Page 84 of Fate of the Sun King

Her question finished on a whisper that shivered around the room.

The Alluvion King spoke of the sea dragon terrorizing the shores of his kingdom. How he’d sailed out with a group of his most trusted soldiers until, one by one, they’d all been lost to the deeps. The Sleepness in Heart, the plagued forests of The Woodlands, and a heat wave in Aphelion.

When Herric’s turn came, he spoke of the lights and his jewels. Of the black fog that had consumed him in the cave collapse.

When he finished speaking, everyone stared around the circle. Each of them had encountered such tragedy. Such loss, but why?

And where were they now?

A flicker in the center of the circle drew everyone’s attention.

It wobbled in and out until a figure stood in the middle. Herric squinted, trying to sort through its blur. It wouldn’t stand still. First, it appeared like a woman with dark skin and black hair, then like a man with a snowy complexion and blond waves. They continued to shift, appearing as a dozen different people.

“Welcome,” they said, the strains of many voices, high and low, soft and harsh, all mixing together.

“What is this?” King Terra demanded. “Who are you?”

The figure continued to flicker, and that same multitudinous voice spoke.

“You are at the end of the First Age of Ouranos,” they answered as they swept out their arms. “But when one door closes, another one opens. And the Second Age is about to begin.”

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

LOR

PRESENT DAY

Nadir and I eventually cave to sleep, and I awake to the warmth of sunlight filtering into the room. We didn’t get around to closing the curtains last night, and I cover my eyes from the assault of brightness, shifting under the blanket, snuggling deeper into our cozy cocoon. It’s so comfortable with his arm wrapped around me, his mouth gently parted with soft, sleepy breaths.

My eyes take in the regal lines of his face as the ominous words I recalled in the haze of near unconsciousness spin into the front of my thoughts.

Heartbreak and ruin.

Another recollection jogs my memory. Something that Rhiannon said.

Sometimes I think it was their love that burned down the world, which in a way is almost romantic, I think?

While it seems farfetched, I can’t help but see these pieces arrange themselves in the jumble of my mind’s scope. What if that’s what caused the breaking?

The Mirror alluded to it, too, when I stood before it.

This can never happen again.

I hadn’t understood what those words meant at the time, but I wonder if I do now.

I shake my head, attempting to dislodge the stones piling up in my thoughts. Whatever happens, we’re going to find a way around or through anything fate can throw in our path. If there’s some catch to sealing our bond, then we’ll find someone who can help us. I don’t care what I must do to make that happen.

My singular goal for so long was to exact my revenge on the Aurora King, but my desires and wants have broadened, spreading like water over cracked, parched earth, nourishing the dead ground under my feet. I want more than just the cold hard need to make him pay for everything. Despite the rage that fueled me for years, I want more than that, and I think I’m slowly learning to accept that I deserve it.

When you’ve been treated like nothing for most of your life, it’s easy to forget that you’re something.

I continue studying Nadir’s face, tracing the lines of his nose and his cheeks. I once said he isn’t attractive in the traditional sense—he’s far too extraordinary for that. But he’s so achingly beautiful that I could lie here all day memorizing every fascinating detail.

The plan is to return to Aphelion today, but we’re no closer to figuring out how Atlas or Rion knew about my origins. This ever-present unknown congeals in my stomach, burning like acid. I feel vulnerable and exposed and wary of everyone. Whom can I really trust?

My gaze falls on Nadir, and in spite of everything, I smile to myself, because, in him, I finally trust.

“How long do you plan to stare at me, Lightning Bug?” Nadir says with his eyes still closed, making me jump. “I understand how devastatingly good-looking I am, but this is getting a little awkward.”