Page 21 of Court of Dragons and Ashes

Arden shakes his head in disbelief. “Where were you when she was nearly attacked two days ago by a revengeful dragon and rider? If you cared, you would have been there like I was.”

“What do you mean, attacked?” Lysander turns to me, searching my face like the answer is written there. “Why didn’t you call for me? One word in my mind and I would have come for you. It only takes one word from you.”

This is all giving me a headache, and the hard part of the day hasn’t even begun. “I’m fine, let’s just… We’ll talk about it later.” I look at the portal swirling right in front of the throne that’s been waiting for us for the last hour. “Come on, we should go. I hate every second she has Grayson and Emrys under her spell.”

Arden and Lysander take my hands as we step through, and immediately I know we’re underground, far underground. The air is filled with a damp, musty earth scent, but mostly all I can smell and see are blue flowers. Shiny azure flowers line everywall, thousands of them bursting out of green vines. They cover every single wall, ceiling, and pillar in the massive room. There’s no natural light down here, but there are big beams of light coming out of circles on the ground, in rows leading to the back of the room.

It’s a massive cavern with dirt walls, and even when little grows here this far underground, it feels like a greenhouse with the smell and humidity. The earth throne itself is one gigantic piece of slate with carved-in seats, and giant, tall, spiralling wood sticks line the back of it. They make the shape of a harp, with gold strings coursing through the wood, glowing softly.

The ground is covered in blood, and the smell of death is lingering over the beauty. The portal snaps shut behind us, leaving us in the empty silence of the throne room. Aphrodite and Ares are where they always are, like they rule the court, sitting on the green cushioned seats of the throne. The throne room is empty this time. Not a single person, not even a ghost, seems to lie in the many seats at the sides. The ground itself is a meadow of thick grass and more blue flowers that have made a pathway straight down the middle. The flowers themselves seem to glow red with the blood splattered on them, but even then, they’re absolutely beautiful.

I never would have guessed that Grayson’s throne room is the most beautiful throne room in Ayiolyn. I look at Grayson, the king of the Earth Court, on his knees, and my heart hurts. Grayson has always needed to be in control of everything, down to even how he is touched, and the gods are using him like a puppet.

Ares watches with so much hate it burns between us like a living thing. “Is your mother dead yet?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know?” I taunt as we walk closer, stopping near Gray.

His sinister smile spreads. “She’s alive, I can tell from your eyes. Such frustration. She won’t wake. It’s not possible. I linked her to me.”

“What does that mean?” I demand, making the room dip into darkness at the edges without me even trying to.

Ares looks at the shadows near him, the way they are hissing like snakes ready to snap at his neck. “Keep begging me and maybe I might grant you an answer. I’m glad you stole her from me. She was annoying to drag around. Dead weight usually is.”

He laughs as I head forward, only getting a few steps before Arden stops me, tugging me back with our joined hands. “Whatever you’ve done, I’ll break it. You’re a sick bastard, you know that?”

“Family games, such fun.” He continues to laugh, and Aphrodite simply watches us both like we are a show ofEastEndersor something. “How is my backstabbing daughter?”

“Better without her parents, I’d wager,” I snarl. “You talk about a family like you know the meaning of it. You don’t.”

Ares goes silent, moving to stand, but Aphrodite beats him. She rises up off her seat, her red dress moving with her. A princess gown this time. “Welcome, Ellelin. Do you like the Earth Court?”

“Where’s this next test?” I snap. I’m not doing small talk with her.

“Two down, two to go. I like the number three. It’s my favourite,” she begins. “Three is meant to be a number that signifies unity. You three are definitely not unified after our last attempt. You can practically taste the anger rippling off your bones, the thick tension I could feed off.”

No one replies to her. She wants us to fight and argue. It makes it easier for her to win. “How interesting you all are! Love really does conquer all, even betrayal. Will it conquer death?”

“Get on with it, bitch,” Lysander growls.

Aphrodite narrows her eyes. “So rude. The Fire Court and Water Court kings are not welcome in this test. It would be cheating to allow you in.”

“No! We do not leave her side!” Lysander shouts.

Arden looks at me, seeing the worry in my eyes. I can’t do this without them, I need them. “We are not leaving?—”

“That was not part of my agreement.” Aphrodite clicks her fingers, and a portal opens underneath both Arden’s and Lysander’s feet. Their hands are ripped out of mine as they disappear in the portals, and I’m left touching the dirt ground within seconds. They are literally just gone. “Get up.”

I can do this. I have to do this. I reach for their familiar presence in my mind, and even thousands of miles away, I can feel my mates. I’m never really alone. I haven’t been, and they are with me wherever I go. Steeling my back, knowing they’re going to be mighty fucking pissed, I stand up and face my enemy. The goddess who needs to be stopped.

She smiles, her painted red lips bright. “I put them back in their own courts. Wouldn’t want them to kill each other without your presence there to stop it.” She looks at Grayson. “Earth king, you’re needed.” She clicks her fingers again, and he stands, walking to me. “He loves you, that one, more than the others. You’re the beginning and end of his world. I’ve been in his mind, felt his love, and it is sad he might die in this test. Grayson will lead you to the entrance to the test. It’s here within the Earth Court. It turns out this place is dangerous enough on its own without my help. But I spent the last two days devising something truly spectacular here, worthy of the gods. You might even need to be a god yourself to win it.”

Ares sneers at me. “But you’re not, mortal. Mortals die, and gods? We live forever.”

Grayson walks to my side, my heart pounding. He doesn’t reach out for me; he doesn’t move much more, and he still hasthat red haze on his eyes from her magic. His hand moves to the small of my back, and he pushes me forward. I look over my shoulder at Aphrodite as she sits back on the throne, a big smile on her face. “Good luck, princess.”

My heart feels lodged in my throat as Grayson leads me out of the throne room, through massive, decorated wooden doors and into empty corridors with little light pooling at the edges through cracks in the earth. I feel Arden and Lysander reaching for me, Terrin too, but they are so far away that it’s nothing more than a faint echo. I can’t tell them I’m fine; I can’t shout back. I’m lost in my own thoughts, and soon I realise the corridor seems to have changed just as we have walked down it. It doesn’t look the same.

Maze.

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