Chapter 37 #3
But no gift of from the darkness is ever given freely.
The faceless shadow then proclaimed the princess would grow in grace and beauty; develop great power the world would behold. But this life of hers was borrowed, the magic in her veins belonged to him. And when the Blood Moon returned in twenty years, he would return to reclaim it, too.
The Queen wept and pleaded, but he made clear the princess was not meant for this world, for her presence alone defied fate.”
A horrified chill washed over Alora.
“Born with the blood of two gods, she had the ability to spread calamity across the lands as well as bless them, so powerful that she could even break the manacles keeping him bound to the Abyss.
And the faceless shadow would not be denied his freedom.
Realizing too late she had been tricked into bearing a child meant for sacrifice, the queen bitterly wept.
To defy him meant her death, yet she would not let him have her daughter.
She fell ill with madness, seeing shadows in mirrors and screaming of his coming.
Before her death, in between slips of clarity, the Queen bound her daughter’s magic and sent her away to an enchanted forest with the fairies, in hopes the princess would remain hidden from the darkness forever. ”
Lady Zinnia turned around, sorrow glimmering in her eyes.
The world tilted beneath her, the edges of the tale scraping like thorns against her ribs.
Rune had lied to her.
Lied to her about everything.
Rage and sadness flooded her chest, strangling her.
“He killed my mother?”
Lady Zinnia sighed. “She was never meant to bear a child touched by such forces, Alora. The repercussions were a curse in itself.”
She sat back in her chair, trembling.
Rune’s words circled her mind. I have made many bargains in my lifetime, and I remember each one. I did not bargain with your mother.
He promised never to lie to her, but somehow, he had.
“Your mother made me swear to protect you in the Midlands where you could be hidden from all outside entities. And if that were the end of it, we might have escaped the worst of it… but mortals are never so wise.”
Alora blinked. “What do you mean?”
Zinnia gaze returned to the window. “Calveron’s fleet arrived on your father’s shores, threatening war. But Thalion was no king. He was one of many consorts to the Summer Queen and had no hopes of ever sitting on a throne.”
“So, he came for my father’s.”
“No, the conquest for Argyle was merely a front. They came here for the same reason we fled Arthal. For our bloodline. Should any of his offspring be wed to one bearing the blood of the gods, it would have given him the power to claim the Summer Court for himself. So, he set his sights on your brother first.”
“My brother?” Alora’s eyes widened. “But… that would mean...”
Zinnia nodded. “Delphi is your aunt.”
The third sister.
Alora sat back in her seat, stunned. The pieces were falling in place faster than she could understand.
Then… her father’s marriage to Delphi had not been rooted in betrayal but out of political necessity to bind Argyle to the Midlands.
But then Calveron came for their bloodline. With her mother already passed and Delphi wed, that left Zinnia. Yet they had gone after her.
Alora glanced at the sharp thorns on the table. Perhaps they preferred a fight they could win.
“So, Rihan also carried the blood of the Mortal God in his veins,” Alora said. “Enough to threaten war on Argyle?”
Zinnia nodded. “Your father had no choice but to agree the prince would marry one of Thalion’s daughters, but Rihan was spared when the Sleeping Curse took him. Then somehow, Thalion learned of you.”
Alora propped her elbows on the table and dropped her spinning head in her hands. All of this was too much to take in at once.
So many secrets and lies.
“How could my father agree to the engagement?” She muttered. “No—how could you send me back to Argyle knowing what danger I was in? You promised my mother to keep me safe.”
Lady Zinnia lowered her head, her pink cheeks flushing a darker shade.
“Forgive me. We thought perhaps this could be the answer to saving you. I had hoped perhaps the danger passed when the Blood Moon arrived on the 20th day of your birth without catastrophe. My wards kept the Abyss at bay. But then your powers began to manifest, and the Sleeping Curse now presses against the Midland’s borders. ”
The world seemed to tilt, her breath catching painfully as cold spread through her chest.
“And now,” Zinnia continued quietly, “the next Blood Moon approaches. I cannot be certain my wards will hold again.”
Alora’s fingers tightened in her sleeves. Her godmother had risked letting her go … for the sake of the borough.
“Thalion did not know you carried the blood of two gods when he assured King Laurent that your magic could be siphoned without harm.” Zinnia lifted her gaze. “I believed that if your magic were taken, then when the darkness returned, it would fall upon Calveron instead of you.”
The anger and resentment coiled in her stomach, but Alora supposed her reasoning was logical.
She swallowed, clenching her hands. “The Sleeping Curse… did it begin because of me?”
Lady Zinnia saw the dread on her face and returned to the table, placing a gentle hand over hers.
“I don’t know. Whatever ritual Salvia performed at the ruins, must have allowed imbalance into our world.
Eventually, it will take over the kingdom.
The answer to breaking the curse lies with the one who made it. ”
That meant…
“It will end when you kill him,” Caelum said from the doorway of her cottage. “He rules the shadows. It’s his curse.”
Alora’s heartbeat drummed against her ribs, a frantic flutter like a bird trapped in glass. “But why would he put Argyle to sleep when he could merely set his demons upon them?”
Rune certainly could have done that anytime when night fell, yet he kept them contained in the mountain.
“Because he knew it would turn you against him.” Caelum stepped inside.
“Once he devours your magic, he would be free to rise and spread his darkness across every realm. Do you think he would stop with Argyle? You have seen what he’s capable of.
Imagine that power, unleashed on the world. Nothing would be safe.”
Alora stared at him. “How do you know all of this?”
Caelum’s expression became emotionless. “Only a god can create his own undoing, Alora.”
A chill crept up her spine, her skin prickling as though the air itself had turned watchful.
Had Rune created her?
Lady Zinnia’s pink eyes narrowed on Caelum. “Who is this?”
“This is Caelum,” Alora answered absentmindedly. “The childhood friend I once told you about. We often played together in the castle before I was sent here.”
“Boy?” Zinnia said, arching an eyebrow as she studied him. “Mortals cannot come here, Alora,”
She sighed, rubbing her face. “I know. He won’t stay long.”
“Eldrik wants the same thing Rune wants,” Caelum continued. “Your power.”
She didn’t understand. Rune had many opportunities to take it.
“You are nectar to him, Alora. Divine fruit he is craving to devour. To break his bindings must mean you have the power to free him from the sun’s curse. That’s why the God of Shadows stole you away from the altar and forced you to marry him.”
Alora’s heart twisted but at last things were beginning to make sense. Why of all girls, Rune chose her.
“Marriage…?” Lady Zinnia’s eyes widened. “When Eldrik came looking for you, he said you fled, not that you had been taken. I had not realized—but how could this happen? How did he find you?”
Alora cringed. “I… sang his song.”
Zinnia rose to her feet elegantly, though still quite alarmed. “By the Seven, Alora.”
“I was desperate to save Argyle, and I made a foolish mistake.”
“Did you bind yourself?”
“What?”
“When he asked for your hand, did he ask you to bind yourself?” Her godmother asked urgently, her voice nearly shrill. “Did you accept his ring?”
Alora glanced down at her empty finger. “Yes…but I escaped him. He can’t reach me here.”
“No, you are bonded to him!” Zinnia took her shoulders, fingers digging into her shoulders. “Mind, body, and soul.”
A chill crept up Alora’s spine, her skin prickling at the fear on the Thornbearer’s face.
“My wards can no longer protect you.”