Chapter 6
LYRA
I moved through the courtyard, unable to rid myself of an uneasiness that had settled over me during our conversation.
I’d long ago dismissed our interaction at the Festival of Tides as one I imagined.
If it seemed, with one step toward him, Terran would have ravaged me…
surely it had been more in my own mind, the dancers having influenced my thinking.
You’ve done all but say, “Fuck me Terran,” since you’ve arrived.
Why should I be surprised a Gyorian, and one as bold as its prince, would say such a thing? He did it to unsettle me. And it had worked.
The courtyard was quiet, lit by a few low-burning torches that cast long shadows across the stone. The air was cool but not harsh, still carrying the faint scent of something darker, like storm-soaked earth.
Jagged cliffs loomed beyond the outer wall. Strange silver-leafed trees lined the path, their leaves clicking softly in the wind. This place didn’t breathe like Aetheria, but there was magic here too. It was just buried deeper, quieter. Waiting.
I kept my steps light as I moved through the garden. No one had stopped me. Yet.
Terran would most certainly know I was out here. But unless he were to openly declare me a prisoner, there was no recourse for him or his guards who watched me even now.
Talk to me.
Dell had been here for too long. Eleven years apart from Aetheria, breathing Gyorian air and walking on the land of a magic so different from our own, his whispers had grown quieter.
They didn’t travel the way they used to.
Not through buildings, not across long distances.
His reach had dulled, like a blade gone soft at the edge.
Dell?
I sent the silent message along the air currents, praying he might be waiting. Dell would know of my presence, but he’d been silent when I arrived. And this was the first time I had been able to make my way outside the palace walls.
It’s no longer in his crown.
I closed my eyes against the darkness, taking a deep breath, smiling.
Where is it?
Out here, in the open, his whispers were clear.
I do not know.
My smile faltered. That did not bode well.
Seryn?
Was discovered and taken before I was aware of what happened. The king ordered Prince Terran to execute him.
It was as I’d heard.
Tell me what you know.
To the guard, I was strolling through the courtyard, perhaps unable to sleep. In truth, I was gathering the most important intelligence in more than a century.
It had been kept in his crown until recently. The day before Seryn was killed, I obtained an audience with him and the stone was… missing. I’ve not yet been able to gain additional information on its whereabouts… and then Seryn.
Dell went silent.
Seryn was discovered. And killed. By Terran.
It is too dangerous for you here any longer. Go to the Veiled Market and find Ilyas Rho. Avoid the Warden’s Hold at all costs. They were out in force on my way in.
The Wardens enforced Gyorian law and would be more vigilant than ever, taking their cues from an increasingly unstable, and suspicious, king.
I would not presume to leave you alone here, my lady.
I’d stopped and the guard noticed. Resuming my meandering, I put Dell at ease.
Were you not here alone while Seryn was trained?
Ah, but…
Careful, Dell. I was outsmarting kings before you learned to whisper.
His response was immediate.
Apologies, my lady. I meant no offense.
Dell would not perish as Seryn had. If he thought me offended, better than having him remain here out of a sense of duty. So instead of saying, “None taken,” as I might in other circumstances, I ensured his safety instead.
Prove it.
More silence. I understood his dilemma. Aetherian warriors were taught to protect, not abandon. But Dell knew what was at stake. He had known since the day he chose to stay behind enemy lines, and that he remained alive was a testament to his abilities.
You’ve done extraordinarily well. Let me prove my own worth, now. And join you on our voyage back home.
Home, he whispered finally. It feels as if I have two homes now. But only one clan has my loyalty. I will do as you request, my lady.
This is what we fought for. Returning to the days Dell would be openly welcome in Gyoria. A united Elydor with wide-open borders. Someday, perhaps he could enjoy two homes in this land.
May the winds guide you to safety.
And you as well, Lady Lyra. Trust no one here.
A warning I didn’t need.
Ensuring he was finished, I waited a moment longer and made my way back inside. From the look of the first guard I passed, and the second, I was surprised not to find Terran standing at my door, waiting.
Instead, I opened it, thankful to find my chamber empty, and sank back into the chair, my mind racing with the events of the day. And more importantly, calculating my next move.
Terran wanted the truth. Instead, he would be given a partial one. And that only because it was becoming clear, without him, the Stone of Mor’Vallis would be impossible to obtain.
I would lay you down on that bed and make you scream louder than you have in the long life you’ve lived and be happier for it.
This wasn’t the first time since we’d first met that the Gyorian prince had stirred a part of me that I had little inclination to explore.
With little time for entanglements and complications which undoubtedly arose by having a partner, meeting my basic needs had always been sufficient.
And perhaps, with Terran, that’s all it would be.
A coupling, perhaps better than most, but a coupling, nonetheless.
And yet… the unsettling flutter in my core at his words told me otherwise. Something about this particular Gyorian warrior gave way to a warning I’d always been able to ignore. But our situation was different this time. I needed him, and he wanted me.
That was my answer. And in truth, my excuse too.
To let down my guard without admitting that’s what I was doing. Because wanting him had never been the problem.
Admitting it?
That was another story.