Page 121 of Hell Fae King
“He had no control,” I replied. “He didn’t even know he was a siphon. He just knew something he was doing weakened his parents until… until they simply no longer existed.”
“Parents?” she echoed, making me realize that I’d only focused on his mother because of the journal.
“Yes. He siphoned the energy out of his mother and father until their physical bodies disappeared,” I explained. “I wasn’t there, but from what I understand, their souls fractured and are now a part of Typhos… forever.”
It wasn’t a pretty tale.
It also wasn’t one I could share many details on, as I hadn’t been there and I wasn’t a siphon.
But I went on and told her what I did know.
Which was that Ty had fed on their energy for years as a child, his soul consuming theirs as sustenance. And while they clearly knew what was happening, they didn’t try to stop him.
“His mother’s journal had several entries about it,” I said, explaining Vita’s importance. “Many of those entries were written in the form of letters to Ty, letters she knew he would one day need. Letters of forgiveness and understanding. And assurances that she would live on, through him, and she’d always be with him. But physically, she would be gone and they’d never talk again. Hence the importance of her journal.”
Cami lifted a hand to her mouth, her eyes filling with tears. “That’s horrible.”
“It’s love,” I countered. “The love of two parents willing to give their child everything to survive, even their own lives. Some would say that’s the ultimate sacrifice.”
“Or incredibly unfortunate,” Cami countered. “Why didn’t they help him?”
“They didn’t know who could assist him,” I replied, shrugging. “And no one wanted to help. Virtuous Fae create, and many saw Ty’s gift as destructive, which is the opposite of our nature.”
My lips twisted, my mind spinning through the agony I know Ty must have experienced back then.
“In truth, though, it’s an entirely new form of creation,” I went on slowly, processing my words as I spoke them. “Ty can take energy andcreatesomething completely new. He cantransform.” Just as he’d done to himself. That day he’d fallen, he’d changed his Virtuous Fae energy into an entirely new manifestation.
That was the day he had become a king.
“So what happened? After his parents died? No one… no one helped him?”
“Not at first, no,” I confided, the history a sad one to recount. “His family wasn’t royal, and he didn’t have any relatives. So he handled the loss alone, and eventually, he left, thus leading him to me. And… Vivaxia.”
Cami stared at me. “He must have been so sad.”
“Sad. Angry. Bitter. Broken.” I winced, hating to use that last word, but it was apt. “Typhos felt a lot of ways, but guilt was probably the most prevalent emotion. That guilt is actually what guided him in creating his Source.”
“Guilt?” Cami repeated.
I nodded. “Yes. He wanted to find a way to siphon power for good, to atone for his past sins. And he did that by manifesting an outlet for his power, an outlet for all of hislight. But the key was, he didn’t use that energy. Instead, he gifted it to others. Primarily those who needed protection.”
“The Nightmare Fae,” she translated.
“Yes. Now, it’s the Nightmare Fae. Then, it was Virtuous Fae and others he saw as needing an extra boost.” I shrugged. “What you see today is several thousand years old. Trust me when I say that he started small. Though, he’s always been powerful.”
“So how did he learn to do that?” Cami asked. “His parents obviously didn’t teach him. Not because they didn’t want to, but because it sounds like they couldn’t. So who helped him?”
“Vivaxia,” I replied. “In a roundabout way, anyway.”
“Oh.” Cami’s expression darkened. “She taught him how to siphon his power… for good?”
“Not exactly.” I paused, considering how to explain this. “After everything that happened with his parents, he more or less throttled his siphoning ability. But it wasn’t a permanent fix because the power still existed within him. So he found a new outlet, one born of his lessons with Vivaxia on how to craft deals. While the outlet might not have been the purpose of thoselessons, it was something he taught himself while mastering the art of negotiating with others.”
“So she didn’t actually help him master his siphoning talent,” Cami replied.
“No. I’m not even sure she knows about it. Ty says she doesn’t.” But I’d always wondered deep down if she knew the truth and if it was his ability to siphon that she longed to exploit. Because it was that ability that allowed him to manifest his creative energy.
“That makes more sense to me,” Cami said slowly. “But even with teaching him the art of making deals, I assume she had an ulterior motive.”
