THEY DIDN’T SPEAKon the way back to the Gods’ Villa. The pattering of hooves and creaks of the carriage were the only sounds as Sol watched the darkening forest speed by, twilight casting curious shadows and rays of sunshine around the lands. She traced the clouds with her eyes and braced a hand on her chin, the smell of ash clinging to her skin.
Her eyelids were heavy, her body was sore, but she had done it.
She had done it.
Perhaps she wasn’t able to save everyone as she had so stupidly thought during the beginning of the trials, but she saved some.
It was the end.
She and Cas had made it. Though they hadn’t found a better way out, Cas had already made peace with yielding. And that had to be enough.
By the time the carriage rolled to a stop by the Villa’s gates, the moon was high in the sky and the soft orange tones were replaced with an inky blue night. Cas pushed the door open, and Sol followed wordlessly. She expected the guards to rush away as they usually did, but one of the kingsmen hopped down from the seat.
“Tomorrow is the final duel. You are both to be ready by dawn.” The kingsman said as he handed Cas an envelope. “Directives as per His Majesty.”
Sol peered over Cas's shoulder as he tore it open.
Then stopped breathing.
“He—he isn’t allowing yields,” Sol whispered, her voice shaky and hollow. “Why isn’t he letting either of us yield?”
The note crackled with violet flames as Cas grabbed the guard by his sleeve. “What the fuck is this?”
“The trial tomorrow is to the death,” the kingsman said. “Only one survivor. If the rules are breached, execution for you both will be called.”
“My Court will never allow that to happen.” Sol gritted her teeth. “My uncle preaches tradition, then crushes it when it’s inconvenient.”
“Having one winner is tradition, Princess.” The guard smirked.
“You wagering yourself doesn’t change that.”
Cas stared past the man, his demeanor strangely calm as Sol pulled his grip off the kingsman. “Cas?”
“Leave,” he said to the kingsman, slow and fierce. “I’m trying to be more restrained with who I kill, but if you idiots aren’t off of the Villa grounds in five minutes, I will send my Shadows after you.”
The man stepped back. “We are merely messengers, Prince.” “So, I will use you to send one back.” Cas's eyes shone. “Leave.” They did.
The kingsman shuffled back onto the saddle and threw the carriage into motion, turning back a few times as they went to ensure the darkness of nightmares didn’t chase them. Sol and Cas stood there for a while in silence, the air between them so full of unspoken things. The thought of them going back to their rooms to await the morning's chaos seemed inappropriate, but she wasn’t sure what else there was to do.
She looked up at him, “I don’t want to go inside.”
Slowly, he held his hand out. “Let’s walk the beach, then.”
Careful to avoid the tumbling branches and stones, they climbed over the wall that separated the sands and ocean. Finally, they sat by the edge of the water, the lazy waves a gentle soundtrack after the day's turbulent waters. Sol focused on it, on the trickle of the tide and the salt in the air, trying to distance herself from the noise in her mind. The moonlight shimmered against the rolling current,casting the beach in silver flames.
"The moon looks beautiful from here," Sol said, tracing the sand with her fingers.
Beside her, Cas was silent, prompting her to look at him. He watched her with a foreign intensity, a kind Sol hadn't seen him wear so unguarded.
Heat bloomed over her face. "What?"
He angled his head and smiled softly. "Not as beautiful as the sun."
A rouge wave splashed her feet, making her recoil with a small grin. “It takes one of us needing to kill the other for you to be sweet, huh?”
Cas sighed, leaning back on his palms as the wind swayed through his hair. “You’ll be fine, Sol. Don’t worry about it.”
“Your nonchalance is exactly what I’m worried about.”
