Chapter 35 Tidal Wave
Tidal Wave
If I knew I would be running for my life today, I wouldn’t have worn such high heels.
Granted I’ve fought in higher ones, but I was not a big fan of running in stilettos—especially when there was a wild beast chasing me through the lush green grounds of the Emerald Palace.
The creature was close enough that I could feel its warm breath licking up the back of my neck.
I pumped my legs harder, shreds of grass itching my ankles as I sprinted across the lawn and for the safety of the palace.
Maybe if I slammed the door on the beast hunting me it would magically disappear.
Even though I was a skilled fighter, I’d never taken on a creature that could quite literally make the ground beneath my feet shake.
The emerald archway glimmered from the sunlight streaming through the stained glass windows, giving it an ethereal effect. I sighed in relief, pushing myself closer to safety.
The Serpent Queen would live to see another day, I just needed to make it a few more paces.
Running from your problems won’t solve them, Seera.
A deep voice hissed in the corners of my mind, making my steps falter. The words cut deep, because, although I hated to admit it, they were true.
I had a tendency to run away from my problems.
When things got hard, I ran.
I ran away on my twenty-fifth birthday from the tower my mother locked me away in, instead of facing her.
I ran away from my people and my queendom when I felt threatened by the rebels, when I felt my control over my reign slipping between my fingers.
I ran from hearing the Serpent King’s true feelings mere moments ago.
Now, I ran from whatever beast was chasing after me, rather than trying to defeat it with my magic, with the depths of my power that have been slumbering all these years, simply waiting for me to unlock it.
I must have stopped running, for, when I forced my gaze to lift from the white and gold tiled floors, I was standing on the threshold of the archway leading into the palace.
The beast should have caught me and been munching on my bones by now, so why was I still standing unhurt?
Slowly, I glanced over my shoulder to finally assess the creature that lurked closely behind.
Not even two feet away stood a serpent as tall as the tower I used to live in. My palms grew slick at the sheer size of the beast, fear trickling down my spine like droplets of water as it threatened to overtake my every instinct.
Instead, I swallowed the emotion and examined the beast, starting with its softly whipping tail.
It was adorned with at least fifty rattles, and they made a beautiful sound as they swished, almost like the roar of rain pelting against a window.
Next, my gaze roamed over its thick emerald green body, with golden scales interwoven throughout in a cyclone pattern all the way up its back and along the entirety of its neck.
They glowed, almost as if they were pulsing with magic.
As my gaze soared high above to take in its face, a gasp tore from my lips.
Piercing green eyes stared down at me, and I immediately recognized the amused gleam shining through them.
“Alaric,” I whispered.
The snake blinked slowly, as if that one word triggered a landslide of emotions.
After what felt like an eternity of staring at one another, that captivating voice slithered into my mind once again.
You haven’t called me that since our last day together.
A deep sadness laced his words, making me realize my mistake.
I finally called the Serpent King by his given name amidst all my shock.
I opened my mouth to dismiss my slip, to say anything to break the tension brewing between us from one simple word—a word that felt far too intimate for what we were today.
We were not the people we were seventy-five years ago—the ones who stole intimate moments in the darkness of the caves of Morotis, whispering secrets late into the night.
The Serpent King and I were nothing anymore.
“Is this the part of our lesson where you tell me I can transform into a massive snake as well?” I bit my lip, suddenly feeling self-conscious over my poor crack at a joke.
Much to my surprise, a high pitched chuckle rasped through my head, once again sounding nothing like his usually deep bravado.
I liked it so much better, because it felt so much more like . . . him.
Like the man I used to know and lo—
I’m afraid you most likely do not have an animal form, but I feel a well of untapped magic within you, Seera. We just need to find a way for it to burst wide open.
“And how do you suggest we do that?” I glared up at the snake with a raised brow.
A good place to start would be facing everything you’ve run away from.
His tone carried a startling softness to it, but that didn’t stop me from crossing my arms over my chest to stare the serpent down and replying with one simple word.
“No.”
There were some things I refused to face, especially before the Serpent King.
Coward.
My low growl vibrated the back of my throat, and I instinctively took a step toward the snake, readying for a fight. My fingers twitched, itching to snatch the dagger strapped at my thigh and point it straight at the king’s thick throat.
