How could he even trust these spirits to fulfill their endof the deal? They had been trapped in the Underworld for eons. How would they be able to locate someone in another realm?
“What is it?” Lagos asked, jolting Cyrus to the present. His dark eyes were fixed on Cyrus, missing nothing.
Cyrus quickly shook his head, ridding himself of that awful memory. The moment he knew he could never fulfill his promise to the spirits.
Not unless he wanted to die.
But… with the reflection bowl broken, what choice did he have? There were no other options.
“The Wild Spirits,” Cyrus said slowly, his chest knotting with dread. “What do you know of them?”
Theo shuddered. “They are ancient,” he said in a hushed voice. “They come from a time before dark magic. Before all of us. They come from an era that has long since been forgotten.”
Cyrus stared at his hands, which gripped the edge of the table so tightly his knuckles turned white. Could he reason with the souls? If he explained his lack of immortality, perhaps they would be understanding.
He almost laughed at the idea.
“Perhaps the spirits know of an ancient magic you can use to contact the Titans,” Maleck mused. Beside him, Cerberus whined softly and cocked his head to the side, likely noticing the tension in the room.
The Wild Spirits probablydidknow of all kinds of spells and magic that had been lost to time. What if they advised him to use a magic that would trap him in Tartarus forever?Or what if they urged him to use the Book of Eyes, binding his soul to the mortal realm once more?
Could he even trust anything they said? As soon as they knew he had no immortality to give him, they could easily deceive him with false information.
Or refuse to help at all.
Theo hissed in a sharp breath and shook his head. “That is far too dangerous. Magic has changed so much since those spirits were alive. And you, my king, are not… yourself.”
This was true. Cyrus was a human reborn, but infused with Titan magic. He had no idea what those ancient powers might do to him.
They could kill him.
Cyrus rubbed his chin, his thoughts spinning.
“Now it is your turn to speak plainly, Cyrus,” Lagos said, his voice gentle. “What are you thinking?”
In another lifetime, Cyrus would have snapped at him, perhaps ordered him to leave the throne room. He might have even had him punished for speaking to him in such a cavalier way.
But those days were long gone. And what had once seemed like a weakness to him now gave him strength.
Lagos was here to support him. So were Theo and Maleck.
He was not alone.
He inhaled deeply and said, “The Wild Spirits require my immortality to be freed.”
All three demons gasped, their eyes wide with fear.
“I have already sworn an oath to do what I can to freethem from whatever magic has trapped them here. I cannot go back on that.”
“Cyrus, that will kill you,” Lagos said softly. “The realm needs you.”
Cyrus closed his eyes. He had been foolish to strike this bargain without considering the consequences. Without thinking it through.
But Prue’s life was at stake. So was Mona’s. How could he stand by and do nothing? Evander’s accusations from earlier rang in his mind.You’re the king of the Underworld. And you’re doing nothing.
Cyrus took a deep breath. “The Wild Spiritsareancient. Which is exactly why I am wary of trusting them. We know nothing about them or where they came from. For all we know, they could be wayward souls from Tartarus that got trapped amidst an escape attempt.
“But… Apollo chose the Undead Wilds as the location of the challenge for a reason. What if Hyperion encouraged him to do it? What if the Titans have a connection to the Wild Spirits?”
