Chapter Forty
Aelia
Stars, I hated sleeping without Reign. Moonlight slid through the crack in the velvet curtain, kissing the vacant side of the bed, another reminder that he wasn’t there, and why.
The cuorem throbbed, angry and relentless at the absence of its mate.
I tossed and turned beneath the silky coverlet but sleep simply wouldn’t come.
Here I was, the first night with him away, and I was minutes away from giving up on rest all together.
Or succumbing to the temptation of the sleeping draught Elisa had concocted for me.
I eyed the small ampule on the nightstand, its glittering liquid enticing.
A good night’s rest was exactly what I needed.
Still, my thoughts spun, a jumble of fear and hope, laced in anxiety. If Reign and Ruhl succeeded in their risky mission, we would finally be free of Tenebris and Helroth. Then, we could fully concentrate on the war to come and on ending the threat of the Night Fae once and for all.
Gods, if only it were that easy.
With a sigh of defeat, I reached for the small glass vessel and, tipping my head back, swallowed down the foul-tasting contents.
“Thank you, Elisa,” I whispered when I lay my head back down on the pillow.
As the warmth of the liquid slid down my throat, settling, my mind slowly grew hazy.
The healer’s words echoed, images of the lifeless Shadow Fae rising to the surface.
Think quickly, Your Highness. War won’t wait.
I’d avoided descending to her chambers for days, fearing she would ask me to attempt to use my zar again on another dead Fae. But I couldn’t… I shouldn’t.
The darkness came softly, at first. A whisper of night curling beneath my skin. I dreamt of shadows. Of cold wind threading through my hair, of silver mist coiling around my ankles, pulling me into a void where no light existed.
Then the voice came.
Smooth. Silk-wrapped poison. “Princess.”
My throat tightened. I knew that voice. Helroth.
“No,” I breathed, but the word was swallowed up by the void.
I tried to wake. To force my eyes open. Only, the sheets weren’t beneath me anymore. My body just… floated, weightless, while tendrils of night wrapped around my ribs like chains. No matter how I struggled, how hard I fought, my lungs filled only with frost.
“You’ve grown stronger,” he murmured, his tone almost… admiring. “But strength is irrelevant when your fate is already written.”
His presence pressed against me, prickly and cold, like night wrapped in barbed wire. The last time he’d invaded my mind, I’d managed to force him out. But this… this was different. Reign wasn’t here.
I spun in place, searching the nothingness, forcing my powers to rise. “Get. Out,” I snarled, summoning light to my fingertips. Shadow too. The combination crackled through me, but it did nothing to dispel him. He didn’t appear phased in the slightest.
His laughter echoed, low and hollow. “Oh, princess. You think light and shadow will save you? It’s too late. You’ve already set it all in motion.”
I gritted my teeth. “I won’t be your puppet, nor will I be controlled by you.
I’ll fight the blood vow until the very end.
Just like I fought against the lies you tried to feed me about Ruhl.
Yes, that’s right, I know about your marriage pact with Tenebris.
And still, I found my way back to Reign, to my real mate, my cuoré. ”
“Good for you, princess, but the Shadow Prince is inconsequential now anyway.” His chuckle slithered through my thoughts. “And no, child. You’re no puppet. You’re the tempest. The harbinger. The child of twilight who will unravel Aetheria’s last threads of balance.”
The mist thickened, twisting into shapes, into images around me: me on a throne of bones, my wings bleeding both light and shadow; Reign’s lifeless body sprawled at my feet; Ruhl beside him, shadows devouring him whole.
“No,” I whispered, shaking my head. “That’s not my future.”
“Isn’t it?” His crimson gaze flashed in the mist, twin coals burning in the void. “You carry the power of destruction in your veins, princess. Light, shadow… and death. You will break this realm, Aelia. Whether you wish to or not.”
“I will choose,” I hissed, pushing against the illusion, the nightmare… whatever this was. “I have choice.”
“You do.” His voice hardened, velvet turning to steel. “But the price of choice is consequence.”
Then the mist recoiled, dragging him back, but not before his final words scraped across my mind: When twilight reigns, the final hour begins.
I bolted upright, a cry stuck in my throat, sweat slicking my skin. The second prophecy, the one Reign had told me he’d found in Tenebris’s empty prison cell. My heart raced, the cuorem pulsing wildly under my ribs.
Reign.
The bond reached for him instinctively, but the tether stretched thin, distant, extending across the Shadowmere Sea to Lunaris… That was it, wasn’t it? With him gone, with his shadows no longer guarding my mind, Helroth had found a crack in the armor. A way in.
Aelia, are you all right? Reign’s voice slid through the chaos, the warm timbre anchoring me, even from so far away.
Yes, I’m fine. I’m sorry to startle you. It was… it was just a nightmare. Or was it more? My hands trembled, gripping the sheets.
You’re sure?
Yes, get some rest. It’s late, and you have a mystical artifact to retrieve.
Goodnight, my love. I’ll update you on the search in the morning.
I look forward to it.
Pressing my palms to my face, I lay back down and tried to steady my breathing.
Weeks of silence from my grandfather. And now this.
I knew it had been too good to be true. Hadn’t I worried he would sneak in when we least expected it?
But what I didn’t understand was why now? Was it Reign’s distance or the sleeping draught which had dulled my mental walls?
