“We have been separated from the realms of Haluma and Yarit ever since the last water wielder was purged by King Nolan. With Ruin involved, we can bridge the chasm that has separated us. We share a common enemy, General. I will lend you my army, that together we might destroy King Nolan and his Nokts.”
Dom and I exchanged a glance. “What are Nokts?”
“They are the embodiment of darkness, created to combat the original guardians, now long gone. Their magic goes against the created order. They are dark creatures with distorted features and membranous wings. Many release acid as a defense. There are Nokts and there are Astrals. The words themselves imply their origin of allegiance—darkness and night, light and stars. Everyone in the realms aligns with one or the other. This is greater than King Nolan. This is a war between the gods we are all caught up in, and there is no neutrality.”
I started. If this was true, then what was I? What was Dom?
“We’ve encountered Nokts. They are hunting Rue.” Dom lingered on me. His jaw tightened—in anger or fear, I couldn’t decipher.
The queen faced me, drumming her fingers. “Of course the King would covet your magic. Your proficiency of your elemental magic is not common, and your mastering of it without a Prime is impressive. But there is much more to you than what you know up to this point. I sense that there is light in you, butthere is a similar veil to that which covers our world. It smothers you. For your sake, I hope you figure out how to break through it.” Sadness lined her eyes when she turned abruptly, causing hundreds of bubbles to cascade around her shimmering body. Her cryptic words settled heavy between us as she paced.
“And you, Dominus, the prophesied General of the Liberation. Your curse is an acrid secret that burns in my throat. Even now, your blood is poisoned.” She softened her tone further. “You are dying.”
Dom tensed, then closed his eyes as he bowed his head. He did not refute her.
My heart buckled. The room shrank around me.
Her three words lanced through me. I stared at him, disbelieving. I just found him. My friend and comforting anchor from when I was a little girl. Until this moment, I had not realized he had become that to me again. Her seismic words threw me off-balance and shoved me toward a truth I’d refused to acknowledge. I swayed, hollowed out.
This whole time he’d shouldered the weight of his impending death and pursued freedom for his people at the expense of himself. I understood the sense of duty, even if I wanted to stab him for it. How long had he suffered in silence? My pulse thundered in my chest. I could not lose him again.
“What is the nature of your curse?” the queen asked. I scarcely breathed.
Dom shifted in his seat. “It happened shortly after I was born. We believe my shadows are a result of the blood curse. My blood is progressively being subsumed by it, turning it black, like char. My metal affinity has helped keep it at bay, but it’s getting harder to contain. I have been told by my healers that my heart won’t be able to handle the poison once it hits a certain threshold. And I believe that level is close to being reached.”Regret and grief replaced the light of his amber eyes, dulling the life within them.
It all made sense. The reason they sent us out with an elixist. The vials of tonic. His veins that darken, then disappear. Why he had shadows before his metal magic emerged. It was his greatest secret and shame. The powerful general of the Liberation was quietly dying.
I dared not move for fear of breaking apart completely. I couldn’t find my breath.
The queen regarded me. “You didn’t know.”
Dom turned to me then, his eyes glazed with pain, his shoulders dropping in resignation.
I didn’t think. I simply moved. My heart took over where my fears roared restraint. I refused to leave him any longer in his isolation, in defeat. He had stayed with me in my anxiety, empowered me in my own weakness. He could have abandoned me to the lies I had swallowed. I would fight with him. I would destroy for him.
My affinity reached out as my arms embraced his body. As soon as we touched, his shadows flared, enveloping us in a warm and tender darkness, shielding us from the queen’s observation. We clung to each other as breath demands air—committed, inseparable, unflinching.
I wanted to scream. I wanted to weep. Nolan had stolen everything from me. He would not get Dom too.
“You never told me,” I rasped into his neck. I didn’t know who was shaking, but it made me grip him tighter. The runes on his throat and collar appeared on his skin, shimmering in dark silver. The darker his shadows became, the brighter his tattoos shone. They were hauntingly beautiful.
“I didn’t want to burden you. My life has been mapped out; I’ve always known I’d die. I’d just hoped to defeat Nolan before it happened.” He rubbed my back. His strong hands beliedhis weakening state. I intended to console him, yet instead he comforted me.
“I’ll help you find a cure. There has to be one.” I would destroy Nolan, the realms—even myself—trying.
“There is none, Liora.” Anguish dripped off of him. My old name on his lips tore me open further, exposing a raw vulnerability I wasn’t ready for.
“Actually, there might be a cure you have not discovered.” The queen’s voice sliced through Dom’s shadows. Immediately, they dissipated, reabsorbing into his hands.
We both stared expectantly at the siren queen, rebounding from the brief moment of intimacy. I clutched his hand in my own, unwilling to release our connection.
Her smile was soft, sad even. “This can help guide you toward your cure.” Her elegant tail swept her toward a side table. She opened a drawer, emitting a few bubbles along with a tiny shrimp that pumped its body racing for cover.
She pulled out a small velvet bag, then extended her hand toward Dom. “This is a magically-imbued compass, a relic gifted to me for the curse that once plagued me. It will glow brighter and brighter the closer you come to your cure. I hope it leads you directly to that which you seek.” She spared a glance my way before releasing the compass into Dom’s possession. Its curvature of pale gold softly reflected the glowworms’ ambient light.
“You must first put a drop of blood here.” She pointed out a small compartment in the back of the compass. Dom unfastened the cover and removed one of his daggers. He sliced his finger and blood pearled, floating. He managed to catch a droplet in the compass’s waiting chamber.
Dom held the artifact in his large hand, turning it over to assess the ornate filigree. It appeared as any other fancy compass—true north precisely situated with a delicately carvedgolden needle. It emitted a faint glow. He pocketed it and stood, bowing again to the queen. Thank you seemed like too small a response, but it was offered nonetheless.
