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“A thousand years ago, the Dark Lord sought to take over the World of the Seven Stars. King Vidos the First defeated him in a great battle, then Melisandre’s female ancestor sent him to a prison deep in the bowels of the earth. Legend has it she used a magic spell to bind him there in a deep sleep.
“Your queen is the last of her line,” she went on. “The rightful heir to the throne. The blood of the king who defeated him flows through her veins – as does the magic of his consort. The Woman Clothed With the Sun cast the spell that bound him for a millennium then went on to wed the king. Melisandre is descended from both of them. The Dark Lord could not defeat her ancestor but he is determined to conquer this queen. Claim her body and own her soul.
“If he can force her to submit her magic to his will and then bear his child, his seed will live on forever. Stronger than he because the child will have both the powers of darkness and the magic of the Seven Stars within him. He will make his offspring the rightful heir to the throne and thereby condemn our world to a thousand years under his rule, a millennium of misery and pain. You must protect her. For it is written that she alone will deal the fatal blow. Only she can pierce his heart, enchain him, and send him back to the hell from which he came.
“You are not in this battle alone,” she went on. “You know the Dragon Lord. You have seen his power. It is written that four warriors will join the queen to defeat the Dark Lord, each one with a special gift. Four valiant souls on the quest to seek out the sacred sources before he does. But in the heat of battle, each of you will face your darkness alone.”
The pace of her words increased. Her tone became more urgent. “When your quest ends, the next warrior will appear. He has his own task to perform. But you must all learn to work together. To share your knowledge. To share your queen. For only with all of you by her side will she defeat the Lord of Darkness.”
I couldn’t stay silent any longer. “What do you mean, ‘share our queen’?”
The faraway look left her eyes. She glared at me and spoke once again in the tone I’d grown to hate – shrill and slightly mocking. “I mean take turns ramming your dicks in her.”
I’d looked forward to sharing my queen with Drayke long before I ever met her. He and I were brothers, in heart if not in blood, dedicated to our cause. If the female the Goddess had chosen for us was a hot piece of ass, all the better. We both loved dominating a woman, making her do whatever we demanded.
Once I met Meli, I discovered the dark thrill of true mastery. I loved the way she sucked the head of my shaft deep into her mouth while he fucked her hot, wet pussy. I loved watching her blush when I made her play with herself then ordered her to come for us. I loved when Drayke licked her sweet slit until she screamed then held her legs spread wide apart so I could ram my raging hard cock deep inside her.
I knew I’d die before I let the Dark Lord take my woman. But to willingly share her with three men? Prophecy be damned. I was far too jealous, too selfish for that. “No.” I said it louder. “No.I won’t do it.”
“You will,” she replied calmly. “You must. For it is written. She will draw strength from your seed. From each of you a different kind of strength.” Her voice grew somber. “Melisandre has her own skills, her own powers. Powers she has yet to discover. Each of you needs her as much as she needs you. Only by uniting with your brothers to cherish and protect her will you all succeed.”
“You’re a daft old bitch! I don’t know why I keep coming here to listen to you.”
She gave me an infuriating shrug. “You made your choice long ago, when you asked the Goddess to make you the greatest warrior our world has ever known. Now you cannot choose. You can only do.”
Her voice softened. “You are no longer ruled by your head, Magnus, but by your heart. You love her. That’s why for the first time in your life you’re afraid.”
Love her? I opened my mouth to argue then stopped. I’d bedded many a bawdy wench over the years, sometimes alone, sometimes with Drayke. I’d taken women while drenched in sweat, still humming with raw energy from a battle I’d won. I knew how lust felt, and savage hunger and aching need. But love?
“Goddess knows I love fucking her more than anyone I’ve ever been with. But it’s more than that. I respect her,” I began slowly. “Meli is the most courageous female I’ve ever met. She’s absolutely fearless.”
I chuckled, remembering how she’d charged straight at me with her sword, though I was easily twice her size, then glared defiantly as she picked herself up off the ground when I dodged her attack. “She takes her knocks without whining, like a good soldier. She has a sense of duty, doesn’t see herself as the ruler of the people, but rather as their caretaker. She’s intelligent and funny…and she always tries to give far more than she takes. I never tire of being with her. When I open my eyes in the morning and see her lying next to me, my heart soars. At night, cradling her in my arms, I feel at peace. I want to be with her. Always. If that is love, then yes. I love her.”
I took the oracle’s hand in mine, kissed it. “Though it pains me to admit it, you’re a wise old woman.”
“It’s about time you finally recognized it,” she shot back.
She sat up straight. “Mortals take themselves far too seriously. Over the centuries I’ve learned the gods create these pageants for their amusement. Some are dramas, some comedies. We know not how they will end. So go – play your role. And if you please them, they may grant your heart’s desire.”
Dawn was breaking as I headed back to the fortress.
My heart’s desire?
For so many years, I’d had but one. To be the greatest warrior who ever lived. Then I met Melisandre – and now, for the first time in my life, I wanted more.
Chapter Twelve
Melisandre
“So my task is to find the Lord of Darkness and take away his magic rock before he uses it to bury me alive? Too bad you destroyed the Flask of Fire.” Magnus shook his head. “I think I’d have preferred going out in a blazing inferno to being slowly crushed to death. It would have made a much more heroic legend.”
We were in the library again, surrounded by stacks of dusty parchments we’d discovered tucked behind the scrolls on one of the topmost shelves.
“You may call yourself the Warrior of the Seven Stars,” Drayke shot back, “but everyone loves dragons. When this tale is written, I’m the one who is going to live on in the minds and hearts of our people.
I stared from one to the other in disbelief. Were my heroes really quarreling about who would have the more prominent place in history?
They saw the shocked look on my face, and both men burst into laughter.
