Chapter 1
GRAESON
"No!" Dani shouted through the tears streaming down her russet-brown cheeks as she sprinted to the pile of rubble, her dark brown braids flying behind her. She clawed at the rocks that had fallen from the ceiling, throwing them behind her and peeling away at the wreckage, bit by bit. "He can't get away. He can't get away!" she repeated like a desperate mantra, her voice mangled and throat raw.
Back throbbing, Graeson took in a sharp breath and coughed as he inhaled dust. He waved his hand as he tried fruitlessly to fan away the billowing cloud in the air. Yet dust motes continued to swarm his vision.
More coughing sounded behind him, and Graeson jerked around, ignoring the sharp pain in his back.
"Terin, you two all right?" Graeson asked, finding the Pontian prince huddled on the ground, his large form covered in a thick layer of dust. Time seemed to stand still as Graeson waited for a response, his lungs constricting.
Finally, Terin nodded, and ash fell from his brown hair.
Graeson's attention dropped to the delicate hand lying limp beneath Terin's body. "Is she--" Graeson couldn't finish the question.
Thankfully, he didn't have to.
"She's all right," his friend said, assuring him as he pushed himself up with a groan.
Graeson stared at Kalisandre's unmoving form as Terin uncurled himself from her, having shielded her from most of the destruction. The evidence of Terin's gift still marked Kalisandre's pale face. The cotton wrapping around her forehead was soiled and stained red. Her wedding dress was shredded and smeared with grime and ash. But, Graeson reminded himself, she was all right--she was alive.
"What the fuck was that ?" Terin asked.
Forcing himself to look away from Kalisandre, Graeson studied the destruction from the explosion. Black soot covered the floor near the rubble, and an acrid smell lingered in the air.
"Seems like the same explosives the Frenzians used back home," Graeson said. "Maybe a toned-down version of it."
"Why would Domitius have one of those on him at a wedding?" Terin sputtered.
Graeson turned back to Terin and squinted at Kalisandre.
There were many questions spinning in Graeson's mind, and Terin's question was merely one of them.
"It seems like he had plans of his own," Graeson said.
"What do you think the chances are that Domitius was crushed?" Terin wondered.
Graeson snorted. "Not likely."
Terin's lips parted, but before he could say more, footsteps pounded down the hall, causing them to straighten.
"We need to go," Graeson urged, his mind spiraling. The Frenzian soldiers must have broken through the door to the tunnels beneath the temple. There was only one way out now, and based on the echo of the steps and the rattling of the cages, Graeson was not hopeful of an easy escape. He turned and called out, "Dani, enough."
But Dani didn't react. She kept digging as she repeated the same words over and over again. "He can't get away. He can't get away..."
She scratched at the wall, trying to get a hold of one of the fallen rocks in an attempt to reach the other side. Streaks of red smeared the stones from her bloodied nails.
Cursing under his breath, Graeson rushed over to her, pulling her up by the shoulders.
Mangled screams poured from Dani's lungs as she cried out, a desperate plea.
"Dani," Graeson rasped, tightening his hold around her. "He's gone."
"He can't be gone!" Dani shouted, twisting and clawing at Graeson's arms. "I have to kill him. I have to!"
As Graeson struggled to hold onto his friend without causing any harm, the pounding of the strangers' footsteps only grew louder. They had to move.
"We have more pressing things to deal with right now, Dani!"
"What could be more pressing than--" Dani choked on her words and froze in his arms.
The footsteps were now thunderous claps across the hard ground.
"Shit," Dani hissed.
With Dani finally regaining her senses, Graeson released her and swiftly drew the sword from its sheath. "If you want someone to kill, you're about to be in luck."
Dani wiped the tears away, leaving a wet streak through the thin layer of ash and grime that covered her brown cheeks. She pulled out a set of throwing knives from their holster, reeling in the rage. While Dani may not have a god inside her like Graeson, she was a born warrior--a fighter. She could turn off her emotions, bury the paralyzing anger, and transform it into something deadly.
This was the Dani Graeson had grown up with.
