Page 28 of To Sway a Prince
"Thalorion and I did our fair share when I was a child. But my calling is here. Some things cannot be escaped." He stopped in front of another door and pressed it open.
"Would you? If…if you could and no one would get hurt?" I followed him in. As I crossed the threshold, I halted.
This room wasn't what I expected. It was lovely, yes. Tidy and pleasant as well. It was all comforting, calming shades—deep indigo curtains covered the windows, pale lavender walls, and a velvet throw folded neatly at the foot of the bed over a periwinkle duvet. To the right was a blue velvet couch that looked comfortable enough to sleep on. A glass lamp lit up in response to a gesture from him and cast a gentle glow over the dark wood furniture, and the air carried the faint scent of chamomile and cedar. "This isn't your room," I said.
He glanced back at me and smiled a little. "No. I thought I would show you the guest room since I found you sleeping in the Covenant Chamber. As you can see, it's safe. You can lock the door. The window can be opened, and given your ability to break into the tower, I know you could easily get out. If you're going to be staying here, I feel it would be better if you had a more comfortable place to rest."
"I apologize if my being there caused offense—" I started. Once more that damnable shame stole over me. Why was I so concerned about what he thought of me? I didn't usually care so long as no one got hurt.
He crossed over to the small polished table before the couch. He curled his fingers and traced a design rapidly in the air. A silver tea service appeared, steam rising from the ornate pot's spout. "The chamber is a peaceful place. One I have enjoyed many times. It causes no offense to sleep there. But it is not good for restorative rest. All those commemorations of the sacred bonds can be disruptive, especially if one is sensitive. You were having a nightmare when I found you."
That didn't have anything to do with the location. Nightmares always plagued me. And almost always the same one or some variation of it. "It—it's all right. The room had nothing to do with that."
"Is there something that could be done to make the guest room more to your liking then?" he asked, his manner calm but curious as if we were not about to tug on the cursed knots that engulfed his heart.
"No—no, it's nice. Thank you. I'm just not used to it. That's all." His being kind to me and so hospitable made me feel worse and more on edge. Maybe he was feeling lonely as well. Perhaps that was all this was. I shook my head. "Listen. It's all very lovely, but why don't we just get to work on that curse?"
He glanced up at me, his expression almost coy. "Oh?" Picking up the teapot, he poured two cups of tea into the delicate porcelain cups. Each one had a series of runes worked into a floral design. "You want me to strip off half my clothes now? You're in quite the rush."
I folded my arms, refusing to back down and show just how embarrassed that comment made me. The worst part was that if I didn't find him attractive, this wouldn't be embarrassing at all. "Fine. It's your life that's on the line. I'd have assumed you'd want to do something important with what little time we have, but if you'd rather talk, we can talk. Why not answer my question? Would you travel more if you could do so and no one get hurt?"
"This is important." He handed me the cup and saucer, then sat on one end of the blue velvet couch.
After taking a long draught of the tea, he leaned back. "I would have traveled more, but in the end, I would always return here. It's not an easy life, but it is mine. And there is something to knowing that you are giving back to the world while also being able to live near such wonder and terror."
I breathed in the fragrant tea, chamomile and lavender filling my lungs. It had been ages since I'd had a hot cup of anything. I cut my gaze to him once more, then bowed my head slightly. "Thank you. It's delicious. But…you don't have long, Ramiel.Shouldn't we be focusing on eliminating this curse? You had your own solutions you were pursuing."
He took a long slow sip, then lowered the cup. "The leviathan is what disturbs the Chasm currently. We sealed it. He has returned to sleep. He usually sleeps for at least a week in between attempts, sometimes longer. He'll rest and then hunt a bit. Over the coming days, the pain will likely worsen. We gave him some relief. When it becomes too much for him, then we are at risk for the others breaking through as well. It's become much trickier because I couldn't go into the Chasm to heal him after he was injured this time. So now we wait while he rests and try to heal him when he attacks. But the advantage of this is that we do have a little time."
"How can you be certain he will stay asleep that long and nothing else will try to escape? Things go wrong."
"The leviathans are the only creatures on their side powerful enough to break through the elements that keep that which is in the Chasm within the Chasm. And you're right. Unless there's a miracle, I don't have long. So…" A contemplative look stole over his face, his head slightly bowed. "Why not enjoy a few quiet moments with another rune fae?"
"I'm not completely rune fae," I said. "Only my father was rune."
"You must have been trained well. You cast with strong precision," he said.
"The ones I know well, yes. I'm better with knots." I took a sip of the tea. It stirred an old memory nearly forgotten. One of my instructors had loved a similar tea, though I remembered it was a touch more floral. "If I had to come up with something on the spot, it would be trickier."
A silence spread between us. To my surprise, it was…comfortable. There was a macabre undertone to it, knowing that he was savoring his last moments if we weren't successful. Butwe would be. Still...my curiosity pricked at my patience. More than halfway finished with my tea, I tilted my head. "So what exactly is attacking you? An omen?—"
"An omenfang." He set his jaw. "Years ago when I was a younger man, I was with Thalorion. We were traveling and stopped at a river. I wasn't paying attention, and I crushed a spirit house. One of the tiny ones. Nothing lived in it at that time, but the witch who guarded those lands was understandably furious. And…she cursed me."
"With an omenfang?" I cradled the cup in both hands, its warmth seeping into my palms.
He nodded, his gaze fixed on the window past me. A little light streamed along the edges. "It was an overreaction. I offered to rebuild the house, to repair the damage. It wasn't enough. She was insulted and angry. I was barely an adult when it happened. My family tried to help me undo it. But the omenfang was bound to me with unusual ferocity. Each time I used my abilities, it drew it in closer until I reached a certain point. And each time that reservoir is smaller, constricting my powers and draining my life. Tending to the Chasm and the beings within is a task that requires a great deal. What has made it more difficult is that after a certain point, the curse itself began to…disturb the Chasm itself. It changed it, making it impossible for me to enter."
"Disturb it?" This curse he was under was certainly disproportionate, but that was also true to so many fae. We weren't really a measured people. Some did better than others, but some…well, they gave us all a dreadful reputation. "Did the witch who did this intend it to be that way?"
He shook his head. "No. At least not nearly so bad as it was. At that point, there were only a few Sentinels left. We returned to her and beseeched her for mercy. We had failed time and again to remove the strands, and it was becoming increasingly difficult."
I frowned. "And still, even knowing what you were doing and the risk to the Chasm, she refused?"
"No. She relented." His finger tapped the side of the porcelain cup. "She even agreed to come and remove it, but the curse refused to respond. She cast it when she was in a rageful and distraught state. As a result, it was not fully what she expected. She vowed to make things right, even if it cost her her life."
A heaviness pressed upon me, cold dread building within my core.
He let the moment linger, then sighed. "Sadly, she paid that price and it was not enough. One of the chasm wraiths destroyed her as we battled the omenfang and sought to calm the Chasm. It ripped her spirit out of her body, and by the time we found her, it was too late."
