Page 26 of Prince of Ruin

A shudder runs down my spine. “And did we? Fuck?”

“Not long after you claimed your throne, you made a pact with me and my colony. We’d have each other’s backs against the Solar Sovereign, whose armies were pushing against our borders at the time.” His black eyes hold mine, piercing and deadly. “But then your step-sibling, Tarsus” —he nearly spits the name out— “sided with the younger Solar Prince and exiled you from our lands.”

“T-tarsus?” That prick I met at the Ren Faire.

Abaddon’s eyes darken as they search my own. “I broke our alliance with the Spine Fae after what Tarsus did to you. When Tarsus cursed you, when they sent your soul to the mortal world and claimed authority over the Spine Empire as prince regent, I swore I would bring down their empire and kill them myself.” His lips curl in disappointment. “And now you’re mortal. A good, healthy looking one at that, but mortal all the same.” He nods slowly. “We’ll make Tarsus fix you.”

Fix you.As if there was something broken about being human.

“When you return to your true fae form, your memories will be more crisp. Then you can reclaim your Throne of Bones and stop Mother Terra from destroying our planet.” He shrugs his wings. “After that, you can kill Tarsus for what they did to you.”

Too much. Everything he’s throwing at me is too much, especially with that faerie wine making my mind sluggish. I don’t even know where to begin asking questions until the most urgent one drops from my lips, because the thought of facing that six-and-a-half-foot tall creature with antlers and cold, steel eyes has me shaking.

I clear my throat. “Maybe we could just…make amends with this Tarsus?”

A hardness creeps into Abaddon’s eyes, as if I insulted his plans. And there he is, the king of the underworld, the devil I feared the moment I stepped into the caverns.

“Tarsus is marching out to destroy my entire colony, Clavicle,” he growls. “Tomorrow. They have the power to stop the volcano from destroying everyone on this continent, and they’re not planning on using it.” He flashes his teeth. “Your return couldn’t have been more timely. You’ll lead my armies into battle.”

I snort and choke at the same time. “I—I don’t…rememberhow to fight.”

He blinks, clearly confused, then realization seems to slip into place. “Because you’re human. You don’t have your powers.”

Powers? I have to bite my tongue to keep from asking what powers he thinks I had.

He nods slowly, processing. “You’ll still lead us. The spine armies only have to see you kill Tarsus, and they will swear their allegiance to you. Because you are therightfulheir to the Spine Throne. You are the Spine Sovereign.”

He has so much faith in me. He thinks I’m someone that I’m very clearly not. What if these spine armies are able to see through me? My palms begin sweating, and it’s suddenly hard to swallow. I need to get out of here. Soon. Like, before the battle tomorrow, where I’ll definitely die.

“I know you don’t have your powers,” he says in a lucid voice. “That you’re only human, and that must beterrifying.But your people need you.” He tucks his wings in tight. “My colony needs you. Your leadership alone, yourpresence, is all we need to save the entire continent from the wrath of the volcano. I’ll stand with you, Sovereign Clavicle. I’ll protect your frail form with mylife.”

Frail. I was already frail in the human realms. Skinny, weak, and frail as fuck. Here, among these bat folks who are all easily over two feet taller than me, I’m a bug waiting to be squashed. But if I refused to help him, would he throw me into the volcano?

His eyes soften, as if reading my thoughts. He steps closer, wrapping one wing around me and gently drawing me in. “My colony is already feeling braver and more hopeful with your return,hungryfor battle.”

Forcing my breaths to even out, I allow myself to lean in against the firm, muscular form of the bat. Honestly, the fact that he’s looking out for his colony and everyone on the continent makes me trust him more than I did in the beginning. These bats are losing their home to the volcano, and some shit-for-brains sitting on their fancy throne doesn’t give a flying fuck. I’m not surprised at all that Tarsus is a cold ruler. They threatened my life the first time I saw them, for no fucking reason.

I step out of his wing-embrace, and the room suddenly feels too cold. A cool breeze sweeps in, and I have to cover my arms against the chill.

“I’ll send someone to stoke the fire,” he says, that crease between his brow deepening when he sees me shivering. “But first, I need an answer, Clavicle. Will you lead us into battle at dawn?”

I chew my lip. I should agree. Why wouldn’t I? If I don’t, he’ll no-doubt kill me on the spot.

“The Spine Sovereign I knew would never abandon their people to the wrath of the volcano,” Abaddon says, noticing my hesitance.

My chest squeezes painfully. I want to scream at him that I’m not the sovereign and these aren’t my people and I’m not equipped for battle. But then I think of that lava pit and the human who was tossed in, and all I can manage to do is nod.

“I’ll help you,” I say. “Only if you stop the human sacrifices.”

His wings sag in relief. “When you’re sitting on your Throne of Bones, you’ll have the power and authority to make whatever laws you wish, and my colony and I will follow every single one of them.”

His large velvet ears are perked, as if trying to pick up on my signals and vibrations. My vibe. I have to summon what little courage I have. I need to do it so he doesn’t sense my fear. The two-inch long talons on his wings promise a swift death, but the way his wings are relaxed around his body, I somehow know I’m safe…for now. Until he decides to sacrifice me to the volcano, too.

“You okay, Clavicle?” he whispers hoarsely. “Since you’ve arrived, you’ve been staring at me like you don’t even know me.”

“I’m…I’m trying to put all the pieces together. It’s all a blur.”

“Do you recall how you were exiled?”

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