A Battle of Souls

by Bella Forrest

  I broke down, sobbing like a little girl. “I… I love you, too,” I managed.

  He chuckled. “Then why are you crying?”

  “Because I love you, and there are so many feelings bursting through me right now, yours and mine. I’m a little overwhelmed,” I replied between hiccups.

  Caspian laughed wholeheartedly, then took me in his arms and covered my face in hot, sweet kisses. I welcomed his embrace, hiding my face in that warm space between his head and shoulder, taking deep breaths and savoring his natural, musky scent.

  “We’re bound, Harper,” he whispered. “We’re looking at an eternity together. Wherever we choose to spend it, we’ll be together.”

  “Forever,” I breathed.

  “Mm-hm.”

  I liked that. I liked that a lot. With my soul complete and my heart filled with undying love, the prospect of being with Caspian for the rest of my life was something that fueled me, much like three suns fueled the entire galaxy and gave life to Neraka.

  An eternity together… Yup. Sounds good.

  Fiona

  Two weeks had passed since Zane’s coronation. Neraka had made incredible progress since, with substantial help from our witches and the Daughters. Safira and her sisters said that assisting the Nerakians in rebuilding their world was the least they could do, given that they’d been the ones who had allowed the Exiled Maras to get another chance. They were wise and mature enough to take some of the blame, though they couldn’t possibly have known what the Maras would do with that opportunity, anyway.

  We’d set up a consistent travel schedule with Eritopia, using the interplanetary spell. Most of the GASP troops that had come to Neraka were now solely focused on finalizing the peace treaties and supporting the Imen where appropriate.

  New cities were coming up. Trade routes and laws were being established. And Azure Heights was the gem of the entire region, once more. Its white marble buildings and golden towers glistened from afar, overlooking the fields and the Valley of Screams.

  Derek was already in talks with Nevis, Neha, Hundurr, Zane, and Wyrran to set up a GASP base on Neraka. They were looking at potential locations, and Ragnar Peak was brought up. The mountain was down, but the location was still highly advantageous and was at the intersection of multiple roads. It was perfect for what they needed.

  The area around the base of Azure Heights had just become home to a very special monument—a stunning work of art created by Corrine and Ibrahim, with plenty of help from our crew and allies. A white marble statue had been erected for every fallen Iman, Mara, daemon pacifist, Manticore, Dhaxanian, and Adlet who had fought against the daemon-Exiled Mara coalition. There were hundreds of them, each made in the appearance of the creature it was commemorating. Lumi had helped with a few spells, digging through thousands of memories to accurately reproduce these marble portraits.

  Lumi had added her extra touch to each of them, too. The statues were imbued with protective charms and alarms, designed to keep the city safe, going forward. From afar, it looked as though the mountain was guarded by hundreds of beautiful statues. From up close, the Guardians of Neraka, as they’d been dubbed, stood tall and proud—timeless in their heroism. I walked among them for a while, recognizing Arrah, next to Dion and Alles. Colton was right behind them.

  I cried, unable to stop my tears from rolling down my cheeks. At first, I’d thought it was because of the monument, but, after some reflection, I had to admit that I was crying because of Zane.

  He hadn’t spoken to me since before his coronation. Not a single word.

  I knew he’d been insanely busy with his kingdom. The daemons required his undivided attention; otherwise, he risked a rebellion. The purpose of these new alliances had been to restore the peace and balance, and to prevent further bloodshed, after all.

  But it still hurt, because I needed some pointers from him on where our relationship was going. I’d talked about this with Mom and Dad already. I’d put forward the idea of staying here, but I’d yet to exclude the possibility of leaving. I was horribly confused, and my parents had tried their best to listen to me and advise me as selflessly as possible. Of course, they didn’t like the idea of me living so far away from them, but, at the same time, they respected my freedom and said they would adjust to whatever decision I made.

  What decision am I making, though?

  After a long walk, I went back to the newly rebuilt Palisade, where I’d been given a gorgeous suite. I noticed the daemon guards standing outside the building. I was still getting accustomed to the notion that they were all peaceful now. They all bowed politely as I passed by.

  I made it upstairs, then opened the door to my room—and froze. My heart skipped a beat.

  Zane was standing in the middle, tall and gorgeous as ever. He’d opted for a black leather tunic with gold thread embellishments and gemstone buttons, simple but classy, hugging his muscles and adding some gravitas to his already-imposing figure.

  His horns were fully covered in gold, and he’d settled for a smaller, simpler gold crown to casually wear while out in public. His red eyes found mine, and my heart stopped beating altogether. All of a sudden, I was conflicted. Should I be happy to see him? Or should I be angry that I’m only seeing him now?

