Page 88 of Heir Of Sun And Moon
The words are barely past my lips before his are there—a demanding and desperate kiss to seal them between us. To make sure that no matter what happens in the future, there will always be this moment cemented in both of our minds—an unbreakable truth for two people who chose each other despite the challenges of doing so. When we break apart, I swear that the room glows brighter, the silver in Flynn’s eyes glinting, but when I look behind me to find the source of the light, there is nothing there. Flynn doesn’t seem to see it as he stares intently at me, so I don’t say anything before he turns me to look back out at the lanterns. Standing behind me, he wraps his arms around me protectively while I sink back against him.
When I’m too tired to stay standing, he crawls onto the bed and pulls me with him, my head laying on his chest as the beat of his heart lulls me into sleep. The last thought I have on the brink of consciousness is that I know without a doubt that the day Flynn entered my life, it was forever changed.
Chapter Forty-Five: Bahira
Thesunwarmsmyskin from overhead as I watch the shifter king’s ship ride the waves in the distance. We stand on our side of the Spell, the glittering wall reflecting its iridescence in the sunlight. As with all land that borders the ocean, the Spell allows a few feet of beach as a neutral ground for beings to meet on. Our shipping docks and ports are built into these neutral zones, and I imagine it was a safeguard of sorts when the Void Magic user originally cast the Spell.
My mother had suggested that we wear our more traditional mage dresses for this meeting, reminding me that it is the first known in-person meeting of leaders since the Spell was put into place. I chose a dark blue quarter-sleeve dress made of linen. The fabric of the bodice wraps tightly across my breasts and stomach before the dress flows out towards my feet in a relaxed skirt. I added a gold and silver chain belt around my waist, the pattern of a petalum flower twisted into the metal. My hair blows behind me in the ocean breeze, the scent of salt and sea permeating the air.
A large gathering of people has begun to form behind us on the beach, including the members of the council and Daje. My father sent out missives to every resident in the kingdom a few days ago, asking them to send their strongest magic user to the beach for this meeting. He assured them that even if the magic chose them, they would have the choice to decline going to the shifter isle. It is the only way he will make the deal with King Kai and a perfect way to strong-arm him into agreeing. Since the shifter king has already spent time sailing here, he won’t want to sail back home empty-handed. My father will also make sure that there is a time limit to how long the chosen mage will be required to stay in the foreign kingdom. It all sounds reasonable enough to me, and yet nerves burrow into my stomach at the thought that King Kai won’t agree.
My fingers curl by my sides as I watch a small rowboat depart from the ship and head in our direction. The island king was arrogant and unsympathetic in our previous meeting, and I pity whoever it is that will get stuck working with him.
My parents stand next to me as we watch the king and what looks like his advisor, Tua, row the small wooden boat near. My mother has chosen a similar style of dress to mine but in a light pink, while my father wears his traditional blue and silver mage robe over simple brown trousers and a white tunic. It had jolted me a bit when I met them in the foyer of the palace earlier because he was wearing one of the traditional diadems of our kingdom. The chosen crown has three pointed tips at the front, each one topped with a round yellow diamond surrounded with golden flares. The one in the middle is the largest, roughly four inches in diameter, and rests atop a crescent moon made of black diamond, the points tipped up. Woven around the golden circumference are emeralds in the shape of leaves in all different sizes with small diamonds layered throughout. I always thought they looked like stars sprinkled into the foliage.
“Are you ready, My King?” my mother asks, looking over at my father. He is one of the most unflappable men I have ever known, but the pressure and secrecy of Nox’s mission has begun to wear on him. His finger taps on her hand, his nervous tick drawing my attention.
“This is the right decision,” he responds as he gives her a small smile. “There is no kingdom without its people, and this deal will ensure that ours will be safe if a threat indeed presents itself.” My mother smiles fondly at him, leaning in to press a kiss to his cheek.
My heart pounds in my chest as the row boat hits the sand and the king of the shifter isle steps out. He is even larger in person than the Mirror made him appear. His dark brown hair is cut short on the sides and longer on top, the slightly wavy strands pushed back from his face. He’s dressed in a sleeveless green tunic, the missing material showing off the enormity of his arms. I try to make out the design of the black tattoo scrolling down his right limb, but it’s a pattern that I can’t decipher even now that we are in person. He is massive—the muscles of his chest and back flaring out enough that I imagine even if I put two Daje’s side by side, it still wouldn’t be as wide as he is. His legs flex even through the light material of his black trousers as he walks through the sand with ease. He isn’t wearing a crown of his own, which I find odd. It also pains me to admit that, even through the slight distortion as he nears the wall of the Spell, he is the most stunning man I have ever seen. His build and coloring are completely unique to the island he comes from and his shifter blood. He smirks when our eyes meet, making mine narrow in response as I cross my arms over my chest.Arrogant ass.Tua follows behind him, struggling to keep up with the large steps of his ruler.
