Chapter Twenty-Eight
Skylar Cathal
Voices echoing off the sandstone of the Crimson City palace were a cacophony of chaos, each one building on the other, causing my head to split in two.
The sheer magnitude of opinions circulating in the space was teetering on overwhelming. All of us on the war council, apart from Talon and Rhea, had spent the past hour debating our options in response to the princess’s messages from the magical parchment I gave her.
Sighing, I leaned forward, elbows braced on my knees, burying my face in my palms.
Gods, help us.
Crimson City carried a warm undercurrent in the height of midday despite the late winter months.
It held a kind of quiet strength, a unique natural defiance I admired.
It remained a stronghold against the mountains to the west that used to keep the bulk of the creatures and the destruction of the wilt at bay.
Now, the border was simply another line on a map.
We hadn’t had time to explore the land I healed when I unlocked the Heart, but soon, I prayed we would expand our borders and reclaim what time and dark magic had stolen.
“Zola and I will side with you, Skylar.” Shaw’s confidence in my ability to make the right decision was comforting. “I’m skeptical about your safety, but Zola assures me that she’ll be able to shadow jump to the mainland and scout the area before you arrive.”
“You’re not going with her?” I asked.
“She can handle things well enough on her own. I trust she is capable without me shadowing her.”
Zola smiled, her eyes softening for a fraction of a second as she looked to Shaw. “You’re learning quickly.”
Shaw crossed his arms. “Figured I had to.”
Zola’s grin widened a fraction.
Chuckling to myself, I shook my head. “Very well.”
“You’re insane if you think meeting with the human princess is a sound idea.” Castor’s condescending tone didn’t help his case when addressing Daxton.
I could feel my mate’s frustration rise as if it were my own. Most of the time, I cherished our connection. However, at the moment, it was overwhelming.
I took a deep breath, trying to clear my mind.
“I told you not to trust the humans the first time.” Magnus’s voice carried his resentment toward our first departure. “And I still stand by my—”
“We learned important intel during our journey to Zircon,” Daxton cut in.
I sighed. Yes, we learned we are greatly outnumbered on all sides of this battle. I didn’t dare say it out loud, although Daxton’s glance in my direction told me he heard every word.
After Isolde delivered the message from Réalta—the human princess, and my cousin, who diverted from King Taran and Queen Minaeve—Daxton and I called our war council in Crimson City.
We left Seamus in Aelius with a heavy guard, not daring to have this discussion within earshot of him or Isolde.
We didn’t trust them.
I couldn’t trust them… Could I?
The princess claimed she didn’t believe Minaeve’s story. That her father was somehow under her powers.
I’ll admit that part was believable.
And then Isolde shared that the princess was gathering forces to help ally with us to overthrow Minaeve in the final battle to come.
That detail could be a stretch of the truth, one I wasn’t sure I believed.
Gunnar stood, crossing his arms with a stern look in his eyes. “We could use the numbers. These human rebels could be the tipping point on the battle grounds.”
“You would ally with humans?” Magnus asked, his tone dripping with disdain as he glared at the general of Silver Meadows.
My head shot up from my palms. “Magnus,” I said in a low warning.
To Gunnar’s credit, the male didn’t even flinch as my uncle stood only a breath away from the general.
“I never thought I would partner with shifters, let alone freely bow to a half-human queen.” My general’s dark eyes turned to me, a cunning smirk lurking at the corner of his mouth. “Yet here I am, coordinating our attacks with you and freely kneeling to her.”
Neera pulled her shoulders back, speaking up for the first time in the meeting, “Seamus believes—”
“Careful, young one,” Rhett said. “Not all of us here so easily forgive or are as open to believing what the prince of Aelius is willing to tell us.”
Neera paused, taking in Rhett’s words. “Which is why I am his mate, and not you.”
Adohan’s brows raised in surprise. “Dear gods… Are you certain?”
“I am,” Neera answered.
I smiled at my cousin, in awe of her bravery and newfound confidence.
“And I’m sure that what Seamus tells us is the truth. That he’s on our side,” Neera continued.
“You don’t know him as we do,” Adohan said.
“None of you know him,” Neera corrected, and the room stilled.
Gods, she was right. None of us truly knew Seamus.
“If what you say about Minaeve and your memories is true,” Neera said to the group, “then for five hundred years, he has been forced to play a role not of his choosing. His actions were never truly his own.”
“Don’t let the mate bond blind you, daughter.”
