Chapter 26 Eveera #2
"Aren't you? By demanding that I share all of my decisions with you? Because it'll make us seem like a united front? We are not currently a united front. We are— well, I don't know what we are right now. But united is far from it."
Rorin lets out a long breath, his hand rubbing against the stubble growing on his chin, "what do you need from me?"
"I need you to trust that I know what I am doing. I am the queen of Obsidian; nothing will stand in the way of me being that. If that means I clean house on this council, I will."
"So we're playing host."
I nod, "we're playing host."
It's going to take a few days to sort out all of the arrangements. Where they'll sleep, what they'll eat. While the Consul and hopefully King Eloden will have no travel time thanks to the portals, we'll have to wait to receive the leaders in the Vast.
I'd had Armond send off our best riders from each of the clans to act as our liaisons, and now I wait again.
The wind bites at my cheeks as Vada flies through the night, the stars above me clear at this height with the clouds underneath us.
I lay myself back between her scales, letting the heat of her combat the chill of the air.
When I'd told her about offering to host five diplomatic heads, she — like everyone else seemed to — threw a fit.
I was afraid she would burn me right there in my throne room if I didn't agree to go out with her.
So here we are, flying in tense, awkward silence.
Her body takes a sharp dive, and I slide, grappling furiously at the spikes jutting out from her spine. "Easy there."
Vada growls lowly and tips further down until the end of her snout is parallel to the ground. My legs, in a last-ditch effort to not plummet to my death, wrap poorly around the spike, fusing my body to the hard surface. She pulls up at the last second, the breath abandoning my lungs.
With a harsh THUD! she lands, dirt billowing up around us, and I dismount as gracefully as I can on two legs that feel like gelatin.
“That.” I gasp, leaning over on the top of my thighs. “Was a really fucking mean thing to do."
"I disagree. There are many things on my list I could count as 'really fucking mean', human.” She mocks, “getting you here safely is not one of them."
"Safe? Ha, you—"
She drops her head down in front of me, her piercing gold eye flashing, "you are alive, yes?"
"Yes."
"You are in one piece, yes?"
My eyes roll backwards at the patronizing tone she uses. "Yes." I grit.
A roll of blistering hot steam coasts from her nostrils as she lifts her chin, looking down on me. "Then cease your insufferable whining and get to work. Make them rise."
"E-excuse me?"
"You have no control. You are weak because you are afraid."
I scoff, my head shaking back and forth. "I am not."
Vada's large skull swings closer to me, placing her teeth uncomfortably close to my face.
"No? Your dreams affect more than the little princeling.
" My stomach bottoms out — I should’ve known that our bond would have her experiencing the same things that I was.
"You never could have saved the guard you claimed as brother…
" Axel… "And you were capable of ruining the one who took you. But you ran."
"You don't understand." I snarl, pushing back the series of images accosting my mind’s eye, my blood heating.
"It's my fault that he wasn't able to rest — neither he nor Max. This curse—"
She stomps her foot, "this is no curse. It is power.” Her tail wraps around the back of my legs, urging me closer to her open maw. “Where is the girl I once knew. Whose rage drove her passion? The girl who shielded her kingdom from being touched by war?"
"That is because I gave my people an entirely different war on the inside." I bark, cutting her off.
She huffs, whipping her head around, and I lean into her tail as much as I can to avoid being impaled by one of the bony spikes decorating her cheeks.
"Who is this simpering, frightened child before me? Where is your fire?! Or must I burn you myself to get it started?"
The sound emanating through her chest is so deep, so low, that it shakes the earth and trees surrounding us. I feel the heat before even seeing the ball of fire glowing in the back of her throat, and my heart pounds loudly beneath my ribs.
Scared she might not stop this time, that she’ll actually burn me… or worse, a wretched scream tears from my throat. A sea of shadows spills out around us, flooding into the woods. In response to the wave of power, dozens of red eyes appear.
In each of their faces, I watch as my mind morphs them into a reflection of Axel and Max — my heart pangs the longer I look, while hot tears stain my cheeks. "I can't hold this many." I croak.
"I did not choose someone weak!" She roars again, and I flinch.
“They're not us, E…" Axel’s voice echoes in my head.
From the corner of my eye, one of the creatures advances, and I dig my nails into my palms. I suck in a sharp breath through my nose, allowing my Wield to overwhelm my senses.
You are their maker… You are in control…
"Kneel."
One by one, the creatures heed my command. Their decrepit bodies drop to a mangled knee, waiting for my next order.
“There you are, little demon."