“Welcome, King Kai. I hope your journey here was easy and uneventful,” my father says, his voice resonant.
The island king’s face is that of stone as he subtly gives a nod of his head. “Only one interruption by the sirens that was dealt with quickly,” he responds, his deep voice reverberating over the sound of the gentle waves.
My eyes widen at the mention of the beings who live under the water, their beautiful and supposedly eerie song usually a death trap to any who are caught in its chorus. Though I had, obviously, never heard it.
“Shall we begin, King Sadryn?” King Kai asks, gesturing to the space in front of him. Together, my mother and father step through the Spell, their figures blurring for a quick second before they appear on the other side. From where I stand, I hear the sharp inhale of a few of the council members.
“We have conditions we would like to discuss before any blood is bound,” my father announces firmly. King Kai towers over him by about four inches, his domineering presence met by my father’s stoic calm. My mother grips his hand fiercely, her eyes never wavering from their observation of the island king. I watch as his gaze travels down to their joined hands and back up again—his lips softening into what might have been described as a small grin, if it weren’t for the harshness of the rest of his features.
“Queen Alexandria, it is a pleasure to see you again. What are your conditions?”
A flicker of surprise sparks inside of me at the respect shown to my mother. It’s not that all men believe themselves to be above women, it’s just that—other than the siren queen and our last Void Magic queen—there aren’t women ruling in any of the other kingdoms. While traditionally our kingdom has always acknowledged one ruler, my father includes my mother in all major decisions—and not just behind closed doors. He has never taken kindly to being questioned about it either by some of the council members. In his words, “A king is only as wise as his queen pushes him to be.”
“We think it would be fair to allow the mage chosen by the magic to deny the opportunity to go, should they prefer,” he responds confidently. “The magic may choose as many mages as it takes until one agrees to go with you.”
King Kai’s demeanor doesn’t change, his unyielding face betraying no emotion of how he may feel about this concession. Time drips by slowly as his advisor leans in close and whispers something to him.Accept, damn it.
The shifter king takes a deep breath, his large chest rising with the movement before he dips his chin in agreement. “I accept.” A collective exhale of relief sounds on our side of the Spell. “Anything else? I assume that can’t be all,” he says, a dark brow raising slightly.
His attitude causes an involuntary scoff to leave my mouth. His eyes flick to mine, that brow raising impossibly higher as he studies me. The sun hits the angles of his square jaw, its glare highlighting his sculpted cheekbones and strong brow. And for some reason, which I don’t have the time to examine, a quick flash of desire roils through me before I clear my throat. As if knowing that I’ve been betrayed by my body, King Kai kicks up his smirk into something that can only be described as a wolfish grin. It’s a move that turns whatever idiotic yearning I might have felt into the more appropriate feeling of irritation.
My father breaks through my musing as he continues speaking, “We believe that there should be an expressed limit of time that the mage is expected to stay on your isle—to be determined by you and the chosen mage.”
“And what happens if, at the end of that time limit, your mage hasn’t been able to figure out our issue?” King Kai asks, the only tell of his frustration the slight flex of his bicep. “Our end of the bargain will only be upheld for as long as there is a mage actively working with us on the magic, or a solution has been discovered.”
Of course he would bargain with the safety of our people for his own kingdom’s gain.
“I would humbly request, one ruler to another, that you consider the lives of the innocents when you threaten us.” A proud smile curls my lips at my father’s words as the shifter king clenches his jaw again, a muscle fluttering in his cheek while he considers.
“I will not tell another kingdom about your ability to pass through the Spell, no matter the outcome of your mage’s efforts. However, I will only agree to offer refuge for as long as a mage is in my kingdom. After that time is up, so is our offer of protection.”
If I am ever left alone with that foreign king, I will absolutely punch him in the face.
“That is fair, King Kai. Let us bind the words in blood.” My father steps forward, only releasing my mother’s hand in order to grab a familiar dagger from its sheath on his belt—the black stone hilt stark in the daylight. Blood rushes in my ears as I watch them, King Kai stepping up past his advisor and extending his opposite hand forward. “Speak the words as we’ve discussed them, and then our joined blood will soak into the Continent—the magic of it binding our words and this deal.”
“I, King Kai of the Shifter Kingdom, ask that—in exchange for moving the people of the Mage Kingdom to our island should they fall under attack—the best mage be chosen to help us fix the blight that has been plaguing our magic. He or she chosen will have the opportunity to decline, and thus, another will be nominated to take their place until one has agreed. A time limit, as specified between myself and the appointed mage, will be put into place. Our protection of the people of this kingdom is only applicable for as long as there is a mage working with us or a reason for the blight has been found. I will also keep your Spellabilitiessecret.”
