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“Another will occur in a few years. He’ll be larger than Odin by then,” he said, speaking of the warhorse that often resided within the cuff Ash wore on his upper arm.
Which made me think about the fact that neither Bele nor I had one yet. Apparently, ours would appear out of thin air when we were ready.
Whatever.
“Did Aios come by?” he asked, coming to stand on the other side of Reaver.
“She did.” Leaning against the railing, I crossed my arms. “She said Theon needed to speak with you.”
“He did.” One of the shorter strands of hair slipped from the knot at the nape of his neck to kiss his jaw. “No ships have been spotted beyond ours. If another Court outside Vathi was pla
Vathi, the Court jointly ruled by Attes and Kyn, was across the Black Bay. If Kyn wanted to move his armies toward the Shadowlands as he had before, he wouldn’t have to go into the open seas. He’d simply need to cross the bay.
“The Shadowlands is uniquely positioned, even more so than Vathi. To cross the Lassa Sea, traveling from the Shadowlands to the Bonelands is only a day trip by ship, and the Primal mist that prevents mortals from traveling too far east also cloaks our movements. The same ca
The mist would kill any mortal, so I guessed it was a good thing no mortals called the Bonelands home. “But doesn’t Lotho share the same land mass as both the Shadowlands and Vathi? They could travel by foot.”
“The canyon between Vathi and Lotho makes it difficult but not impossible,” Ash said. “Several Courts share the same land. Kithreia—Maia’s Court—is joined, and a narrow land bridge co
“Why?” I asked, genuinely curious. Considering that I was the Queen, I needed to get familiar with Iliseeum’s layout.
“Besides the fact that it would take longer to travel by land than it does by ship, none of the Courts will want another’s army moving through their lands. Doing so would be considered a political move,” Ash explained. “Permission must be granted. So, Embris would have to approve Maia’s forces traveling through Lotho, just as Maia would have to give permission for Bele to move Sirta’s armies through Maia’s Court.”
“Is Sirta still a mess?” I asked.
“Yes, but that’s no different than when Hanan ruled. Very few who call Sirta home actually served him. His Court had mostly become a haven for thieves and raiders.”
I laughed. “I’m sorry. None of that is fu
“Not that I want to make it seem like Hanan wasn’t responsible for his actions, but it’s partly due to Kolis. The moment he stole those embers from my father, a different kind of rot invaded the Courts,” he reminded me. “Twisting what us Primals were meant to stand for.”
Us.
Hearing that gave me a start. I didn’t think it would ever not do that. I reached down to pet Reaver. “Speaking of other Primals, I made an oath to Aios.”
“You did?”
“You might be mad.”
Interest sparked in his eyes as he rose. Not judgment or anger. “I doubt that.”
“Well…” My lips pursed. “It was kind of reckless.”
“Did you forget?” Sunlight slid over his cheekbone. “I enjoy the reckless side of your nature.”
My lips twitched. “I haven’t forgotten, but I also know that doesn’t hold true all the time.” I clasped the railing. “I promised her that Kyn would be punished for what he did to her and Ector. To the Shadowlands.”
He tilted his head. “Why would I be mad about that?”
I lifted a shoulder. “Because the first thing I did as Queen was to make an oath to potentially kill another Primal. One who is the twin of another, who is our ally. And I did it without conferring with you first.”
Ash stared at me as if I’d sprouted an extra mouth. Then he chuckled.
“What?” I turned sideways to him. “What’s so fu
“Liessa,” he all but purred. “While I would appreciate you discussing such things as this with me first, I also expect that your temperament will prevent that on occasion.”
I eyed him as if he were growing another set of lips. “Expecting that doesn’t make it okay.”
“It does when I have no problem with it,” he remarked. “And I also know that when it’s something you think I may not agree with, you will consult with me first.”
He was right, but still. My eyes narrowed on him. “Are you being so understanding because I should be dead instead of alive and standing before you, making reckless oaths?”
“Making exquisitely reckless oaths,” he corrected, brushing strands of hair back from his face. “And perhaps that has played a role in my understanding.”
I huffed out a short laugh as I turned back to the Rise. One of the guards shouted to another, reminding me of what had just occurred. “By the way, something different happened a couple of moments ago. You see that guard there?” I straightened, pointing at Eamon. “I looked at him and knew his name—knew more than that. Like I knew his life.” My head swung back to Ash. “His soul.”
“Godsdamn,” Ash murmured, his jaw loosening. “My father could do that, even after Kolis took the embers. It was the only ability of the true Primal of Life that remained.”
