“What did she say, Your Imperial Majesty?” I asked as the rest of the men waited eagerly.
“When all seems lost, feel my love inside you, and keep burning bright, little spark. I will never forsake you.”
My breath caught. “She's said that to me before. 'Burn bright, little spark.'”
“Did you think I was making this up?” the Emperor teased. “It was a dream, but I know the Goddess spoke to me through it. She gave me hope. Hope that this war will end and my friend will be restored to his true self. The glimpse we got of Aranren may seem cruel, but it was necessary to show us what's possible. So, instead of being disheartened by Aranren's recapture, I choose to focus on the proof that he can be freed.” He leaned closer to add, “And I am certain you will be the one to free him, Lord Ember.”
Chapter Eight
“Be the light,” I muttered after the Emperor had moved on to another group.
“You are my light,” Rath said.
My head spun to face him. “What?”
“You have been since the day we met. You have a bright spirit, Ember. It's been hard to see that light dimmed by the war. But even dim, you shine, my love.”
“Fuck, Rath,” Kel huffed. “It's bad enough the fucking watcher over there writes him poetry. Now, you're spouting the shit too. You're making the rest of us look bad.”
Xae snorted a laugh. “Yup. You should have heard him the other night, with that fucking flower.”
“What fucking flower?” Taroc asked.
“There is no flower,” Rath growled as he narrowed his eyes at Xae.
Xae chortled and held up his hands.
“Don't listen to them,” I said to Rath. “Say more.”
Rath grinned. “Do I need to?”
“No.” I pulled him into an embrace. “But I still like hearing pretty things.”
“Uh, you have the finest ass I've ever seen,” Keltyr said.
I turned out of Rath's embrace with a horrified expression to find Kel grinning at me. “You'rean ass. Stop ruining our romance.”
“You've had enough romance with Rath,” Taroc said as he took my hand. “And the ceremony is about to begin.”
Taroc was good at redirecting people while gaining the upper hand. It was one of his many talents. He was also correct. The guests were indeed heading toward the clearing that had been designated for the ceremony, just outside of the village.
There were no seats, only an aisle of flower petals straight through the center of the meadow with a wood platform at the end of it. The clearing wasn't big enough for all of us, but people didn't seem to mind that. The overflow stood among the trees, some of them behind the platform. The Emperor and Sally were up front, of course, and we managed to get pretty close too, thanks to Taroc giving us a head start.
Once everyone was settled, the music began. There was a man near the platform playing a stringed instrument. A violin, I think. I wasn't sure because the thing looked so small compared to him. He was as big as Nex and the gold scales at his temples told me why. Same clan.
“Is it just my imagination or does that guy look like Nex?” I whispered.
“His father,” Rath whispered back.
“His father is alive?”
“Why does that surprise you?”
“I don't know. I guess because Nex never talks about his family. I assumed something bad had happened to them.”
In my opinion, it was a fair assumption. A lot of wraith lords went through the grueling process of joining our illustrious ranks because something terrible compelled them.
“He does talk about them. Just not often. They didn't like him joining us.”
