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Hedri whistled around a mouthful of apple. "Quite the power."
"And lots of danger. Nothing is ever simple," Charos muttered.
"A healing soul? That is what the pair share?" Riseir’s cup hit the china saucer with a loud clink.
I nodded. "So it seems." I watched his face and found a kind of melancholy there that concerned me. "Someone you knew?"
"Who's to say?” He gave a wry smile, but his eyes filled with an old pain. “But it would be ironic for such a soul to be our saviors."
Hedri placed a hand on Riseir's and offered him a small smile and a nod. I wanted to question them, my curiosity piqued at the mention of a mysterious healing soul that affected my most stoic father, but I didn’t have time.
I let out a long breath and placed my hands slowly on the table. "I need to know how to stop the shadows from getting into my dreams. It's the only way I'm able to train your saviors, and they need to be safe."
"Why can't you portal them here for training?" Riseir asked, regaining his composure and pouring another cup of tea.
"Portals to the human realm are currently impossible."
“Curious,” Hedri added as he stared intently at me, stirring the remnants of his breakfast in the bowl.
Riseir finally answered. "Darshaw would know more about your dream walk and how to protect yourself. It’s a rare skill in the akari, but as king, he has the most access to books on the subject. Start with him."
It wasn’t information I didn’t know. Darshaw would have been my first port of call had I not almost died last night and woke drained and tired.
"I can't get there on my own power," I replied, shaking my head.
"I’ll send you." Charos muttered, “I’ll be glad to see the back of you.”
“Likewise.” I grinned.
* * *
An hour later,I stepped into the kitchen in the palace in Akar, raiding the cold store for bottles of blood and draining the contents like a ravenous beast.
Darshaw must have heard the rattling, because he came immediately. "You're back. You were gone longer than I thought you would be."
"Lots of family bonding," I told him flatly, wiping my lips.
"Were you … prevented from feeding?" He eyed the empty glasses and raised a brow.
"I've had an interesting few days," I told him and then began to explain the situation.
"That is quite the summary," he said as I finished and he lowered himself to a stool, dazed. "I've got a lot of feelings toward your fathers, but I would never want for their deaths, especially when it would mean the death of my sister too."
I didn't say anything, just took another swig of blood as he thought through my words.
He continued, tapping his fingers on the table. "We must teach the troops to pray, maybe even introduce them to your fathers, to Tartarus. I know your mother said not to tell your fathers your role, but if it's as serious as you say—"
I cut him off. “I’m going to continue to follow her instructions.”
When Darshaw looked up at me again, his eyes were focused as he asked, "And the soul pair is your potential soul mate?"
"I'm drawn to her, and her blood tastes divine." Just thinking about it had me rearranging myself as my cock strained against my leathers.
"You'll probably feel the effect more when you see them together." His brow furrowed, and he stood, lost in thoughts.
When we first started this mission with my mother, we would strategize like this, talking through possibilities, analyzing. Darshaw was thousands of years old and had been a king of the land since he was a young man. He knew much more than most. With his eternal youth and playful grin, it was easy to forget a wise old king lay behind that facade.
"And shadows attacked you? They must have something personal of yours to be able to jump into your dreamscape. You'll probably find them or the people that helped them here in Akar. Although revenge seems like a petty thing to want after thousands of years since losing their portal."
