Chapter 8
Thavros
With a groan, I woke, rolling out my shoulders and rubbing the sleep from my eyes. Another night spent slumped over my table in the study.
I looked to the statue beside me—my stone goddess, standing sentinel as if nothing had changed. It would be easy to believe I’d dreamed it all. The night, her warmth, her voice. But the parchment in front of me said otherwise—pages of Godling text were transcribed. Proof of magic. Proof of her.
She had come to me again, as she had every night since that first night.
But the morning demanded more than memory. Today was the day Khuldruk and Callie would emerge from the mating den. I was anxious to see my brother again. And yet, I wasn’t sure what I could offer in return.
When they’d returned from the human realm, they’d been attacked by orcs from the Westerly Clan. Our oldest rivals. Frema had gone to investigate after the incident, but we’d heard nothing since.
All I had to report was the strength returning to our warriors and our healers working with renewed magic. Good news, yes, but it didn’t explain why the mating bond magic had vanished in the first place.
With a sigh, I made my way toward the great hall.
Even before I reached the doors, I could hear the din of celebration. Word had spread. Our chief had returned, and with him, a true mate. The clan was buzzing with joy. The feast would be worthy of legend.
But still... something in me held back.
I should be celebrating. And yet, my thoughts stayed behind, curled around parchment and stone, and the ghost of a touch I already missed.
After a morning meal, I met with the cook to see if they had everything they needed for a trip to market since most of our riders were out training with Frema.
As I walked into the kitchen, the smell of stewing meats and fresh bread filled the air.
I took a deep, approving breath as Magra, the head of the kitchen, turned to me.
“Thavros, what can I do for you?”
“I just wanted to check in with you to see if you needed any assistance.”
“And what, I suppose you’re going to be the one to assist me? I could put you to work.”
“We both know I’m useless in the kitchen. Do you need anyone to run into the village? I believe Gragnar is going there today.”
The plump orc put her hands on her hips and evaluated the kitchen. “No, I’m all set for the feast. Is your brother back yet?”
“No, not yet,” I said as I stole a taste of the strawberry jam. With Yule coming, berries weren’t exactly in season. This was a luxury.
Magra merely glowered at me. “Well, see to it that he comes to talk to me upon his return. I want to make a special cake for him and his new mate.”
That glower immediately turned into a smile at the mention of Khuldruk and his mate. While Magra pretended to be grumpy, she had a soft spot for the chief and his siblings. When their parents had passed when Frema and Drax were still young, she really took them under her wing.
“I will,” I said as I snatched a small honey cake from the table.
That was the end of her patience. “Out with you,” she said as she hit me on the back with a rolling pin. I flinched away, but grinned at her. She gave a huff and shook her head at me, even as the corners of her mouth tipped up ever so slightly.
After her assurance that everything was under control, I started back to my study.
As I turned the corner, I was greeted by Ragnor, one of Khuldruk's men. "The chief and his mate have emerged and are waiting for you in the war room."
"Thank you," I answer back as I quickly make my way there.
As the door slid open, I saw my brother and his mate.
Callie wasn’t a small woman, but beside my massive brother, any human would appear delicate.
He was examining the crystal that had gotten brighter and brighter every day since he left on his mission to find Callie.
While it wasn't as bright as it'd been when they were small, it was shining again, and for right now, that was all that mattered.
"Brother," I call as I make my way to him.
He turned and greeted me in a warm embrace before pressing his forehead to mine in our customary orc greeting.
"Callie, it is so good to see you," I said, and I bent and pressed my forehead to the back of her hands.
I looked at Callie, who was smiling at me with such warmth. I stepped back and took them in. He looked different. I couldn't really put my finger on it, but he seemed so much calmer. Callie, on the other hand, was glowing.
"I’m still getting used to the greetings. I'm really going to have to get to work to try and learn all the new customs."
"Don't worry, my pet. They will love you. You've taken so well to our customs," Khuldruk said in a heated voice that almost sounded like a purr.
"Just a reminder, you did leave the mating caves, and I’m right here," I said, kidding, mostly.
I was genuinely happy for my brother and his mate, but a pang of sadness tugged at me as light from above caught the statue’s stony surface.
