Aryn's Fated Bond

1. Aryn

Aryn

My knees hit the dirt, and my head drops until the grass brushes against my forehead.

Lower.

My eyes want to drift toward the golden sheen of his skin, but I force them back to the pebbles and sparse blades beneath me. I’d burrow straight into the earth if I could—go belly up before him. My body locks, pulse hammering so loudly it drowns out everything else.

“I did not know any of your kind roamed this world,” I manage, voice low with shock, reverence, and something dangerously close to hope.

I shouldn’t dare feel it.

Shouldn’t let myself wonder what the presence of a Fate might mean—for any of us, but especially for me.

A broad shadow sweeps across the ground. The arc of his wings blots out the sky, and golden light dances over the grass where sunlight slips between the feathers. I keep my gaze fixed downward, the way I was taught so long ago.

Never look upon the Fates, Aryn. One day, they will return, and when they do, you kneel.

The words echo from a long-engrained memory, broken only when a deeper voice cuts through them.

“Stand.”

My heart stutters at the command. Every instinct screams at me to press flat to the ground, to lower myself all the way to my stomach and crawl, but around me the others are already rising. They face him like equals.

Their word is law. You do not argue. You do not disobey.

My body heeds the order before my mind catches up.

One foot plants in the soil and I push upright.

My head stays bowed, taking in only the edges of black leather pants, scuffed boots, and coppery fingers flexing at his sides.

He waits with never-ending patience for me to obey, so I finally lift my face.

I don’t meet his eyes.

My gaze traces the sharp line of his jaw, the wild fall of golden curls over his shoulders, then the metallic veins threading through his wings. They pulse faintly, alive with power that thrums somewhere deep inside him.

“Who the hells—” Cameron starts, but Ronan lets out a panicked whine and lunges in front of his mate, putting himself between Cameron and the Fate.

Xeni shakes his head, studying the wings with open curiosity. “This is Sovran, though… I’ll admit the wings are new. He helped us escape Atlanta, and we owe him our lives. I gave him our location should the favor ever need to be repaid.”

My tail lashes once before I can stop it. “You walked with the Fates and did not think to mention it?”

Xeni’s practiced composure slips as his solid white eye widens. “The… Fates?”

Sovran gives him a small, tired smile. “That was a name I once answered to, yes. But that story can wait for another time.”

His gaze moves away to scan the group and I drop mine to the ground once more.

There’s no rush as he examines each of us.

Time would be of little consequence to his kind—not when they’re rumored to be immortal.

When his attention lands on me, it might as well be a brand with how it burns.

The heat builds until I can almost feel the skin draw and tuck beneath it.

I still don’t risk glancing up.

“Come,” he says once he’s satisfied. “We have many things to discuss.”

“Like how to open the portals?” Bash asks with a nonchalance that puts my body at attention.

My muscles tense, torn between the urge to protect my friend and the need to fall to the ground at Sovran’s inevitable fury.

Their tempers are legendary in the history I studied, and I brace myself for the outburst that’s sure to come.

To my surprise, Sovran glances fondly at Bash. “Such a beautiful mind, Sebastian. You have already gained that knowledge, though I can help you apply it. No, we must decide who will go.”

Bash looks even more confused. “Go where?”

My breath catches as I stare at Sovran’s profile, trying to read the words before he speaks them.

It’s a flip of a coin.

A roll of the dice.

The end is coming, or they’re taking us home.

“To the other side, naturally,” Sovran responds. “My prophecy has waited a long time for you all to be here together.”

“Your prophecy?” Bash demands.

My attention snaps to Sovran’s face the moment the words land. That faint tilt of his lips holds steady as he nods, though a deep sorrow settles across his features. “Yes,” he agrees softly. “My prophecy.”

“Wow,” Cameron drawls, peeking from behind the protection of Ronan’s bulk. “So you’re the one we have to thank for all this.” He gestures around at the sweltering day.

“The weather is… an unfortunate side effect,” Sovran says with a grimace. “One I didn’t foresee.”

“Unfortunate,” Cameron snorts. “Alright, here’s a question. If you did all of this, can’t you just undo it? Snap your fingers and make it better again? I’m sick of the fuckin’ heat.”

Ronan tenses, ready to defend his mouthy mate, but Sovran only purses his lips and shakes his head. “It is not so simple.”

“Well, why not?” Cameron demands. “You didn’t think about putting an off switch on this shit?”

Sovran’s lips pull tighter, irritation bleeding through his composure. “It is not so simple anymore. I do not have the powers I once had.”

The scientist in me overrides my subservience, and the words rush out before I can consider them. “Powers you once had? So you have them no longer?”

Sovran’s eyes meet mine directly for the first time. Golden flames lick behind his irises, showcasing the power he claims to have lost. “Remnants are there, yes,” he says after a stretch. “Fractions of what I once carried.”

“Where’d it go?” Cameron asks.