A part of me feared it was because I was vulnerable without Reign. And Helroth knew it. I let my hands drop, staring at the ceiling of the obsidian chamber. Cold dread slithered down my spine, but beneath it, something else sparked.
Resolve.
I couldn’t afford to be weak. Not anymore. If I was to survive this war, if I was to protect Reign, Aidan, my friends and our entire realm, I needed to be ready. For anything. Even the darkness Helroth claimed I’d bring.
I had to master it all. I would accept nothing less.
Rais. Nox. And yes… the dreaded zar.
Even the necromancy and soul draining I still feared so much.
My fingers trembled for a moment, then stilled. I would not allow Helroth to decide who I became. I would decide that for myself.
Pushing back the covers, I rose from the bed, moving toward the window, toward the moon-silvered night beyond.
The time for fear was over. It was time to become what I was meant to be.
Even if that meant becoming something monstrous.
“You’re certain about this, Aelia?” Aidan’s weary eyes met mine.
I nodded slowly, though there wasn’t much I was certain of these days.
All I knew for sure was that I had to exhaust any and all options if I wanted to defeat my grandsire and the Night Fae.
I glanced over his shoulder at the hulking male standing in the wake of Solanthus’s enormous form.
My dragon eyed the Demon Fae, nostrils flared, maw gaping.
I will eat him if he so much as twitches. Sol’s voice echoed through my mind.
It had taken hours of pleading to force my dragon to collect my former jailor from Duskridge Manor. It was bad enough getting him to agree to allow Aidan to ride him, but Kaelith? It had been quite a battle.
But in the end, I’d won.
It wasn’t as if you’d given me a choice. He huffed.
I told you why I needed Kae here.
It’s all very risky, little Kin. And don’t think I haven’t noticed this was conveniently done in the absence of your mate.
Reign will understand. Or, at least, that was what I hoped.
Have you told him yet?
Of course not. What he doesn’t know won’t hurt him. And I needed him to focus on his mission. The last thing I wanted was for him to get distracted, fearing for my well-being.
Aidan lifted his hand and signaled to Kaelith. “You may approach,” he called out.
Kaelith stalked forward, a dark, grimy cloak hanging over his shoulders. His eyes, those brilliant citrine orbs, glinted beneath the moonlight, curious and wary all at once.
“So…” His lips curved, sharp and knowing. “The little Light Fae princess calls on the Night Fae after all.”
“This isn’t about you,” I snapped, though my voice lacked any real bite. My heart was pounding too fast for it. “This is about survival.”
Kaelith’s gaze drifted to Solanthus, then back to me. “Your skyrider looks ready to rip out my throat.”
He’s not wrong, Sol growled through the bond.
“I’ll keep him on a leash,” I murmured under my breath. Then, focusing on Kaelith, I raised my voice, steadying my tone. “I need you to teach me.”
Kaelith’s brow arched, head tilting just so. “Teach you what, exactly?”
I swallowed hard, knowing that once I set this in motion, there’d be no turning back. But still, I said, “Necromancy.” The word left a bitter taste on my tongue. Aidan stiffened at my side, but I kept my shoulders squared.
Kaelith’s lips parted into a grin, one that held no warmth. “Ah. So the princess of twilight has finally come to terms with what she is.”
“I’m not asking for your commentary, Kaelith,” I hissed. “I’m asking for your knowledge.”
He studied me in silence, the wind lifting his long, maroon hair off his broad shoulders. “Why now?”
“Because Helroth isn’t waiting anymore,” I whispered. My throat closed for a beat, but I forced the next words out. “He was in my mind last night. I don’t know how, but he slipped through. I can’t let that happen again. I need to be ready and that means harnessing all my powers.”
His smile faded, replaced by something sharper. “You’re playing with blades you don’t know how to wield, Aelia.”
“That’s why I need you to teach me.”
“I could,” he murmured, circling me like a predator sizing up prey. “But necromancy is not a spell, princess. It’s not a trick of the hand or a clever glyph. It’s hunger. Once you let it in, it changes you.”
I held his gaze, forcing my voice to steady. “I’ve already changed.”
Kaelith paused, eyes narrowing. “Do you even understand what you’re asking for? Death magic takes. It doesn’t just borrow power, it demands it. Your light, your shadow, even your soul. Are you willing to pay that price?”
My mouth went dry, but I nodded. “If it saves Aetheria, I’ll pay whatever it takes.”
A flicker of something unreadable passed through his gaze. Respect? “Very well.” He flicked his hand, and ribbons of night coiled at his fingertips. “But understand this, Light Fae, once you cross this threshold, there’s no going back.”
I was well aware. “I crossed that threshold the moment Helroth unbound my powers.”
Kaelith’s grin returned, but it was sharper now. “Spoken like a true heir of twilight.”
Aidan’s jaw ticked beside me. “Aelia, think about this. Really think.”
“I have.” My voice was steel. “This is the only way.”
My former jailor stepped closer, lowering his voice. “We’ll start at midnight. I assume you have a body to practice on?”
My stomach twisted, but I nodded.
“Good, then I’ll show you what it means to command the dead.”
Aidan’s head dipped grimly before he led Kaelith into the fortress. As the pair faded back into the shadows, I pressed a hand to my chest, the cuorem pulsing steadily, softly beneath my palm.
Forgive me, Reign, I whispered silently, eyes closing to the moon-drenched sky.
But maybe this was the way to finally win.