Lorys brushed his hand over it. “A battle scar. We’ll match.”

  She winced a bit at the tenderness of the skin. “A reminder of all that happened here, and between us. We’ve had an unconventional beginning.”

  He laughed lightly, and it rumbled into her back from his chest. “That just means that we can survive anything else life might throw at us.” He kissed the back of her neck.

  She let her head fall back into the warmth of his chest, savoring his kisses and the smell of his skin. She began to glow and allowed her body to shine without holding it back. She was depleted, but felt that intuitive pull toward Lorys. He gave her the life she needed to make the light shine. She reached down into the water and ran her hands down his muscled thighs. Lorys moaned.

  Halyna turned herself to face Lorys, sitting on her knees in front of him. She placed her hands on either side of his face and kissed him as she placed her legs on either side of him, straddling him as she let her hands move away from his face and over his shoulders and chest.

  She slowly lowered herself down onto him, breaking the kiss and letting her head fall back as she relished the feeling of fullness.

  Lorys grabbed her hips before she could move. “I don’t want to hurt you,” he whispered.

  “You won’t. I need this, I died. I need to feel alive and you’re the only thing that makes me feel that way,” she replied breathlessly, aching to move.

  He tightened his grip on her hips and began guiding her up and down as he lifted his own hips to meet her. Flutters of pleasure and heat settled into her lower belly when he quickened the pace. She held tight to the edges of the bath as he controlled her movements. He throbbed inside her and she knew she wouldn’t be able to hold on much longer. Her fingers dug into the cold metal of the bath, and she rocked her hips. The unfamiliar sensation drove them both over the edge, moaning breathlessly.

  She fell forward into his chest and his arms closed around her, neither of them wanting to move.

  Lorys pulled her chin up and kissed her softly, then said, “Let’s get you to bed, sunshine.”

  The morning came too quickly, but Halyna knew as soon as the sun rose into the sky, she would rise as well. Her body wouldn’t allow her to sleep through the sunrise. A responsibility, she realized as she was looking out the window, had previously belonged to a High Council goddess. Something had happened in the High Council, and the only way to find out what was to summon a goddess. But as a knock sounded at the door, she noted that would have to wait.

  She cracked the door open and let Alex in.

  “We have notified Eleos of the death of their queen,” Alex said.

  She nodded. Lorys stirred and sat up, hearing the conversation.

  “There will be no turmoil here. The people of Eleos respect their queen and her wishes. They know she died valiantly,” Alex added.

  “What were her wishes?” Lorys asked from the bed.

  “Well… she noted that any living relative should succeed her. Those of us in the castle now know that person is Morgan, but the rest of Eleos does not know,” Alex said.

  “Would they accept her if they knew who she was?” Halyna asked.

  “Of course. All who live here loved Isidora and Aleas. There will be some surprise and likely some whispers of legitimacy, but it’ll get sorted quickly,” Alex said.

  “And Morgan? Does she know she’s now the queen?” Lorys asked.

  “She does. Jason spoke with her about it last night, at length. I think the idea of it is growing on her, particularly after Jason told her how Aleas spoke of her in the days before her death,” Alex said.

  Lorys had stood and walked toward Alex. He placed his hand on the old man’s shoulder. “She’ll have plenty of people to guide her.”

  Alex nodded as a servant brought in a tray of food.

  “I assume you’ll leave today? The curse has been broken, but there is still much to deal with,” Alex asked.

  He was right. Amalia was still ruling Silvervale as far as they knew. Arin was likely with her. King Emery remained with her parents, and she did not know what to do with these powers and why she had to die to get them.

  “As long as Halyna feels well enough to ride, we’ll leave as soon as possible,” Lorys said.

  “I’m well enough to make it to Davos, then home,” she said.

  Home sounded foreign. When they had left, home wasn’t home. It was gray and dull, a sadness sweeping over her one fertile and green realm. Butterflies flew around her stomach in the anticipation of being home again, even if there were things that would have to be dealt with.

