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“Everything you said about Ari, about the compound… it all worked,” Raven breathes, circling back to Marieta’s question.
It takes a second for her words to register properly in my mind, but when they do, excitement jolts me in my seat, pulling her in closer to my chest.
“It worked?” I repeat in complete awe, and she smiles wide at me as she nods eagerly.
“The portal was still open in the Gauntlet arena, and it led us straight into the compound. Finding Ari wasn’t too hard. Well, he didn’t hear me, but that’s because he was purposely blocking me from his mind.”
“Why?” Creed asks, distaste and irritation clear on his face.
Raven waves her hand with disregard but Brax catches us up to speed. “Someone, one guess who, showed up in the compound pretending to be her, which instantly sent him into lockdown. Dick move for sure, but I get it.”
It must be genuine for Brax to accept it, but he’s right, that was a dick move.
“Why would they be trying to impersonate Raven to her familiar?” I ask, confused by the attempt, and my little bird shrugs.
“I don’t really know. I may need to speak to Ari about what happened, but we were slightly distracted by other things when dropping the ward to the compound.”
“What does that mean?” Zane questions with a shake of his head. Raven and Brax share a glance before they nod subtly between one another and get into it.
Every new piece of information tossed our way sends me into a spin until I’m gaping between the two of them.
“Wait, okay, let me get this straight. The Drakes, like the one we saw Ari destroy, are all shifters, actual men, from the Torin Realm. Which is apparently a realm that exists beneath Basilica, all of which have pledged an oath to you in exchange for releasing them from the compound. The compound that Erikel lured them into as fake familiars when, in fact, they are indeed men. Men?”
Did I mention that lethal thing in the woods was a man? Damn.
“That pretty much sums it up, yeah,” Raven says with a nod, biting back a smile.
“Can we trust them? Now that they’re not in the compound?” Creed’s words echo my own thoughts, and Brax is quick to answer.
“They pledged an oath to her, without prompt, their only hope in doing so being their freedom. They’re not going to bring harm to someone they pledged an oath to, right?” He turns to look at his mother, who is nodding in agreement.
“Pledging an oath not only offers yourself as a resource to that person but also confirms loyalty and safety. They cannot and will not attack or undermine Raven in any way. By proxy, that protects everyone she cares about too, as it is known that any harm to those she cares for would cause her unnecessary pain.”
“And if they were to break their pledge?” I don’t want to ask, but somebody has to.
Peta shakes his head. “Death. Breaking their oath will have them succumb to their own magical abilities, and death will follow.”
His words are still a little cryptic for my mind right now, but I accept it.
“So we’ve overcome the first hurdle; what do we address next?” Brax ponders, tapping his fingertips on the table. “More specifically, how do we bring Erikel, or Burton, down? What the fuck are we calling them now?” He scrubs at the back of his neck, and as much as I want to chuckle at the fact that we don’t know what to call the ruthless, conniving fucker wreaking havoc on our lives, it’s a valid question.
“I think we stick with Erikel. Then we don’t slip up in front of him,” Raven offers, and I happily agree. We have to remain logical and make sure we don’t fuck up any of the facts we have that we’re not supposed to know.
“Erikel it is. How do we take him down?” Brax repeats, looking between his parents, but it’s Creed who answers.
“I think we need to consider the other things we’re facing as well. Like my father, Sebastian, Fitch, and The Monarchy.”
Peta’s head sags slightly as he nods in agreement. “I think he’s right. We need to break down everything we’re facing here, both out there and in the Realm of Shadows, before we have a complete view of the war we’re on the brink of.”
He’s right. It’s overwhelming as hell, but not wrong.
“You’re going to have to talk us through some of the issues we’re unaware of. We will offer any insight we may have without question,” Marieta adds as the rest of us glance around the table at one another. Where to begin? I feel like I’ve asked myself that same question one hundred times already. As if sensing the uncertainty in all of us, Marieta continues. “Sebastian, who is that?”
“That would be my brother,” Raven explains, eyes downcast as she looks at her hands.
“Tell me about him. Why is he a concern?”
Raven takes a moment to gather herself before looking at Marieta. A warm smile curves her lips, breaking down all of the barriers keeping Raven trapped in her head as she spills everything to her.
