Chapter Twelve
Reign
Do you really believe you’ll get away with this?
Phantom’s voice filled my mind, tearing my gaze from the stretch of verdant lands below. The Castle of Ethereal Light grew ever closer, its glistening towers shimmering beneath the radiant sun.
I still have a few hours until Aelia rises. With any luck, I’ll be back at Luce before she notices I’m missing.
A swell of guilt rose from my core. She'd curled toward me in her sleep, as if sensing I was slipping away. And yet, here I was, choosing an encounter with Elian over her trust.
Phantom snorted a laugh, plumes of smoke lifting from her nostrils. I think you are greatly underestimating the cuorem.
My dragon wasn’t wrong, and I knew it well. Even now, I could feel the angry pulsating in my chest. The mystical fibers that tethered us writhed and rioted, furious at the imposed distance. The ethereal connection felt the void between us even if Aelia hadn’t yet.
Is the dragon mate bond similar to the cuorem?
Phantom chuffed her annoyance, her head angling back to pin me in a glacial glare.
What? I’m merely trying to understand. I offered her a smile, which she most definitely did not return.
No, Reign, the dragon mate bond is nothing like your volatile little cuorem.
It’s sacred, a remnant of the time when dragons were more divine than beast, when they served as celestial guardians of balance.
It’s unbreakable, transcending lifetimes and reincarnations, as you know.
It’s a shared consciousness, more than just a telepathic connection, that also leads to emotional and physical bleed-over.
You mean you can feel each other’s pain?
Correct.
Gods, that sounds awful.
There are caveats, of course. Namely, it must be willingly accepted by both dragons in each lifetime. And there’s a ritual… Regardless, if left unbound, it can lead to madness and fury spirals, even loss of flight in rare cases.
“Noxus…” I mumbled. Then what are you two waiting for? I can’t find myself skyriderless.
It isn’t without its risks… Regardless, I’m afraid you’ll have to discuss that with your cuoré’s dragon.
Understanding finally slammed into me, followed by a surge of pain and bitterness. Solanthus still refused to complete the bond. That explained Phantom’s surly mood this past week.
I’m sure he’ll come around, old girl. Perhaps, he simply needs time.
She snorted again before the sleek obsidian strands that connected us went silent.
In the sudden stillness, I vowed to have a chat with Aelia about her dragon’s reluctance to seal the bond at the next chance I had.
With everything else going on, having our dragons at odds would certainly not do us any favors.
Just ahead, the gleaming castle rose from a cliff of shimmering white stone. We circled the cascading waterfalls that spilled into the lake below then began our descent. Cut off from my dragon, I could only assume where she was heading as we hovered over the soaring spires toward the central dome.
Smart girl.
When arriving on dragonback to see a potential ally, the direct approach was always preferred. Skulking in the shadows would only create more alarm.
“The clearing in front of the castle is just fine, Phantom.”
She chuffed her response, keeping up her mental barriers.
By the time her talons sank into the moist earth, a dozen Royal Guardians stood at the entrance to the king’s home, a bevy of ethereal and traditional metal weapons at the ready.
Leaping off Phantom’s back, I raised my hands in surrender, willing my shadows back. “I’ve come to see King Elian with news from the Conservatory.” There was no need to mention my name; I’d become a legend over the years at Luce. Everyone knew of the banished Shadow Fae professor.
One of the males donning the pristine alabaster uniform of the kings’ guards scurried through the grand gilded doors.
Tension radiated across the shoulders of every Royal Guardian as they scrutinized me.
I stood there, waiting—impatiently—knowing that every moment that passed was another one in which Aelia could wake and find me missing.
My intentions had not been to deceive her, but rather to protect her from a royal I did not trust. Our last visit to Elian was made in haste, and this time I intended to not only secure his word, but also the troops he promised.
With an increase in Royal Guardians along the border, it was more likely we’d keep the Night King at bay.
And right now, we needed time. Time to train our forces to work together.
The massive golden door squealed open, and the guard motioned for me to enter. “His Ethereal Highness will see you now.”
“Wonderful,” I muttered and marched through the entrance, trailing after the guard through the endless alabaster corridors.
The sun-drenched marble of Elian’s court was too bright.
Too pure. It stung my eyes like it knew what I was.
Shadow had no place here, not even when bearing the olive branch of war.
Squinting, I continued on, the slap of our footfalls across the marble echoing the drumming behind my ribs.
Realms, how I longed for the cool, quiet feel of night.
I stepped through the arched doorway with my hood down and my shadows suppressed, though they coiled in discomfort beneath my skin. Across the throne room, King Elian lounged on his gleaming seat of cut crystal and gold, his fingers tapping a slow, disinterested rhythm against the armrest.
