“That’swhy both Bane and Jessina have their clan’s ice magic,” she blurts out. It’s not really a question. More of an accusation. “No other clan has two clan leaders, since only one person can inherit their clan magic. But Bane and Jessina both have magic and both carry the title of clan leader. That’s your doing, isn’t it?”
Severin tightens his clasped hands, once again looking distinctly uncomfortable.
All three of us gape at him as understanding settles inside me as well. I’ve always just thought that the Silver Clan was specialor something. That, since they have their ice flames, their clan simply plays by different rules than the other dragon shifters. But apparently, that’s not the case.
“What did you do?” I demand, my voice coming out dark and full of threats.
Severin squirms under our harsh gazes for another few seconds before finally breaking. “We just wanted to help! Our ancestor, Theodora, who was the leader of the Gold Clan back then, really thought she was doing the right thing. Bane and Jessina came to her, begging her for help. They had been enslaved by fae from the Seelie Court for decades and had finally gotten free. But they were so worried that they would be captured again that they begged Theodora to give them their clan’s ice magic so that they could protect themselves.”
“And she believed them?” Isera snarls.
“Why wouldn’t she? How could she have known that they were going to kill the current leader of the Silver Clan, take his position, and then… and then…”
“And then launch a war that desolated part of the continent, forced the dryads into hiding, and destroyed our court, before they also slaughtered almost our entire species and then conquered all of the other dragon clans too,” I finish for him, my voice hard.
“She was just trying to help!” Severin desperately insists while wringing his hands. “But after we saw what they started doing, we realized that we had wronged Azaroth. He gave us this power to helphim. Not someone else. So we knew that we had to make amends.”
“Make amends?”
“Yes. Earlier, we had made a bargain with the Unseelie Court to open this pocket reality for us so that we would have a private and peaceful place to pray. But once Bane and Jessina set their destructive plans in motion, we knew that we had to make amends and change our ways.”
“But you didn’t make amends! You hid. For six thousand years!”
“Not amends to you. ToAzaroth.” He shakes his head at me as if that should have been obvious. “We knew we had to repent by going into self-imposed exile and only focusing on our core duty.”
“Which is what?”
“A life of prayer in peace and solitude.”
“So you created a pair of monsters and then just left the world to fend for itself?” I snarl, fury streaking through me like lightning.
“We should never have gotten involved in the first place.” He raises his chin, determination blazing in his eyes. “It is not our place to intervene. The people who suffer, suffer because Azaroth wills it. The people who die, die because Azaroth wants them to. It is not our place to save anyone. They die because it is Azaroth’s will.”
The memories of Jessina slitting my parents’ throats flash before my eyes. The fear, the shock, the pools of blood. The awful thuds as they hit the floor.
Rage, so all-consuming that it could have burned the world down, sears through my soul. My parents didn’t die because Azaroth wanted them to. I haven’t suffered all my life because Azaroth willed it so. I have suffered because Bane and Jessina wanted me to. My parents died because Jessina killed them. They are responsible for their own actions. And I am responsible for mine. I decided not to go and see my parents when I could, and therefore, I will never know if they loved me. The regret of that is destroying me from the inside. But the regret is still mine. BecauseImade that choice.
It isn’t until I slam into Orion’s outstretched arm that I realize that I was about to strangle Severin to death. On Orion’s other side, Isera has smacked into his other arm as well. She, who is also mourning the loss of a parent and who is alsoplagued by regret, must have been thinking the exact same thing as me.
“What if we can give you a chance to fix it?” Orion says, and there is a sharp glint in his eye and a cunning edge to his smooth voice. Like a predator, luring his prey in before the strike. “You said that you wronged Azaroth by giving both Bane and Jessina the Silver Clan’s signature ice magic. What if we can give you, Severin Godblessed, a chance to finally undo your ancestor’s mistake and restore the Gold Clan’s honor in the eyes of your god?”
My skin prickles at both his words and the way he says them. His words are like honey and his voice like the smooth caress of dark silk. Sometimes, I forget that Orion is a master manipulator. That he is an expert at tempting people into bargains and convincing them to do what he wants. As I’ve gotten to know him, I’ve started to see him like just another person. But it is at times like this that I am reminded that he is the Unseelie King and one of the most dangerous people I have ever met.
Severin licks his lips, looking uncertain for the first time since we stepped into this temple.
“What if we can give you a chance to strip one of the Icehearts of their magic and restore the natural order?” Orion pushes.
The leader of the Gold Clan draws in an unsteady breath. His tassel sways and brushes his neck as he wrings his hands. Then he licks his lips again. “How?”
It’s a short word spoken in a small voice. But a sharp smile spreads across Orion’s lips, because he already knows that he has won.
“You’re going to have to trust us.”
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
My heart pounds like a battle drum as we run back along the river and towards the stone bridge that will take us out of the pocket reality. Just like when we were searching for the Gold Clan’s city, Orion is at the front of our little procession while Isera and I bring up the rear. However, this time, there is a fourth person here as well.
That long golden tassel swings back and forth across the back of Severin Godblessed’s neck as he runs through the woods in his flowing robes. Gold and beige fabric flutter in the air, while the white parts of his garments remain more firmly fixed to his body. For someone who is supposed to be solely a man of faith and prayer, he is surprisingly fit.