Neera turned on Magnus with a fire burning in her eyes, showing a strength I hadn’t yet seen rising inside her. “I will stand by my mate in this and in every action he takes henceforth. For if I don’t… no one else will. He is my mate. And I will not abandon him.”
“Neera, you only just met—”
“And what did you do when you met Mother for the first time?” Neera asked Magnus, both of us knowing the answer. “Did the world not shift and swallow you whole?”
I glanced toward my uncle, recalling the stories he told us as young ones, how his world became brighter the moment he saw Julia at the falls. From the moment he met her, he knew he would do everything and anything for his mate.
Neera’s gaze darted to Shaw and Zola. “Did you run from the bond because it was difficult or complex? No, you gave it time and space to flourish.”
Then, her eyes snapped to Daxton. “Did you track your mate across a continent and kill every obstacle in your path to find her because you could feel her pain as your own before the bond was ever sealed or spoken aloud?”
My eyes darted to my uncle. I could sense his magic rising, his jaw tightening as his fingers flexed into fists at his side. “You only just met the male.”
“Time doesn’t define the strength of a bond, Father.”
Daxton stood, clearing his throat to gain our attention. “We’re not here to discuss Neera’s mate bond, Magnus. We’re here to discuss our survival.”
Magnus rose, the scrape of his chair biting through the tension building in the room. “With all due respect, Daxton and Skylar, you do not have my support in this. I will not go. I refuse to grovel before a human princess who would sooner see us all butchered.”
Magnus’s words of disapproval rippled through the sandstone chamber. I felt his resistance through the pack bond. The tether was there, but it flickered. And from the look on Magnus’s face, I knew he felt it too.
“It’s not easy for me to—”
I held up my hand to stop him. “I’d rather you speak your truth, Uncle.”
If I decided to go, if I decided to accept an alliance, Magnus would follow me, but it would be difficult to sway Magnus’s heart to open and fully trust them.
Castor’s voice cut in next. “And what if Magnus is right, Daxton? What if this princess is using us—using you—to draw out her enemies? Do you think humans will ever see us as allies? Or are you too blind to see that they still call us monsters in their prayers?”
The murmur of agreement rippled through the room, a tide of unease rising.
Daxton’s temper flared bright in my chest. His fury became my fury. I had to force a breath through my teeth before I exploded with him.
“Enough,” I said, though the word came out more as flame than sound. Sparks curled off my palms as I pushed to my feet. The room fell silent, eyes tracking me as I turned from the council.
“Keep arguing if you must,” I said, my voice low. “But every moment you waste in this room, Minaeve’s forces grow in numbers. Arguing won’t save us.”
I didn’t wait for permission. Didn’t wait for the storm of voices that followed as Magnus cursed under his breath and Daxton called my name. I was already moving. The hallway swallowed the noise behind me.
The warmth of Crimson City hit me like a living thing as I stepped outside.
The blistering heat of the sun burned through the early haze as the aroma of fresh spices and herbs from the market below filled my nostrils.
The pulse of the city beat beneath my feet, alive and fierce, but I could still hear the ghosts of that meeting echoing in my ears.
If I were going to trust the human princess and meet with her, I needed to consult with the peacemaker of my pack.
The corridors narrowed as I descended into the lower levels of the stronghold, the sandstone walls bleeding into darker clay where the healers worked. My senses sharpened as I noticed a shift in the air around me, still warm but carrying the tang of something… different.
Then it hit me. All at once, the scent of ash and rot filled my senses, the unmistakable aroma of corrupted magic. My stomach dropped as I rounded the corner to the healers’ ward.
The heavy door to the infirmary stood open, light spilling out in uneven, trembling bursts as if the torches themselves were afraid to stay lit.
“Hold him—gods, hold him down!” one of the healers shouted.
I pushed through the doorway. Rhea was hauled from Talon’s side across the room.
My friend lay bare on the cot, with his chest on full display, the dark markings growing, spreading across his chest like spider webs.
It coiled under his skin, spreading from the wound at his shoulder down his arm.
His body convulsed, his hands shifting, claws gouging deep ruts into the stone slab beneath him.
“Talon,” I breathed.
One of the healers glanced at me, eyes wide, sweat dripping down her temple. “He’s fighting it. The rot is anchoring deeper every time we try to pull it out. But if it continues to spread—”
“It won’t,” I said, finding Rhea’s stare. “I swear it won’t.”
Rhea was fighting back tears. “What will stop this, Skylar?”
