Page 138 of Fate of the Sun King

“Is she okay?” Halo asks. “Where is she?”

I hold up my hands, this barrage of questions making my head pound.

“I can’t tell you that,” I say, and Halo plants her hands on her hips, her eyebrows drawing together. “I promised.”

That softens her expression.

“We just want to know she’s all right,” Halo says. “Does she need our help?”

I shake my head. “I don’t know.”

The looks on their faces are brimming with concern, and some soft, pathetic place buried deep in the center of my heart wavers. I’m such an idiot.

“Look, I’ll try to get a message to her,” I find myself saying, already regretting this. “If she’s okay with you knowing her whereabouts, then I’ll let you know. Until then, do not bother me with this again.”

Halo opens her mouth as if to protest, but I cut her off.

“It’s the best I can do,” I say. “I swore I’d keep her location a secret.”

“Right,” Halo says. “I can respect that. Tell her we just want to see her and hope that she’s safe.”

I roll my neck and massage the bridge of my nose. “Sure. Of course.”

Then, before they can demand anything else, I spin on my heel and walk away, hopefully to lose myself where no one will fucking talk to me ever again.

CHAPTER FORTY-TWO

KING HERRIC

THE AURORA: THE SECOND AGE

“Keep going,” Herric ordered as he paced back and forth, casting out a tendril of Aurora magic, watching the colors swirl against the dark sky.

It had been years since he’d been granted this gift by the Empyrium, and it was still difficult for him to control. While the Torch did its best to help, it was just an enchanted object, and most of the heavy lifting fell to him. It was a similar tale across Ouranos—the magic was strong and unpredictable, and though fewer tragedies plagued the land, complete control was still elusive. No one knew if it would get better with time or if they could expect this as their permanent state of being.

For months now, Herric had assigned his workers to dig up the wreckage of the mine collapse that had preceded the moment he’d been taken to the Evanescence. He wanted to recover that strange black stone they’d encountered.

It had come to him in a dream one night. The memory of what he’d felt down there before they’d been forced to flee. Magic. He hadn’t recognized it right away, but now that he’d been gifted with his own, he recalled the way it had pulsed around him. Now that he was familiar with its essence and flavor, he was sure he’d experienced its presence buried deep in that mountain.

“A message, Your Majesty,” came a voice, and Herric stopped pacing. One of his guards handed him a letter written on golden paper, which meant he already knew from where it came.

He slid his finger under the gold seal, popping it open. An invitation from Zerra to dine with her next week. He smiled.

He had never gotten over the fact the Empyrium had declined to give him dominion over the continent, tossing him out and selecting that useless airhead as the god to rule over them. He could never let that choice lie.

As far as he could discern, Zerra was doing nothing in her palace in the sky. Though she couldn’t touch the surface, she could summon people to her, and Herric had acquiesced to her invitations. She wanted to smooth things over, and he pretended to go along with it, but only to learn where her weaknesses might lie.

When he’d first arrived in the Evanescence, he’d found what could be described only as a scene of debauchery, fueled by wine and food and sex. She had the world in the palm of her hand, and she chose to squander her power for the sake of parties and luxury. It was an affront.

She clearly hadn’t troubled herself with the notion that anyone she brought up from the surface would, after a time, become an empty shell of nothing. A body without a soul or spark. Herric had been careful to limit the length of his visits in the Evanescence, keeping a watchful eye on himself for any signs he might suffer a similar fate.

He had always been adept at understanding what people wanted to hear, and he’d used that to convince Zerra to let down her guard. She was a vain thing. A few well-placed compliments and the suggestion that he was attracted to her were enough to have her also inviting him to her bed.

He’d obliged, performing the carnal duties with enough enthusiasm to make it seem believable. He didn’t feel anything for her, but she was a beautiful woman, and he couldn’t complain about the physical release.

His goal was to find a way to usurp her position. She wasn’t particularly bright, and he hoped fooling her into revealing her secrets wouldn’t prove too much of a challenge.

“Thank you,” Herric said. “Please send a message back stating that I would be happy to visit.”