Page 65 of Kneel Before Me

“You need to do something about it.”

“Such as?”

“Crest Kronos.”

Caspen’s mouth fell open. He could not possibly have heard his father correctly. What he was suggesting was forbidden. Basilisks did not have laws, per se, but to crest another basilisk was strictly against their values. Cresting a human was a way to gain power, but cresting a basilisk was murder. It was the worst crime one could commit—an abomination only to be performed under extreme circumstances. Apparently his father thought their circumstances were extreme enough to warrant it. But Caspen did not agree.

“You cannot be serious.”

Bastian seemed to loom larger in the dim passageway. “Of course I am serious. This is a serious matter.”

“If I crest him, it will kill him.”

“Exactly.”

“Why would I do such a thing?”

“Why would you not?”

“Because he has done nothing to deserve it.”

“He threatens the throne.”

“It is forbidden.”

“Do not be naive, Son,” Bastian growled. “It is what anyone would do in your position.”

No one—not even someone as powerful as Caspen—would dare to crest a fellow basilisk. It was a horrible, cursed thing to do.

“You have lost your mind, Father.”

“Perhaps you have lost yours.”

“It is a suicide mission.”

“Only if you fail.”

“I would become a pariah if I succeeded.”

“No. You would not.”

“How?”

“People respect those they fear.”

Caspen shook his head. He did not want to be feared. That was no way to lead. “I will not commit murder upon your request, Father.”

“It is not a request. It is an order.”

The world went silent around Caspen. He was at a crossroads. Duty dictated that he follow his father’s order, yet his conscience dictated he not do so. Caspen had never crested another basilisk. He had never seen it done, nor did he wish to. There was a reason the basilisks drew this one moral boundary. Yet he had also never defied his father. He was not sure he would even survive it if he did. His father was a cruel man, and that cruelty extended to his children. It had been evident Caspen’s entire life, and it was only more evident now.

“Father,” he said, his voice low. “You know the rules of our people. I will be cast out—the Drakon reputation will be ruined.”

“Basilisks respect power,” Bastian insisted. “And they will respect this.”

Caspen did not agree. He could not agree less. It was true that basilisks respected power, but only when that power was gained through sex. Any other method was abhorrent to them. There was no point in voicing this—his father had clearly made up his mind. Caspen was not shocked that Bastian was willing to stoop so low in order to gain power, although he was surprised he would use his own son to do so.

“If I do this there will be serious consequences,” Caspen said. “Not only for you, but for me.”