Chapter 9 Kaia
Kaia
The stars above are brighter than I have ever seen them.
Without the torches and lanterns of the castle, without the glow from the city that always creates a haze over Valoria, the night sky is a vast sparkling canvas of light.
Thousands upon thousands of stars pierce the darkness, so many that I cannot begin to count them.
Even the moon seems brighter, casting silver light across our small camp and making everything seem almost magical.
After we finally took off, I wasn’t truly sure how everything would work out. I hadn’t really planned as well as I thought. It quickly became obvious that we’d need more than food, clothing, and our wits.
This is our first night alone together outside the palace walls.
Our first night without staff or guards or the constant weight of expectation pressing down on us.
Just me and Solace, sitting beside a small fire in a clearing deep in the Shadowlands, with nothing but wilderness stretching endlessly in every direction.
I should be terrified. I should be overwhelmed by the enormity of what we have done, of how far we have traveled from everything familiar and safe. But instead, I feel lighter than I have in years. Free in a way I never knew was possible.
Solace lies beside me in her wolf form, her massive body providing warmth and comfort as I lean against her side.
It’s been a few hours since we disappeared into the darkness, our bellies full of bread, cheese, and dried fruit, but it tasted better than any feast I have had in the castle.
Everything tastes better when you are not choking on obligation and disappointment.
"Tell me something," I say softly, my fingers idly playing through Solace's fur. "If you could have anything in life, anything at all, what would it be?"
I feel her attention shift to me through our mindlink, that connection between us that should not exist but does. That is a dangerous question, Princess.
"We are alone in the wilderness with no one to judge us or tell us what we should want. Humor me."
She is quiet for a long moment, and I can sense her thinking, weighing her words carefully.
I wish she didn’t have to. I would want a home.
Not a grand estate or a castle, just a small place where I could be myself without having to perform.
Somewhere with a garden where I could grow herbs and vegetables.
A place where the people I love could visit and feel safe.
And I would want freedom. The ability to wake each morning and choose how I spend my day rather than having it dictated by duty and hierarchy.
The simplicity of her desires makes my chest ache. She wants so little, really. Just peace and autonomy and the space to exist as herself. "That sounds beautiful. I would visit you often in this home of yours."
You would be living there with me, Solace corrects gently. In this fantasy, you are not bound to the throne or your father's ambitions. You are free to choose your own path, and you choose to share my simple life.
Tears prick at my eyes, surprising me with their intensity. Of course, I would be at her side. "I would. I would choose that in a heartbeat if it were possible."
What about you? What do you want from life?
I take a breath and let the truth spill out, the words I have never been able to say aloud in the castle.
"I just want everyone to believe I can be me.
That I am a princess and an Omega, yes, but I am also a fighter.
I am also someone with her own thoughts and dreams and capabilities.
I want everyone to stop dictating who I should love and what I should do.
I want my kingdom to see me as more than a prize to be won or a vessel to carry the next generation. "
The words come out faster as I speak, passion and frustration bleeding into my voice.
"I want my Beta. Not just my wolf or my guard, but my Beta!
I want Solace! I want to wake up beside you every morning without hiding, without fear.
I want to rule my kingdom with you at my side as my true partner, not hidden in the shadows where no one can acknowledge what you mean to me. "
Magic swirls around us suddenly, responding to my words, to the raw emotion and conviction behind them.
I can see it clearly, golden threads mixed with blue, the same colors I saw during a mating ceremony I witnessed once when I snuck into the servants' quarters years ago.
They are supposed to be private, just between mates under the watchful eye of the king but I was curious.
The magic continues to build, wrapping around both of us, pulsing with power that makes my skin tingle and my heart race. What is this? I reach out to run my fingers through it, the magic thick like wading through deep water.
Seconds later, I flop back onto the Earth floor, Solace suddenly gone. I twist around, confused, panic kicking up in my chest before I find her standing a few feet away.
Human. Naked. Gloriously, impossibly human.
I stare at her in shock, my mind struggling to process what just happened. She is staring at her hands, turning them over as if to confirm that they are real. Then she looks up at me, her dark eyes wide with disbelief.
"How did you..." She touches her face and her arms, confirming the reality of her transformation. "You should not be able to override an Alpha's command. That is not possible. The king's command was absolute."
I do not have answers. I do not understand what just happened or how my desperate declaration could have broken a magical compulsion that should have been unbreakable. All I know is that Solace is here, is human, is looking at me with wonder and confusion and something that might be hope.
I push to my feet and throw myself at my Beta, capturing her lips in a kiss.
She makes a surprised sound against my mouth but recovers quickly, her arms coming around me to pull me close.
I have missed this, even if it has been less than a day.
I have missed the feeling of her human body against mine.
My hands roam over her back, her shoulders, and her face, reacquainting myself with the contours I know so well.
When we finally break apart, both breathing hard, Solace rests her forehead against mine. "We need to figure out what just happened. This is not normal magic, Kaia. This is something else."
"I do not care." I kiss her again. "You are here. That is all that matters right now."
"But the implications—"
A sound cuts through the night, something between a growl and a shriek, close enough that it makes every hair on my body stand on end. Solace's entire demeanor changes instantly, her body going tense and alert. She pushes me behind her, her stance shifting into something defensive and ready.
"Stay behind me," she commands, and there is no room for argument in her voice.
But I do not stay behind her. I reach for the dagger at my hip and move to stand beside Solace, not behind her, her jaw clenching with frustration at my disobedience.
Another sound hits my ears, much closer now.
Whatever is making that noise is circling our camp, staying just beyond the reach of our firelight.
I can see movement in the shadows, something low to the ground and fast. My Omega senses pick up emotions of the creature, nothing that would signify that it is a shifter.
Hunger. Aggression. The simple, mindless drive to hunt and kill.
"What is it?" I whisper, trying to track the movement through the darkness.
"I do not know. Nothing I have encountered before. The scent is wrong. Part wolf, part something else. It smells of rot and desperation."
The creature bursts from the shadows with terrifying speed.
It is roughly the size of a large dog, but that is where any resemblance to normal animals ends.
Its body is gaunt, ribs visible beneath mangy fur that might have once been gray but is now a sickly yellowish color.
Its eyes glow red in the firelight, reflecting like a predator's but with an intelligence that is unsettling.
The teeth in its open mouth are far too large for its skull, overlapping and jagged, designed to rend and tear.
Solace shifts instantly, her human form giving way to her wolf.
She moves to intercept the creature, positioning herself between me and the threat.
I stand behind her with my mother's dagger drawn, watching the creature circle us, terror flooding through my chest. I knew that the Shadowlands would be dangerous but experiencing something like this is an entirely different thing to wrap my head around.
Neighs ring in my ear behind me, my horse no doubt startled but safe as I twist around to look at him.
When I face forward, the creature lunges at Solace with terrifying speed.
She meets it head-on, catching it with her jaws and throwing it sideways.
The thing hits the ground hard but recovers instantly, scrambling back to its feet.
Solace circles with it, keeping herself between the threat and me.
It snaps at her several times, trying to find an opening.
She dodges and counters, teeth flashing back at it, a low growl rumbling through her chest as the creature tries and fails to truly engage.
They clash again, a tangle of fur and claws and snarls, Solace forcing the creature back toward the edge of the camp we constructed.
Just as I think it’s going to slink back into the darkness, it darts toward Solace again. When she moves to block, the creature pivots and launches itself at me.
I barely have time to bring my dagger up before it is on me, teeth snapping inches from my throat. I feel the hot blast of its putrid breath, see the madness in those glowing red eyes. Then I drive the dagger up and into its throat with all the strength I possess, adrenaline racing through me.