Page 74 of Of Serpents and Ruins
"Then we die," Brandt said dryly.
Frustrated murmurs started as the advisers bickered.
The humming in my ears intensified.
The hourglass sitting on the black iron table. That…that brought back a terrible tumult of memories. A nauseating. stabbing ball formed in my stomach. The overwhelming dread and terror. I'd wanted to collapse, had dug my fingers into thewall and fought to remain standing, and then composed myself because I knew people were watching. I hadn’t been a queen the first time I saw that hourglass.
The black and gold chess table in the back—that was familiar too. It was in the middle of the game, but whoever's move it was, the blue seer was set to topple the red rook.
Tile lifted his arms. "If I might interject, even if this woman is not the queen, slaying the Gola Resh is entirely separate." His long, dark sleeves swung with the movement as he gestured from the glowing hourglass to me. "I hope you are indeed the queen, dear lady." He bowed his head, his chin tucking against his chest. Genuine emotion stirred in his voice. "You have been greatly missed, but regardless, so long as you are not in the service of the Gola Resh, then even if you are only a reflection of what we wish to be true, then we can move forward. Surely you can concede this, Councilor Dromar."
The one who looked like Brandt’s relative offered a faint lift of his shoulders, his middle finger resting against his cheek. "So long as she is not restored to a full position of authority and she does not receive a shifting ring, then we can move forward."
"She gets her ring back," Brandt hissed. His tone allowed no debate. "In the absence of the Master of Form and as the reigning King of Sepeazia, it is my right to determine how these are disbursed. The ring, and all of the magical energy which it will require upon its being used and restored, has always been hers. Before his passing, Master Tasnal indicated his wholehearted support in reserving it for the queen to be bestowed upon her after she returned once the restoration cycle had concluded. Last night, the restoration cycle completed for all the rings. She gets her ring back."
Several of the council members tensed. Dromar’s jaw clenched. They’d likely had this argument many times before.
Dromar extended his hand, his fingers curling in an almost pleading gesture. "What good does her having the ring returned to her do? It detracts from the energy reserve, and she will not have had time to regain her former abilities."
Kine cleared his throat and bowed his head. He kept his words clipped. "I have seen to her initial training. Or perhaps I should say her re-training. The queen shows exceptional recall. She has made significant strides toward regaining her former skill. Once her ring is restored and she has time to acclimate, I am confident she will be at full fighting strength within ten days. She could probably assume her water serpent form now for a few seconds or so if need be."
"She is who she is." Brandt glared at them, his voice taking on a harsher tone. "She will receive her ring."
An adviser with a long, elegant plait stepped aside, cutting into Brandt’s right. Rage twisted over Brandt’s face. He glared at the adviser. A low growl rumbled in his chest before he stopped. The adviser stepped aside at once, his face turning bright red as he bowed his head.
Everyone was staying away from Brandt’s right side.
My gaze darted back to him. Oh. Oh, ihlkit, he was looking at me.
A giggle rose in my chest.
No! Please not now.
I tried to swallow the flirtatious giggle and the heady need. My fingernails dug into my palms.
His slow sensual smile tugged ever so slightly at the right side of his mouth.
My heart fluttered as Brandt's gaze held mine. Even as the council continued bickering around us, it felt like we were the only two people in the room.
Please, if any divine being is listening, don’t let me make a fool out of myself here.I didn’t want to be stupid. I just wantedhim, and I didn’t want to shame him or me by calling him a spicy strawberry margarita man or offering to climb him like a rock wall.
I dug my fingernails deeper into my palms, trying to ignore the heat pooling insistently in my lower belly. Sweat formed on my forehead. Now was not the time to indulge in fantasies, no matter how tempting. Everything depended on us stopping the Gola Resh.
Brandt growled again, striking his fist against the throne. "Enough! The queen receives her ring. As soon as the well is opened, her ring will be restored to her. There will be no more discussion of this. If anyone opposes it further, they may kuvaste me at their leisure. Councilor Tile, what has been determined regarding the Gola Resh?"
Councilor Tile bowed his head as he rose from his curved chair once more. With a graceful gesture toward all those present, he stepped forward. Though he had a dry way of speaking, it was almost soothing after the tenseness of the previous debate. "Honored assembled members, the Gola Resh’s continued existence remains a mystery, but my sages have concluded that because she lives, the proper elimination of her and all of the Babadon’s remaining elements must be done in the heart of the Ember Lord's Crest. The ritual itself will allow us to make her corporeal and capable of being harmed with our weapons once more. And so long as everything related to both the Gola Resh and the Babadon are destroyed complete in the heart of Ember Lord’s Crest, the curses they have woven and which are not yet completed will be ended."
"The Babadon was slain and all life of his destroyed," Dromar protested sharply. "Councilor Osvar can attest to that." He indicated the man with the silver rings on his left. "He swore it before this council. How could his remains cause problems? Is the Gola Resh bound to them?"
"From what we have learned since the revelation of the Gola Resh’s continued existence, there is something of the Babadon that yet lives as well, despite all efforts to drain out the magical remnants of life," Tile said. He gave an almost apologetic look to Osvar. "The heart…"
Brandt’s eyebrow lifted.
A sharp memory thrust itself forward—a horrible squelching, mopping up buckets of blood, and sterilizing stone. A question about the heart. A pungent scent: sulfur and iron. An attempt to replace something precious that was lost.
Blinking, I pressed my hand to my forehead.
The black and red mini raptor hopped up onto my lap. She chirred and then settled herself over my heart with her narrow jaws resting against my collarbone. Absently, I stroked her sides. Her sleek scales soothed me.
