I scoffed. “Oh right! Of course. An Arkasva! That sounds nice in theory. But in case you haven’t noticed, we’re lacking good Arkasvim at the moment. We don’t have them.”
“We could,” Dario said slowly. “We could. What if you claimed your birthright? What if you became High Lady ofElyria? Took it back from Kormac and Ka Elys? Jules, you could make things better.”
I stiffened. “No,” I said, my voice hard. “I won’t do that. And I don’t want to talk about it. Not being Heir. Not being Hava. None of it.”
“Why?” Dario asked, his aura pulsing with energy. “You have the chance to have power in this world. Too many have that who don’t deserve it. But you do. You could take it.”
“Because I tried once before and I failed. Okay? These titles mean nothing. The same as all of these little fucking rebel groups. Did being Hava stop me from being a slave? Did being Heir to the Arkasva save me from being, from being raped?” Or stop them from killing Seth. …
My hand trembled, and I picked up a stick beside the fire, tossing it in, watching the flames crackle, my heart hurting. Fuck all of this. Fuck the Empire. Dario was speaking nonsense. Dreams of delusion. I didn’t want it, I didn’t want any of it. For the first time in years, I had the tiniest chance to be Julianna again. To just be myself. But I couldn’t do that under the Emperor’s rule. No matter what country I was in, what it was called, or who was Arkasva. Even if it was me in the end, sitting on the Seat of Power.
Because I knew Avery Kormac. And I knew I wasn’t a leader. I could barely do magic. Barely run more than five minutes without needing to sit down. And I was supposed to lead a Godsdamned country? One that would have me arrested when they knew what I was, one that would shrink in horror when they learned what was done to me?
Dario inched closer, careful not to touch me.
“Can you drop this? Please?” I asked. “I’m not going to rule. Whatever my birth father says, it was never my destiny. If you want a new Arkasva, talk to Meera. She at least was trained.”
“You could learn,” he insisted. “You could train, too. You’re smart, and you’re kind.”
I glared.
“Not always to me,” he lifted an eyebrow. “But you are. I see you. I see your heart. You don’t want to see others suffer, and you wouldn’t, to the best of your ability, allow anyone else to. And if there’s something you don’t know, you can get advisors or your council to help you. Meera would help you.”
He looked away. “I would help you.”
“Dario, I just want to leave. Are we really having this conversation now?”
“Well, we could be sailing the Lumerian Ocean, but since we’re stuck in this cave, with nothing else to do.” He shrugged.
I sighed. It would never happen. Not for me. But when he explained it, the steps I could take, the way he sounded so sincere, like he believed in me, it almost seemed possible. Almost.
“I wouldn’t be enough,” I said. “You know that. You know how things work here. All my inner strength, and all my claims in blood would be worthless, nothing without soturi backing me.”
Dario leaned in. His aura filled with fire. “If the day comes when you make your claim on Elyria, I will fight for you. I will be your Arkturion, protect your land, protect you, until it’s secure. And if you want me to go home after, I will. But if you want me to stay, then I’m yours.”
My mouth fell open. I’d accuse him of joking, but I’d spent enough time with Dario by now to know—he was serious. “You’d do that?” I asked slowly. “You have no connection to Elyria, or anyone from there. None at all.”
“Not true.” He grinned. “I know you.”
“That’s not enough.”
“Well, for me it is. Because like you, I also hate to see suffering. It doesn’t matter that Elyria isn’t my home, or that it’s not connected to me. It still needs to be protected. And why not? I’ve spent years of my life fighting for my own country, but doing so under a corrupt ruler, one who’s done nothing but hurt me, and my friends for years. I’d easily fight in a new country for a good ruler.” His eyes flashed. “Especially if she were you. There’s …” he coughed. “There’s little I wouldn’t do for you.”
I feel this pull towards you.
“Can we not talk about it anymore?” I asked.
Dario nodded. “Of course. I just—thought I’d tell you how I feel.”
I laid down on my makeshift bed, watching Dario closely. “Will you—would you lie down beside me?”
His face softened so completely I almost wanted to cry. Like he’d been waiting for me to ask. He crawled beside me, his body still careful not to touch mine. He shifted onto his side, his hands resting under his head as our eyes met.
We couldn’t go back to Alistair’s. But Lady Aliyah had gathered money. And Kenna was working with her own rebel groups back in Glemaria. If I had Dario by my side … No. I needed to stop. These were dreams. Worse. Fairy tales. I shook the thought away, and matched Dario’s breathing. We stayed like that, our eyes watching the others for hours. There was nothing else to do. And neither of us seemed willing to move, or break the silence. Until we eventually fell asleep. Not talking, not touching. Just watching.
When morning came, sunlight streamed in golden rays through the mouth of the cave, a cold wind blew inside, and a sharp hiss broke our silence.
Dario grabbed his blade, rushing at it, half awake, but then the snake dropped a scroll it had been carrying in its mouth.
