Chapter Four
Prince Kyryl Lux had to admit defeat.
That didn’t happen often.
In fact, it never did. And yet, there he was, acknowledging that he was wrong. He wasn’t bothered by that, though. Actually, he was quite relieved about it.
He had arrived on Earth several days ago expecting his sister, Alestra, and her new mate, Jais, would be ready to return home to Ilius with him. He’d been sure she would be glad to leave the primitive world behind but had been surprised to discover she loved her new home.
Despite the lack of magic, the current state of Earth wasn’t as bad as he originally thought it would be. A great deal had changed since his last visit to the human home world. That wasn’t surprising since the last time had been during an active war.
Kyryl and a few others had arrived just in time to help turn the tide against the Zyphir, an alien race of insect-like creatures that had tried to colonize Earth. He hadn’t stuck around to witness the aftermath of the war, but he had heard enough over the years to be sure they had recovered.
Earth was an interesting mix of people and places. He liked the magnificent cities filled with towering buildings and enjoyed the diversity of the individuals who lived there. He was fascinated by the advancement of technology but was appalled by the absence of nature within the cities.
Alestra’s new home, Exodus, was the exception.
Part of that was due to her influence, while the rest came from their cousin, Jade Vyper, and her mates, Rogan and Lucian Adaro. Using a mix of Ilius and Dragon Warrior magic, they had turned the Krytos-owned sanctuary into their own little magical kingdom.
There was a mix of glowing flowers and exotic fruit trees from the Ilius home world and Arcadia, the home of the Dragon Warriors, that surrounded the various buildings on the property. The magnificent palaces and elaborate high rises where the residents lived were located on beautiful islands that floated off the coast of the mainland.
Those structures were surrounded by more lavish foliage, merging civilization and nature into perfect harmony.
Kyryl had been pleased to see that his sister, her mate, and their cousins lived in palaces that were replicas of their home back on Ilius. It suited their status not just as the owners of the sanctuary, but as members of the royal family. His relief wasn’t just based on arrogance, either. It was a security issue. If he was going to be leaving his sister and his new nephew, Jyn, on Earth, Kyryl needed to know they were as safe as they could possibly be.
Thinking about that, he gently rubbed his nephew’s back as the baby slept peacefully on his chest. They were sitting on a rocking swing that had been placed in the beautiful rooftop garden of Alestra’s palace, looking out over the majestic skyline of the city. It was his favorite place on the property since he liked seeing all the buildings lit up like signs of life against the inky blackness of the night sky.
The City of Zion was known for being unique since it was the only location that hadn’t been destroyed during the war with the Zyphir. The blend of modern buildings and historic old structures was interesting, and the magical grounds of the massive sanctuary made it even more intriguing.
Exodus was an officially designated sanctuary, which meant it existed outside of the Alliance’s control. They operated by their own rules, and anyone stepping onto the property was subject to their laws. However, from what Kyryl had witnessed, their authority clearly reached far beyond the boundaries of the sanctuary.
That wasn’t surprising since he knew how imposing his older sister could be when it came to protecting the people she loved. And now, she considered everyone who lived in the sanctuary part of her extended family.
Kyryl appreciated the concept of sanctuaries, though he thought the need for them was shameful. Since the Ilius were a peaceful race, there wasn’t a need for such things back on his home world.
Of course, that hadn’t always been the case.
Ilius was an ancient world that had existed a lot longer than Earth. Long enough for those who lived there to have experienced a vast amount of growth and transformation. There had been plenty of difficult times along the way, but they had reached a point where everything had balanced out, and they finally understood the futility of fighting wars over material possessions and petty differences.
Now, their existence meant more than just living.
It meant they had attained true enlightenment.
Ilius was a magical paradise where all life flourished. The Ilius lived quiet, tranquil lives, spending most of their time with their loved ones and cultivating their magic. But that didn’t mean they couldn’t fight. They were a peaceful yet powerful race, and if anyone was foolish enough to attack them, they did so at their own peril.
They didn’t start wars. They simply ended them.
Since they were known for their extraordinary control over their magic, many Dragon Warriors traveled to Ilius in order to learn from them. While Ilius magic was more elemental in nature and not as multifaceted as Dragon Warriors’ abilities, the foundation of power was the same.
