His gorgeous face and body were honestly the least of it. He was protective yet wild, kind but ferocious—everything I never thought I would have.
While Cyrus had been nothing but a pretty face hiding a rotten soul inside, Calix managed to have a soul as beautiful as the rest of him.
I gasped as I spotted the end of the field of flowers a ways ahead. “There’s the end! We’re almost there.”
“Thank Nox,” he groused, and I giggled. The apparitions had not let up, constantly calling for us as we walked through the field. I’d been distracted with thoughts of Calix, but they were still quite annoying after a while.
We made our way out of the field, and I turned to look up at him. “What did they say was next again?”
“Chroi Oscailt Cavern,” he responded, lips twisting as he thought over his parent’s warning. “Mother said to use our hearts, and all would be revealed.”
“Ugh, what is that supposed tomean?” I whined, my head tipping back, completely done with the cryptic messages. Why couldn’t anyone just give a straight answer?
Calix chuckled deeply, smirking at me. “Something tells me we’ll figure it out when we get there. I see a mountain ahead; it must be through there.”
I sighed, my head crashing into his bicep as we walked on. He leaned down and kissed the top of my head, whispering encouragement as we made our way forward.
Approaching the mountain, we found the entrance to a cave system that seemed to run underneath it. Standing maybe twenty feet tall, the entrance was a rounded arch of rock, leading to nothing but black nothingness.
I summoned my starlight, using it to light the darkness within. It revealed a tunnel full of sparkling gold and silver. There were runes written on the walls in the same glowing silver I’d seen in Tairngire Palace, but just as many were done in a glowing gold as well.
“What are these? They’re so similar to the ones at the palace,” I asked Calix, whose eyebrows were furrowed as he read them. I was so jealous. I had to learn to read the ancient Fae language.
“They’re instructions, or pieces of advice, perhaps,” he spoke softly as he moved closer, reading the next lines of runes. “This one says: ‘An open heart is only smart. A closed heart leads to rot.’ They’re all variations on the theme.”
“What in the Otherworld?” I murmured, a bit concerned about what we were walking into. He looked back at me as I crossed my arms, rubbing my hands over my arms as anxiety got the best of me.
“My réalta,” he whispered, grabbing my waist and pulling me toward him. “It’s going to be okay.”
“How do you know? What if we end up stuck here forever and leave Cyrus to do whatever he wants in Celesterra?” I worried, digging my nails into his sides.
“Because.” He smiled slowly, a smug look in his eyes. “When it comes to us, we can accomplish anything together. I’ve told you before—you’re a force of nature, love. There’s nothing you can’t do. I’ll just hang along for the ride.” He winked.
I huffed a breath of laughter, shaking my head fondly as I leaned in to kiss him. I relished the feeling for a moment before pulling back, resting my chin on his chest.
“Fine, let’s do this.” I nodded, and he pulled me along through the cave. An echoing sound reached our ears, and we both perked up, walking faster, my starlight illuminating the way.
My breath caught as the cave opened up into a massive cavern. The space was huge... and entirely missing a floor, except for a few tall rock pieces, reaching high enough to be floor height, but scattered too far to jump to.
“What in Tartarus?” Calix muttered, looking around for any indication of what to do. He turned to the wall, where more runes in glowing gold awaited.
“Love is the most precious commodity in all the realms,” he read, his finger following along the script carved into the rock. “To create a path across the Chroi Oscailt Cavern, open your heart and speak the truth of it.”
“Oh-kay…” I drew the word out dramatically, getting a smirk and an eye roll from Calix before he moved to stand along the edge of the great drop before us. He groaned, his head dropping back for a moment and distracting me with the length of his neck.
“I suppose flying would be considered cheating, which I know the gods aren’t too fond of. They obviously want us to go through these tests for a reason. We should probably just try saying what’s in our hearts?” He ventured, looking around before sighing.
I watched warily, not at all liking the conceit of this little trial. My heart was mine, so why did I have to open it for this stupid cavern?
“I’m afraid that after over four hundred years of waiting,” Calix started quietly, “I’m going to lose you before I even truly have the chance to have you.”
A loud rumble began, the ground shaking below our feet. Calix quickly reached over to help steady me until the shaking stopped, and we looked up to find a large flat-topped rock had risen, creating the start of a bridge over the cavern.
I laughed incredulously. “It worked!”
I threw my arms around him, hugging him in my exuberance, before what I’d have to do really hit me. I swallowed hard, pulling back to look at him. Those lilac eyes always entranced me, and I found myself looking into them for strength.
“I’m afraid that…” I began, before closing my eyes. The sight of his face becoming too much for me. “I’m afraid that you’re going to be taken from me. I’ve never been allowed to have something of my own. Something I knew I could keep. I’m terrified that Cyrus, or our positions, or something else, is going to prevent me fromkeepingyou. That all of this will be a quick flash of happiness before you’re torn away from me, taking my heart with you.”
