the room.
Alex wasn’t sure how long she stood there, staring at the door, her body trembling. It took her a while to pull herself together, but when she did, she realised she wasn’t scared—or, she wasn’t only scared—she was furious.
&
nbsp; “Who the hell does she think she is?” Alex whispered, casting angry eyes around her room in search of anything she could throw without causing damage.
It wasn’t as if Alex didn’t already have enough problems to worry about without adding an overprotective witch of a queen to her list. Didn’t Niida realise that Alex would give anything to not be there? She didn’t want to have to train with Roka. She didn’t want to have to prepare herself to fight Aven—a fight that would likely only have one outcome, that being Alex’s death. She didn’t want to have to figure out how to save her best friend, knowing that, no matter how much hope she manifested, the odds weren’t in Jordan’s favour. She didn’t want a part in any of this, and yet she was stuck right at the centre of everything.
So, no. She wouldn’t back down because of the queen’s high-handed threats. Whether or not Niida wanted to believe it, everything Alex was doing was to save her son. To save her husband. It was Roka and Astophe who Aven would be coming for first, after all. His royal status could only be reinstated if the king and rightful heir were out of the picture, which would then automatically grant Aven rulership over Meya.
And that was something that could never be allowed to happen.
“Alex?”
Jumping at least a foot in the air, she whirled around just as Roka clapped his hands three times, illuminating the room with a soft light originating from an unknown source.
“Jeez, give me a heart attack, Roka!” Alex cried, raising her hand to her chest.
“I knocked on the door before I let myself in,” he said, looking at her with concern. “Twice.”
Fingers still trembling from her encounter with the queen, she ran them through her hair to hide her nerves. “A Meyarin knock or a mortal one?”
Roka cocked his head. “What’s the difference?”
“One I’d be able to hear, the other I wouldn’t.”
Sending her an apologetic smile, he said, “Ah. My mistake.
I’ll remember that for next time.”
“How about we aim to not have a next time?” Alex said pointedly. “What are you doing in here, anyway? It’s nowhere near dawn yet.”
“I was worried I’d wake you, but I can see that’s not the case,” Roka said, his tone questioning. When Alex didn’t offer a reason for why she was standing awkwardly beside her bed—and had been for some time—he continued, “I have an idea I want to run by you, but to do that I have to ask you to come somewhere with me, preferably without Zain or Kyia knowing.”
Alex looked at him suspiciously. “Why the secrecy?”
“Because I don’t believe they would approve.”
She waited a beat, and when he gave no forthcoming details, she said, “You’re not exactly selling this idea to me.”
Roka’s gaze was steady on hers when he said, “Have I ever given you reason not to trust me?”
“Why do I have a feeling my answer is going to mean I lose more sleep tonight?” Alex mumbled.
“That’s the spirit,” Roka said, beaming. “Follow me to the Valispath, Alex. We shouldn’t be gone too long.”
She looked at him inquisitively when he held a hand out for her to precede him. “Can’t we just take off from in here?”
“There are certain rooms in the palace that are warded against direct Valispath use—like the throne room and dining hall, for example,” he said. “For those rooms, we have to arrive outside them and enter or exit normally through the doors.” He gestured around her room. “Your suite is one of the warded ones, so we’ll have to come and go from the hallway in order to access the Eternal Path.”
Nodding her understanding, Alex motioned for Roka to lead the way and she followed him out the door, grumbling about impossible princes pulling her from bed and ignoring his quiet snort of amusement.
The moment he halted and drew her closer to summon the Valispath, Alex knew she was going to regret not having asked Kyia if there was a way to lock her bedroom door. First the queen, now this.
“Are you planning on telling me where we’re going?” she yelled over the icy wind as the Path led them out of the palace and into the city.
Roka quickly reached out and activated the shield to protect her from the elements. “Sorry, Alex. It can be easy to forget you’re human.”
Not sure if that was good or bad, she rubbed some heat back into her arms and replied, “No biggie. But seriously, Roka—where are you taking me?”
He didn’t respond straight away. Instead, he looked her over with a furrowed brow and muttered, “I didn’t think this through very well.”
“Roka—”
“Here,” he interrupted, unclasping his black cloak and handing it to her. “Put this on.”
Frowning, she did as he requested, belatedly realising how unsuitable her nightgown was for their midnight escapade. “Ro—”
“The reason Zain and Kyia wouldn’t approve of what we’re doing tonight is because we shouldn’t be doing it,” Roka said, answering before she could get the question out again. “I have informants in the city who have been keeping an eye out for signs of Aven. They’ve discovered that he’s somehow communicating with his remaining Garseth—his Rebels. We need to know how he’s doing that. We need to know where he’s hiding, or at least how he’s managing to avoid anyone discovering his whereabouts. We need to know anything that will help us better understand what we’re facing.”
