Page 92 of Fated

He reached for a napkin and wiped his eyes.My heart shattered at the sound of his voice, raw with pain, piercing me in a way I’d never experienced before.

The depth of his suffering struck me with such force thattears spilled freely down my cheeks, born from the ache that had taken root in my chest.

“I’m so sorry,” I whispered, the words trembling as they left me. Unable to offer anything more, I leaned into him, letting my presence speak where words failed, offering what little comfort I could. Ash leaned into me as well, his head coming to rest against mine.

“He threw me in the cell after that—Braun’s cell,” Ash said, his voice low and strained. “Told me I would stay there until I turned ten—old enough to be sent to the skids, the most brutal of my father’s training camps. They were designed to turn boys into killing machines for the king’s army. My mother, she snuck me out, sent me down here to live with Pearl in the manor. I was a broken shell of a boy, and Pearl, she helped put me back together. The manor was crowded with human orphans at the time, children rescued from above.

“Pearl encouraged me to befriend them, to tell them stories just as I had done with Braun. And I did; I made friends with all the children, making them the same promise I’d made to him.

“I told them all that one day I would become King of Ambrosia, and the first thing I would do would be to free all the slaves everywhere.”

He let out a heavy sigh before continuing.

“It was during that time that I met Lilly. She had been an emissary to my father’s kingdom. One night, after trying to rescue a young slave girl, my father’s guards caught her. They tortured her, raped her, and left her and the girl to die in a burning shed.”

I could barely breathe, my hand going to my chest as I listened in horror.

“They survived, but barely. When Pearl learned what had happened, every guard who had touched Lilly turned up deadthe very next day. Lilly was traumatized, and Pearl took her in like a daughter. Lilly became her most loyal friend. After the attack, Pearl threatened to shut down the door to Ambrosia if any other water-dwellers were harmed. Lilly and I bonded over our trauma, and she became like an older sister to me.”

“My God, Ash.”

He took a shaky breath and continued.

“After two years of living with Pearl, word reached us that my father had beaten my mother and thrown her into that cell after discovering she’d helped me escape. He told everyone he wouldn’t free her until I was returned to him. So, of course, I went back.”

Ash’s voice cracked and his gaze dropped.

“When I saw my mother, I hardly recognized her, seeing her so covered in bruises, her body wasted to the point that her bones were visible beneath her skin. I saw her for five minutes before men from the skids took me away. But when I hugged her, I promised that one day, I’d return, and when I did, I’d kill my father and put our family back together. I had a younger sister, Reize.

“While living with Pearl, my father sent Reize away to a place like the skids, but for girls. A place to train them as submissive brides, prized virgins to trade in for favors to serve my father.”

His words hung heavy in the air as the depth of his family’s suffering became clear.

I couldn’t even begin to imagine the horror of being torn from his mother and sister, knowing the fates they had been forced into.

“As for my brother Xanth,” Ash said, his voice growing quieter. “He was everything my father hated. Strong, powerful, but gentle, wouldn’t hurt a fly. All he ever wanted was myfather’s approval. But as the eldest son, my father only viewed him as a threat. He sent him across the world to work for the King of Titan, to repay a debt he owed.

“When I made it to the skids, life was a living hell. But I met Calyx there, and honestly, I don’t know if I would have made it through without him. He always found a reason to crack a smile, even on the worst days.”

Ash smiled faintly.

“Calyx had come from a line of people with rare magic, one outside of the four kingdoms. His ancestors were called light benders. They could literally bend light—to use it as a weapon or a shield—even bending it around themselves to become invisible. My father paid a fortune to obtain Calyx, planning to make him an essential asset once he settled.”

Ash’s face darkened. “I played the part of the obedient soldier, training, obeying, doing everything I was told. Calyx was the only one who knew my true intentions. The day I settled, Calyx said the very earth shook beneath the skids as I came into my power.

“I knew then that I could kill my father but the only way to get close enough to him was to earn his trust. So, I played the role of the cold-hearted son. I was stationed at the border overseeing a unit assisting in the transportation of enslaved people into the kingdom. That’s where I met Greyson, one of my best friends and high commanders. Greyson’s magic was electricity, another power my father coveted. Greyson had a secret though—he was half human.

“He hated the slave trade as much as I did since his mother had been sold when he was a child. We started working on a plan together. Training with my power at every conceivable chance. I only saw my father twice during those two years, but I learned to shield my true thoughts behind a mind submissive to myfather. Even with the heir power, my father never saw through the trick. He was too arrogant. When I turned twenty-three, with Greyson’s help, I faked my death, compelling all the right people until word of my death reached my father.

“He believed I had been killed in a trade deal gone wrong. My father came to the border to execute my supposed killer himself. I was waiting for him. I deceived him by taking on the mind of the man who was supposedly guarding my killer. Instead of handing him the dark-root laced sword, I plunged it into his heart and looked into his eyes as he died.

“After he took his final breath, I felt the heir power transfer into me. I went home to my mother, brought Greyson with me and immediately requested the return of Reize and Xanth. I tracked down where my father was keeping Calyx and made him my second-in-command. The first thing I did as newly appointed king was to go to Pearl, and together, we ended the slave trade. I ruled for three hundred years, and my kingdom flourished as human and divine lived together as equals.

“Fifty years after I came into power, a new king rose in Titan, and since then, there was peace across all three kingdoms, that was until I received word from the King of Astern that his children were being slaughtered by Agidius, his hidden heir. Calyx, I, and a small group came to the king’s aid. That’s when I found Cynthia, the Queen of the Dark Kingdom, disguised as a servant. It had been a trap to lure me there. Agidius released the curse, and I fought long enough to warn Pearl, having her relay the message to activate Ambrosia’s blood wards, locking my people inside, out of the reach of Agidius and the curse.

“The King of Titan at the time was my ally, a kindred spirit who had risen against his own father, just as I had fought against mine. He represented the beginning of a new era, a different kind of rule in Titan—one built on change and hope. I stoodby his side, guiding him, mentoring him, helping him lay the foundation of a new beginning in his kingdom.

“I had created the same wards for his kingdom linked in his own blood, and they also went up that day. The curse claimed me and then I awoke, knowing only my name. Agidius quickly tracked down Calyx and me, making us his second and third. And, well, you know the rest.”

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