The love and warmth radiating between Callie and Khuldruk reminded me too vividly of the night before, when that same warmth had filled the room where now only cold stone remained.
"Where is Frema? Does she have news of the Westerly Clan?"
"Well, she took some of the scouts and warriors out on a training mission. It seems their strength is beginning to return."
"Well, that is good news. And what of the healers? Has their magic returned yet?"
"It is returning."
"Good," Khuldruk said as he smiled down at his mate.
The smile she gave back to him made my heart ache, but it also stirred a thought. "Are you with child? Is that why you ask of the healers?"
"No," she answered back quickly. "Not yet anyway, although that is the plan. But Khuldurk wanted to make sure the healers had magic before we risked a pregnancy."
"Ahh, that is wise. There can sometimes be complications with such a size difference."
A small look of distress danced across her face, but it was gone with a simple touch from Khuldruk.
"Well, we’re going to go get settled in our room, but after lunch, I would love to hear about plans for the feast."
"I’ll be ready. Welcome back, brother. You have been missed. You and your mate."
They turned and left the war room, and I found myself in a foreign mood. I ached for something I could not have, at least I didn’t think I could. Just because Khuldruk had found his mate did not mean I would, too.
Later that day, I went to the great hall to check on preparations for the feast. Even though the feast was still days away, the great hall was humming with preparations.
The great hall bustled as orcs moved between tables, baskets, and crates.
Roasted meats, barrels of honeyed ale, stacks of wild root vegetables, everything was being accounted for, weighed, seasoned, and stirred.
I stood near the long table in the center of it all, parchment in hand, double-checking the list against what I saw.
Callie entered at Khuldruk’s side, her smile bright enough to rival the torches on the walls. He walked just a step behind her; his expression filled with that quietly fierce pride that only comes from being utterly smitten.
“Thavros!” she called out, waving a hand above the bustle. “Is this a good time?”
I nodded and motioned them over. “Better now than when the cook gets her hands in the dough. She’ll chase us out with a rolling pin.”
Khuldruk chuckled low in his chest. “It's true. I've had to promise her a new meat cleaver to let me escape a time or two.”
Callie grinned. “I wanted to ask about something for the feast.”
She bit her bottom lip, clearly a little unsure, but there was a twinkle in her eye, too, like she couldn’t quite contain the idea. Khuldruk slid a hand over the small of her back, steadying and encouraging her without a word.
“I was wondering… would it be alright if I sang?”
The room seemed to pause. Not fully—but something subtle shifted. Even the background clatter of work quieted for a breath.
“Sang?” I asked, though I’d heard her perfectly.
“Is that weird? I’m not sure if it goes against any custom or anything … I just thought…”
“You’d like to sing,” I finished.
“Yes,” she said, cheeks coloring just slightly. “There’s a song I used to sing back home at celebrations. It was the closing song at the fairs I used to sing at. It might be nice with all the firelight and feasting.”
“She has the voice of a goddess,” Khuldruk said, not looking at me, but at her. “You’d be a fool not to let her.”
“Of course, it is your feast. I’m surprised Khuldruk is willing to share you with the rest of us,” I said, smirking. But even as I teased, something tight pulled inside my chest. “It would be an honor.”
“I’m so excited to experience my first orc feast,” Callie said, slipping her arm through Khuldruk’s. He lowered his head and kissed the top of her head before taking a big sniff.
“Again with the sniffing,” she said in a laugh, gazing up at him.
“I’m afraid I cannot help it.”
The ease with which they comforted each other pulled at my heart. I had never yearned for something like this before, yet here I was.
She beamed up at him, and as she did, she started to hum. I don't even know if she was aware of it.
It wasn’t just a song.
It was a wind weaving through the trees. It was heat and hush, promise and ache. Her voice didn’t just travel through the hall—it filled it. It curled around the stone, slid across the ceiling beams, wrapped around each orc’s shoulders like a memory they hadn’t known they’d forgotten.
Work stilled. Heads turned.
Even the great hearths seemed to flicker in rhythm with her voice.
"Sorry," she said as she looked around with a sheepish expression after all the work came to a halt. "I'm still getting used to this whole part-siren thing. The powers didn't work like that in the human realm."