  “I’ve taken the liberty of letting your mother know by raven that you’re safe, and making your way back to Demeterra. I’ll ready your horses,” Alex said, leaving them to their food.

  44

  LORYS

  The mood in the castle was somber, but they had no reason to stay. Morgan would be safe here, and if for some reason she wasn’t at any point, she was powerful enough to defend herself against any threats. She had proven that.

  They met Morgan in the stables to say their goodbyes. She appeared weary, but still confident. She’d have to grow up fast, faster than she’d probably like, but he was sure it would be worth it for her, in the end. This is her place, her birthright, and someone with such great power should hold a place on the throne. He shuddered to think about what would happen if she became a goddess someday and how that power would further manifest, but that was at least a few years off for her.

  “Will you be alright here? Alone? You hardly know anyone?” Halyna asked.

  Morgan nodded and smiled. “This will be home for me. It’s where I should have been all along.”

  Alex walked up behind her. “We’ll take care of her here. I swear that to you.” He put his hand over his heart. “She has also requested the presence of a young woman by the name of Philomena that she’d like to serve as an advisor.”

  Lorys cocked an eyebrow at Morgan. “Philomena, hmm? Interesting choice.”

  “If she has powers as strong as I think she does, this is the safest place for her,” Morgan replied.

  “I agree. A clever first request as queen,” Halyna said.

  If Alex was surprised at all, he didn’t show it, but Lorys had a feeling that the old man would soon have his hands full. But Morgan was right. Philomena would be safe with Morgan, the two of them being far more powerful than most. This is a surprisingly mature sentiment from Morgan. He was thrilled, knowing that she already had a protective instinct for the most vulnerable people of Eleos.

  Halyna hugged Morgan, and Lorys stepped in behind Halyna and wrapped his arms around both of them as well. Morgan’s groans quickly signaled that had been enough affection for her, which was almost none, and they said their last goodbyes before mounting their horses and departing the queendom of Eleos.

  They rode as quickly as they could, with the sun shining on them providing not only warmth but drier roads. They were making better time than they did on their journey to Eleos. Davos was in view far faster than he had expected, which was a relief considering how rapidly Halyna’s energy had deteriorated. She could barely stay upright on her horse as they rode up to the Inn, Alyce waiting for them in the doorway. Her face was awash with concern about Halyna’s condition, so he wasn’t just being overprotective. Johan rushed from the barn to take their horses while Lorys practically carried Halyna inside.

  “Same room you had before,” Alyce said to him as he and Halyna trudged through the door.

  At that point, he carried her up the stairs. She wouldn’t have made the climb on her own without collapsing.

  He laid her down on the bed. “Tell me what’s going on? Are you in pain? What hurts?”

  “My wound. I think it might have opened while we were riding,” Halyna rasped.

  He yanked at the tunic she wore. It was too dark to show any blood, regardless of its color. He studied her skin and the pale pink arrow mark that had almost completely healed. There was no blood or redness, no sign of an infection. The pain must be coming from the inside.

  There was a knock at the open door, and Alyce stood with some provisions, waiting to be invited in. He waved at her, allowing her to walk up to the bedside and see what he was looking at. Alyce handed Halyna a cup of water, and she drank several sips.

  “Any ideas?” Lorys asked.

  “I’d say she’s bleeding internally somewhere, but that wound is too clean and well healed for that to be the case. These goddess powers can sometimes be unpredictable, finicky when the vessel finally takes it on,” Alyce said with a pained expression.

  “How do you know so much about this stuff?” Lorys asked.

  “I’m old. Well-traveled. I’ve lived amongst plenty of goddesses in my time,” Alyce replied.

  Vague enough, but he wouldn’t press for more. If she could help, he’d take what he could get.

  “What should we do? Wait? Find some help?” Lorys asked, running his hands through his dirty hair.

  “I’m the only help you’ll get around here. There is another option, but I’m not sure if Halyna’s strong enough, and I can’t do it without her,” Alyce said, covering Halyna with a blanket.

