“So, todays the day, then?” My eyes are calm and steady, but my heart thuds loudly against my ribcage, the rush of blood vibrating within my ears like a warning bell screaming within my head.
His smile fades, his eyes darkening as he nods. “It is. We have no choice. The soldiers out guarding are getting restless as they wait. They know she will make a move soon if we do not.” He takes another sip from his mug, gripping it tight as his eyes stay on me. “You do not have to do this if you don’t want to, Nora. As much as I would love for you to know the truth, it will be risky.” His knuckles begin to pale from how tight he grips the mug, but he doesn’t release it when he lowers his hands to the table, as if he needs something to keep him grounded.
He’s nervous, too. I reach for him and take his hands in mine. “I don’t care about the risk. Living a life being haunted by darkness and used in Nyx’s games isn’t something I’m willing to do any longer. I’m done hiding. I want the truth, and I want her to pay for what she has done to me. And to my parents and you,” I spit, releasing his hands as mine begin to tremble. I clench them into tight fists in my lap.
Closing my eyes and taking a deep breath, I lean into his shadows as they embrace me. They caress my skin with that icy scent that only exists in a wintery midnight breeze until sweet numbness takes hold of my mind and then my heart. He’s right. For now, I need to remain calm, but when I face her, I’ll let my anger and my fire tear into her cold, dead heart. I relax my shoulders and unclench my fists as Ere’s soothing touch erases the lingering pain and torment from my scattered mind. I’ll save my anger for her.
He leans forward, stretching his arms across the table and opening his hands, so I place mine within them. “In person, Nyx is more vicious and cruel than you can imagine. When she wants something, her voice is innocent and alluring and her deceptive charm naturally sways others into believing she is nothing but a delicate flower.” He caresses my hands with his thumbs, staring down at them blankly. “Her power to seduce the mind into giving her what she wants is hard to resist. You must see through her facade and fight it the way I do. You can’t let her into your head.” He meets my gaze, his features shifting to what I believe is fear. “She is far from a delicate flower. Once she has her claws in you, she’s a rose dipped in poison, her fragrance capable of ending you with a single breath.”
I should be scared, but I’m not. Not with his shadows holding me tight and enveloping me in a soothing calmness that embeds itself into every part of me. I know he’ll do what he can to keep me safe, All I can do is fight for my memories and freedom the best I can, and hope and pray it doesn’t end in permanent death. At least he’s giving me the chance to try. Better than laying low and staying helpless and human like Kairos and Hekate preferred. She would have become angrier and angrier, and people would have died.
“I appreciate you helping me. I couldn’t do this without you. I wouldn’t want to.” I smile, gazing into his glowing eyes and wishing I never had to look away. “She’s not just going to hand over the amulet. She has me right where she wants me. She knows I’ll come for it, and she thinks she’ll win. We could both be hurt. Or worse, we could be killed. I hate even dragging you into this.”
“We will not be asking her for permission to take it back, my love. We are taking what belongs to you whether she likes it or not. She believes I have been under her spell and that soon you will be, too. What she does not know is that I have been training my army for this very moment, an army of powerful celestials and witches who she thinks I tossed into the pit. We will not be alone. And you are not dying today. Neither am I.” He stands and grabs our empty mugs, stretching his wings out wide and then tucking them tight behind his back, his shadows staying behind to keep me company as he walks away.
He wants this just as badly as I do. Maybe even more so. I’ve dealt with her torment and games for a year, and it has been pure hell. I can’t imagine going through this for an entire century. If he truly has been stuck down here just waiting for this very moment, then I’m certain he’s ready for it to be over. He deserves a new beginning, too. I head down the dark corridor, waving a hand and lighting the black flame candles in the bedroom as I enter, and it brings me comfort that at least today I seem to be able to control my power. I haven’t accidentally set anything else aflame yet. I need to be in control, at least for today, not only in control of my power, but of my mind. My thoughts have been quiet. I’ve heard no cryptic whispers or dark thoughts about ending my life, but I know she’s still in there. She’s just waiting for the most opportune time to try and take over. I cannot, under any circumstances, let her.
I quickly change into black fighting leathers, running my hands down the Dark Legions wings and sword emblem on my chest. Thoughts of Kairos and what he might be feeling or doing in this very moment crash into me, ricocheting through my mind. My heart aches and my chest feels heavy thinking about the hurt he might have felt after I gave myself over to Nyx’s demons. I can’t even begin to imagine how much more it will hurt him to find out Ere is my fated mate and the one I’m meant to be with. I collapse to the edge of the bed, putting my head between my knees and forcing myself to breathe. It fucking hurts. If Ere is my fated mate, then Kairos isn’t. I place my hands against my chest, trying to hold my heart together, to force it to not think or feel, because guilt eats at me when I do, because I hurt him. I kissed him and then chose to leave him. Fuck. If Ere is mine and I am his, then it means someone has lied to Kairos, but not just to him, to an entire realm of people. Why? And how? It doesn’t make sense. Maybe he chose to lie to me himself for his own fucked up reasons that I don’t understand. No. Kairos loved me, didn’t he? Loves me. Gods, is this his pain or my own? Him falling apart, or me? It’s too hard to tell. I never wanted to hurt him. And I’m going to hurt him again, aren’t I?
