Zeus abruptly rose in her esteem. He’d moved pawns around for generations to increase the chances of bringing unity and peace back to Thalyria. He’d waited far too long to help give Thalyrians leaders who cared about their welfare, but at least he’d finally set plans into motion and manipulated outcomes in favor of sane and compassionate rulers who’d managed to oust the rotten ones, kingdom by kingdom. She wasn’t surprised Zeus hadn’t given magic back to Atlantis yet. With Eryx in charge, she wouldn’t, either.
Except she would—briefly. She still believed that fightingMagoi to Magoi was the only way to obtain an indisputable transition of power. But maybe that was just her Thalyrian roots speaking, and here, it didn’t matter.
Bellanca waited for Eryx to talk first, flaming softly inside her cloak and helmet. As she’d feared, her magic heated the metal, but the discomfort was worth the eerie show she knew she was putting on. She hoped it would spare lives, although not Eryx’s in the long run. Cleito shuffled to the side, coming out of his shadow. She looked up, and Bellanca hissed in a breath, her magic abruptly flickering. The two women locked eyes, the Chaos Wizard’s swirling with magic. Bellanca’s widened. Why hadn’t Carver told her? She always felt so different here, but Cleito looked just like her.
“You asked for me?” Eryx cocked his head in question, a brow lifting. “My la—”
“Your Highness,” Bellanca interrupted. She didn’t expand upon her answer. It would be clear soon enough. In the meantime, Eryx could wonder.
Eryx’s back stiffened. “To what do we owe your…visit?”
“It’s come to Zeus’s attention that you’ve been abusing the only magic he offered this island in generations.” Her glowing, helmeted gaze flicked to Cleito before returning to Eryx. She wanted to look longer, harder, but now wasn’t the time. She’d known about Cleito’s red hair—an oddity in Atlantis—but what about the rest? Hadn’t Carver noticed? “Since you do not value his gift, he’s reclaiming it. I’m here to take your oracle and inform you that the gods are watching. Magic will only return to Atlantis when the gods are pleased with it.”
Eryx’s thin mouth pinched. “I work daily to please them.”
“You work daily to pleaseyourself. Nothing you do is for the gods—or for your island.”
“How dare you presume—”
“I presume nothing. Isee. Zeus reclaims Cleito. Give her to me, and this night can end without bloodshed.” Eryx’s tense gaze swept over his dead advisor. Bellanca looked, too. “Or perhaps his fate interests you,” she said smoothly.
His dark glare hardened. “You threaten the king?”
“Monarchies rise and fall like the tide. Nature doesn’t care what it washes away.” She paused. “I don’t, either.”
Her threat hung in the air between them, and Eryx raised his sword when she stepped closer. Jaw tight, he said, “Magoi. Here? In Atlantis?” He watched Bellanca’s fire smolder under her cloak, seeming both mesmerized and furious. “How is this possible?”
“I’m not from here. I told you. The gods sent me.”
His gaze jumped back to her face. “Take off your helmet.”
“Igive the orders.” Bellanca channeled her magic away from her head and down her arms and into her fingers. The helmet stayed hot but not burning, and her hands crackled fiercely. “Give me Cleito.”
“How do I know you truly speak for Zeus?” Eryx yanked on Cleito’s leash and pulled her roughly against him. He gripped her arm, turning her ivory skin red under his unforgiving fingers.
Bellanca’s anger surged at the show of brutality, but for the first time, she hesitated. Eryx wasn’t scaring as easily as she hoped, and she half wondered if Zeus might smite her on the spot for throwing his name around. It was beyond bold to speak for the King of Olympus, but Persephone had mandated her in Zeus’s name to lead an army in Atlantis. She couldn’t do that withouttakingthe island first, so here she was, making her first real move and placing herself on the game board.
“Hand over the oracle,” she ordered sharply, “or suffer the wrath of Olympus.”My wrath.She flamed brighter.
Eryx’s eyes narrowed. “Zeus would just take her. There onesecond, gone the next. Gods don’t need to send Magoi messengers. You’re an imposter, and all you’ve done is prove her importance.” Eryx hauled Cleito against his chest and used her to shield him. “Guards! Kill her!” He dragged Cleito backward as his soldiers rushed at Bellanca.
Chapter 15
Sun-flare magic wanted to burst out instantly. Bellanca corralled it, the effort leaving her lightheaded and smoldering. A flash like that would kill everyone around her, including Cleito. It might even melt her own head under the helmet. Still recovering, she shot fire at the guards, aiming low to try to scare them back without doing permanent damage. Unlike with satyrs, one crackling fireball to the wrong—or right—spot would kill them.
“What was ripped apart is reunited!” Cleito called above the roar of flames and the cries of soldiers. Bellanca did her best to clear a path toward the Chaos Wizard without killing the people between them. Eryx dragged Cleito back toward the tall double doors he’d come through. She struggled against him, shouting, “The queen comes! Beware the usurper!”
The queen comes.Indeed, she did. Bellanca charged forward.
Eryx managed to haul Cleito nearly out of the room before Bellanca stopped letting humanity get in the way. With a snarl of frustration, she destroyed the nearest two soldiers trying to block her. “Back off and live!” She stepped over their smoking bodies. “Bring me Cleito!”
A stupid young soldier jumped in front of her, sword raised, eyes terrified. She let out what she hoped was a measured blast of sun-flare magic, concentrating it on him and only him. He didn’t even burn. He went straight to scattered ashes. Sheforced herself to feel nothing as she walked through his floating remains. Unfortunately, her powerful new magic also caught the two men closest to him and killed them, messier, blood and flesh and bones all oozing together. She didn’t look more closely. What she saw out of the corner of her eye was enough to teach her to aim better and try harder. Another guard got in her way. He died, too, but only him this time.
Satisfaction found a small place inside her despite the carnage. The nuances of her new magic slid into place with practice. This was no fire, though she was beginning to channel it through her body and aim it in the same way. This was pure heat, a blistering, bright-white light that demolished.
The king made a break for it, and Cleito struggled hard, taking him by surprise and slowing him down. She got in a kick, and Eryx backhanded her so hard she spun and fell to the marble. Bellanca’s heart slammed up her throat. Cleito staggered to her feet, and Eryx yanked on the leash, making her stumble after him.
Two more guards looked ready to come at her, and Bellanca lifted her blazing hands in warning. They changed their minds and backed away, leaving her a clear path to the exit. Others threw down their weapons. She glanced around. The dozen or so soldiers who remained alive in the throne room all held up their hands in surrender.