  “As long as I don’t have to move around too much, I can’t handle it. What are you thinking?” Halyna said, her voice stronger.

  “Summon a High Council goddess. Figure out what in the realms is happening to you because I get the feeling this was no normal manifestation of powers,” Alyce said.

  Halyna nodded her agreement.

  “I can do it. We summoned Noraëtes while we were still at Alke Terrene. She was unhelpful, but she showed up,” Lorys admitted.

  Halyna gave him a weak smile. “Something tells me she’ll show up again, if it’s Lorys asking.”

  Alyce’s expression turned puzzled. “Noraëtes is a finicky one, but if she likes you, then we’ll use that to our advantage. Let me go gather what we need.”

  Alyce hurried off to get the summoning supplies.

  Lorys sat on the edge of the bed beside Halyna. “She knows more about goddesses than the average innkeeper. Would you agree?”

  Halyna nodded at him. “She does. It’s not uncommon for women to serve a queen or a court in their youth, then leave when they grow older, get married, or have children. I’m not sure how she’d end up this far away in Davos, but it’s a possibility.”

  Halyna sat up, and Lorys helped her adjust the pillows to prop herself up.

  “Noraëtes will have the answers. And she’ll give them to you. If you’re nice. Play her game,” Halyna said.

  Lorys sighed. He knew he’d have to humor her, unlike the last time they met. There was only so far he was willing to go, though, and he would set a boundary with the goddess if he had to. “I will, but only to a point. I won’t pander to her nonsense if she’s not willing to be helpful.”

  “Just don’t make her mad,” Halyna said in warning.

  When Alyce returned with all the summoning supplies, she set it up with impressive speed.

  “So, you know what to do?” Alyce asked him.

  “I believe so. Mix my blood into the mortar and think about Noraëtes?”

  “That’s pretty much it. Try not to get your thoughts of her muddled with thoughts of Halyna, though. She’s already here. It’ll weaken the call to Noraëtes,” Alyce replied, as she pulled an obsidian blade that was almost identical to the one Larissa had kept in her pocket.

  He took the blade, making his eye contact linger a big longer on Alyce’s face, her expression begging him to focus on the task at hand and not make her explain her past, but she sighed and dropped wrung her hands.

  “My family served the Eleos royals, mainly Isidora. When she left, my family left as well, and settled here in Davos. These things are passed down by the women in the family. I know enough,” Alyce said.

  He could hear the finality in her words, although he wanted to further question her, and a potential relationship she could have had with Isidora and Morgan in Davos, but that would have to wait for another time.

  Lorys watched as his blood dripped into the mortar and he used the tip of the blade to mix it into the herbs and moon water. He closed his eyes and practically begged Noraëtes to come help them. Desperation couldn’t hurt at this point.

  Lorys was about to give up when Alyce smacked him on the arm.

  “Open your eyes,” Alyce grumbled at him.

  He opened them to see Noraëtes standing beside the bed, looking over Halyna.

  “Well, well, well. Aren’t we all just a rough-looking bunch,” Noraëtes said, running her hand down Halyna’s arm. “You’ve had a particularly difficult couple of days, from what I hear. But I hear little these days. Those council goddesses are full of malice and gossip.”

  “Everything I was told, everything I prepared for, doesn’t explain any of this,” Halyna said.

  “She died. But then she was alive again with these powers. The wound closed, but now she’s still weak and in pain and we don’t know why or what we can do and we’re just trying to get back to Demeterra,” Lorys blurted.

  Noraëtes raised her eyebrows at him. “I could sense your desperation in your summons, but I didn’t realize it was this bad. You two fell in love, I hope? That was the plan, after all.”

  “What? If there was a plan, we didn’t know about it,” Lorys said, trying to keep the anger out of his voice.