I’d rather end up broken hearted myself than for either of them to ever feel pain.
Are you ready, my little flame?
Ere’s whispered words within my mind are like a velvety, warm blanket wrapping around all the wounded, broken pieces of me, and suddenly I can breathe again.
Yes. I’m ready.
I’m not sure how I force my words to not quiver even within my mind, because no, I am not ready for this. I’m not quite sure I ever could be. Right now, I’m more afraid of finding out the truth than I am of Nyx or her demons, but that fear is fading as I stand and face the shadows trickling into the room from the hall.
The towering horns and enormous wings come into view first, and then he tilts his head up and looks at me, flashing a ghost of a smile. It isn’t real. He’s trying to keep me calm. To keep me from spiraling. It’s what he does best. So, I step toward him, welcoming the slowing of my racing heart and the calm that takes over as I loop my arm through his, heading outside to the darkness that awaits us. Neither of us speak for a while. We silently make our way down the stone path lined with black flame torches, nod at the soldiers who stand and wait, then continue walking as Ere commands them to take off into the sky. We head toward the black waters of the River Styx, the dark, rocky mountains towering over us on both sides as he grips my hand in his.
The river is deathly still. Gazing into it as I walk past the mouth, there’s something that tells me it might enjoy devouring the bodies of restless, lost souls and spitting out the useless bones. Like souls are what keep it satiated and content. I shiver over this thought, wrapping an arm around my center. This river, though, it’s also…familiar. Like I’ve seen it up close before or have even stood in this exact spot before, but I wouldn’t remember. Maybe that’s part of its magic and allure, to make all who pass by feel like they’re meant to be here. Like they’re home.
“You said this river is sacred. What makes it so special?” Gripping his hand tighter, I bring it to my chest, clasping my free hand around our entwined fingers.
I can’t tear my eyes away from the still water. It feels charged and magnetic like it won’t let me look away until it’s through searching within me.
His fingers twitch slightly in my hand as his head tilts down at me. “If the stories are true, then where we stand is a place gods and goddesses once came to. This very ground is sacred. Gods rarely made oaths with one another, but when they did, it was this water they would drink to seal it for eternity.” Looking away, he gets lost staring into the pool of water before us. “Oaths broken would bring both gods here no matter where they were or how long it had been, and punishment would be swift. You do not make a promise before this river that you do not intend to keep with the other party. The magic within the River Styx never forgets. And the one who breaks the oath, well, their life will be changed forever, one way or another. It is up to the river to decide what is taken from them.”
“Holy shit,” I breathe, finally able to peel my eyes away and look at him. “How did my life go from being so simple to this in just weeks?” I huff a laugh, shaking my head. “Are there other sacred places that exist similar to this?”
Smiling, he shifts his attention to the walls of the mountains, pointing up, his eyes glowing with excitement. “There. That’s called the River Lethe. It has magical properties of its own. There is another here named the River Msemosyne, and it does as well. I will take you to see them one day.” Releasing my hand, he turns his back to the rivers and begins to walk away.
As I turn with him, I Glance over my shoulder, taking in the highest peak of the mountains where a glimmer catches my eye. A huge waterfall cascades down the side and pours into the open mouth of the sprawling mountain range below, too far away to see where it lands.
He stops and faces me, and I look at him, really seeing him tonight for the first time. I admire his beauty and grace in the black attire, choosing to forgo comfort in order to play the part of a true king. His black slacks and blazer give the impression that we’re not at war or that not a single drop of blood might be spilled, and something about it makes him feel even more dangerous and lethal. It’s an illusion of calm that I know is a lie, because his shadows, I fear, want to tear the world apart tonight.
“Sit with me for a moment?” Placing a hand on my lower back, he helps me sit as a soft blanket appears on the ground and a black flame fire pit that wasn’t there seconds ago flicks to life beside us.
I smile as the warm flames extinguish the chill in the air and Ere sits down next to me. “A date before we meet with death? How romantic.” Leaning my head on his shoulder, I curl into him as he wraps an arm around me and then softly runs his fingers through my wavy hair.
“I told you that you are not dying today, and I meant it.” His dark locks fall in front of his warm, caramel eyes as he pulls back slightly to look at me, adjusting his wings behind him. “Let’s just enjoy this peaceful moment together.” Gently gripping my chin between his fingers, he caresses my cheek with his thumb before placing a soft, comforting kiss to my lips.
“Are you afraid?” I whisper, a part of me scared she might hear, that the darkness might always be listening. “That she’ll take me from you again, I mean.”
“Yes,” he says simply, his trembling hand grasping mine. “I fear how I might respond.” His voice cracks with vulnerability, his brows furrowing as he looks at me. “I have endured Nyx’s darkness for over a century, but the emptiness I have been avoiding will consume me if you are taken away now. It is a darkness, a pain, I could never escape. I will drag anyone who gets in our way into the pit, even if it means surrendering myself to its fiery depths. She will not hurt you again.”
I swallow, tears burning my eyes, my throat raw from a slicing anguish that has me gripping his hand tighter. He has endured too much. I can’t let her hurt him anymore either.
