“Of course, it is forbidden in the Treaty of the Twelve to evenattemptto use any form of divination for anyone not of their same Zodiac sign, except for the annual Equinox gathering if a Blood Sharing takes place.”
I had a sinking feeling that whatever came next out of Gregorios’s mouth would be sky-shattering.
“From the moment our last royal, Queen Auden, died twelve years ago in her sleep, Scorpio has forsaken me. I have not received a vision, a dream, or anything of what was to come to pass next. I thought little of it, having still been able to use Blood Sight to verify Auden’s successor, Herah. Until Herah didn’t succeed in her trial. Then Agnes. And then Calliope, and so forth, and now we have Cyrene. And still not a word from Scorpio.”
“Felaf was Chosen only last year, too. How can that be if what you say is true?”
“A mystery, indeed,” he admitted gruffly. “Though the power of a guardian is not the same as the elemental power of a royal.The queendom does not depend on a guardian’s strength the way it does the power ofhudro.”
“But each year, Scorpio clearlyChoosesa new princess. I’ve seen the glyphs myself. You’vetastedtheir blood, confirming as such.” I frowned. “And yet while doing so, Scorpio ignores you? How is that possible?”
“It shouldn’t be.”
The truth of what he said, the gravity of it all, was horrifying. An Astral had never forsaken their seer.
“What have you been telling Maryn, the other seers, or your acolytes this entire time?” I asked, even though I was well aware of some of it. It was impossible not to overhear conversations throughout the palace.
“Carefully crafted lies. By using the planetary movements and vague interpretations from my tarot cards, I have said what you all have wanted to hear. That the next one will be found, she will be a new force we have never seen, and she will ultimately harness the power ofhudro.I’ve kept the fabricated messages generic enough so as not to raise alarm should anything prove untrue.”
“Except”—I said, thinking back—“whereto find each of them.”
Gregorios nodded. “I’ve claimed to be too busy to sleep and receive proper dreams.”
Seers often received dreams of the next Chosen and where to send guardians to retrieve them. In my twelve years as guardian, I’d never been sent to find one. Each of the princesses had been brought by their families in time for Gregorios to complete their Choosing and heal them from the loss of blood. Head reeling, I steadied my breath. “How have the other seers not suspected any of this?”
“I do not enjoy deceiving my peers, but it has been necessary to protect this queendom.”
“Why am I here, Gregorios? Why are you telling me this?”
“I started to wonder if these happenings were related to you. The timing of your arrival and Auden’s death shortly after was odd. Weeks apart, in fact. But I knew that couldn’t have been the case, considering Scorpio had given me a vision ofyoumany years before you were even born. Scorpio spoke to me the words I spoke to you. That is why I am entrusting you with this knowledge now.”
“No one else knows this?”
“And no one else can. If anyone knew how truly, utterly blind and forsaken we are, could you imagine the chaos that would ensue? Far more than already has. Wars will be waged over our queendom. The fire territories are already planning to propose a marriage decree at the next Equinox gathering. We mustn’t let that happen or else our people will never be free of another’s reign. This queendom as we’ve always known it will forever cease to exist. And everyone will be too blind with power to see how detrimental that will be to the stability of Gaianos.”
“But wouldn’t their seers warn their royals of that and prevent such a thing from happening?”
“The calamity would happen over time, as would the steady destruction of our queendom. By that point, most of us will not be alive to feel the effects of their actions.”
“Such is the addicting lure of power and greed.” Cold dread pebbled my skin. “But Cyrene?—”
“Cyrene will die tomorrow.”
To interfere in a royal’s trial was to commit treason. I straightened. “How can you be certain of that after all you’ve just told me?”
“My Blood Sight still works, though I must use it sparingly before the blood becomes poisonous to me. Tarot has not yet forsaken me, and the planets and star alignments speak to broader themes of what shall come to pass. All of these avenuesof divination are muddled and short-sighted. I have not truly foreseenanythingof actual use.” Gregorios breathed in deeply, as if readying himself for the next words. “Until last night.”
He lifted himself from his chair. I tracked his silhouette all the way to his desk.
“I received a dream for the first time in twelve years. Seers do not dream as the acolytes do. Any dreams of ours are intentional messages from our Astral.”
“So Scorpioiscommunicating with you again.”
“Not quite. My dream was not from Scorpio. It was from Gemini.”
The shock of his words dissolved into concern. “That shouldn’t be possible.”
Gregorios returned to his seat. He carried with him a rolled-up piece of parchment tucked under his hands. “No Astral has ever possessed the power to wield another Astral’s element, nor see the past or future of anyone except for their own people. Never has it been possible for them to communicate with Chosens outside of their own territory. Little is known about whether or not they still even communicate witheach other,wherever they are. But we have known it to be true that inter-kingdom and queendom Astral messaging has been impossible. It is why we seers exist.” Gregorios huffed, a self-deprecating sound. “Weare their messengers.”
