The irony made me grimace. This was the place where some of the most profound moments of my existence had occurred: Baradaz and I becoming lovers. My brother sparing my life. Somehow, I doubted I would be as fortunate today.
Kaius emerged from the dim light, a Chaosdagger in his hand. He approached the Abyss, the dagger glowing ominously in the presence of such immense power, the wind making his robes flutter.
“Lyr! Do you truly believe you can wield it? Don’t be a fool. Even I never dared to unleash the full force of the Abyss,” I gasped, straining against my bonds, aware that Deira’s roots were unbreakable without magic. My own Chaosdagger was gone, undoubtedly taken by my former servants.
My words didn’t faze Deira. With a calm expression, she knelt beside me. “But you planned to unleash it,” she said. “At the end of the war. To tear away the Allfather’s grip on this world. To free us all and lead us into a new age.”
“I was a fool,” I whispered. My hatred for our Maker lingered within me like a festering wound, yet I had come to realize my plans would have only replaced one tyrant with another. Even at the height of my power, I had never truly controlled Chaos; it had controlled me.
“No! You were a fool to let them defeat you, weakened by youremotions,” Deira sneered, her brown eyes flashing with contempt. Her roots tightened around me.
I needed to buy myself some time. “How did you find me? No one knew I was still alive,” I gasped, hoping to distract her.
She drew another Chaosdagger from her robes. “Oh, I suppose we could always have found you with this if we had tried. The daggers hold a part of you; they want to return to their master. The moment you touched Tharion’s dagger after his death, we all sensed it. You left the dagger behind, but it was already too late. We won’t rest until the power of the Adept is ours. Or, more precisely, mine. When Vultaron did not return, Asiza ordered me to capture you so she could kill you and seize your power.” The Dryad bared her teeth in a parody of a grin. “That foolish bitch really thinks I will bring you to her like a nice little offering.”
Dread surged through me as I struggled futilely to break free. I reached for thelyr-stone in the dagger with my mind, hoping for a flaw in her control, but her shields were impenetrable. Was she planning to kill me right now?
Deira laughed at my efforts. The dagger’s tip traced a chilling path over my cheek and down my neck, a mockery of a caress. I froze beneath her touch, knowing it would make no difference. I was utterly helpless. Completely at her mercy. And Deira had shown none in all the years she had served me.
“Males are pathetic,” she murmured, slicing through my tunic to expose my chest. “You were a god with unlimited power at your fingertips. And you squandered it all for the chance to dip your cock where you shouldn’t.”
My gaze shifted to Kaius. “Does he realize he’s just a pawn in your game?” I asked, knowing my words would likely miss their mark. Deira had always excelled in the art of mind games, perhaps as much as I did.
“He knows his place,” she replied with a nonchalant shrug, her attention still focused on my chest. She traced the dagger over the intricate constellation of stars and sharp black runes inked into my skin. A derisive sound escaped her lips. “Your weakness for her truly knows no bounds, does it?”
“No,” I admitted without a hint of shame. “Unlike you, I’ve come to understand that power is a poor substitute for genuine affection. Even if it took me several lifetimes to learn.”
“Spoken like someone who has never been truly powerless,” Deira spat, my words finally striking a nerve.
“But I am powerless. I’ve been powerless for a decade now, a mere mortal with no access to the magic you so desperately crave.” A bitter smile played on my lips. “You can sense it yourself. Whatever strength I once wielded is long gone. It’s no surprise that you and Kaius overpowered me so effortlessly.”
Though I harbored no illusions about them releasing me, I hoped to at least keep the Adept’s power out of their grasp. Deira had not mentioned the Chaoscrown. The Chiasma were powerful magic users, but they were still mortal, even if their lives were prolonged unnaturally by the constant use of Chaos. Without the power of thelyr-stone set in the Crown, I doubted any of them would be able to control the full magic of the Abyss.
Deira grabbed a fistful of my hair, bringing her face close to mine, her eyes flickering with a manic gleam. “Do you know why I really destroyed my heart tree?”
“Because you wanted to free your magic from the limitations others had imposed upon it,” I answered, recalling how she had come to my war camp in the early days of the Sundering Wars: her hands covered in painful blisters, her clothes and face stained with the ashes of her tree—the tree she had burned to devour its magic. She hadbegged me to teach her the ways of Chaos, the same ravenous thirst for power raging within her that ruled her now.
“Yes,” she hissed in agitation, a fleck of spittle hitting my face. “But also to free myself. I loved that tree. It was as much a part of my being as my arms and my legs. But that love held me back; it crippled me, preventing me from becoming all I could be. If I had not destroyed my heart tree, I would still be what I was then—a foolish girl, wasting her life guarding a bloody forest.” She laughed mirthlessly. “Real power demands sacrifice. You should have destroyed the Lady of Light ages ago, my lord. It would have set you free.”
“Some bonds we choose willingly,” I replied, feeling an unexpected flash of pity. Despite all my faults, I had at least been wise enough to recognize the blessing Rada’s affection had brought to my life. “I would rather carve out my own heart than let any harm come to her.”
“And you expect me to believe you’d be content as a pathetic mortal farmer, wallowing in the mud?” Deira’s voice dripped with sarcasm. “No, we both know that’s a lie. Your encounter with Tharion was no coincidence. You knew we were searching for the Crown, that we wanted to use it to reclaim the Adept’s powers.” Her gaze bored into me with unsettling intensity. “You were hoping to do so yourself, weren’t you?”
My former acolyte leaned in closer, her voice dropping to a whisper.
“Because you still desire it all, don’t you, my lord? The power to reshape the world in your image, to make them all pay—your brother, those immortal bastards in Lyrheim, the Allfather.” Her lips curled into a conspiratorial smile. “And the Lady of Light as your queen. Does she suspect, I wonder? That the repentant, sorrowful mortal is just a facade? That you’ll give in the moment the slightest temptation crosses your path?”
There was something deeply unsettling about her unwavering conviction, her certainty that I would falter. Perhaps because part of me knew she was right. While I might regret the methods I had chosen, I didn’t regret my rebellion.
“You forget,” Deira continued, shaking her head, “I’ve seen you raze entire cities to the ground to make an example of them, set whole realms ablaze in your wrath. No one changes that much.”
Curse her! I bared my teeth. “So what?” I spat. “Do you plan to sacrifice me now? Do you think that doing it here, near the Abyss, will make you able to claim the Adept’s power?” A harsh laugh escaped my lips. “That’s not how it works. You don’t even have the Crown.”
“No,” she replied calmly, a shrewd light glittering in her eyes. “Zarastris gave it to Asiza, did you know? It seems in the end your little favorite did not justify all the trust you put in him.”
“What?” I couldn’t hide the shock in my voice. Zarastris had come to me as a boy, his inherent ability to wield Chaos magic marking him as an abomination among his people. I had taken the young Elf in and taught him everything I knew. When I had encountered Tharion at one of the locations where I had hidden some of my artifacts in the past, I suspected Zarastris had divulged some of my secrets. But for his disloyalty to go this far…
“Well, I heard she tortured him for moons before he gave in, so that might soothe the pain of betrayal a little.” Deira shrugged. “Asiza used the Crown to bend Galator to her will. They are preparing for war. It does not matter, though. You taught me better than to rely on the Crown, my lord. It is nothing more than a tool, albeit a powerful one.”
