By the end, I would see Calix dead, and Asteria chained to my throne by a special collar I’d had made just for her.
Unfortunately, they were proving more difficult than expected.
How much damned iron could Calix take before he finally stayed down?
I swallowed another vile of blood magic, then reconsidered, and pulled out two more, quickly chugging them both. I’d never taken more than one at a time before, only drinking another once the effects of the first began to wear off.
However, desperate times called for desperate measures, and my role as god-king of the realms being threatened certainly qualified.
I shuddered as the forbidden magic coursed through my veins, filling me with a power beyond anything I had ever experienced.
I laughed joyfully, raising my hands in the air and sending bolts of lightning to scatter through the sky in a spectacular display of crackling blue bolts.
Why had I not done this before? It was incredible!
An almost childlike thrill ran through me at the potential this held. But first things first. I forced my attention down to the battle, frowning to see so many of my own men down. Whether it was from Calix’s soldiers or the iron I had deployed, it didn’t matter. They were useless either way. Several of my main weapons had already been taken out as well, which was certainly less than ideal.
Thankfully, the blood magic was strong. Stronger than anything my enemies could summon, I was sure. The power felt more plentiful than my naturally gifted magic had!
I aimed one of my raised hands, arcing a bolt of lightning right at Calix. He dodged out of the way, and I was taken by surprise as a blast of starlight swept me off my feet.
I tumbled backward on the roof, pitching over the side and falling down the other. It felt like I hit every pointed edge on the damn roof, each one digging into my stomach and knees with painful accuracy.
At least I was out of sight. That would spare me the embarrassment of my ignoble tumble.
When I finally righted myself and stood up, I let my wings unfurl and followed down the edge of the roof and around the palace until I found a safe space to catch my breath for a moment. It took a few minutes before I stopped panting, cursing myself for being so caught off guard.
The sound of a horn blowing was a relief. Gravadain had finally shown his face, and just in time. I peeked out from my hiding spot and watched as he raised a wave of water high into the sky, ready to sweep over the city.
I narrowed my eyes, the last thing I wanted was to clean up water damage in my palace. But it was pointless either way, as Arien quickly stepped in and recruited Gravadain’s own son to stop him.
I snarled, watching as Prince Altan raised a wall of water to stop the tides. Prince Zakat joined his assault, flying over the waves to reach Gravadain. He shifted into his orange and teal phoenix form, enabling him to summon even more fire that he aimed directly at the king of Sunrise. It was enough to get me moving, and I flew over the field to find the man I needed.
It took two times circling around, but I finally spotted him, and landed down beside him.
“King Cyrus.” He bowed his head respectfully, lowering the sword that had come up automatically at my entrance.
“Prince Vesper,” I greeted. “I need you to deal with your little brother. He’s causing issues for our ally at the moment. I trust you can take him out?”
Vesper paused at that, blinking quickly. He swallowed hard, and I narrowed my eyes at him. He’d been quite confident about his superior right to the throne of Sunset, that his brother didn’t deserve it. But maybe when it came time to slay his brother, he didn’t truly have what it took to do the deed.
“Of course,” Vesper finally said, straightening as he gathered himself to his task. He nodded firmly, his bronze armor shifting as he set his shoulders back. His blue eyes stood out vividly, the conflict in them fading to resolution.
I waved him off, taking back to the air. I watched as Vesper shifted into his Pegasus form, heading straight for his younger brother. The heir to Sunset Kingdom turned to face his brother, his feathered head cocking to the side before his body lit up, the orange and teal feathers erupting into flames. Vesper followed suit, and the two crashed together, squawking with loud, high-pitched screeches.
I was curious how this would go. Vesper claimed to be the better choice of heir, but was that ego talking, or was he truly the better candidate? I supposed we would find out today. The two scratched at one another, talons grasping and ripping at flaming feathers that fell to the ground in random intervals, their flames extinguishing as they gently floated to the ground.
Their tussle sent them both flying into one of the nearby buildings, and I narrowed my eyes as another piece of Evenfall was damaged, this time by two overgrown birds crashing through the wall. It was a good thing I was about to take the wealth of five other kingdoms. The amount I was certain it would take to repair Evenfall after this was going to be substantial.
But maybe it was a good thing, I considered, looking out at my city and the damage that it had taken. From the rebels who’d burned down or defaced multiple buildings throughout the city, to the damage from this battle…
Maybe I should just rebuild it anew. Get rid of all memories of the past and my father’s rule. Astraeus was dead, and his city with him. It was time now for me to rule, and this city to be mine in truth. A capital for not just Dusk Kingdom, but for my new empire.
I would be tearing down all of the other palaces across the realm; they wouldn’t need them with no kings to rule from them. Instead, I would build Evenfall into a city to rival that of the gods. With a palace that outshone all others.
With Asteria collared beside me, I would rule happily from my throne. Perhaps I’d sometimes allow her off her knees and onto my lap. I could pet her hair as she lay back against me, her small body squirming as I teased her ruthlessly. Denying her pleasure through court sessions, until the very end, where I’d let her cum before all my courtiers.
A fitting punishment for her many sins against me, but it would also show them all what I had—what I hadwon.
