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And now, it’s a deadline.
One month. Is it even possible to provoke my first shift in that time?
Would Lyxander leave with me to complete my training so I wouldn’t have to accept this ultimatum? I abandon the idea as quickly as it comes. He’s only just returned to his home and his kin. I can’t ask him to leave.
But I also don’t want to leave. Not yet.
I want to know more. About my mother. About these people. About this place that feels both foreign and familiar all at once.
And after the flight from the tower, the sensation of the wind rushing past me, the ground falling away beneath us…What would it be like to fly on my own? To feel the air under my own wings, to soar above the mountains and see the world from high above?
“What if I fail?” I ask the queen.
“Then you will leave Aerilos. And you will not return.”
Before I can fully process the ultimatum, she continues, her voice colder still.
“If you do not emerge, you will enter into a bargain with me. Not only will you leave Aerilos, but you will be unable to return, and you will be unable to speak of what you have learned here to anyone, anywhere.”
If they have banished others over the years, I suppose a bargain would make sense to keep themselves hidden. But secrets have a way of slipping through the cracks and finding ears willing to listen. And from this brief interaction alone, I don’t believe Queen Khione is the kind of person to leave anything to chance, no matter what she claims.
Whatever the outcome, I’ll need to stay vigilant.
Lyxander carefully conceals his emotions, but the subtle dip of his chin feels like reassurance. And somehow, I trust that whatever this requires of me, he’ll help me through it.
“I’ll do it.” The words tumble from my mouth, steadier than I feel, as I turn to face the queen.
The queen smiles. “Then may Boreas be merciful, since I cannot be.”
Chapter 28
Aella
The flight from the palace is less exhilarating than the one from the tower.
So lost in my thoughts, I barely notice we’ve arrived until Lyxander sets me down on my feet in the open-air chamber. His hands linger on my waist, steadying me, and the warmth of his touch cuts through the chill in the air.
“How long will you be gone?” I ask softly, my voice breaking the stillness.
While the queen had allowed him to return me to the tower, it was on the condition that he present himself at the palace afterward. I’m not certain if it’s because Silas’s words about Lyxander’s imprisonment struck a chord with her, or if it’s an underhanded attempt to put me at a disadvantage. The latter seems too self-absorbed. But I do not know this queen, and I do not trust her intentions.
“I don’t know.” His hands slip away, and the chill rushes in to take their place. “My kin will stay with you until I can return.”
I nod, averting my eyes as the thought of him leaving twists in my chest. After everything we’ve been through, after spending so long together, the idea of being separated feels wrong in a way I can’t explain.
A gust rushes past, tugging at my hair and sending a shiver down my spine.
I don’t want him to leave.
The realization hits me like the wind itself.
He steps closer, and my gaze snaps to his as his hand lifts, pausing for the briefest moment before he reaches out. His fingers brush against my temple, tucking a stray strand of hair behind my ear with a touch so casual it sends a jolt through me.
“Stay safe, Stormwind.”
Before I can respond or so much as question the new name, he spins on his heel, wings snapping open as he strides toward an open archway. Wind whips past me as he takes off again, his figure cutting a stark silhouette against a gloomy sky.
The bargain mark pulses in my palm as he vanishes beyond the clouds, leaving the air colder in his absence. Yet the heat of his fingertips lingers along my temple.