Bash crosses his arms, that familiar thoughtful expression bunching his forehead.

“Cameron might not have asked it in the most eloquent way, but the question is valid. What happened to your power? How did you lose it, and why? Is that why you’re here instead of…

” He trails off, gesturing vaguely towards the sky.

Sovran follows his hand, flicking his eyes to the clouds. “Those are questions that cannot be answered with a few simple words. It’s a long story, and I’m afraid we must start at the beginning.”

Ronan has composed himself, deeming Sovran not to be a threat for the moment. He steps forward, shoulders thrown back with the same assertive confidence he always carries. “You said you’ve waited for us to be together.”

Golden curls fall in front of Sovran’s shoulders as he nods. “I have.”

Ronan stares at him a moment, then gestures toward the common area where we share most of our meals.

The cauldron sits over the fire, surrounded by a circle of logs we use for seating.

Beyond them are the rough-hewn picnic tables and benches Reyes and Lillith built. There’s plenty of room for everyone.

Ronan must be thinking the same thing. “Why don’t we eat while we talk? You must be hungry from your travels—”

“Yeah, how exactly did you get here?” Cameron cuts in. “Cause I’m just putting it out in the universe that if you can fly, that would come in really handy.”

Sovran glances at him, a faint crinkle forming at the corners of his eyes as he rolls his shoulders. His wings shift and flex in the light before disappearing altogether. “Sorry to disappoint, but I drove. My vehicle is hidden within the forest.”

Cameron leans closer to Elas. “Okay, but he didn’t deny he can fly.”

“He didn’t,” Elas agrees, before August shushes them both.

Ronan glares over his shoulder, but Cameron only arches a brow in a silent dare. With a quiet laugh, Ronan turns back to Sovran with the most diplomatic smile I’ve ever seen him wear. “It sounds like you have a lot to share. Best to go into it with a full stomach.”

“When did he turn into Mr. Hospitality?” Cameron mutters.

Sovran glances over Ronan’s shoulder, his eyes crinkling further in a way that makes him appear almost human. “A meal would be wonderful,” he agrees. “Gather any of your people that aren’t here. This is a long story—one I don’t want to share twice.”

My spine snaps straight at the authority in his tone. Ronan rolls his neck, clearly feeling the weight of it too.

“Would a please be too much to ask?” a voice says from my left. I turn to find Cato leaned toward Sakane’s ear. The redhead’s eyes find mine before sliding down my chest and pausing.

I fight back a smirk as I remember the way he watched me fight.

It isn’t like me to show off, and I haven’t felt the need to prove myself since I was much younger.

But ever since Cato came into the village, he’s looked at everyone with that same disdainful boredom.

He speaks to me like he thinks he’s above being here, and something inside me snapped.

Besting Elas in that brawl was my impulsive way of showing him size isn’t everything.

Did I need to do it shirtless?

Probably not.

But the move brought him down a peg, and now Cato’s eyes keep drifting to my chest, catching on the hoops through my nipples where they rest against my skin.

A faint flush colors his cheeks when our gazes meet again.

I like it more than I should—the confused interest in his stare, and the way it pulls a low thrum of satisfaction through my veins.

Before I can react, Sovran releases a huff of air. It’s the closest thing to a laugh I’ve heard from him and drags my attention back to his face. “Cato is correct. I’m being rude, barging into your home and making demands. I would appreciate a meal, Ronan. Thank you for offering.”

Taryn steps forward with a guarded smile. “Lillith and I will throw something together. Are there any, uh, dietary concerns we should be aware of?”

Sovran tilts his head curiously, blinking at her before his face settles back into stoic indifference. “No. I would be grateful for anything you offer.”

Taryn walks off with Lillith chattering excitedly in her ear about what dishes they could prepare for a being of his standing.

“Do we have to pray?” Lillith whispers loudly, glancing back over her shoulder.

“Do we pray to him? How does that work?” Taryn shushes her and takes her hand as they disappear into the storage building.

The amusement fades as soft footsteps pad forward. “Hello, Nyx,” Sovran says softly as he approaches. He towers over the Drüinae, a solid foot taller and twice as wide, but Nyx only tilts his pointed chin up, assessing him calmly.

“You are familiar,” Nyx says after a moment, then rests a hand over his heart. “Here. I have felt you before.”

“You have,” Sovran agrees as a smile tinged with regret forms on his mouth. “We will…” He breathes a heavy exhale and forces another sad smile. “Come. There is much to discuss.”

Ronan watches him carefully before leading the group toward the fire.

Lillith and Taryn are already working on lunch, one feeding the flames while the other chops vegetables.

No one says much out loud, though whispered conversations ripple through the group as heads tilt together.

I stand for a moment, watching them walk away with Sovran’s golden hair leading the pack beside Ronan.

Cato turns and glances at me over his shoulder, but quickly jerks forward again when he realizes I’m looking. Curiosity finally wins over caution, and I let them lead me to the circle.