  “There’s always a plan. For everything. Sometimes you can be told, and sometimes you can’t. When we met before, I just wanted to see if I could get a rise out of the princess here. I wouldn’t normally be so flirtatious, but wouldn’t you know, the second I laid a finger on you, her emotions just went through the roof. I thought her blood might boil! I knew then that you would figure all this out. Now here we are.” Noraëtes sat down beside Halyna.

  Lorys shook his head, trying to wrap his thoughts around everything she had just said. He needed to focus.

  “Yes, we love each other. What about Halyna? Can you help us or not?” Lorys said a bit more forcefully than he intended.

  Noraëtes smiled at him, a beautiful and genuine smile. “She doesn’t need my help, sweet prince. As long as she has you, the sun will shine through her every day.” She lifted Halyna’s tunic. “She did get shot with an arrow, you recall. Yes, she’s a goddess and an incredibly powerful one, but she’s not indestructible. Of course, she’s in pain. She just rode on horseback for several hours straight… after getting shot.”

  “So, she’s ok? She just needs to rest?” Lorys took a deep breath. He hadn’t realized how panicked he had been since they arrived at the inn.

  “Yes. You have my word,” Noraëtes said.

  “The sun will shine through me every day. What does that mean?” Halyna asked.

  Noraëtes sighed before she explained, a look of stress crossing her otherwise beautiful face. “There’s been some turmoil in the high council, and that’s putting it lightly. Anine passed on, which has never happened before, at least during our time. We’ve been without a sun goddess. Aymenia…she lacks tact. She concocted this plan to punish Amalia and return the sun at the same time. Amalia has needed to be put in her place for many years, but we just needed her to cross a line, and she finally did––the marriage between the two of you. To be honest, your original powers were unsure, boring if you will. I think they had something to do with the sky, stars maybe? I don’t recall. Something shiny, the whole gold blood thing,” Noraëtes said, waving a hand in dismissal. “The others, they determined you’d be a sufficient vessel for the power of the sun. It is technically a star, after all. I’d been telling them for years that you were destined for more than whatever your original power was supposed to be, the gold blood and all that, but whoever listens to me? Then I met you, and you were truly such a bore. I thought I might have been wrong about you, but here you are. Sunny and bright, albeit a bit marred.”

  “So, I am the sun goddess,” Halyna confirmed.

  “Yes, obviously. You literally turned back time and put the sun in back in the sky because you were scared of the dark. What else could that have possibly meant?” Noraëtes said, rising from the bed.

  “And Halyna dying in the caves? Did that have some grand purpose as well that we were unaware of?” Lorys asked sarcastically, pushing his luck with the goddess.

  Noraëtes laughed. “Oh, don’t be so obtuse. She was shot. In the lung. You’re lucky you were in the caves. The magic there is an abyss, bottomless. Some people enter and die. She entered dying and lived. Further proving my point. She’s important, and the caves knew that. A necessary part of the destiny of the Four Realms.”

  Lorys paced. He wasn’t sure what to think about all of this. He had far more questions than answers. Answers that he was positive Noraëtes would not sit there and give him for the next hour. She was already getting impatient.

  One more question, then he’d stop. “She’s the sun goddess. What does that mean for her? Does she have to join the High Council?”

  Noraëtes had lost her patronizing expression. “Eventually. But not for many, many centuries. She won’t go to Allucian, she’ll join us. But we’ll not worry about that now.”

  Noraëtes glanced to Halyna, then to him, asking a silent permission to leave.

  “Thank you,” Halyna said.

  Noraëtes corporeal form shimmered and faded. “You’re welcome. And I hope I won’t see you again for a long time.”

  45

  HALYNA

  Alyce took good care of them for the extra day Lorys had convinced her to stay in Davos. She was surely getting bed sores from laying in one spot being waited on hand and foot by him and Alyce. She was ready to leap out of the bed and run back to Demeterra, but it was now late evening and she had demanded that they leave first thing in the morning.

  “Have you had enough to eat and drink? Would you like a bath before bed?” Lorys asked from the opposite side of the bed.

 

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