Chapter Twenty-one
KYELLA
As we walked into the throne room, down the aisle and toward the front, I began to fully feel the energy moving through the space.
It was electric. There was no other word for it.
The sound of excited, determined murmuring amongst the crowd seemed to vibrate through the room, creating a dynamic that had my heart beating fast. I felt almost hyper, fighting the urge to bounce on my toes.
The space had been full on the day I watched one of the soldiers be turned into a vampyre, but that crowd was nothing compared to this.
The walls of the room were lined and packed with people, and the crowd pulsed with minute movement.
My protective vampyres kept the crowd from encircling me too closely, framing me in a triangle as we settled into our space near the dais where the throne sat.
My gaze moved from the teeming crowd to the space where Myrin’s other three advisors stood.
Each watched the crowd with a significant amount of interest, their gazes darting over the large gathering.
I couldn’t help but think that it was because it was clear how eager everyone was to receive a blessing from their ruler, the quiet but excited murmurs filling the space.
I didn’t know what a blessing entailed, but I assumed that, to most individuals, a chance to interact with or see their ruler in any capacity was exciting. Certainly the mysterious nature of Myrin’s identity only added to the atmosphere of excitement and wonder.
I couldn’t help but wonder if I would be capable of earning such an intense reaction from others like Myrin did.
I wanted to believe that I could be the awe-inspiring monarch she morphed into while she wore her mask.
What power she must have to command respect and grow a loyal following through action alone.
I had to believe Myrin wouldn’t have brought it up if she didn’t think I was capable of doing the job correctly.
It also filled me with a sense of relief and happiness to know I would have her advice moving forward.
Of course, I would have my men, but I felt like there was so much I needed to learn from her still.
“Who will be giving the blessing?” I asked curiously, looking up at Elijah.
His hand smoothed over my back in a comforting move as he kept me tucked into his side.
His green gaze, which had been scanning the crowd, darted down to me, filling with warmth as he considered me.
I knew it didn’t have to do with my question.
Rather, I think it was just Elijah’s way of separating himself from the clinical and militaristic way he viewed the world versus how he was when it was just us.
It was a difference I had grown to love, and it made me feel special that he could be so different when it was just us.
“One of them, most likely.” He nodded toward the three advisors across from us. “I have to assume so at least. I wasn’t given word on what was officially decided.”
“I’m surprised it’s not one of you,” I admitted as he brushed a kiss on the top of my head. I could feel the soft action drawing attention as eyes turned on us, but I ignored it and simply leaned further into him.
“I’m not sure any of us is the right person for the job.” Elijah chuckled softly. “We’re action oriented and less about making big, grandiose speeches.”
I nodded in understanding. I wasn’t surprised to learn that he viewed the situation that way, but I knew how impassioned and loyal Elijah was.
Admittedly, I thought he would give an amazing speech if it was needed.
I was sure Myrin had her reasons for what she had planned, though.
The woman always seemed to be ten steps ahead.
“This is fairly new to us also,” Dakath explained from the opposite side of Elijah, his voice tinged with the same excitement that steadily filled the room.
“We’ve never needed to do a blessing like this.
The civil wars that broke out weren’t formal wars because the crown focused on solving the problem without combat. ”
Kolvar rumbled in agreement from behind me, and I glanced over my shoulder, looking up at him. I wanted to ask more about the civil wars, but I knew it wasn’t the time. I would need to learn all I could about the Tridian Empire and what I had to assume was its rich history.
Before I could respond, loud music filled the space, feeding the excitement in the room. When the throne room doors opened to reveal two lines of guards stepping forward, I felt everyone’s gaze move to the sudden disruption.
I couldn’t help but smile as Myrin walked through the guards lining each side of the aisle toward the front of the space.
With interest, I noted that her robe was different from what I’d grown accustomed to seeing her in at events such as these.
Instead of being black, it was gold velvet with a black hem that appeared to have a pattern to it.
Her mask was firmly in place, though and her chin tilted up as she seemed to float toward her throne.
I fully expected her to sit on the throne once she reached the top of the platform.
However, she turned to look toward the crowd instead.
I felt the men around me still in confusion, and I watched as one of her other advisors took a step forward, but she stopped him, raising a single gloved hand that halted the action.
What was going on?
I would have asked the men around me that exact question, but I could tell from the tension in their frames that they had no idea either. Silence rang loudly throughout the space, and every person in attendance seemed solely focused on Myrin, no doubt wondering what she would do next.
What I hadn’t expected her to do? Speak.
“People of the Tridian Empire, I come to you today on perhaps one of the most important days in our history.”
Immediately, I saw individuals throughout the room tense in surprise, likely confused by the feminine lilt of her voice. She made no attempt to mask her voice, and my stomach tightened as I realized I had an idea of what she planned to do.
My men spoke in quiet whispers around me, worry filling their tones. The rest of the room was solely focused on their ruler.
“A day in which we have decided to no longer hide the might of our empire…Which should start with me.” Myrin reached with gloved hands to remove her mask. The entire room broke out in surprised and shocked sounds and gasps.
I turned to survey the crowd as Myrin paused to allow them to react, her gaze scanning over them as well.
I knew she was worried about their reactions.
After all, there was a reason she hid her identity in the first place.
It seemed as if she didn’t need to worry.
Glancing around, I didn’t see anger on the faces surrounding me.
The only emotions I noted were awe and surprise.
“For so long, I have hidden my identity, but not today.
We embark on this pursuit as equals—all striving and willing to fight for the same thing: freedom.