This was Fynn's wife--Danisinia Ferrios, the youngest general in Pontian history.
And by the gods, Graeson had forgotten how much he missed her. Even if he knew, deep down, that this face she wore was only a mask that hid the pain that was unfurling like a dark web inside her body.
Still, it was good to have her back, even for a moment.
"Terin, grab Kalisandre and get behind us," Dani commanded. "When we say run, you run. From the pattern of their footsteps, I would guess there are maybe three coming our way. Graeson and I will hold them off as you get out of here. You're weak--"
Terin bristled at the remark. "I'm not--"
"Protect her," Dani ordered, grabbing Terin by the collar as she cut him off. "We didn't come all this way for nothing. Got it?"
Frowning, Terin nodded in defeat, though his hand twitched at his hip where his short blade was sheathed.
Dani released him and turned to Graeson next. Sweat dripped from Dani's brow as she bounced on her feet. A glimmer of fear sparked in her hazel eyes, but she quickly hid it. "We strike first and ask questions later, yeah?"
"Works for me," Graeson said, twisting his sword as he readied himself.
Despite the exhaustion from the earlier battle that interrupted the royal wedding and the force of the explosion that had thrown them back, Graeson still had some fight left in him. If it meant Kalisandre and his friends could escape the temple alive, he would do whatever it took.
As the footsteps grew louder, his heart rate accelerated, hammering against his ribcage.
You would have nothing to fear if you just let go, the god whispered in the back of Graeson's mind.
Graeson snarled back, Now is not the time.
The god caged within beat against the mental door, demanding to be let loose, but Graeson ignored his pleas as his vision reddened with fury.
They had come too far for this to be over now, for things to end here in this decrepit space. Graeson would not die in a cramped tunnel beneath this temple, fighting for air among the dust motes and soot.
This would not be how his and Kalisandre's story ended.
Torchlight bounced off the walls, casting eerie shadows and revealing glints of steel. Dani shifted on her feet and took a tentative step forward, her fingers flexing over the hilt of the throwing knife.
Without hesitating, Graeson stormed forward, his sword gleaming in the flickering light. As their attackers rounded the corner, the shadows obscuring their features, he swung, only to have his arm knocked back. Then, in one breath, Graeson's legs were swept off the ground, and his back hit the floor with a loud smack .
Pain spiked through his body, and he hissed out, gritting his teeth. He tried to push himself up, but a weight came crashing down upon him, forcing him back to the ground.
The assailant, masked in shadows, grabbed the chest plate and slammed Graeson's back against the concrete, sending pain wracking through his body.
Graeson's fingers tightened around the hilt of his sword. But as he prepared to strike, Dani's shout ripped through the air. "Graeson!"
He snapped his head in her direction, the sound too urgent to dismiss despite the enemy atop him. When he found her still standing in front of the crumbled wall, not having moved an inch and with the throwing knife loose in her hand, Graeson's brows furrowed.
"Want to drop the blade, sunshine?" a feminine voice taunted.
Graeson turned his attention back to the person sitting on him. Their knees pressed into his thighs, and their hands locked his arms against the ground.
The rage faded from the corners of his vision as a nearby torch illuminated the person's face, revealing a halo of bright white hair that cascaded down and brushed his chest. A smudge of soot was smeared across her pale cheek.
Graeson blinked. "Ellie?" he exclaimed.
The Tetrian warrior winked, patting him gently on the face. "Glad to find you in one piece, Gray." Ellie leaned back, her knees still keeping him in place as if she didn't completely trust him.
As the god inside him seethed as Ellie stared down at him, Graeson didn't blame her.
"What the fuck are you doing here?" Graeson demanded, struggling to break free.
She shrugged. "Apparently, testing my luck with your blade."
The god tsked.
You knew, didn't you? Graeson asked.
Graeson could feel the god shrug. I do not trust her.
You don't trust her because she doesn't trust you.
Us, the god hissed in correction. She doesn't trust us.
She trusts me just fine.
The god cackled, the laughter sending a chill down Graeson's spine. After all this time, you still think you and I are so different?
