CHAPTER THIRTEEN
MORRIGAN
The Veil
“What do you mean, you haven’t found anything?” I pace in my astral form as Variant leans against his throne like the arrogant king I encouraged him to be. He moves away from the seat and stands right in front of me, glaring into my eyes as if he’s the one pulling the strings and not the puppet. My chin lifts defiantly. “I told you to find a way into The Veil. Something is happening here, I can feel it. And if we want this power for ourselves, we need to move quickly.” I don’t want to wait on the idiot sprite for answers. Variant needs to find them.
“I don’t like your tone, Morrigan.” Variant comes close to my face. “You forget who is in charge here! If not for the others hiding you there, I would carve out your tongue.”
“Apologies, my King. I only want what is best for us both.”
Variant smiles. “That’s better. I must say, I miss our time together. You were always so obedient.” His hand brushes my astral form, causing me to shiver though I can’t feel the warmth of his skin or the sensation of his touch. Just the memory alone is enough to make my core clench. I lick my lips and lean closer, causing his hand to pass through my body. He chuckles and walks back to the throne with a bit more confidence in his stride.
“Will you keep looking?” I ask softly.
“I will, and I will continue the harvesting as well. The talisman is nearly complete, and the artificer says it is her best work yet. With the life forces we’ve leached from the fae, you should have enough power to do as you promised and force Theren to submit to me. I need the Unseelie army if we are going to kill Silvanus.”
“And kill him we must.”
“Any why is that? You know you’ve never told me.”
I exhale impatiently. I have told Variant but he doesn’t listen. “Silvanus and I were once two beings fighting for the same cause. Abedon was uncontrollable. He slaughtered the gods and bathed in their blood, taking their power for himself. We watched darkness steal across the realms and knew we had to do something about it,” I reply. “So we imprisoned Abedon to the Hall of The Gods. Silvanus saw a prophecy that spoke of four kings coming together to create a balance, to right the wrongs that Abedon had done and end the Singularity.”
“Then why throw the balance again? Why try to kill Silvanus?”
“Peace makes people weak, Variant. Silvanus wanted the realms to thrive as they were, but I saw the truth. The realms were too comfortable. If Abedon ever escaped, he would destroy everything. The realms needed chaos, they needed to know real fear and how to fight against the darkness.” My steps quicken as I begin to pace once more. “Silvanus knew that I wanted to shift the balance. So he took my power, not Abedon, and trapped it inside that unholy mirror of his.”
“That’s why you told me to kill Baron then?” Variant demands, his tone of voice suddenly angry. “Baron was never after the power for himself, was he?” Variant reaches for me as if to stop my movements, but his hand passes through me again. Anger creases his brow as he scowls in my direction. “You had me betray my brothers just to spite Silvanus? To get me to do your dirty work and shift the balance for you?”
“You slayed Baron so we could prepare the realms for what is to come! Without the great battle, the orcs and demons would never have fought beside the angels. You wouldn’t have risen to power and had the courage to ask Theren to turn against his brother. You are stronger because of my actions, and so is everyone else.”
“But I could have fought beside Cambion and the others! We could have put our magic together and ended Abedon while he was still imprisoned. But you took matters into your own hands, and now...”
“What? Now what?” I ask. “This changes nothing, Variant. You are their enemy.”
“But, I didn’t need to be!”
“Don’t worry, you’ll be reunited with Cambion, Baron and Dragan soon. We need all three of them alive, if we are to be successful. You and I will rise as the new gods.”
“What’s the point, if there’s no one left to see it happen?”
“Variant, now is not the time for one of your tantrums. If Abedon becomes free and finds Eilish, everything we’ve set in motion will be for naught. It will be the others who take the throne and become the new gods, not us! Is that what you want?”
He runs a hand through his hair and snarls, “We get your powers back and take The Veil for ourselves. I take control of the spirit world and the Unseelie army. You kill Silvanus and trap his power into the talisman. Once we have Cambion, Dragan, and Baron, we can begin the Rapture and channel the combined force of our energy into Eilish once we reach the home of the gods—”
“She opens the Hall of The Gods and destroys Abedon. After the Rapture is over, the power will return to us and the throne will be ours for the taking. You and I will be the ultimate power, ruling over the worlds that rest at our feet.” I lift my hand, watching as it begins to fade once more. I’m running out of time. “Do your part and I shall do mine, Variant. Eilish is the vessel we need for this to work. So, next time you decide to use compulsion on someone, think again.”
“You promised I would have her,” he pouts.
I’m suddenly angrier than I was. “You will and then she will die.”
I feel myself return to my body and see that pesky little sprite watching from the windowsill. He flies over and brazenly points in my face. “I hear you sayin’ somethin’ ‘bout Pretty. If you thinks you can just—”
Though my power is not what it was, I’m not without magic. I toss the annoying creature across the room with a flick of my wrist. He stares at me in horror before scampering away. Soon, they will all learn of what I am truly capable.
