Page 51 of Oath of War
Talena’s head whipped towards him, her eyes narrowing dangerously. ‘I don’t appreciate your insubordination, brother dearest,’ she hissed in an attempt to keep her voice low. ‘Ever since you met this woman, you’ve questioned me far too often. You’ve never taken such an interest in females before, yet now you’re arguing with me over ahuman? Do you wish to end up like my Erestis, slaughtered by the very one he sought to protect?’
Valaram’s expression didn’t waver, but his reply carried a subtle edge. ‘Alaric’s hand may have held the dagger, but the Lich King’s had guided it—and you know it. It’s unreasonable to kill our strongest weapon. As for my fascination with the human,’ he added with a faint smile, ‘I find Annika most entertaining.’
Despite his casual tone, something in his voice felt off. I focused on our unexpected ally as he leaned towards the empress, placing a hand on her shoulder. ‘C’mon, sister, let’s make a wager. I’ll even put up that artefact you’ve always wanted, the necromancer’s ruby, that she’ll return. Annika is quite the resourceful little fox.’
‘Your infatuation with this girl is blinding you,’ Talena snapped, suspicion flashing across her face before she conceded. ‘Fine, get your ruby ready to be delivered to my throne room. And what will you demand if your precious mage does indeed return?’
The ambassador’s smile didn’t falter. ‘I want command of the army for a year.’
Her gasp echoed across the arena. ‘You planned this!’
‘Perhaps.’ Valaram shrugged, and I tightened my grip on my pommel, fighting the urge to intervene.
‘I will add to the wager,’ Reynard said suddenly. ‘The Zielands—those fertile lands your empire has long coveted. I wager them on Annika’s return. Unless, of course, you are afraid to lose, my lady?’
The empress’ face darkened, a sneer twisting her lips. ‘I will take that bet. And what doyouwant in return, King of Dagome?’
‘Not much,’ Reynard replied smoothly. ‘Just to offer your brother the position of my advisor, if he wouldn’t mind accepting it.’
If the wager were not on my Nivale’s life, I would have admired my brother’s genius, but Annika was lost in a different realm, and they were using her life as a bargaining chip. Before I could speak, Vahin’s roar silenced the arena.
‘Fae Empress,’ he thundered, levelling his massive head with the royal balcony, ‘despite the passing of many years, you remain as reckless and impulsive as when you were a child.’ His voice rumbled like an oncoming storm, and Talena stiffened under his glare.
The tension between them crackled, raw power radiating from both sides as they held a staring contest. The empress stepped back, her nostrils flaring as she summoned her magic, until Vahin’s furious growl shook the arena.
‘Sit.Down,’ he commanded, his voice filled with ancient authority. Talena fell back into her chair, the weight of his words pressing her into submission. ‘We will wait, and you should pray that your recklessness doesn’t bring destruction to your people. Pray to your Dark Mother and hope that she returns my light to me. Hope that she shows you mercy. Because I will not.’
The conviction in his voice sent ripples of fear through the crowd. Many dropped to their knees, whispering desperate prayers.
The Vahin who had once laughed at Annika’s antics and snorted at her requests to rub his belly was gone. Before us now was a creature of raw power and fury, his scales sparking with lightning as the sand beneath his claws melted into glass. The very air hummed with electricity, and I knew that no force in this world or the next would stop him if Ani was truly lost.
Talena trembled, her wide eyes fixed on Vahin in utter disbelief. ‘My father spoke of your kind—the eldritch dragons, the Elementals. You’re one of them,’ she whispered, gripping the armrests.
‘Yes,’ he replied, his voice like distant thunder. ‘I am Vahin of the Firstborn—the Aether of Storm. Don’t think to test me, stripling, unless you are willing to face the fury of the tempest.’ With that, he stepped back and turned to wait in the centre of the arena, his scales dimming as they returned to their usual hue.
‘Aether of Storm?’ I asked, still grappling with what I’d just heard. In response, Vahin showed me a vision: raging thunderstorms setting fire to the land with every strike, consuming everything in their path. And in the midst of the inferno, clashing dragons fought for dominance.
‘I’m sorry, Ormond,’ his voice echoed in my mind, heavy with weariness. ‘I am much older than you could imagine. The Primes—my kin—nearly destroyed this world in our reign of fire. We who survived swore an oath to the skies, vowing neverto meet again, lest our power shatter the world anew. With Annika carrying a shard of my soul, if she were to die, it would break me. I would be lost, and the world would experience a thunderstorm that would horrify even the gods.’
There was no reply I could make to that, not when the beast in my heart roared, clawing its way out at the thought of losing my Nivale.
And so, we waited—our fates resting in the hands of an unknown goddess and a stubborn mage.
An hour passed. At some point, I’d slid from Vahin’s back, leaning against his paw and absentmindedly stroking his eyelid as we stared at where the portal had been. I would have missed it if Vahin hadn’t startled me, his sudden shift nearly planting my face in the sand—a strange pressure that made you grind your teeth to relieve it.
‘She’s coming. I can feel her again!’ He roared, silencing the murmuring crowd surrounding us.
I jumped to my feet, sprinting towards the shimmering light that materialised, but Vahin was faster. How such a gigantic creature could move so quickly was baffling. In one fluid motion, he moved from his resting position to coil protectively around the woman who appeared in midair, cushioning her fall.
The joy Vahin was projecting overwhelmed my senses, and I stumbled, but I fought to stay upright. This moment was too important to falter now, so I closed our bond and rushed forward, looking around in distress. Annika was here, but where was my other mate?
My question was answered moments later. As Annika disappeared within the coils of Vahin’s body, Alaric appeared, only to fall to the ground, hitting it so hard that the glass cracked beneath his body.
‘Hrae! You overgrown, slow worm. There aretwoof us, you know,’ he cursed, wincing as he tried to sit up.
I reached him first, pulling him into a crushing embrace. Relief flooded me, leaving me breathless and grinning like an idiot. ‘You survive a goddess and still have time to whine about not getting a cuddle from a dragon?’ I teased, pressing him so hard to my chest that his bones creaked.
He muttered something unintelligible, but all I could think of was that I had my fae back in one piece. ‘No,’ I growled quietly when he tried to push me away. ‘I need to hold you, just for a moment.’