"Gray?" Ellie called out, forcing Graeson's attention back to her.
He clenched his jaw but nodded.
Then, to the monster living within him, he said, I am not you.
The god chuckled but grew silent as he slipped back into his cell.
Ellie narrowed her eyes, assessing him. But after a moment, she stood and extended a hand. Graeson grabbed it gratefully.
"You're lucky we waited for you," Ellie remarked, helping him up. "If we hadn't come running when we heard the explosion, you would have been in a world of trouble if it was that easy to knock you off your feet."
Graeson grumbled but said nothing.
She was right, and they both knew it. He needed to get his head on straight, or else they would be in trouble the next time they came across someone less friendly.
"What happened?" Dani asked, having joined them. Terin stood beside her with Kalisandre's limp form already in his arms.
Graeson had the urge to reach out to Kalisandre and take her from Terin. But if he had almost hurt Ellie, who's to say he wouldn't hurt Kalisandre, too?
He folded his hands over his chest and peered at the other two who stood panting behind Ellie. Like the rest, the Princess of Tetria was covered in blood and soot. Medenia leaned against Emmett, her arm wrapped around the Pontian.
"We ran into some trouble on the way down," Ellie explained. "But we're mostly all right."
Terin shifted his hold on Kalisandre and asked, "Medenia?"
The princess's eyes widened as she pointed to herself. "Me? Oh, I'm perfectly fine," she said with a saccharine smile, the torch's flames reflecting vibrantly in her eyes. "I haven't had this much excitement in a long time. After sitting in so many council meetings, I was nervous that all my training would have been forgotten." She blew a raven-black strand of hair from her face. "Safe to say it hasn't in the slightest."
"You sure about that?" Dani asked, pointing to Emmett beside her.
"Oh, he's been better," Medenia said, adjusting her arm beneath Emmett's as he leaned more of his weight against her, his complexion a sickly hue. "He's not hurt, but he's not too keen on the sight of blood, apparently."
Emmett gagged, slapping a hand over his mouth.
"Got it," Dani said, grimacing slightly.
"Now that that's settled," Ellie said, "we really should get going. If the guards we ran into knew to check here, then others will surely follow. They've all filed out of the temple, so we should use the crowded streets to our advantage while we can."
Graeson nodded and turned to Terin.
"No, I've got her," Terin assured, holding his sister tighter to his chest. "I'm tired and draining quickly. I need to stay in contact with her, or else she could wake up sooner than we want. And right now, we don't need anything else to worry about. Just"--he adjusted his hold on her--"go."
Graeson hesitated, gnawing on the bottom of his lip in uncertainty. "Are you sure? I can--"
"I'm sure," Terin said, his words clipped.
Before Graeson could push the issue more, Ellie added, "Come on. We have no time to argue about this and no time to deal with your overbearing masculinity, Gray."
"My overbearing masculinity?" Graeson scoffed. "I'm not over--"
Ellie snatched his hand and pulled him after her, cutting him off. "Not the time," she snapped with a roll of her eyes.
Then they were running back through the halls, and Graeson had no choice but to follow.
When they came across the cells, the caged animals within thrashed against the iron bars, clawing at them. Rancid, hot breath filled the narrow hall as they snarled and hissed. Even though it pained him to leave them caged, Graeson kept his gaze forward. They couldn't afford to stop.
They retraced their steps through the tunnels beneath the temple. Their boots were a rancorous roar in the damp tunnel, and their breaths were heavy as their chests heaved to keep up with their need for air. As they neared the beginning of the tunnel, bodies littered the floor, and blood was splattered across the walls in a grotesque display of violence. Behind Graeson, Emmett whimpered. Even though Emmett was by no means a soldier, he should have known what he was getting into when he agreed to leave the safety of the island and accompany them. Then again, it was nearly impossible to prepare oneself for the way death wrapped its claws around its victims. No training could prepare you for the brutality and horror of a fight that ended in death. Or the way death tainted the air and lingered on your skin.
As they ran past the bodies, Graeson gave Ellie a side-eyed glance.