Freedom from the threat across the Cursed Divide.
Freedom to fight for our home—to defend and protect it.
The Thaician Empire will recognize that the might of the Tridian Empire is one they should fear.
It is for that reason I reveal myself to you today.
I intend for this message to be carried to each household, both here and to the furthest lands of our empire, so that each and every individual may know who leads their loved ones into battle.
“Because for the first time in most of our lives, we are at war with another empire.
Emperor Malakai, ruler of the Thaician Empire, does not recognize, nor does he rule by, the concept of peace.
He views war and violence as a way of life.
A life where greed rules everything. His pursuit, while selfish, is also dangerous—his threats are backed by violence no matter the cost of lives.
“His greed has now turned to our lands, so we have been forced into conflict. We willingly meet that challenge, to not only protect our homes but because the hope for those who live under his tyrannical rule lies in our hands. This is not only war, but a rescue from oppression. You are so much more than the sword you carry in your hand. That sword won’t only slay our enemies, but it will break the chains of those Malakai has imprisoned.
“For so long the Cursed Divide has kept us ignorant to the reality of what others live through under his rule.
But no more. Now is the time to rid the world of this danger that uses force and power as the only standard of measurement for the right to live.
Freedom of self is a right. We have established that in our empire, and we will reestablish that practice across the Cursed Divide after pursuing the fullest extent of justice and punishment against Malakai.
“So I ask all of you to stand calm and strong in this time of trial. We are united as an empire, and while this war will be hard, surrounded by dark days for yourself and your families, we will be victorious!”
The room exploded in a thunderous cheer as I stared at Myrin, both in shock of her choice to reveal herself, but also at the overwhelming sense of determination and passion that her speech had pulled from me.
Not only was it inspiring, calling the soldiers to action to fight and save others not from their own lands, but it was filled with a strength that I knew all of the soldiers would pull on in the time to come.
Tears welled in my eyes as Myrin’s gaze fell on mine.
The weight of her eyes were filled with a barely disguised hope, and relief oozed from her, evident in the way her shoulders loosened and color returned to her cheeks.
She feared their reactions. Not because they posed a threat to her, but because she loved her empire and her people.
The fact that she was met with such a welcoming response didn’t surprise me, however. Because Myrin had led this empire successfully for years, regardless of her gender. She was the reason the empire prospered to the extent that it did, and her subjects seemed to recognize that.
Turning her gaze from mine, she offered a small smile to the crowd and turned to walk back toward her throne.
I looked at Dakath, and I saw the determination and emotion in his own gaze.
We’d both experienced horror and trauma at Malakai’s hands, and I had a feeling her speech affected him as much as it did me.
Dakath’s mouth fell open, as if he were prepared to speak, but a sudden explosion of sound cut him off entirely.
The door to the throne room clattered open, and my head snapped in that direction confused about the new source of noise in the room.
When I heard a bellow from one of the guards near the throne, my stomach dropped hard, a sensation of dread filling me.
My head whipped back around, and I watched as a man darted out from behind the guards with a sword in hand.
He was tall with broad shoulders and an ugly sneer on his face.
The shortsword in his hand had a nasty look to it, the metal reflecting in the warm glow of the throne room.
My mouth fell open as he moved, brushing past guards and skillfully dodging hands that reached for him.
If his graceful movement wasn’t a telling enough indicator of his background, the way he easily cleared the steps to the dais, swinging his sword in a brutal arc certainly did.
I staggered forward, a cry catching in my throat as Myrin turned toward the warrior, an eyebrow arching as she opened her mouth to speak.
“No!” Elijah cried, and my eyes widened as the man whipped his sword with efficient brutality toward our friend. Surprise coated her expression before it was muted by pain, followed by the briefest moment of shock.
“Myrin!” I screamed, jolting forward another step as the sword sliced cleanly through her neck—decapitating her. The man’s sneer gave way to a triumphant, mad smile as his eyes danced back and forth between his dripping sword and the lifeless body collapsing before him.
A low roar filled the room, and murmurs of shock gave way to exclamations and finally shouts as her head rolled down a few steps to rest at my feet.
A scream lodged in my throat, and the noise in the room dulled to static noise around me.
Shock permeated everything in my being as my knees gave out and I melted onto the floor.
Blood pooled from around Myrin’s slumped body as I looked down into her blank, lifeless eyes, and my body began to shake, my breathing turned ragged. Her crown laid a few feet away, having fallen off, and her dark hair was soaked in the bloody trail that followed her demise.
How…how had this happened? No, this wasn’t real. This couldn’t be possible. She couldn’t possibly be dead. Surely, I was trapped in a nightmare. Yet no matter how hard I tried to rationalize it, I knew the truth.
He had killed her. He had killed Myrin.
My gaze moved slowly toward the bastard in question. A sneer pulled his lips into a taut line, and he flicked blood from the tip of his sword in my direction. My eyes caught on the gleaming instrument, fixated on the damnable piece of metal that has been used to…
My stomach churned at the thought.
The piece of metal that had been used to…To kill Myrin. He had fucking killed her.
Breathing through my nose, I felt my stomach turn into a pool of simmering acid at the scent of the blood spilling from her body, strewn haphazardly at his feet.
Her gold robe was soaked in red, and when his dark boot gently prodded her frame, I looked back up at him, seeing a clinical yet smug expression on his face.
He was proud of himself.
Suddenly, and without warning, a rage I had never experienced roared up inside of me, violently—I would fucking slaughter him.