Chapter Five #2
Even as a prince, Daemon didn’t mess with her authority.
“Good to be back, High Priestess. Is everything well?”
The priestess nodded, then turned on her heel.
He followed after her as she headed toward the largest of the buildings, taking in the scene around him. He would never get over the beauty of the sanctuary grounds.
Columns of opaque white stone, with large swirls of arctic blue and periwinkle, lined the path before the steps and shimmered in the sunlight. However, due to the high elevation, there wasn’t much in the way of vegetation. But where there was a lack of greenery, there was an abundance of scenery.
Snow-capped mountains created jagged cuts through the horizon, and beyond them sat a glistening expanse of deep blue water that stretched as far as the eye could see.
Once inside, Daemon inhaled deeply. The smell of vegetable soup hung heavily in the air, which made his mouth water and his stomach grumble.
The space was warm and inviting. Long tables were nestled under beautiful multi-colored glass windows that depicted the visages of their Goddess. Intimate sitting areas surrounded the massive fireplace on the far wall, complete with blankets and floor cushions.
It was relaxing. A quiet and calm place, free from distractions, and just what he needed.
“Would you like something to eat, Your Highness?” The High Priestess asked as they made their way through the communal area, where a few priestesses and guests were finishing what was left of their meals.
“That would be wonderful, High Priestess, thank you.”
She stopped and turned her head in his direction, a small smile playing on her lips. “As I’ve told you before, Your Highness. You may call me Darya.”
Daemon chuckled. “And as I’ve told you, Darya, you may call me Daemon while I am here. Just as you used to.”
He’d known Darya for years. Met her when he’d come to study at the temple after his magic had manifested three years ago. They’d spent meals together and trained together. She learned their Goddess's ways while he discovered his magic's ins and outs.
Since then, they’d only seen each other a few times a year when he came to the island every other month. And in that time, she’d risen from pupil to High Priestess.
She inclined her head in acceptance, then continued to lead him through the room.
Exiting the main building, they headed toward the sleeping quarters.
His room was no different from any of the others on the grounds. Simple, with no more than the necessities: a bed for one, a small writing desk, and an armoire that held simple ivory linen clothes that were required to be worn at the sanctuary.
There were no private bathing rooms on the grounds. Instead, there were a handful of communal areas for hygiene.
As Daemon entered his rooms, another priestess exited, having just brought him a washbowl and towel to clean up from his trek up the mountain.
Darya excused herself, leaving him to his own devices, but not before issuing promises of food and wine once he joined everyone else in the communal building.
By the time he’d curled into bed that night, the moon was high in the sky, and he’d fallen asleep with a smile on his face for the first time in a long time.
The cold stone floor of the temple bit into the soles of Daemon’s bare feet as he paced frantically across the space.
He’d been at this for days.
Three days of going back through the basics of magic. Of trying to regain control of the shadows that coursed beneath his skin.
Three days of meditating beneath the stars, trying—and failing—to get a sign from the Goddess Narissa to show him where to go from here. And he had nothing to show for it.
This was his last night at the sanctuary, and as he came to a stop in the center of the floor, he tilted his head upward and shouted into the star-speckled sky, “Goddess, why won’t you answer me!”
The temple was tucked away in the far corner of the grounds. Secluded from the rest of the compound to give privacy to those who wished to convene with their Goddess—even if they were yelling into the void of the night.
Made only of moonstone columns, with no solid walls or ceiling, it looked out over the sea below and to the sky above.
Daemon fell to his knees as he stared up at the inky black sky.
The swirls of colors and stars that filled the blank canvas above him no longer brought him the solace that it once did. Not since he’d laid his eyes upon his star.
His throat was sore from shouting, and his hands shook at his sides as anger coursed through his body.
Roughly, he ran his fingers through his hair and released an exasperated sigh as his head fell forward in defeat.
“There’s no need to shout, my son.”
A voice, soft as velvet, slid into his thoughts, causing him to snap his head up and glance around. But there was no one there as a silky laugh caressed the corners of his mind.
“Sit, Daemon. Close your eyes, and see me. Close your eyes and look upon my face.”
He did as the voice commanded. Sitting on the floor of the Moonstone Temple, he lifted his face to the sky once more and closed his eyes.
His mind filled with the deepest blues before clearing away to reveal the bearer of the voice.
Staring back at him was a woman clad in sky-blue and dove-gray robes, with pearls and tentacles woven through the auburn waves of her hair and a fisherman’s net draped across her eyes.
But when she pushed the veil aside, it wasn’t the blank eyes of lore that shone back at him.
Instead, eyes the color of the ocean's depths locked onto his.
His eyes widened as he stared back at the woman.
At the Goddess Narissa, herself.
“Hello, Prince Daemon.”
“My Lady.” Daemon bowed low to the floor, his heart pounding in his chest. As far as he knew, the only people alive who saw Narissa were her priestesses. Everyone else had been lured to their deaths—or so the legends say.
“Rise, my son. You have no reason to fear me.”
Daemon rose and silently met her gaze.
“I’ve been watching you, Daemon. You and your star.”
“Why?” His voice was barely a whisper, and the Goddess smiled.
“That’s not the question you wanted to ask me.” Narissa began to take leisurely steps around the temple, weaving her way around the columns as she spoke. “Not the question that has plagued your mind and heart for months on end.”
Daemon’s heart clenched in his chest as he let the words tumble from his lips. “Why am I drawn to Auraelia? Why does it feel like my very soul fractures into pieces when I’m no longer near her? Why—”
Narissa appeared in front of him, mere inches from his face. “Because, dear boy, she is the other half of your soul. She is the one whose heart beats in time with your own. She is your soulmate, Daemon.”
“Soulmate?” Shock radiated through his body at her words. Shock and…clarity.
The Goddess spun away and continued her lazy rounds through the temple. “Yes, your soulmate. Yours is a love that has been destined for over five hundred years. Yours is a love that was meant to bring all of Ixora together. But your ancestor, King Erix, spoiled that.”
“The treaty,” Daemon muttered under his breath.
“Yes, the treaty. For centuries, the souls of both yours and Auraelia’s ancestors have been reborn.
Given new life and a new chance at love.
But they are kept apart in one way or another every cycle.
” She paused momentarily, then turned toward him, her eyes full of hope.
“You and Auraelia have a chance at happiness, Daemon. Have a chance to bring the realm together. You just have to take it.”
His shoulders dropped as he released a sorrowful sigh. “Auraelia doesn’t want anything to do with me or us anymore.”
“Do you honestly believe that to be true?” she asked, her tone skeptical.
He didn’t respond. Didn’t know how to respond.
Did he believe that? No. And despite her best efforts to push him away, he knew she loved him. But he also didn’t know how to convince her of it either when she refused to let him in.
Narissa grabbed his shoulders, pulling his attention back to her. “The love between you is written in the stars, Daemon. Your souls are bound to each other, and only together can you do what needs to be done.”
He didn’t miss the stress she put on the word “together.” Didn’t miss the slight widening of her dark eyes as she said it.
Together? How the fuck is that going to work when she won’t even talk to me?
But before he could ask her what she meant—she was gone.
The deep hues that clouded his mind while he conversed with the Goddess faded away, and Daemon blinked at the brightness of the moon that took their place.
His head throbbed like it had the morning after he’d found Davina in his chambers.
What the fuck was that about?