Epilogue
KAGE
At the edge of the mezzanine, Kage stood, his hands curling around the railing and his attention fixed on the floor below. The ample space beneath the castle's marble floors had been wiped clean of the mazes he used to train Kalisandre.
But he had no more use of the mazes.
It had been months since the wedding and since the Pontians had taken Kalisandre from him.
She should have been back by now. She should have cut their throats and done away with them already.
If the handmaiden had done her job right, that is.
He should never have considered the handmaiden strong enough. When Kalisandre came around asking more probing questions, he could see his influence on her slipping.
He had not been granted an ability, but the gods were cruel that way, forcing those who deserved powers the most to work the hardest for it. Thus, he had no option but to trust in the girl's abilities.
According to the seer, the handmaiden had been blinded by love.
Love , he thought, a sneer rising on his lips. How ridiculous .
Preposterous, really.
He made a promise to himself years ago that he would never let such a frivolous and fragile thing have that kind of power over him. He promised he would never let it weaken or destroy him like it had so many.
And he would be damned if he let someone else's love and bond for another do so now.
If the seer believed his chances of winning the upcoming war were slipping away, he would change the fates.
After all, he had defied his fate before. He could do it again.
The sound of creaking armor stirred him from his thoughts. Glancing over his shoulder, he found one of the guards hurrying toward him, breathless and wide-eyed, holding his helmet in the crook of his arm.
"What is it, Kolen?" the king asked, annoyed by the interruption.
The guard skirted to a stop a few paces in front of Kage and promptly bowed before speaking, "Sir, the king and the handmaiden have escaped."
Kage froze, every muscle in his body growing taut. His jaw flexed, his teeth grinding together to an almost painful degree.
Behind him, Lundril, the captain of his guard, let out a low curse.
The seer had not mentioned this chain of events. If she had kept this from him, what else was that wretched woman keeping from him?
It seemed another visit was due.
His grip around the iron railing tightened, threatening to break it in half.
"How?" Kage demanded.
Lundril stepped closer, his hand on the hilt of his sword.
"One of the guards assisted them in their escape," Kolen said, his voice trembling slightly.
Kage snapped, then. He spun around, seizing the guard by the collar and yanking him closer. The guard's helmet fell to the floor with a crash.
"You let a traitor into our midst?" he spat.
The metal armor bit into Kage's skin as his fingers curled tightly around it, but the pain only fueled his anger.
"I didn't know. He--" the guard stammered, the whites of his eyes enlarging, his expression soaked with fear.
Good , he thought. His fear shall motivate him.
"Who?" he asked.
"Our men are looking into it as we speak, Your Majesty," Kolen said as he struggled to stay standing, his toes barely skimming the floor.
With an exasperated grunt, Kage released him.
The guard nearly collapsed on the floor, the joints of the armor screeching as they rubbed together. Kolen, at least, was smart enough to kneel at the king's feet.
The guard hung his head in penance. The back of his neck stung with a brilliant red mark where the collar had pressed into his skin. "I apologize. If I had been there, perhaps--"
"Save your breath on your excuses and apologies, Kolen," Kage said, cutting him off. He signaled for the guard to stand. "It is a waste of my time."
Grabbing his helmet from the floor, the guard rose to his feet. Clearing his throat, he straightened and flattened his expression. "I am already gathering a squad to go after them."
Kage flicked his hand. "Don't."
"Your Majesty?" the guard breathed, confusion curling his brows. "I'm sorry, I do not understand."
The king exhaled, the anger slow to release from his body.
Leaning his hip against the railing, Kage ran a hand down the front of his jacket, smoothing out any wrinkles. The beginning of a plan was already forming in his mind.
This was what he did.
This was what had gotten him this far. When a problem arose, he shifted. He adapted.
"I said don't ," he repeated.
Was it really so hard to find competent men? Soldiers who would listen?
It was a pity Kalisandre had slipped through his hands so easily. She had been so...pliable.
At last, there was nothing he could do about that.
For now, anyway.
The guard swallowed.
