Chapter Seventy-Four
ELARA
The capital of Asteria, Phantome, sprawled before Elara, the sky a watercolour of lavender and powder blue. Late afternoon was giving way to twilight, and she looked at the empty, cobbled streets of home, eerily quiet, only the sound of gold and blue leaves rasping across them filling the air.
She’d expected to be emotional, setting foot back in her kingdom after so long, especially when the previous time had been wrought with so much pain—when she’d been a captive.
But what she hadn’t expected was the apprehension, the fear. If her people saw her, would they revolt as the Helions had? Claw for their pound of flesh as the Castorians had? Betray her to their Stars like the Neptunans? Did she really have any loyal subjects? Any kingdom left at all?
A shadow loomed and she tensed as a man stumbled before them, muttering to himself. ‘She’ll come in,’ he said.
‘Don’t you understand?’ His eyes found Elara’s. ‘She’ll huff and puff and blow the house down.’
Elara recoiled at the oily blackness in his stare—like spilt ink.
‘On with you,’ Enzo ordered tightly, and the man scampered off as shadows drifted from his wrists.
‘So it’s true,’ Leo said. ‘The shadow madness.’
Elara nodded, swallowing. Was that why it was so quiet, on a day usually so joyous, so celebrated within the Kingdom of Night?
She remembered the last All Hallows’ Eve she’d attended, only the year before.
Gods, had only that much time passed? She’d snuck out of the palace with Sofia, well versed in being an escape artist at that point, and they’d donned masks as they’d danced and drunk all night, a thrilling anonymity surrounding them.
Today, after a few days’ travel, they’d arrived smoothly in Phantome on the deck of a sunken ship that Elara had raised, one of her illusions cloaking them from sight as they arrived in the harbour.
Adrian had bid them farewell at the lighthouse, ebbflowing back to Neptuna with the vial of water from his home that he always kept on his person.
The god of riddles himself had just left them too, putting on the act of a depraved, immoral reveller as he’d slunk into the city proper to try to find out the whereabouts of the Stars set on bringing Piscea through. They were to meet again that evening, by her temple, once he knew more.
‘Got them,’ Merissa said, out of breath as she returned with Leo from a side street. In her hands were masks, all fashioned after various mythas. Elara took one gratefully. She felt far too exposed, vulnerable.
Leo thrust costumes into each of their hands, clearly purchased from one of the shops that dotted the city for exactly this night.
Leo and Enzo began to remove their shirts, and Elara pulled Isra and Merissa with her around the corner, looking around surreptitiously before they began to change.
Isra finished first, her costume fantastical.
A white dress wrapped around her, and she began to grow frost and icicles over it until she looked like an ice spirit of Sveta.
Merissa waved a hand, and Isra’s hair became white, her eyelashes too.
Isra shot her a look of thanks as she donned her mask, fashioned from snowflakes.
It was custom on All Hallows’ Eve to dress as mythas.
Merissa had done just that. A dress of green leaves covered her, short and tight, and she now swept her fingertips over herself, her hair sleeking into straight sheets of blonde, leaves rippling and twisting up her body, twigs growing from the crown of her head and wrapping around the mask covering the upper half of her face.
She added a few more touches, the illusion of bark coasting down one side of her body.
‘A dryad of Verde,’ Elara said.
Merissa nodded.
Elara wore a silver gown with a silver hooded cloak covering nearly the entire dress. She raised it and gave a small smile. ‘I’m to be the silver maiden, aren’t I?’
Merissa grinned. ‘The most beautiful there ever was.’
Elara felt Merissa’s magick, warm and cool at the same time, washing over her face and tickling her eyelids. She felt her head tingle. Merissa produced a small mirror, showing her the work.
Delicate silver curled around Elara’s eyes, her hair pure silver-white. It alarmingly made her look more like the Moon than ever, though with the mask she would be unrecognizable to others.
When the three of them appeared from around the corner, Enzo and Leo were waiting, arms crossed as they bounced on their heels to keep warm.
Elara couldn’t help but laugh despite the weight on her chest.
Enzo was wearing a fake pelt—that of a lion, its maw stretching out and over his head and its paws falling over his shoulders.
Merissa touched him demurely with a finger, and his bare skin—because, of course, his torso was bare—turned to gold, painted by her magick.
‘You still haven’t quite mastered the art of subtlety,’ Elara drawled as he winked, kissing her on the cheek before pacing over to Isra, two golden wings at his back rustling.