He didn’t rise. Didn’t speak. Just studied me with sharp turquoise eyes that reminded me too much of Aelia’s when she was angry.
I bowed my head only slightly. He was not my king, after all. “Your Ethereal Highness.”
Still nothing. Just the faintest tightening of his jaw. Gods, this was going to be a delightful conversation.
“I’ve come to confirm your vow,” I said, when it was clear he had no intention of speaking first. Then I stepped forward until his guards stiffened.
I stopped short of the dais, keeping my hands at my sides.
“Your promise to protect Aelia from King Helroth, any Night Court influence, or anyone wishing to do the child of twilight harm. That oath still holds, I trust?”
His brows arched like I’d asked if he intended to dance a jig.
“You enter my court unannounced, cloaked in shadows, reeking of nox and… something else, and you question my word? I vowed to protect her, and I will.” Elian leaned forward, resting his chin on his fist. “The bond you share with my niece may have some gods-given merit, Reign, but do not mistake that for dominion over this court.”
“I mistake nothing,” I replied coolly. “But I’ve learned not to leave room for doubt, especially when my mate’s life hangs in the balance.”
He frowned at that, briefly, but I didn’t miss the twitch of his mouth. Like the word mate left a sour taste.
“I do not break vows,” he finally replied, voice like polished glass. “And I do not fear Helroth. But let’s not pretend this alliance is anything more than what it is—a strategic necessity.”
“You’re right,” I agreed, clasping my hands behind my back. “So let me make the terms clear. You send your forces to stand against the Night Court, and I deliver Tenebris, powers bound, silenced and at your mercy.”
That got his attention. Elian sat up straighter, his fingers stilling. “You’d truly turn on your own blood?”
My jaw clenched as memories of the feel of Tenebris’s boot against my ribs rose to the surface.
“I’d burn the whole Shadow Court to ash if it meant keeping Aelia safe,” I growled without hesitation.
“Tenebris would see this realm handed to Helroth in exchange for a whisper of power. He’s already refused to act.
He’ll sit on his onyx throne while the rest of Aetheria burns. ”
Elian’s lips pursed. “You speak like a king.”
“I speak like a male with everything to lose.”
Silence fell. Only the echo of a distant fountain trickled through the gilded halls. The light refracting from the domed ceiling dappled the king’s robes in a spectrum of gold and white. He looked like a creature carved from sunfire. Untouchable, indomitable.
But even he couldn’t hide the weariness in his eyes.
“We’ve fought Night before.” He shifted in his grand throne. “We won, but barely. And that was before decades of mounting vengeance, without Helroth’s growing legions or the looming prophecy. You expect me to believe we can win this time?”
Gods, it was a good thing he had no notion of the Night King’s hold over Aelia. If he did…
“We don’t have a choice,” I replied, shoving down the thought he would never discover. “Unless you’d prefer to watch your people fall. Again.”
His jaw clenched. “Light and Shadow have never fought as one.”
“They must now.” I paused, letting the weight of it settle between us. “Aelia is the bridge. Not just between us, but between realms. Between bloodlines.”
His eyes sharpened, glinting like a blade unsheathed. “Yes, well. About that…”
Here it comes.
“She is King Alaric’s daughter. My brother’s only child. You realize what that makes her, don’t you?”
The heir.
I didn’t flinch. “She knows. And she doesn’t want your throne.”
“Yet…” He rose from his seat at last, his golden mantle catching the light.
“She may not, now, but power changes things. Especially when it's given freely by the people. I’ve already heard tales of what she accomplished on the battlefield just over a week ago. She is calling too much attention to herself already, Reign. And if she stands beside you—”
“She doesn’t want it,” I repeated, stepping forward. “She desires only peace. She wants safety for Aetheria, and an end to the threat of war and the damned prophecy. If she wanted power, she would’ve taken it already.”
He stared at me for a long moment. Then, finally, he nodded once.
“I will summon my generals,” he said. “The Royal Guardians will be deployed to fortify the border of the Wilds. I will attempt to set a meeting between the Courts of Light and Shadow, but I doubt your father will agree.”
“I will handle Tenebris.”
“Very well.”
I inclined my head. “Cheers.”
“Don’t thank me,” he said, sneering. “If this fails, we all burn. And I’d rather not spend the end of the world fighting beside a bastard Shadow Fae royal.”
I smirked. “Don’t worry, Elian. I’m the last one you’ll have to fight.” I paused, biting my tongue before deciding better of it. “Unless you come for her.”
As I turned to leave, I felt his gaze boring into my back. But I’d gotten what I came for.
Aelia would be protected.