I made a skeptical sound. “In your dreams.”
“Or in yours,” Odette piped up, and Kiara giggled.
“Oh, don’t bullshit us, Emma. That boy has the total hots for you,” Delmare said. “Ethan’s definitely got some nasty sex fantasies when it comes to you and him.”
“Don’t make me barf.” I shook my head. “Really, you guys are hilarious. Ethan and I arejust friends.If we were anything more, we would’ve bonded by now, and nothing’s happened.”
“Doesn’t matter. Bonded or not, Ethan has to picksomeone, and you’re the only girl he likes,” Odette sang.
“Bonding doesn’t work that way, anyway. It takes time, and is permanently forged by a decision. He has to ask, and you have to accept,” Kiara said. “Who’s to say hewon’tpick you?”
“Don’t you want to be a princess?” Odette squealed.
I went to bite back, but Lord Lucien walked to the head of the classroom, and the conversation died down. As he gathered his papers, Delmare showed me a quick stick-figure drawing she’d done. It was obviously supposed to be me and Ethan in a very sexual position.
“Fuck off,” I whispered, and I threw my pencil at her.
“You guys are totally gonnado it,” she hushed back, before Lord Lucien started writing on the chalkboard. All fell silent as he turned around.
“Modern Malovian history,” he began. “For the majority of this semester, we’ve been focusing on studying great kings and queens of the past— those who have led Malovia to become the great country it is today. However, today we’re going to focus on something a little different. In light of our nation’s recent loss, I believe that this class would be best spent focusing on the accomplishments of King Lycus Nowak.”
A few hushed whispers broke out. I immediately became interested. Nobody talked about Ethan’s dad. It wasn’t exactly forbidden, but everyone seemed more or less scared to bring him up— as if they’d raise a ghost.
Lucien raised his hand. A spell sprung forth from it. Fog filtered out of his fingertips and created a circular sphere. Within the sphere came the likeness of a man— early fifties or so, a gray beard and long gray hair disguising soft wrinkles.
He looked ridiculously noble, like a king should. I didn’t find many traits in him that were Ethan’s except his amber eyes. Ethan must look like his mother.
“King Lycus took the throne nearly thirty years ago, during very dark times for our country,” Lucien began. “Ten years after his reign began, there was an uprising in Dolinska like none had ever seen before. The Black Claw extremist group had gotten out of hand. Their numbers ranked in the thousands. It was a very real fear among the Arcanea that they would take over the city— even the monarchy, and eventually, the country.”
Lucien waved his hand, and the fog changed to reveal an image of Dolinska burning. Black Claw tributes moved throughout the streets, killing any who got in their way. Some Arcanea ran— some chose to fight. Bodies began piling up on the streets, and blood poured down the cobblestone from all the fallen Marked and Companions. The skies darkened with clouds of black smoke that rose from the burning buildings. It was like watching an incredibly gory movie, except a knot formed in my throat when I realized that this wasn’t fiction. What was happening before us had been real.
“The scene you see is from my own memory,” Lucien said. “Eighteen years ago, there was a crisis in Dolinska unlike any other. We called this dayPalennoc, otherwise known as the Night of Burning Skies. Thousands of Arcanea perished on this night. The Black Claw swarmed into the city and began slaughtering thousands in a sacrifice to the dark god Droga. It is only due to the work of King Lycus that the Black Claw are no longer here today.”
My eyebrows scrunched together, confused. Lucien was talking like King Lycus had eliminated the Black Claw altogether. That might’ve been true, for a time, but they were back now. Certainly not in as great of numbers as before, but they were still lurking around.
“King Lycus gathered the greatest of the Arcanea warriors and led an attack on the Black Claw,” Lucien said. “There was a great battle in the city square. Both sides suffered heavy losses, but in the end, King Lycus was able to kill or otherwise eliminate those within the Black Claw’s ranks. Those who fled the country were found later and executed.”
Images of Lycus’ funeral popped up within the fog. I immediately spotted Ethan among the crowd, sitting in a wheelchair. Ethan must’ve not had his prosthetic yet. A woman stood behind him, her hands on his shoulders. I took her as the queen.
Ethan’s face looked so hollow. It was clear he blamed himself. I wanted to reach through the fog and touch him— bring him some sort of comfort. It was horrible seeing him like that. It carved a pit in me that I didn’t know existed. That pit went far down, to a place where it was so dark I was sure the sorrow never ended.
“King Lycus was one of our country’s greatest protectors. He eliminated a huge threat to our kind and ensured our race would have a future in the world we inhabit,” Lucien said. “Whosoever succeeds him by winning the throne in this year’s King’s Contest will have high expectations placed on their shoulders.”
The funeral scenes changed, and the fog dissipated. Delmare raised a hand. Lucien pointed at her. “Yes, Miss Delmare?”
She leaned forward. “I heard that there’s more to the story. That the Black Claw was looking for someone that night.”
Lucien seemed slightly uncomfortable. “There is an old legend. A rumor. But it’s never been confirmed, and this is a history class. I prefer to tell facts over fiction.”
“Myths and legends can be history. They’re part of our lore,” Odette said. There were murmurs of agreement around the room, and everyone gave the professor a curious stare.
Lucien sighed. “Very well. If you insist.”
He put his hands behind his back and began walking around the room slowly. “As you all know, the Black Claw worship Droga. There is a very old story among them that Tomir, the King of the Gods, and Droga, his brother, waged war for possession of our home world, Edinmyre, and that is why the fae came to live on Earth amongst humans. During the war, Tomir ended Droga, and brought him to Earth, imprisoning him in a stone grave somewhere in Malovia.”
Lucien paused, as if considering how much to reveal. “Prophecy is considered a dark art by Arcanea, gifted by evil forces to Black Claw tributes wishing to foretell the future. The…prophecygoes that there is one whose blood can bring Droga back to life, and release him from his tomb prison. There is no other explanation of who this person may be, except that they will be known as the Worldweaver.”
I felt the color drain from my face immediately. The entire room turned cold, and my hands started to shake. I pulled them underneath my desk and bunched them in my skirt to hide it.
