Page 106 of The Storm of the Empire

“We saw Octavian.”

Nyx’s face twisted into a look of incredulity. “No, you didn’t. He’s dead. We burned his body.” Nyx sat on the edge of Kiera’s desk, rubbing his temples.

“I’m aware.”

“So you saw ash?” Nyx said through his teeth, clearly not wanting to hear any of this.

“No, we saw a pretty creepy version of him somewhere between alive and undead, and I didn’t think he could get creepier.”

Hazel put a hand over her mouth, holding back a laugh I could hear mentally. It was kinda nice to be connected with her that way.

“The King is never going to believe any of this.” Nyx sighed. “I can’t deal with this right now.”

I glanced at Jaxus. “Do you want us to keep it to ourselves?”

“Yes, but first, I want you to walk us through what happened step by step and then let me decide how I’m handling it.” Nyx gestured for us to carry on.

We walked him through the events of the last twenty-four hours and helped each other fill in the details.

“So they know you escaped?” Nyx asked, exasperated.

“Yes. We had to fight our way out of the temple.”

“Oh, I almost forgot. They said they were going to give the temple the same treatment as the one on Damona Island,” Hazel said in a rush. “I know it’s far-fetched, but they obviously have a way to do it. Clear out and leave no sign behind.”

“I believe you. You wouldn’t lie to me,” Nyx tells her. “And Zaria trusts Luka with her life, so that’s enough for me.”

“I trust him, too.” Hazel slipped her hand in mine. “I can see his whole mind now.”

Nyx glanced between us, only just realizing what Jaxus had picked up on right away. That was how clouded his mind was with all he had to deal with. “You two?”

Jaxus shrugged. “Those pendants worked well, I guess.”

“Are we just going to have mates keep sprouting up all over the place now? What happened to this being a rare occurrence?” Nyx said, but it was evident he wasn’t really asking.

“I don’t know anything about that stuff.” I shrugged. “I’m new to your crap.”

“Do you think Kerani has something to do with this?” Hazel asked, bringing up a point they clearly hadn’t considered.

“It would make sense. Their shielding is quite good,” Jaxus mused.

“And they have the storms to disturb magic as well, giving their land even more protection,” Hazel added.

“And if they are taking our eggs?” I added, and everyone looked at me. “Someone had to say it. Those eggs are going somewhere.”

“Surely, those are going to wherever the Dragon’s Bane is going?” Nyx said.

“Octavian didn’t seem to know about the eggs, though,” Hazel said, looking to me for confirmation.

I lifted my hands. “I don’t know. It could be either. But they are going somewhere.”

“And no lead on Alora’s egg?” Nyx asked, glancing between us. “Or is that a dead end? Losing a future storm dragon would be terrible. Who knows if Alora can even have another?”

Hazel clutched her heart. “We didn’t find a trace of it at the temple in Runerth, but the trail was long cold by then.”

“I’m having Faolan look into it to see if he can figure anything out with his contacts about where it might have gone after leaving Storm. He believes it was on his ship,” Jaxus added. “It’s a long shot, but it’s something.”

“Keep on it. How long until Alora’s egg was due to hatch?” Nyx asked.

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