"Let them go. Let them scurry off like rats into the night, searching for salvation," Kage said, turning back to the railing and formulating his plan. Yet as he watched the shadows dance over the magnificent sight below, he could still hear the guard's anxious breathing behind him.
"Why are you still here?" he demanded, peering at the guard from the corner of his eye.
"There is...uhm...another matter," the guard muttered.
"Spit it out then, Kolen."
His patience was thinning with every minute that passed. There was work to be done, yet this conversation persisted far longer than he desired.
"The boy," the guard said, his voice failing to hide his disdain for the latest enhancements the boy had received.
But beneath the contempt, Kage detected a hint of envy. Kolen had not been chosen to undergo the same transformation as Mynhos. Didn't the guard understand he had other plans for him?
"What about him?" Kage asked.
The guard shifted on his feet. "The traitors were able to harm him in their escape."
His jaw ticked. "Where?" Kage demanded.
"In the throne room, Your Majesty. The staff is already working to clean up the mess."
Kage scoffed, his nose twitching. "I do not care about the mess. Where was he struck?"
"Through the heart, My King," Kolen said quietly.
Kage pursed his lips and ran his tongue over his teeth.
For nearly two decades, Kage had searched for someone who bore a gift similar to Mynhos's. When the seer had finally informed him of the child's birth, Kage knew he had to find him. However, the child's parents were more cunning and resourceful than he expected. Somehow, they had gotten wind of the king's interest in the boy, so they ran.
They hid like the little rodents they were. But Kage had dug them out of their hole.
No one could escape his grasp for long.
Over the past nine years, they had tested the boy's healing abilities in various ways. A cut to his face would heal in a matter of minutes, seconds even depending on how deep the wound was. A missing digit took a few days to grow back. When he had chopped off his hand months ago in front of the boy's sister, it had taken a little over a week to regrow. The process was gruesome and grotesque, even Dr. Thorne had nearly gagged as he watched the new bones form.
It was absolutely riveting. A sight to behold, truly.
However, they had yet to sever Mynhos's head or stab him in the heart--blows too fatal for even Kage to suggest attempting before they were sure Mynhos could survive it. Especially not before they extracted what they needed and found a way to harvest his gift.
The boy's sister--an unexpected prize Kage had not expected to come across nine years ago--proved to be immensely helpful with that issue. Although her escaping had never been something he wished to happen, he had planned ahead just in case.
Since she had been imprisoned, the guards had taken several vials of her blood. They had already used most of it, however, to help speed up the transformation process for the others.
The girl, after all, was slow to perform the experiments, her power not strong enough.
Although, now that she had escaped with the young king, Kage wished they had been able to retrieve more vials of her blood.
He would need to accelerate his plans even more, it seemed.
"What has Dr. Thorne said of his injuries?" Kage asked, returning his attention to the guard.
Metal creaked as the guard shifted on his feet. "The healer was killed in the escape," Kolen admitted quietly.
"Has this been confirmed?" the king asked, his words clipped.
"Yes, Your Majesty. Although his apprentice is still assessing the damage."
Kage hummed. "I will confirm this myself."
"Of course, My King."
"Has the apprentice looked at the boy?"
"The guards have brought his body down to the cells for him to look at, but he has not offered his assessment yet."
Kage nodded. "Very well," he said with a flick of his hand, dismissing the guard.
Kolen hesitated for a second before bowing low and taking his leave.
When the guard disappeared down the hall, his footsteps no longer audible, Lundril stepped closer.
"What would you like to do, Your Majesty?"
Kage rolled his hands around the railing, his grip tightening around it as he shifted his weight forward and peered down.
Below, rows of bodies stood in perfect formation. Several higher-ranked soldiers moved through the rows, some awkwardly maneuvering around the glorious wings of the men in the front rows. Their torches cast light on the faces of the new additions to his ranks. Not a trace of fear shone within their blood-red eyes.
And as the king marveled at their beauty, the wings of the beasts fluttering and the power reverberating among them, Kage couldn't help but smile.
"We continue as planned, Lundril."
Soon, he would unleash them.
Soon, the seven kingdoms would be his.
Then, he would at last prove to the world what true power was.