As if he could read my thoughts, the snake lowered its head to my level, granting me a better angle to sink my dagger into its scales.
Did you know you scrunch up your face when you’re angry? It’s rather cute.
The king’s chuckle returned to his normal taunting timbre.
This time when I had the urge to reach for my dagger, I heeded to it and unsheathed the blade with one quick flick of my wrist.
“I am no coward,” I said, pointing my weapon directly at the serpent.
Its response was to dip its head further, forcing my blade to nick its flesh.
Point as many of your daggers at me as you’d like. I don’t scare easily, Serpent Queen, and I’d happily be on the receiving end of your blade any day.
My brows knitted with confusion upon hearing the king’s words—why would he say such a thing?
But pointing a dagger at me won’t unleash your powers, Seera. You need to feel. You need to stop hiding behind that mask of yours. That beautiful mask of the Serpent Queen.
“You stole my feelings from me, what do you expect me to do?!” I exploded.
“I am a shell of who I once was. There is no escaping the darkness that drowns me every single day of my miserable existence. And even if I could feel, I don’t want to.
” The raw words flew from my lips before I could get a firm grasp on my loose tongue.
My confession hung in the limited air between us, almost like my own personal noose ready to wrap tight around my neck and finally end it all.
I couldn’t handle the sorrow racing through the king’s eyes, so I dropped my gaze to my heels.
How did he always find a way to crawl into the rawest crevices of my heart?
The emotions I constantly swallowed threatened to burst from the tightly-sealed well I shoved them into for the past week.
I’d fought rebels, executed countless traitors, broken the Serpent King’s nose a couple of times, yet I couldn’t face the fact my soul was truly returning to me.
I couldn’t handle who I was underneath the mask I wore everyday as the Serpent Queen, because I was too afraid to see what was left of the mortal girl from the tower.
I’d utterly and completely lost myself with each soulless passing day, and there was no coming back from the acts I committed over the past seventy-five years.
I accepted there was no salvation for the wicked long ago, so what good would it do now to face my feelings and sinful deeds?
I refused to accept that underneath all the gorgeous dresses, all the blood-red lipstick, and all the cruel smiles, was the girl I used to be.
The girl who prayed for friendship, for a relationship with her mother, for her absent father, for her suffocating feelings to go away . . . the girl who prayed to be loved.
No, I wouldn’t survive if my soul returned—the weight of my emotions were far too heavy for anyone to withstand.
Perhaps, I was too harsh on the king earlier . . . maybe he was trying to save me from myself.
My vision blurred as I stared at the tiles, my dagger now dangling weakly at my side. Warmth kissed my cheeks, and I sighed as I tried to blink away the tears that slipped free.
For Serpent’s Sake, crying in front of the Serpent King was not on my to-do list today.
As I used the back of my hand to swipe away my tears, a soft hissing soothed me. It almost felt like what I imagined it would be like to receive a warm embrace from a loved one.
Ember descended my right arm, her black eyes finding mine. She looked worried about my emotional state.
A rougher hiss joined hers, alerting me to Dante’s presence as he wound around my left arm. When Dante nudged his head against my cheek to wipe away my lingering tears, I nearly fell into another fit.
Ember was my snake with the softer side, while Dante prided himself on the title of sassiest snake alive. Thus, the fact he was also concerned about me was too much to take.
Something snapped within me at the meaningful gesture from my snakes, at the fact they didn’t leave me to suffer alone during dark times.
As I looked at them and saw adoration shining within their eyes, I completely unravelled.
It was as if a dam burst open, and my emotions flooded straight into the void in my chest.
I could no longer bite back my feelings with my serpents looking at me with a devotion I didn’t deserve. An agonizing emotion speared into my heart like an arrow, momentarily stealing my breath away. I doubled over in pain as another wave of the feeling crashed over me.
I was so undeserving of any form of love, especially from the creatures I forced to be monsters alongside me.
Wave after wave, the weight of my past drowned me.
Finally, after nearly eighty years, I felt the emotion of guilt.
Guilt over executing thousands of my people, most of them for petty crimes.