Ellie smirked. "What? Did you think I was joking?"
Graeson snorted, shaking his head. "Did you have to leave such a mess?"
Ellie cackled. "Oh, like we had the time to clean up?"
Graeson cocked a brow and glanced over his shoulder.
Kalisandre bobbled in her brother's arms. Her brows twisted at the center of her forehead while whatever dream Terin concocted consumed her senses. The urge to hold Kalisandre and ensure her safety himself filled his body to the point where it pained him not to reach out.
Yet perspiration dripped from Terin's face. Exhaustion was wearing on him quickly. After having knocked out so many guards in the temple when the attack began, Terin's well was depleting. Every ounce he had left of his gift needed to be focused solely on Kalisandre.
So, as much as Graeson wanted to take Kalisandre from Terin, instead he kept running, on high alert, his sword in his hand and determination weighing on his heart.
When they ascended the steps to the entrance, smoke seeped through the cracks, and Graeson skirted to a stop. Behind the door, the heat from the fire permeated the small space.
"This way," Ellie said, heading toward the hallway Graeson and Terin hadn't ventured down.
Inside the attached room, a single desk sat against the wall with papers strewn across it as if someone had quickly dug through them with little care. Tall stacks of religious texts sat atop a shelf. A priest's robe hung on the wall.
Ellie rushed past it all, heading straight for the door at the back of the room.
"Wait!" Dani called out as Ellie reached for the door handle.
"What?" Ellie asked, her hand pausing in the air.
Dani looked back at Kalisandre. "She's wearing a damn wedding dress! If we go out there with her like this, we'll be spotted in seconds." She turned to Emmett. "Can you cover her?"
Emmett shoved his hands into his pockets and shook his head.
"No?" Dani asked, eyes wide.
Emmet shrugged, offering an apologetic look. "I'm empty."
Graeson dragged Emmett by the back of his shirt. "What do you mean you're empty ?" He spat, shaking Emmett by the collar. "You've hidden hundreds of identities at the cavern, yet you can't hide one person right now?"
"I'm drained. After the wedding--" Emmett exhaled, his skin thin beneath his eyes emphasizing the thin blue veins beneath. "I have nothing left."
Graeson's hand tightened around Emmett's collar, his knuckles blanching. "And you're just now telling us?" he demanded.
"It--it never came up," Emmett stammered, face pale. "It was hard to say anything when we were running for our lives!"
Graeson shoved Emmett away with a disgusted groan.
"What do we do now?" Ellie asked, glancing at their group in worry.
Graeson looked around the room, searching for anything that could help, but all he found was the priest's robe. If a wedding dress was bound to attract someone's attention, so would the priest's overly ornate robe.
"Is she wearing a slip?" Medenia asked.
Dani reached for Kalisandre's skirts, and the fabric rustled as Dani searched beneath the layers of tulle. "She is," she answered.
"Perfect. Terin, set her down," Medenia said.
Terin did as the princess requested and placed Kalisandre on her feet, holding her up by her shoulders.
Graeson stepped forward, hands clenched at his side. "What are you doing? She cannot go out there with nothing but a slip on."
Ellie snorted. "See? This is the overbearing masculinity I was referring to." She shoved Graeson aside as she went to help unlace Kalisandre's dress. "We have no other choice."
Graeson narrowed his gaze at the Tetrian, who only shrugged in response.
Medenia rolled her eyes and gave her back to Ellie. She pointed over her shoulder to the back of her dress. "Ellie, would you mind?"
"What are you doing?" Graeson asked, furrowing his brow in confusion.
Medenia waved him off. "Unlace me, Ellie."
"I was fine with making him angry, but fine," Ellie mumbled.
Once the dress was unlaced, Medenia stepped out of it, leaving her in nothing but a black slip that hit her mid-thigh. She bent over and swept the dress off the ground, then held it out to Dani. "Here. Put her in this, and let's go."
Dani turned to Kalisandre and began shifting her out of the shredded dress.
Cheeks aflame, Graeson swallowed and turned away. His attention quickly snapped to Emmett, who was still looking in the women's direction, and he snatched the man by the collar and spun him around.
