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Nyktos is such a softie, despite how tough and powerful he is.
When he tells her the embers are too important to risk her, he sees the hurt on her face and realizes she was likely offended that he mentioned the embers and not her. Before he can say anything, though, Rhahar interrupts and tells him there’s a problem at the Pillars.
He assures Sera they’ll finish their conversation later.
After hearing about the entombed gods swarming the woods, Nyktos heads deep into them with Rhahar and Saion to round them up.
Sera gets hurt. In his Primal form, Nyktos kills the freed gods with eather, ripping the last one in half with his bare hands—something Sera admits she finds hot.
Nyktos realizes that she is wounded and carries her inside the House of Haides, feeling and tasting her pain the entire way. Placing her in an unused chamber on the first floor, he closes the door and moves a chair with his eather before lighting the fireplace.
Sera tells him about the god in the courtyard who stood by and would have let her die as Nyktos checks her wounds. He informs her that she needs blood and says that while she won’t die, he doesn’t want her to remain in pain, either. Plus, she won’t be able to heal herself while in the Culling.
He asks her to let him help her. Even says please. She agrees, and he thanks her, then tells her he’s sure she’ll enjoy it. As she drinks from him, he can’t stop the shudders that ripple through his body. Brushing her hair back, he pulls his wrist away and explains that his blood is making her feel the way she does—the wanton look in her eyes is obvious. He explains it will likely be the longest few minutes of his life and says he’s drowning in her desire.
She tells him to drown with her.
He reiterates that it’s his blood making her say things like that, not him, and she tells him she always feels this way when he touches her. He urges her to pleasure herself and tells her not to stop, even when Nektas checks on them through the door. Controlling her rhythm with his hand, he brings her to climax and sucks her release from her fingers.
Later, when he readies for the debriefing, he’s surprised by Sera’s request to join him. Once with the other gods, he tells Bele that he needs her in the Shadowlands where she’ll be the safest. He doesn’t want her to hide forever, but until others see that she Ascended, they can’t know for sure. When Rhain suggests that Veses knows what Sera looks like, Nyktos agrees and then declares that no one in the Shadowlands would betray her identity to another Court. Sera argues the point and reminds him about Hamid.
Sera leaves the palace, only to be attacked by Shades in the Dying Woods. Nyktos goes to her, but she runs from him. He tackles her—absorbing the impact—and asks why she ran. His fury shoots out of him, shattering the trees around them and turning them to ash.
Let me tell you…it was so sexy.
Then he asks why she left and is stunned when she tells him she was trying to save him. She breaks his hold, but he catches her—long enough for her to put her blade to his throat.
He tells her to make sure to cut all the way to the spine. And even then, he’ll only be down for a minute. She won’t make it out of the Shadowlands.
They fight and wrestle, and he asks her to tell him that he’s wrong about what she was doing. He takes his true form and slams his wings into the ground as she explains. Once she finishes, he tells her that he will gladly suffer anything Kolis dishes out so long as his blood is spilled and not hers. He reiterates that the embers are important. Sera screams in frustration, and power explodes from her, throwing him into the air.
As he’s lifted, trees shatter, and the temperature drops to freezing as silvery light snaps and ripples all over Nyktos’s body. Nektas arrives, sensing the conflict. It scares Sera, but Nyktos tells her that the draken isn’t threatening her, he’s protecting her…from Nyktos. The draken is worried the Primal will retaliate out of reflex. Later, Nyktos confesses that he almost did.
It takes him several minutes to recover, but he finally does. He’d assumed her Culling would be like a godling’s, not a god’s. Explaining the difference to Sera, he tells her that her embers are definitely making her stronger.
She asks him if he needs to feed, and he tells her they’ll just make sure nothing like that happens again.
Sera changes the subject and tells Nyktos about the Shade she touched, and how it started to come back to life. They ask Nektas if that’s even possible. When they decipher what the Shade said, and Nektas finishes sharing about Eythos, Nyktos realizes he never knew his father could raise the dead.
As they return to discussing Sera taking off, Nyktos tells her he’ll never let her go. Whether she stays as a prisoner or as his Consort is up to her. He reiterates that her destiny is not to die at Kolis’s hand, and there may yet be a way to prevent her death entirely if she gives him some time and peace to think.
After calling Odin forth, he tells Sera the horse is very unhappy with her—he would be, they are one and the same in many ways—and that the next time she puts a dagger to someone’s throat, she’d better mean it. Especially if it’s his.
Nyktos orders her to her room, and she outs them as lovers with her grumbling. He catches up to her on the fourth floor and warns her against another outburst. Sera tells him that if his guards knew the truth about what she attempted, they would have helped her and would be happy to see her gone—or dead. He demands to know why she thinks that, but she refuses to answer. He then makes a decision and informs her that she’ll be sleeping within arm’s reach from now on.
When they get closer to their chambers, Nyktos realizes she escaped her room by climbing down from the balcony. It impresses him, but he tells her she’s too brave. Still, a small, twisted part of him kind of wants her to use her eather on him again.
He carries her to his chambers, but she refuses to undress. He does it for her and then unbraids her hair. After turning off the lights with magic, they go to bed—within arm’s reach.
Later, Nyktos begins shaking and panting, scaring Sera awake. He makes her promise never to go after Kolis again.
The next day, Nyktos gathers everyone in the throne room and tells them that Sera tried to go after the King of Gods to protect the Shadowlands. He emphasizes that her bravery is unmatched and praises her willingness to sacrifice herself for them, believing she was the cause of the recent attacks. He whispers that none will harbor ill will toward her and will see her as she is: brave and daring. He then warns those in attendance that if they don’t, any negative thoughts about her will be their last. He says he’ll destroy them, no matter how loyal they are to the Shadowlands. Making sure she understands that he meant what he said, he reiterates: she’s brave and strong and a Consort more than worthy of them.
Nyktos joins Jadis, Nektas, and Sera after dressing down his guards, then cuddles Jadis for a moment before badgering Sera about eating. He says the Culling will weaken her, and if she doesn’t eat enough, she risks going into stasis.
He tells her that he wants to get the embers out of her, saying that if they can remove them, she’ll be like any godling entering their Culling, and his blood would ensure she survives the Ascension. He then tells her the alternative is unacceptable and alludes to the fact that she might Ascend into a god.
Nyktos reveals what Penellaphe said to him in private since it’s been nagging at him. She told him that Delfai would welcome Sera. He explains to Sera who that is.