Alex raised her eyebrows at his unspoken implication. “How exactly am I supposed to help with that?”
The Valispath moved through the side of a building and sailed to a stop in a large foyer-like room made out of what looked to be black crystal. The walls, floor and ceiling were fully constructed out of the shiny dark substance.
Acting on a hunch, Alex asked, “Is that Shadow Essence?”
“No. It’s unrefined traesos, pulled directly from the abrassa and shaped by the power of the great Aes Daega herself. This place—we call it Taevarg—is a prison; the only one in this world that can contain an immortal being indefinitely.”
Alex had to take a moment to absorb his words. But even then, she was at a loss. “I have no idea what you just said, other than the prison part. Let’s focus on that, since it seems important.”
“Zain told me that when you and your friends first came to Meya, he dragged a prisoner up from here because he believed you were affiliated with Aven,” Roka said. “A Garseth named Niyx. Do you remember?”
Alex knew exactly who he was talking about. She made a face and said, “That guy was a jerk. He made everyone think I was one of Aven’s Rebels. I mean, who does that?”
“Focus, Alex,” Roka reprimanded softly. “We don’t have much time.”
“Is that why you brought me here? Because of Niyx?”
“Of all my brother’s followers we’ve captured over the years, he’s the most renowned,” Roka said, a tinge of bitterness coating his voice. “I’m certain he knows something, despite being locked away since Aven’s banishment, but he refuses to tell us anything. I’m hoping your presence might unsettle him. Perhaps enough that he’ll let something slip.”
“My presence?” Alex repeated. She arched an eyebrow. “Don’t sugar-coat it, Roka. Don’t you mean my scent? Aven’s scent? Whatever it is that makes me smell like one of the Garseth because I share his blood?”
At least Roka had the grace to look sheepish. “I was trying to be vague and ease your level of discomfort, knowing how sensitive you are to this topic.”
Alex snorted and drew his cloak tighter around her body. “I guess it’s the thought that counts.”
“Will you do it?” Roka asked. “Will you talk with him?”
She shrugged, deliberately pushing aside her apprehension. “Sure. What’s the worst that could happen?”
“Nothing,” the prince promised, a little too quickly in Alex’s opinion. “And I’ll be with you the whole time.”
“Then by all means, lead the way.”
Seven
Niyx looked exactly t
he same as when Alex had last seen him. Despite his scruffy appearance, complete with dirty, ripped clothes, he was still unfairly handsome. His choppy, black hair contrasted starkly against his pale skin, and his amethyst eyes drew Alex in, holding her gaze captivated—at least until he spoke.
“Well, if it isn’t my mortal friend,” he said, his soulful voice washing over her and causing her to shiver. “I must say, I was expecting to see you sooner.” His eyes flicked to Roka and he smirked. “But I guess your keeper has had you on a tight leash.”
Roka didn’t respond, yet his body language was anything but relaxed. Alex had sensed his growing tension ever since he’d led her down a dark staircase—made of the same black traesos stuff as the rest of the prison and lit sparingly with dim lanterns—and through a maze of cells, stopping at one with an impossibly thick door blocking it. To open it, Roka had inserted a stylus-like engraved Myrox key into a small indent in the door. There was an inscription etched into the metal—a flowing language Alex hadn’t been able to decipher.
“The only power greater than darkness is light,” Roka had translated for her, turning the key until the lock clicked open. “Even the smallest star can brighten the blackest of nights.”
Alex had merely raised her eyebrows at the philosophical inscription before following him into the cell.
“Nice place you’ve got here,” Alex said, having no idea where to start but also refusing to rise to Niyx’s bait. “Cosy. Quaint. Could use a little colour, but hey. Black works for you, right?”
Given that the entirety of his cell was constructed out of the dark traesos, his accommodations were undoubtedly rather bleak. He was sitting on a thinly cushioned pallet resting against one side of the wall, and other than a few books, there was nothing to offer him any kind of entertainment. Alex couldn’t imagine being in his position, locked in the one small room for thousands of years with barely any social interaction, only let out a few times a day to use the amenities and stretch his legs. It was a wonder he hadn’t gone mad.
“It’s the colour of my soul, so it seems fitting,” Niyx said. “But you didn’t come all this way to talk about the décor, did you? Speak your cause and be on your way.”