But any fears that could have built up were immediately quelled as, without hesitation, Aquilan said, “Of course, Declan! Earth is your home. You are a citizen of the Empire. And I… I want you to come back. Very much.”
Aquilan’s hand that was holding onto his tightened its grip. His thumb ran along the back of Declan’s hand. A tender gesture that had warmth pooling in Declan’s groin for the second time that day or night or whenever it was. It was not the place for such feelings as he saw Leviathan starting to mass again to attack them. The creatures had been keeping their distance, realizing that their tactics so far had just led to fast deaths, were clearly plotting.
Aquilan continued, “And I want to hear everything that Vex said to you. I will tell you all he said to me as well. Our fates are more intertwined than even I thought. Though that day when I saw you upon coming to Earth… Well, it has haunted me, Declan. Shadow. My Shadow,” Aquilan said the last fondly.
Declan blushed and ducked his head though he was not sure why. Having a nickname–a pet name perhaps more accurately–with the Sun King felt very intimate. Something secret and special between them. No one else would call him their shadow.
“Yes, but we best do that when we are back on Earth. The Leviathan are plotting,” Declan said, forcing himself to lift his head and tilt it towards a cluster of the creatures.
Aquilan nodded and a shudder ran through him. “I wish I could use a Sunstone on this nest, but Vex was clear he didn’t want his lichen destroyed. And, in truth, a Sunstone might do more damage than good to this ecosystem.”
“Lichen?” Declan asked. “He cares about lichen?” His left eyebrow lifted.
Aquilan sighed. “I think he cares about the environment. Light down here would kill the Leviathan, true. But it would also kill whatever lives in the lake, burn away the lichen, and maybe even harm the city. We’re near where the wards are anchored. Releasing the power of a Sunstone could damage those further as well. We don’t want that.”
Declan thought of the crater with the glassy surface. Something had already damaged those wards, likely beyond repair. He frowned. Did Vex really think he’d done that? It was absurd! But no matter. Aquilan was right. They should be careful nonetheless.
“We need to find the others,” Declan said. “Maybe we can just cut our way to them and figure out a solution for the nest later?”
Aquilan nodded. “It’s so large. We couldn’t destroy it on our own without help. I imagine that Vex might deal with it himself.”
Declan’s lips flattened. His father had known about the nest at least since he’d come here. But he’d made seemingly no move to destroy it though he also clearly knew that the Leviathan were using it as a staging area to invade Earth. If his father really was as powerful as people said, surely he could eliminate it on his own. Or maybe that was a fairytale too.
“Maybe,” Declan said neutrally.
“I sense Rhalyf over in the city. Oh! And Finley, too. I don’t sense the others, but I’m sure we’ll find them,” Aquilan stated, pointing off into the distance where Illithor shone.
“Finley? He’s okay? I mean… Can you tell?”
“He… he seems all right. His aura…” Aquilan shook himself. “I think he’s fine. He’s with Rhalyf so no matter what he’ll be safe.”
Would he think that way if he knew Rhalyf was a Kindreth? Maybe. But Rhalyf has lied to him their entire friendship. That will hurt him desperately when he finds out.
But Declan made no move to tell Aquilan. If he’d thought that Rhalyf was a threat to the Sun King he would have acted. But he didn’t believe that. Like him, Rhalyf was trying to make a life away from the Kindreth. And his heritage was Rhalyf’s alone to tell. The other Kindreth had kept Declan’s secret.
“Let’s go. The Leviathan are getting restless,” Declan said.
“This way. We can leave the nest the way I came in. There’s an opening that will lead us to the lake. From there, I can levitate us across,” Aquilan said. “We’ll figure something out.”
Declan nodded. He tossed Ardreth from one hand to the other as they began to move. The Leviathan kept a respectful distance. The ruby in the blade’s hilt was glowing a pulsing red. He remembered its special power was to release a wave of damage that could take out armies. Well, in the right hands with someone who actually knew how to use it. Declan did not.
The two of them moved swiftly through the maze of passageways in the nest. The sticky strands of webbing tried to snag their clothes and boots, but both of them were sure-footed and avoided the worst of it. Declan noticed that as they turned a corner that there were cocoons nestled in a group of three ahead of them. His stomach clenched and nearly revolted as he realized that these must be people that the Leviathan had grabbed–likely from Earth–and brought here. This part of the nest seemed older than the rest with more broken threads of webbing and several of the cocoons half crumbled inwards as if the bodies inside had simply turned to dust.
“It’s just through here, I think. A few more rights and a left or so and we should be out,” Aquilan tossed over his shoulder with a smile at Declan.
Aquilan then stepped around the corner just past the three cocoons he’d noticed. One of them actually was open at the top and, though he had not been intending to, Declan looked inside.
He saw a face.
A familiar face.
He stopped dead in his tracks, certain he must be mistaken. He had to be mistaken. He leaned forward. He stared.
It was.
It was Tyler Wilde.
His adopted father’s face.