  “Hi,” he said, his voice low and raspy and already doing all kinds of things to my senses. I replied with a brief nod. “Can we talk?”

  A part of me had slapped the panic button already. All systems were full steam ahead, preparing for the worst-case scenario I’d been imagining, where Zane would tell me that we were better off going our separate ways, that the urgency of our situation with Shaytan had brought us too close, too fast… and so on. My soul was already aching as I got ready to put on a straight face and keep it cool.

  “Yeah, sure,” I mumbled.

  He hadn’t even touched or kissed me. He wasn’t even smiling.

  Ironically, he’d been the one coming after me during our dark adventure. He’d kidnapped me, he’d saved me, he’d let me go, and then he’d saved me again—over and over, in fact. And, as soon as everything had fallen into place, he’d gone silent. It hurt me, because I’d fallen for him. I’d fallen so deeply that I wasn’t at all sure I’d be able to take a breakup well.

  Seconds went by. He seemed to be looking for the right words. I waited patiently. What was an extra minute in these circumstances, anyway?

  But my pulse raced, and I caved in.

  “Look, I can leave, and we can just pretend—” I started, but we spoke at the same time.

  “Marry me,” he said.

  I blanked out, completely.

  “Wait, what?” I croaked.

  “I mean… Hold on, you want to leave?” he replied, frowning.

  We both looked at each other, equally confused. I blinked several times, then shook my head. Honesty was the best way forward.

  “You want me to stay?” I breathed.

  He shrugged. “Of course,” he said. “I mean, I stand by my question. You can say yes, or you can say no. Or not yet. Or… I don’t know. Whatever you want, I’m fine with it. Whatever your decision, that is. I just want you to know that I will be extremely miserable if you leave.”

  I was out of words. I couldn’t believe it. He’d baffled me with such precision that I had a hard time getting my brain to function. Zane didn’t seem comfortable with my silence, so he kept on rambling.

  “The Daughters don’t have enough power out here to set up a portal, but an interplanetary travel spell takes only hours,” he said. “If you choose to stay here, you could do that to see your parents and friends whenever you want. Plus, we’ll have GASP here, so they can always come visit, too. I’ve been thinking about this for a while. I’m sorry I didn’t come see you sooner, but I completely underestimated the complexity of my role. And I didn’t even know what to ask you, or how to ask you to stay. I… I’m babbling.”

  “You are,” I murmured, then took a deep breath.

  Everything sort of came in
to focus then. I loved him. That was the only undeniable fact that I could cling to, no matter what. And Zane had just asked me to marry him.

  Holy smoke.

  “It’s okay if you don’t want to marry me—” He tried to continue, but I quickly shut him up, as I rushed across the room, jumped on him, and wrapped my arms around his neck. He caught me, holding me close. I kissed him—hungrily, feverishly, desperately. I’d missed him so much.

  “I love you,” I whispered against his lips.

  “I love you, Fiona,” he replied softly, his red eyes drilling into my soul.

  I teared up, then chuckled to stop myself from crying like a little girl. “I’m not accepting your proposal. Yet,” I said. He stared at me, unsure of how to respond. “First of all, you need to propose properly. Dinner, music, ring, the works. Don’t make it sound like a royal command,” I added, then mimicked him, lowering my tone. “‘Marry me.’”

  He scoffed, slightly amused, as he analyzed every feature of my face, further making my heart soar and struggle against my ribcage.

  “So, what? It’s a no?” he asked.

  “No. It’s not a yes, either. It’s a half yes,” I replied, smiling. “I’ll stay. Shall we start with that, then work our way forward? I mean, what if you end up hating me in a year or ten?”

  He laughed, then kissed me. This time, he was sweet and gentle. It felt so profound that tears rolled down my cheeks. I was beside myself. Weeks of uncertainty had just flown out the window.

  “How could I possibly hate you, Fiona? You’re a part of the reason I’m still here, looking forward to every moment I’ve got in this world,” he said, then settled me back on my feet and ran his fingers through my hair. “I’m having serious trouble imagining life without you in it.”

  Several moments passed as we lovingly gazed at each other.

  “I will make you pay for these weeks,” I muttered. “You know that, right?”

  He nodded, then put on a playful smirk. “I know. I’ve been a bad daemon.”

  I giggled, then gasped. “Oh, dear. We need to tell my parents.”

  “Think they’ll be okay with this?” he asked.

  My father’s voice cut through the room and made us both freeze. “Well, we’re not jumping for joy, that’s for sure.”

  We both stepped away from each other, and I turned to face my parents. Mom was tearing up already, and Dad wore an indelible frown on his face. They definitely didn’t look happy, but I was going to hold them to their previous statements nonetheless.