"You have nothing to apologize for, my pet. Now, I think we are going to see about a new gown. But I will find you later," he said to me.
I nodded, and they walked away. My thoughts drifted far from the hustle and bustle of the great hall with them. Even with the small amount of notes she hummed, my thoughts were with the statue.
Still cold. Still silent.
I swallowed hard.
It was one thing to envy my brother’s joy. But to do it while longing for a statue? Even in a world where magic bloomed again, that would be impossible to explain.
Khuldruk wrapped his arms around her waist and lifted her off the floor in a twirl, and she laughed, bright and wild and utterly alive.
I turned away, ready to get back into the safety of my study. The outside world was too much for me, even the great hall. I was used to craving solitude, but that wasn’t exactly what I was craving these days.
Once tucked away in the quiet of study, I stood at my table, parchment unfurled and annotated with the latest healer reports. Notes in the margins, my own symbols, arrows showing fluctuations in magical currents. It should have felt productive. It didn’t.
Footsteps approached—measured and heavy, too familiar to be anyone else.
“Brother,” Khuldruk said as he climbed the stairs. There was no grand announcement, no show of power. Just a man, temporarily not a chief, checking in.
I set the quill down. “I thought you’d be trapped under bolts of fabric by now.”
He snorted. “Callie is more than capable of commanding a room full of dressmakers without me. I figured I’d use the moment to ask how things are faring in the mountain.”
I motioned to the papers. “Progress. Some. The warriors grow stronger. The healers are recovering their power. The western borders remain quiet… too quiet, honestly.”
Khuldruk picked up the paper that annotated the healer’s magic and gave an approving nod before turning his attention to the map.
“It is concerning that the Westerly Clan has been quiet. The orcs that attacked us at the inn seemed overly susceptible to Callie’s voice.
I can’t quite put my finger on it, but it was strange. ”
“Hmmm, that is strange. I’ll make note of it,” I said as I sat down and pulled out a quill.
“Sirens aren’t as common as they once were. Especially this far up north,” I said.
Khuldruk nodded. “There were many when we were younger. What has happened to all of them?”
Now that Thavros thought about it, there were fewer. Surely all of them didn’t up and move south. “I don’t know. I will look into it,” I said
He nodded, but his eyes weren’t on the papers. They were on me.
“You’ve been different,” he said after a pause.
I tensed. “So have you. It’s what mating does.”
“Yes, but I’m not the one haunting his own war room like a ghost,” he said, quiet but firm. “You’ve always carried the weight of us all on your shoulders, Thavros. But this feels… different.”
I didn’t reply.
He stepped closer, folding his arms. “Something happened while we were gone.”
I swallowed. “Not something I can explain. Not fully.”
He waited, giving me space to continue, but I didn’t.
“Magic is returning, Thavros. We know that. But whatever it is you’re keeping to yourself…” He gazed around his study that overlooked the giant round table below. “Even here, where magic is law, there are things that defy logic. That doesn’t mean they defy the truth.”
I did not have the patience or time for whatever he was hinting at.
“Don’t speak in riddles, brother. I have enough to figure out.”
“There is something on your mind. Something you’re not sharing.”
My jaw clenched. “You speak as if you already know.”
“I don’t. But whatever it is, you aren’t yet ready to share.” He clapped a hand on my shoulder. “You’ll figure it out. You always do.”
He gave me a long, evaluating gaze before he turned to leave.
I stood in silence for a long moment before crossing over to the statue overlooking the great table. She stood there, a goddess trapped in stone. Still. Unmoving. Eternal.
The light from the sconces warmed her marble skin. She looked softer than she should. Her face was tilted just slightly down, as if caught in a moment between breath and song.
I sat down next to her.
“Who are you?” I asked softly.
The air didn’t shift. She remained still. Even in that stillness, she had a beauty that was hard to turn away from.
I returned to my table, questioning my own sanity, as I sat and returned to my work. I traced a line down my notes, trying to return to the facts—to the ink, the symbols, the known. But the facts no longer made sense.
I caught myself watching her again.
Waiting.
Still, nothing.
With a quiet sigh, I turned back to the scrolls and forced my attention to return to the world I could still explain.