"Hey!" Emmett shouted.
Graeson growled as fabric rustled behind them. With one seething glare from Graeson, Emmett quickly snapped his mouth shut.
As Graeson tapped his foot against the ground, the Frenzian armor he still wore grew increasingly uncomfortable and tight around his body. When he was about to say something, his patience waning, Dani said, "Let's go."
When Graeson spun around, a heaping pile of fabric covered in blood and soot lay across the floor. The extravagant wedding dress was unrecognizable with its edges torn and battered. Kalisandre now wore a simple sage green dress, which hung over her feet when Terin lifted her into his arms once more.
The door creaked open, calling Graeson's attention away from Kalisandre.
Ellie held up a finger as she peered out. "All clear," she said a moment later.
They filtered through the door and into a shaded alleyway. Smoke filled the air, tainting their lungs and coating their skin in ash. Somewhere nearby glass shattered, and people screamed. Timber burned as destruction besieged the kingdom.
As Dani stepped beside Graeson, she looked around and asked, "Where's--"
"Here!" a voice said down the alley. Sylvia's freckled face appeared, their auburn hair flying behind them as they rushed toward the group, waving a hand. Excitement twisted their mouth into a wicked smile. "Took you all long enough."
"We ran into some trouble," Dani admitted, walking to her friend.
Sylvia grabbed Dani's arm, their amber eyes widening at the sight of the binding wrapped around it. "Are you all right?"
Instead of answering, Dani snatched her arm from Sylvia's grasp. "What's the outlook, Sylv?"
Concern drew Sylvia's brows together, but they didn't question Dani's change of subject. Instead, they sighed and said, "Not great. It's going to be tricky getting out to the horses. More and more soldiers are crowding the streets. They're all searching for the lost bride while struggling to maintain some semblance of order as they try to usher the crowd away from the spreading fire."
"Just what we need," Dani grumbled, face twisted in a scowl.
"Bright side? The streets are fucking crazy. Everyone's panicking and running around like their heads have been cut off." Sylvia raised a brow, shifting on their feet. "Speaking of, were you able to...?"
Dani shook her head. "The bull king lives."
Sylvia bit down on their lip but nodded. They scanned the group, and their brows twisted. "Where are Moris and Armen?" they asked.
Graeson brushed his fingers through his hair. "Armen ran when things started going south."
"He ran ?" Dani spat, spinning around. "You didn't tell me that!"
Graeson's hand fell, slapping his thigh. "When did I have the time, Dani?"
"That fucking bastard." Dani spat on the ground. "I knew he was no good."
"And Moris?" Sylvia pressed, quieter this time with more hesitancy filling their voice.
Graeson and Terin exchanged uneasy glances, and the truth hung heavy in the space between them.
Finally, Graeson shook his head. "He didn't make it," he said quietly.
Dani squeezed Sylvia's hand, and a moment of grief passed between the pair.
When Graeson and the twins decided to come to Pontia months ago, the first people Dani wanted to join them were the two soldiers who had been at her side since she was a private in the military. Moris, Sylvia, and Dani had been in the same squadron when they initially enlisted.
Outside of Graeson and the twins, Sylvia and Moris were Dani's closest friends. They were strong-willed and good company.
Moris deserved more than to be abandoned in a burning temple. He deserved more than a silent moment between friends. He deserved so much more; however, there was no time to grieve the dead. The gods would not grant them that opportunity.
If the day was any indication, Moris would not be the last friend to meet an untimely end in the coming months. This was only the beginning. The two soldiers before him knew that all too well.
So, when water filled Sylvia's eyes, they blinked it away and straightened. "His sacrifice will not be in vain," they said, voice laced with determination.
Dani nodded in agreement and peered down the alley, where the streets were flooded with panicked wedding guests and civilians. She crossed her arms, tapping a finger along her arm. "Sylvia, do you have any more of those explosives?"
A devious smile lit Sylvia's face, shifting the freckles on their pale face. "Let's burn this fucking place to the ground."