“I think it’s a part of the vadentia growing stronger.” At least, that’s what I thought based on what Nektas had shared with me. “I’m kind of surprised it’s happening already.”
“I’m not.” Ash picked up a strand of my hair, eyeing it quite seriously in the sunlight. “Is that what you were thinking about when I arrived? I could sense your unease.”
I tensed. You’re safe, now and always. I sucked in a short breath at the memory of the nightmare. My gaze flew to his. I’d dreamed of hearing his voice last night. Hadn’t I? It hadn’t been real. At least, I prayed it wasn’t and that I hadn’t woken him.
I cleared my throat. “I’m really getting a
“I know.”
That was all he said. He waited, and I had a pretty good idea what he was talking about.
It wasn’t nothing.
Feeling my stomach twist sharply, I looked away, searching my mind for a reason. My gaze landed on the crimson leaves of the Red Woods. Seizing on that, I said, “No. Something else happened,” I lied far too smoothly. “I was looking at the Red Woods and thinking about the entombed gods. That intuition thing kicked in,” I told him, sharing what I’d felt. “I was seconds from waking them and…”
His fingers slid down the strand of hair. “And what?”
“And killing them before Kolis could, like…summon them,” I admitted.
“Why didn’t you?”
My head cut toward him. “Is that a serious question?”
He raised a brow. “It is. As the true Primal of Life, you could’ve done it. And you would be within your rights to do so, whether any of those gods have changed or not.”
I gaped at him. “If I’d done that, it would’ve been an entirely different kind of recklessness.”
“Not to sound repetitive, but whether or not it was reckless wouldn’t matter. You are the Queen. If you wish to wake all the entombed gods, that is your prerogative.”
“Just as whatever Kolis decided to do was his?” I countered. “He was within his rights to do a lot of shitty things just because he was King.”
Ash curled my hair around his finger as he said, “And because he was King, did it make what he did right?”
“Obviously not.”
He stared at me, waiting…
“What? Why are you—?” Then it hit me. Rolling my eyes, I sighed. Considering what I’d gone through with the riders, I should’ve figured it out a lot sooner. “I didn’t do it because I knew it wasn’t right, even though it really felt like it was.”
“Glad you figured that out.” He tugged on the strand. “I was starting to get worried.”
“Shut up.” My glare dipped to Reaver as he made a low huffing sound. “Your laughter only encourages his nonsense.”
Reaver plopped his head against my leg.
“I get the point you were making,” I said. “But I think you also keep forgetting something.”
An eyebrow rose. “Is that so?”
“You are my King—the King. I decreed it. That means it’s not just me making decisions. I don’t have supreme power or whatever.”
“That is right.” His silver eyes glimmered.
“I’m begi
One side of his lips tipped up. “Maybe.”
“You’re ridiculous.”
“Ridiculously in love with you.”
My heart felt like it tripled in size, and I wanted so badly to show him, with words, my body, and even my tongue, just how much I loved him. The desire to do just that was strong, but I had to be stronger. Responsible. I also didn’t want to traumatize poor Reaver.
“Do you think that some of the entombed gods have had a change of heart? Or were you just trying to make a point?” I asked.
“Not all the entombed gods committed unforgivable crimes, Sera. Some made bad choices. Some acted upon Kolis’s orders because they were given little choice.” Eather glowed faintly in his eyes, and I was reminded of Attes stating nearly the same thing. “A few were likely far less guilty than I am given the crimes I’ve committed.”
My heart twisted as I whispered, “Like what?”
His fingers stilled. “Kolis didn’t tell you?”
I shook my head. “He didn’t tell me anything about you, and that is the truth.”
Ash was quiet for a few moments, then dropped my hair. I wasn’t surprised he hadn’t elaborated, but I was disappointed. He never went into detail about the things he’d done. All I knew had been learned from others. But how could I hold it against him when I wasn’t sharing everything with him either?
I couldn’t.
“I can’t believe how different the Shadowlands already looks,” Ash noted, coming to the railing. “It’s a miracle.”
It did feel that way. “How long do you think it will take before all the grass comes back?”
“Not sure. Could be days. Maybe even weeks,” he said. “If the rivers return, it would be faster.”
“I imagine quite a significant rainfall would be needed for that to occur.” With more and more gods arriving in Lethe, I wasn’t sure we had the time to allow nature to run its course. A rush of something akin to restlessness surged through me. “Several rainfalls.”
Ash made a sound of agreement.
“And who knows when that will happen? Unless the Shadowlands once had a rainy time of year, and we are about to enter it.”