***
EILISH
The Veil
The portal opens and I feel a rush of happiness when I see smoke coiling from the chimney of the cottage. I race toward the door and throw it open, searching for the others. “Dragan!” I call, but no one answers. “Noni! Cambion! Where is everyone?” My search takes me up to our sleeping quarters, where I find Flumph sniveling in the corner. “What is it? Where is everyone?”
“The elf got all pissy with me an’ then ran off into the woods agin. I ain’t goin’ after him neither! Not when he been a dick since you been gone,” the ornery sprite complains. “The others gone off to get Assface an’ Aima.”
“Assface… er Kolvar? And Aima?” I repeat.
“Yep.”
“Why?”
“Theren were gonna execute them an’ Baron an’ Dragan went to rescue the rest o’ the giants, but they ain’t been back yet. You took for fuckin’ ever, by the way. Thanks a lot!”
I kiss Flumph on the cheek and hurry down to find Pyre glancing around the sitting room.
“Baron and Dragan haven’t been here for some time. Did Flumph say where they went?” he asks.
“The Unseelie kingdom, to rescue Aima and Kolvar,” I answer. Flumph flies down the stairs and I notice his wing seems a little crooked. Not broken, but definitely not right. Pyre sees it as well, but Flumph waves us off.
“What happened with Kolvar and Aima?” Pyre asks.
“Noni an’ I was checkin’ on ‘em an’ we hears the Unseelie pricks talkin’ ‘bout killin’ them with soulfire . We tells the others, an’ they run off to go save ‘em. Cambion been comin’ an’ goin for the past three fuckin’ days, leavin’ me here to babysit the Mother Heifer while she sleepin’.”
“Oh, I’m not sleeping anymore.”
I turn to face the direction of the voice and I’m surprised to see the Midnight Queen awake, much less moving around. Pyre appears surprised, too. She smiles at me and pulls me into a warm embrace.
“Are you feeling well?” I ask her.
“I’m feeling better than before, but I fear I won’t see much progress if I can’t get my power back. Where were you? I expected to be questioned when I awakened, but everyone seems to have gone elsewhere.”
Pyre casts me a strange look and I decide not to tell Morrigan the truth—about the spire. I’m not sure why, but I keep that information to myself. “There was trouble in the Ashland. Harpies were attacking spirits, so Pyre and I went to take care of it.” I lower the neck of my tunic to show the long gash left behind by the harpy. “Sadly, I didn’t walk away unharmed.”
I get Pyre’s nod of approval and he pulls me aside. “I need to go get the others. You have to track down Cambion and…” He takes a deep breath and I realize my pheromones are very strong in the air between us. I duck my head and try to tamp down the hunger building inside me.
“Eilish,” Pyre breathes. “Go find Cambion. You need to talk to him.”
With that, he disappears through the doorway, and I see him tear open The Veil and step into a portal. The Midnight Queen watches with interest. I feel uneasy leaving her alone in Pyre’s home, but I need to trust her. But, then again, Silvanus warned me not to trust Morrigan. And yet, can Silvanus be trusted? Either way, I need her here in order to figure out what’s going on.
Cambion’s footprints mark the ground everywhere I look. I follow the path that’s the most worn. Clearly, the forest has become his escape in the spirit world. His gait is uneven, however. He must not have healed completely. Whatever weapon Variant used to wound the former Seelie King must have been very powerful to slow his healing to such an extreme. I continue down the path until I catch a strange scent on the wind.
Lust.
It’s thick and succulent, calling to me like the magic at the Echoing Spire. It’s Cambion. I know his scent anywhere. I allow it to wrap around me, to lure me closer to my would-be-prey, were I inclined to seduce him.
Would he let me? Would Cambion allow me to take what I need from him and give him pleasure in return? I pause for a moment and squeeze my thighs together, feeling a throbbing ache where I need him most. I want him desperately. And, if the tantalizing aroma in the forest is anything to go by, he wants me, too.
I remember the first time I felt him inside me—in a vision. I can’t recall when or how it came to be, but I know the way he felt as he stretched my walls to their limits and bathed me in his seed. Sex with Cambion is sweet but not gentle, slow but passionate, and it lingers in a place within me that nothing else can touch. I want him to tell me he loves me, to shower me in adoration and look at me with eyes that never stray. I don’t understand these yearnings.
This honey-eyed man looks down at me, watching me. I’m lying on a bed and he’s above me, his hands on either side of my head. His hair is disheveled and he’s out of breath. A thin sheen of sweat coats his entire body, causing that bronze skin to glitter. I can feel the heat coming off him. I watch as his muscles tense and release as he moves above me. Within me.
Yes, he’s buried deep inside me.
His eyes never leave mine as he thrusts himself into me repeatedly, each drive deeper than the last. I hear the sound of my own moan, which causes a smile to seize his mouth and he pushes into me even harder. “My King,” I say to him, and I can feel my smile.
He is beaming. “My beautiful Queen.”
Can succubus love? Can we feel something other than lust?
Maybe? But I’m not just a succubus, am I? No, I’m also an angel. I’m the taker and the giver, the temptation and redemption, brimstone and spring rain. That’s what I am—but not who I am.
I’m Eilish.
And I’m tired of hiding.