My fire answered before I even called for it, slipping down my arms like liquid sunlight. The nearest healer stepped back, shielding her eyes as the glow flared bright enough to burn through shadows.
Talon’s eyes flickered open, his voice strained. “You… shouldn’t be here.”
“Yes, I should,” I shot back, moving to his side. “If I’d seen the arrow—”
He coughed, the sound wet and broken. “You’d be the one rotting instead. What lousy kind of shifter would I be if I let my alpha die?”
The black veins crept higher, spidering across his collarbone. He gritted his teeth, every muscle trembling and flexing. His pain was unmistakable as he tried to fight against the shadows beneath his skin.
I pressed my palm to his chest, right above the spreading darkness. “Let me help,” I whispered.
“Sky—”
“Don’t you dare tell me no.” My voice cracked like thunder. “I’ll make it an order.”
His breath hitched, but he didn’t resist when I called my healing powers forward. Working with my healing gift, I allowed my fire to flicker and weave through the strands of gold. The rot hissed under my touch, shadows shrieking as my fire met their poison.
The smell of scorched magic filled the room. For a heartbeat, I thought I saw the darkness falter until it lashed out again, wrapping around my wrists like chains.
I gasped, pain blooming white-hot up my arms.
“Skylar!” Talon’s hand shot up, gripping my forearm even as his body shuddered. “Stop,” he rasped. “It’ll take you too.”
“I don’t care.”
The room began to freeze around us, torchlight disappearing, ice creeping along my fingers, kissing my neck in a cold touch that brought me strength. I didn’t need to open my eyes to know Daxton was here.
And gods above… he was pissed.
My vision blurred at the edges, but I refused to release Talon. Just a little more.
“Spitfire!”
“Come back to me, Talon,” Rhea whispered from the corner, voice trembling. “Keep fighting.”
The rot roared again, a sound only this magic could make. And then, for one fragile second, the black faded.
Talon went still.
The light in the room dimmed, and all I could hear was the pounding of my own heart in my ears. Strong hands pulled me back, and I collided with a wall of muscle before skidding across the floor.
“Skylar Cathal. You reckless, stubborn—”
“It’s not gone,” a healer said, moving to examine his patient. “But it’s better.”
I smiled, breathless, leaning against my mate. “Totally worth it.”
“What did you do differently?” Rhea asked as she brushed back Talon’s hair, pressing her lips to his temple as he blinked, coming back to us once more.
“I added a little fire.”
“Try a fuck ton of it.” Talon coughed. “Gods, it felt like fire was running rampant in my veins.” His breathing steadied, lashes fluttering as his eyes found mine. “You’re stubborn as ever,” he whispered, a weak smile ghosting his lips. “Thank the gods.”
I let out a shaky laugh, brushing the sweat-damp hair from my forehead. “Someone has to be to get things done.”
Silence stretched between us as Daxton helped me to my feet. A healer handed me a vial of their crimson remedy, which I eagerly swallowed. The magic immediately took effect, returning my strength once the liquid slid down my throat.
“Talon?” My voice cracked as I approached his bed once more, Daxton at my side. “Should I go? Should I answer the princess’s call?”
He studied me for a long moment. Then, with visible effort, he sat up, locking eyes with Rhea, who gave him a nod before turning to meet my gaze.
“You already know the answer,” he murmured. “Peace doesn’t come to those who wait behind walls and never reach out. It finds the ones willing to step beyond them.”
I swallowed hard. “Magnus won’t like this.”
“Good thing he isn’t our alpha or the beta anymore.” He gave me a weak smile. “Shaw already filled me in on everything before your meeting.”
For a heartbeat, the warmth in Talon’s eyes cut through everything—the fear, the war, the weight of leading everyone. His hand reached out and tightened weakly around mine. “Go, Sky. Only you can do this.”
My throat ached. I squeezed his hand in return. “Rest up. I’ll make this meeting count.”
I turned before the tears could fall, before I could change my mind and allow the shadows to whisper doubts in my mind.
“I agree with the decision to meet the princess,” Daxton said, following at my side.
I gave him a nod, thanking him for his support as a warmth traveled between us through the bond.
“And I’m going with you. Make no mistake on that.”
“Wouldn’t dare chance the idea of leaving you behind,” I said.
As I stepped from the healers’ ward, I felt a faint pulse of Talon’s courage echo in my chest. The new moon was only a few days away, and we needed to be ready.