Page 55 of Bound to Four Alphas

Kaelen growled, “You heal in seconds, Fae.”

Elian rolled his eyes, “Still bloody hurts though.”

“Come on,” Ronan growled, storming out of the room, Kaelen hot on his heels.

Her scent led out of the palace and through the city, which rose around them empty and haunting. Kaelen swallowed. He couldn’t sense a single other being. It was eerie.

“He must have gone mad at last,” Elian hissed as he peered in yet another empty window, “I can’t think why else he would do this.”

“He was always power hungry,” replied Kaelen, “why do you think I never invited either of you to the volcanoes? I never trusted him. It’s not surprising he’s finally making a move.”

“But the human invasion,” Elian shook his head, “he puts us all at risk by making a bid for power at such a vulnerable time.”

“That’s probably precisely why he’s doing it.”

Malek snarled in anger, pacing in his true form alongside Ronan, “Why does he need Selena?”

“Because he likely knows something about her that we don’t,” replied Elian, “I learned precious little about what she is, what magic she carries.”

“Phaendar doesn’t hold nearly the same amount of power as you, how could he know more?” Kaelen growled.

Elian stopped short, his golden skin paling, his eyes widening, “Fuck.Fuck!”

“What is it?”

Elian swallowed, his throat bobbing, “Five hundred years ago, when the Forest God left and the magic became unstable and deadly, I became fascinated by the prophecy. An omega with the power to unite the realm? I knew enough of legend and myth to know that nature loves balance. The Gods value order and abhor loose ends. The coming of an omega of power almost guaranteed an alpha of equal power to reach symbiosis.”

“And you wanted it to be you?” Kaelen said, baring his teeth. He knew the Fae had a penchant for arrogance, and this all but confirmed it.

“Of course I did,” Elian replied with complete certainty, “I was the greatest mortal power born in the First Realm for millennia. My birth was blessed by the Forest God himself. Who else would it be?”

Ronan snarled, his jaws snapping as he whirled on Elian, “I have never met such an arrogant, self-important, blusteringfoolin my entire life!”

“I would like to point out,” Elian said through clenched teeth, “that I am in fact one of the mates of the Omega of Prophecy.”

“So it is Selena? She is the one the Forest God foretold?” Malek asked.

“Yes? No? I don’t know, but at this point, we’d be foolish to ignore the signs.”

“What is the point of all this, Elian?” Kaelen growled. Fury was building beneath his skin, the insistent urge to find his omega, to rescue her, to lock her away for the rest of her damned life if he had to, it was driving him near mad.

“For centuries, I researched, hunted down cold leads, ran experiments on the dark manifestations of the Forest God’s absence.”

Malek hissed, and Elian at least had the good grace to look somewhat abashed.

“I never hurt them. It was vital for me to have an understanding of the essence of the magic, of the remains of the God’s power.”

“And yet, you couldn’t work out if Selena is indeed the Omega of Prophecy?” Kaelen snarled.

“The creatures were born from the absence of the Forest God. If she is the Omega of Prophecy, then her magic, then by her nature she would be everything that those creatures aren’t. The sun reflected in a pool of water. Unfortunately, lots of things can reflect in a pool of water. Until she is able to take control of her magic, I can’t prove a negative. Saying she is the absence of darkness does not necessarily make her the light.”

“You’re so full of shit, Benellane,” Ronan growled.

Elian laughed, but there was no humor in it, a hysterical edge creeping into the dark chuckle, “Unfortunately, I’m not. I was rigorous and meticulous in my study. I took copious notes of everything I did. I was so close, all I needed was one missing piece. A part of the Forest God to compare her too, somethinghe left behind. Legend says such objects exist. I spent the better part of a century trying to track one down.”

“And you failed?” Kaelen said, crossing his arms.

Elian nodded, “Yes. I failed. But if my father found one, or was given one, then all he would need to do would be to break into my laboratory and steal my notes. The picture would be complete.”

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