“Yes. If they feel in their heart that they need to. Most of the time they spend their lives here, hunting the Wailing Mother. They continue to join the battle games every year to have a chance to continue to live here.” She steps forward towards me. “This is a sacred place, only those I see fit to be here may rest here. Live here. If I don’t see it within the depths of their soul, they may never set foot in here.”
“Why did you bring me here then?” My throat tightens, the chilly air nipping at my exposed skin. Night is here. “I know Theon, Kaine, Florian… they are Royals. But me, you don’t like me.”
“I don’t.” Her shoulders shrug before letting out an exaggerated sigh. “But my son does. And from what I saw this evening… I need you close. I think we can help each other.”
I don't trust her.My eyes flicker around, scanning the walls that seem to block out the rest of the Realm. “First, please take Kaine to rest.”
She nods gracefully, a side to her I have yet to see. “Florian, take him to the flames wing. Have him rest, and I’ll send Ivker.”
“May I visit him?” My eyes follow, watching Florian hold Kaine’s body as if he died. But he lives.
“I’ll have the ladies fetch you some water and let you know when he is awake.” She glances at Theon. “Take her to the water wing, she must rest on that side of the division for tomorrow's training.”
My head falls back, letting my shoulders relax even though with any sudden movement, pain shoots through my body. “Training for what?”
“Dear.” She steps forward. “You are still in the games.”
Of course I am.
“I suppose what you saw won’t have me removed from them?”
“If I remove you, the Realm will consider me a weak Queen. You must continue.” Her heels tap against the cobblestone flooring, the milky white stones shimmering against the night. “And I believe you won’t have any trouble winning.”
“You don’t think they’re furious at you for throwing me into the games to begin with?” Our eyes lock, both of us burning with hesitation towards another. “I won’t burn anyone. Ever again.”
“You are forbidden to use any cursein the games anyway.”
I briefly look down, staring at my hands that feel forbidden to me. “You think this might be a curse?”
“The stones? The burning?” She scans my body, catching sight of every new bloody scar and healed wounds on my skin. “I’ve never seen anything like this. But the oracles believe any sort of magic, or power from the depths of the Darklands, is a curse. The Gods have punished us for what happened that day in the battle.”
Magic?So the Gods did hear me.
“What truly happened that day?” I cross my arms. “Why would the Gods punish the Realms over a battle? What is so special about the Deskyiara bloodline?” I mutter out the questions that have been in the back of my mind this whole time with the brothers, ones I never thought to ask.
“They had the powers of all the Realms burning through their veins, through their blood. A true Deskyiara, the closest bloodline to the Gods, was stronger than any other Royal. It’s been over two hundred years since the battle, and everyday, the Realms struggle due to it. Especially the Royals who lived through it, Florian, Kaine…” She looks away. “Theon.”
I stumble back, my heart pounding against my chest. “What do you mean, they lived through this?”
A sudden shocked expression paints along her face. “You don’t know how old the Royals are?”
“I suppose I had never asked…”
My chest heaves, they look the same age as me.Twenty-six.
“The Royals live for centuries, depending on how strong the bloodline is and what the powers of the Realms give the Royals. But due to the curses, the powers have weakened, killing off most of the King and Queens.”
I let out a shaky breath, parting my lips to control myself. “How long has Prince Florian, Koen… all of them been alive?”
“Around three centuries.” She tilts her head to the side. “They were young teens when the battle happened. But when the fire blazed from the sky that night, none of us stayed the same. Everything changed.”
“I never knew.”
“You are quite strange, everyone in the Realm of Azure knows of this.”
“I told you all, I am not from here.”
She inhales, her chest filling with air as she looks away. “Well, you live here now. Time to start acting like it.”