She noticed Merissa’s hands tremble a little as Leo approached. He also wore wings as part of his costume, though his were feathered and elegantly tipped with silver. Merissa placed her hands over his eyes as silver paint began to drip from them, over his mask, creating a strip to form tears.
‘An angel,’ Leo proclaimed. ‘Since I’m the only one in the group.’
Elara scoffed. ‘If you’re an angel, then gods help us all.’
Leo snorted. ‘You look terrifying.’
Elara pressed a hand to her chest. ‘Thank you.’
‘I think you look beautiful,’ Enzo murmured.
They all surveyed the quiet streets. Save for the shadowmancer who had skittered by, they hadn’t seen another soul.
‘So,’ Leo said, ‘where do we even begin?’
‘Somnus Square,’ Elara replied. ‘It’s where the festivities begin around dusk. We’ll understand the scale of tonight from there, and which Stars are here.’
Enzo nodded. ‘It would certainly help to know who exactly we’re fighting against before we meet Eli at the temple.’
Elara linked arms with Merissa as she led them through her familiar streets.
‘How are you feeling about all this?’ Merissa whispered.
Elara shrugged. ‘Oh, you know, impending doom should we fail, the threat of yet another murderous entity looming…I feel fantastic.’
Merissa nudged her, and Elara dropped her bravado.
‘Honestly? I just pray Eli knows what he’s doing. That way, we can get this over with and return to our personal vendetta of killing Ariete and the rest of the Stars.’
Before Merissa could reply, Elara heard a muffled laugh and turned, scanning the horizon.
It had darkened, a blue ink spreading across the sky as night fell.
Her moon was the slightest crescent, waning with every hour.
They were approaching the city proper now, the streets of the suburbs widening. ‘Did anyone else hear that?’
Isra and Enzo exchanged knowing looks as they caught up. Elara scrutinized the glittering deep-blue city walls ahead, and the beautiful silver Asterian arched gate that separated the very centre of the capital from the rest of the city.
The Bellereve motto was still written in curling script upon it.
To darkness we’ll return.
Elara swallowed away the hardness in her throat.
She caught a shimmer in the space beneath the arch and Enzo tilted his head.
‘See that?’ he asked. She nodded.
‘This is getting really old now,’ Leo drawled.
‘We’re just building up the suspense,’ Isra replied.
Enzo kissed Elara on the forehead before bending to pick up a pebble. There was another muffled noise, but this time it sounded like music. Her eyes narrowed as Enzo grinned, pulling his arm back and launching the stone through the arch. The group watched it volley, flying through the air and into…
Nothing.
Merissa took a startled step forwards. The rock had simply vanished into thin air—quite literally.
‘A glamoured veil,’ Isra said, pushing a hand through the strange gate, half of it disappearing as a blast of music sounded. She turned to Merissa. ‘Which means the Stars are certainly here. See you on the other side.’ She winked and stepped through the arch, vanishing.
Leo let out a low whistle, a gleam in his eyes. ‘Now this,’ he said, slapping Enzo on the back, ‘is going to be an adventure.’
Elara watched everyone form a neat single-file line to transcend the magickal barrier. Enzo grasped her hand and pulled her through the portal.
Absolutely nothing could have prepared Elara for the world that greeted her on the other side of the gate. Her jaw slackened as she landed with the others and observed the sight before them.
‘Holy stars,’ Leo said.
The music was deafening, drowning the sky with its wild beat. Elara heard fiddles, trumpets, a beautiful divine orchestra, and the sound of frenzied singing, though she couldn’t pinpoint from where.
‘Is that—’
‘A fountain made of wine?’ Leo laughed. ‘Why yes, Elara, yes, it bloody is.’ He set off towards it, but Enzo grabbed him by his wings, pulling him back with a snap.
‘Ow,’ he hissed.
‘And who is the god of wine?’ Enzo asked, as though schooling a child.
‘Sagitton,’ Leo replied.
‘Exactly. He’s the god of madness and ecstasy too. Keep your wits about you, Acardi.’
The general nodded. ‘You’re right.’
‘The charms will be heavy tonight,’ Elara added. ‘Worse than at Lukas’s coronation ball. This isn’t just some revel. Stay alert and pay attention to everything you see.’
The group agreed.
‘Tonight is a night that honours the dead,’ she said to them all, before glancing to the empty sky, her moon now undetectable. ‘I only hope that means power is on my side.’