Magic came from within a user’s core. It was part of their very essence, but using it wasn’t all instinctive. To develop all of their powers and tap into one’s full potential, the Ilius had learned that meditation and mental preparation were just as vital as physical training.
Despite how powerful they were, many Dragon Warriors had a difficult time quieting their minds, which inhibited their abilities. For those struggling with control issues, studying on Ilius helped them overcome those blocks. Through the continued sharing of resources and knowledge, they had become the closest allies.
But that wasn’t the only thing that connected the two magical races.
The discovery of several mated pairings had helped unite the Ilius and Dragon Warriors. Fated mates were respected above all else, and there was nothing that could come between a bonded pair. Because of that connection, the two magical planets had also forged a bond that would last forever.
As a member of the royal family, Kyryl had visited Arcadia several times over the long centuries. While he was there, he had trained people on the proper techniques needed to expand their minds and use their magic for ultimate potency. That wasn’t as easy to do as it was on the Ilius home world, but he’d done his best with what he had to work with.
He had also acted as an impartial judge for many local disputes. His calm demeanor and years of experience made him the perfect individual to fill that role, and he enjoyed traveling around the planet helping people.
Besides having powerful magic, the Dragon Warriors were known for their brute strength and fierce fighting skills. That was something Kyryl admired about them. While he’d been visiting Arcadia, he had learned several different types of combat with various weapons.
For an adventurous soul like Kyryl, peace could be quite boring. Because of that, he spent a lot of time traveling the stars and visiting other worlds. He wasn’t looking for a fight. He was simply trying to find his purpose and satisfy his curious nature. He had a keen sense of justice and couldn’t abide seeing anyone abused or mistreated, but there wasn’t much use for his particular skill set on his home world.
With his father and mother still in their prime, Ilius was well taken care of. The citizens loved Empress Livinia and Emperor Aldor Lux. They had been in power long enough to anticipate the needs of the people and were able to solve many issues that came up before they got to be major problems.
Kyryl’s oldest brother, Jomei, had been trained to become the next emperor since birth. Jomei and his mate, Xiana, and their two children, Callon and Lanis, would rule Ilius well when their time came. That meant Alestra, Kyryl, and their younger brother, Izar, were free to live their own lives.
As a prince of the ruling family of Ilius, Kyryl was well aware of how lucky he was. There was no denying that. He was powerful, wealthy, and came from a loving family unit that fully supported him. He took his responsibilities of being part of the royal family seriously, but they never tried to block his wanderlust or force him to do anything he didn’t want to do.
That made it even more important for him to defend those less privileged than he was.
Now that his elder sister had decided to live on Earth with her mate for the foreseeable future, Kyryl wondered if he would ever find a place where he felt like he belonged. Until then, he was satisfied with traveling and exploring new worlds.
He enjoyed visiting Earth, but he thought the cities were too crowded to live in long-term. There was an abundance of desert and barren land that could be terraformed, though. If they were planning to work on expanding the cities, that might be an interesting project to stick around for. If not, he was content to visit with his sister and her new family until he felt the itch to move on.
“That’s it. You can never leave.”
Kyryl smirked at his new brother as Jais Starr sat down in one of the lounge chairs. The big Krytos might have been joking, but there was a hint of truth in his words. He looked utterly exhausted, so Kyryl couldn’t really blame him for feeling that way.
Since the Ilius gestation period was only a month, that hadn’t given Jais a whole lot of time to prepare for being the father to a magical baby. While Alestra was doing pretty well acclimating to being a parent, Jais was still struggling a little. Not because he didn’t love his son with everything in him. The big Krytos was just worried about hurting Jyn or making a mistake.
“Why does my son only sleep like that when you, Alestra, or the Dragon Warriors are holding him?” Jais complained.
“Because you are giving off nervous energy whenever you hold him, and it makes him anxious,” Kyryl stated bluntly.
“I can’t help it!” Jais whispered frantically. “Look at him, he’s so tiny. I’m freaking terrified I’m going to crush him or something.”
Kyryl was almost the same size as Jais was, but he exuded a calmness that put the baby at ease whenever he held him. “The main thing you need to do is learn how to control your magic since that is where most of your anxiety is coming from. Have you been meditating like I taught you?”
“Yes.”
