Chapter 41
CHAPTER FORTY-ONE
Kyson will not bend. There will only be six Bellators Bones.
—Correspondence from Enya to Lelyth. Date preceding Sultiran Calendrical System.
Autumn wind filled my lungs like the first breath of air after the plunge. I melted against Tiberius’s inky coat, soaking in his warmth as the wind picked up and we flew over western Sultira. We’d sailed south for the last six weeks, plotting, planning, and scouting.
Small towns dotted the coast before miles of farmland surrounding the Red River, flowing west from the Lake of Light. A smudge of gold stretched to the south as the Harena Desert unfolded in the distance.
My mind drifted to the foothills lining the eastern edge of the Lumerians and Enya’s resting place. It’d been over a year since the discovery, since my life changed entirely. Over a year since my first trip on the Evecta. Since Bayne. Since…everything.
Golden fields yawned open below us, and Drystan pointed from behind me to a small grouping of trees in the distance, where Nerissa, white knuckling Aquila’s feathers, landed.
Marian stepped from the cover of the trees, hurrying to mount the massive hawk.
She had agreed to travel to Krestwood for a few days to listen for any news of Rising forces.
She was the least conspicuous of our group, as Carina pointed out.
Most of us were either elves, pirates, or adorning wanted posters.
We banked and soared back to the Hydra, where Marian revealed all that she learned.
My knuckles rapped against the door to the captain’s chambers, muffled voices and a scrambled thump sounding in response. The door swung open, as did my mouth.
Lord Astraeus’s dark auburn hair was free of its braids and…
disheveled. He’d slung on his sea blue coat, leaving the buttons undone.
His tanned chest was bare and covered in scars, the snaking black ink that began at the strong column of his throat twisting its way down his shoulders before retreating behind his coat.
Two long slices ran vertically down both pectoral muscles, which appeared, to my greatest displeasure, cut from stone.
The Marisarma M sat in the center of his chest, the large, gruesome brand leaving the skin raised and pebbled.
Something about the damage pricked my consciousness, but I had no time to dwell on it as my eyes drifted lower to the knotted muscles rippling down his abdomen to the lines on his hips that led to the…
Oh gods. His leathers were undone.
My eyes snapped to where a lazy, satisfied grin formed on his lips.
His lips. Which I realized now curved against their fullness, looking unbelievably soft…
“Bonscaíh,” he purred.
My gaze fell to the strawberry blonde perched on his bed, furs wrapping snuggly around her chest and waist.
The color leached from Vienah’s face as her eyes shot to mine.
Mortified. We both were. I ground my teeth, irritated at the embarrassment he put her in, even if her presence here was…unexpected. Astraeus pulled the door halfway shut, though I could still see past his shoulder.
“I’m sorry. You shouldn’t have answered if y-you,” I stammered, looking back toward Vienah, whose face turned the color of my name day pie. My fingers fumbled with themselves until I wiped the sweat from the back of my neck.
“Had company,” I finished, schooling my features as I looked back at Astraeus.
“Apology accepted,” he crooned, grin widening as he leaned against the doorframe. “What can I do for you?” he asked, throwing Vienah a look that sent a tiny betrayal of heat shooting down my abdomen.
“Marian. She’s back,” I replied quickly, needing to put as much space between myself and the pirate as possible.
I turned to leave when a hand gripped my forearm.
I whirled toward him, outrage fueling the fire that replaced the whisper of feeling I’d had a moment ago.
I yanked my arm, and his grip tightened.
His dark eyes sparked in curiosity as they slid along my forearm, watching my powers swirl beneath my skin, at the Transcindiel glow gilding the darkness.
“Take your hands off me,” I hissed, allowing the spark of embers to light up the darkness of my own eyes.
He pursed his lips in a way that showed a hint of a smile as he dropped my arm and backed away. “I’ll find you later,” he murmured.
I whipped my arm back and stalked across the deck.
“What were his exact words?” Astraeus’s insufferable, swaggering demeanor only worsened after his afternoon with Vienah.
An entire. Fucking. Afternoon.
“He said the rebels are at Demon’s Door,” Marian answered, irritation cutting through her normally relaxed nature.
Demon’s Door. My mind replayed the lessons I’d received detailing Sultira’s lethal prison.
Astraeus stared at the map on the large table we sat around for several long moments before his lips tilted upward in a triumphant smile.
“The rebels are at Demon’s Door,” Astraeus repeated, stressing the signed word. “They aren’t being held captive there. They’ve taken the prison.” He grinned, raising his eyebrows and giving Ronan an appreciative nod.
Marian blinked, processing his words.
“That took some balls,” Astraeus praised.
A spark lit in Ronan’s sapphire eyes, and he flashed a wide grin.
“How long until we arrive?” Kresida asked, the elven War Slayer leaning over the map to get a better look at the location marking Demon’s Door.
“If the princess lends us a bit of wind,” Astraeus said, eyes sliding to Carina, “less than a week.”
“Lyvia,” Vienah murmured as we shuffled out of the room. “Can we talk?”
“Of course,” I mumbled, slowing and matching her pace, unsure why my stomach twisted.
“I just,” she began as the evening sun cast deep orange ripples to the west, “wanted to talk to you about…earlier.”
I offered a sympathetic smile. “Vienah, I don’t care who you sleep with.” I stopped at the edge of the ship and leaned over the rail. A spray of spindrift wafted from below, and I let out a soft sigh. “Be careful, though,” I said, turning to her.
Vienah leaned over the rail next to me. “I know, I know. He’s so…” She shook her head, sucking her lips between her teeth to suppress a smile.
Oh gods. “When did it start?”
“A couple weeks ago. We’ve been keeping it quiet… Didn’t want to make the others uncomfortable. But gods, today... Today we couldn’t stay away from each other. He is…”
I stole a glance as her tongue slid over her lower lip and quickly pulled my gaze away.
“Well, if he’s a good fuck, then who am I to say anything?” I shrugged.
Vienah turned toward me, her expression sobering.
“He’s unbelievable. I can’t stay away. I’m a moth to a flame. He’s unmatched”—she raised her eyebrows and shook her head—“in every possible way.” Vienah held her hands apart and slowly pulled them away as if she were measuring…
I whipped my gaze away, shaking my head profusely. “Nope. No, no. I don’t need that information,” I said, avoiding her eyes. “Just be careful, yeah?” I stared at Astraeus’s men bustling about the center deck.
Raek caught my gaze and glanced at Vienah, rolling his eyes with a soft shake of his head. He’d been rather grouchy this evening, and though I was unsure why, my emotions echoed his.
I turned my gaze east, to where a pod of pink creatures leaped through the waves in a dazzling pattern.
I calmed my breathing and refocused my thoughts as I watched them.
They chased one another to the edge of the horizon, their course unpredictable, yet they launched past one another in confident pursuit.
Did they know where they were going? Or did their unwavering faith in each other simply lead them to an unknown destination?
I forced my jaw to relax, breathing in a salty gust of spindrift as the Hydra surged through a swell.
I reflected on bonds I’d formed, on the warriors sailing with me and the ones we’d left behind.
A reluctant admission emerged as the cool mist hit my face.
My faith had wavered, these past few months.
Some bonds began to crack, others bending and changing while new ones were formed.
But despite the continuous evolution of my own pod, I knew where I was going.