“No, he hasn’t,” Trip Rage cheerfully ratted out his best friend as he sauntered over to join them. The big Helios male handed each of them a bottle of ale before he took a seat in the chair next to Jais. “He can only sit still for like ten minutes max before he remembers something he has to do.”
“It’s longer than ten minutes,” Jais muttered, then he hunched his shoulders in shame when Kyryl frowned at him. “I’ll try harder. I’ve gotten good at doing everything else, though.”
That was true enough.
Since Jyn had been born, Jais had been running himself ragged pampering his mate and his son. Still, when Alestra was sleeping, Jais had a difficult time resting at the same time because he was worried they wouldn’t be able to hear their son if he needed something. That unease was strong enough to disturb the sleeping baby in his crib.
Because of that, Kyryl had started holding Jyn while they both rested since he was able to use his magic to create a barrier around himself and his nephew to ensure the baby slept well. However, that was only a temporary fix. Luckily, just like their accelerated gestation period, Ilius babies grew quickly. They were only considered infants for a few weeks, then their growth gradually slowed.
Still, Jais had to learn how to control his energy and magic sooner or later since that was part of being mated to an Ilius.
Jyn was such a sweet, adorable baby. Rather than the dark magenta hair Kyryl and Alestra shared, the baby’s hair was growing in as black as his father’s. But instead of inheriting Jais’ black eyes, Jyn had the same glowing silvery lavender eyes that the Lux siblings had.
Since Alestra and Jais were the first Ilius and Krytos pairing that they knew of, they weren’t sure what other traits the baby had inherited from his parents. That would come with time. For now, all they could do was wait until he grew older.
“You need to learn how to calm your energy for your son,” Kyryl chided gently.
Jais sighed heavily. “I know. I will try harder. I swear. That’s why I’m up here every night getting magic lessons from you and the Dragon Warriors.” He turned to glare at his friend. “What are you doing here?”
“Moral support?” Trip grinned as he shrugged. “I annoyed Emma earlier, so she sent me up here to hang out with you. She thinks I should learn how to meditate along with you.”
“She’s not wrong,” Kyryl pointed out. “You will also need to learn how to relax before your baby is born.”
That statement was met with stunned silence.
“Wait, what? Emma is pregnant?”
Kyryl sighed. Apparently, they hadn’t been aware of that yet. Since he had already ruined their surprise, he nodded. “I thought you already knew.”
“Holy fucking nova! I’ve got to go.”
Trip shot to his feet and raced toward the stairs. Since he and Emma lived on the other side of the palace from Alestra, Jais, and Jyn, he didn’t have to go far.
A few seconds later, Jade Vyper appeared with her mates, Rogan and Lucian Adaro, by her side. She frowned as she glanced around. “Where is Trip? I thought Emma sent her mate up here to learn how to meditate.”
Lucian snorted. “Trip Rage meditating is something I have to see.”
“I told him his mate is pregnant,” Kyryl admitted. “I thought he knew already.”
Jade grinned. “I only discovered it a few hours ago.”
Kyryl studied his cousin for a long moment. “It must be catching.”
Her green eyes glowed bright with happiness as she rubbed her own flat stomach. “It seems so.”
“What?” Jais gasped. “You’re having a baby, too?”
“We are,” Rogan said with a grin. He slapped a hand on Jais’ shoulder. “Soon we shall be joining you for sleepless nights.”
Jais wheezed out a laugh. “At least our kids will grow up together.”
“Aye, but first you must learn how to control your magic better,” Jade announced. “Or else you will still be learning along with the babies.”
Jais grumbled to himself as everyone else laughed.
Alestra transported to the rooftop garden and smiled at everyone as she slid onto Jais’ lap. “Are you making fun of my mate again?”
“Of course, we are,” Kyryl teased.
Jais nuzzled his face against Alestra’s neck. “Our son is going to learn how to use magic faster than me.”
“You just need to practice more.” Kyryl started to protest as Lucian swept in and snatched the baby, then he simply smiled. He’d already had plenty of private time with his nephew and had to remind himself to share.
“Why do you get to hold Jyn?” Rogan complained.
“Because I got to him first,” Lucian said smugly. “You can help Jais learn how to control his magic while I hold this precious little one.”
“Magic is a pain in my ass,” Jais grumbled.
“It can be,” Kyryl stated dryly. “But it is a necessary pain, so quit complaining and get to work.”