  “Mom, Dad… How much did you hear?” I managed, my voice higher than usual.

  “We’ve heard enough,” Dad replied, then exhaled sharply.

  Zane was motionless, as if he’d just stepped on a mine and the slightest movement would blow him to bits.

  “Mom, I—” I tried to speak, but she cut me off.

  “Sweetie, I… Your dad and I stand by what we said earlier,” she replied, wiping her tears. “We’ll adjust to this. Your happiness is all that matters to us.”

  “Sure, we’re selfish and want you with us,” Dad added, “but, let’s be realistic. We can’t have everything we want. Zane has a kingdom to rule, and he loves you. You obviously love him, so… there’s not much we can say here, at this point. Whatever you two do, make sure you’re happy.”

  Mom sniffed, then put on a serious face, pointing a finger at Zane. “And if you hurt my daughter in any way, I will rip your throat out.”

  “Honey, that’s my line,” Dad muttered.

  “Well, then, I beat you to it,” Mom replied.

  We all burst into laughter, as Mom and Dad came into the room to hug and congratulate us both. I teared up again, thankful to have been raised by such amazing creatures.

  “You are always welcome on Neraka,” Zane said to my parents. “Anytime.”

  “You bet your ass,” Dad shot back, smirking. He then shifted his focus to me. “So! That makes you what, now? Queen of daemons, if you accept his proposal?”

  “Holy crap,” I gasped. “Yup. That’s right. Queen of…” I murmured, then looked at Zane. “Daemons.”

  Zane’s expression said everything. There was love and excitement glimmering in his eyes. This was a whole new era we were entering together. The daemon kingdom had never had a queen before, just the king’s concubines. Then again, the daemon kingdom had never had Zane as its ruler. That, alone, was a critical upgrade.

  Whatever came next, I was ready to tackle it, especially since I had Zane by my side.

  Blaze

  I’d been putting off talking to my father about the celibacy oath.

  With everything now calm and running smoothly, Caia and I were getting closer than ever. There was no way that we’d be able to keep ourselves away from one another. She burned so hot in my presence, and I was head over heels with her.

  While I understood the value of a celibacy oath, I didn’t feel like it would do much to influence my success as a dragon anymore. I’d slayed many daemons and I’d helped save thousands of innocent lives. I’d done my best to keep my people safe, too. It just didn’t make sense to me, when all I wanted was to be with Caia and experience the world together.

  “Are you sure you want to do this?” Caia asked me as we stopped outside the former Palisade, overlooking the now-peaceful fields and gorges.

  I nodded slowly. “Absolutely,” I said, then gently brushed my knuckles against her cheek, feeling my heart go on a crazy race whenever she smiled at me. “I don’t want us to stay apart and suffer because of an old tradition.”

  She chuckled. “I thought you were all for traditions.”

  “Yeah, but then I kissed you, and it pretty much flew out the window,” I replied with a shrug.

  “There you are!” My father’s voice made me jump.

  I quickly turned around to face him and smile. My palms were already clammy, and my throat was slowly but surely closing up. He was in a good mood, from what I could tell. That was a good sign for me to get right to it.

  “Dad, thanks for coming,” I said. “I know you’ve been busy with the daemon rebels here…”

  “That’s fine,” he replied. “They never last against fire anyway,” he added, then smiled at Caia and me. “What did you want to talk about?”

  I looked at Caia, then exhaled and shifted my focus back on him.

  “Look, Dad,” I said, my voice already shaky. “There’s no other way to say this but… Caia and I, we’re in love.”

  Dad frowned slightly, but there was a flicker of amusement in his blue eyes that confused me a little. He crossed his arms as he kept his gaze fixed on me.

  “Way to state the obvious, son,” he replied dryly. “I noticed that the first time I saw you two together.”

  I paused, suddenly blank. Caia and I had been careful around him, mainly because I’d yet to find the courage to tell him that I wanted out of the celibacy oath, and because Caia, ever the sweet and supporting fae that she was, didn’t want him asking questions that I wasn’t ready to answer.

  I blinked several times, trying to find my words.

  “You know…” I managed.

  “Of course,” he shot back, genuinely amused. “I wasn’t born yesterday. I know love when I see it. I would never be upset with you about it—” He added, then raised both his eyebrows. “Is that why you two have been sneaking around like thieves in the night?”

  My cheeks flared. I gave Caia a quick glance and noticed her flushed face and wide eyes. “Oh, so your father knows…” she murmured.

  My dad laughed wholeheartedly. “Darling, I know everything my son does and wants, even when he doesn’t,” he replied. “Just like I know he’s about to ask me to release him from his celibacy oath, but he’s not yet sure how to do it without making me angry.”

  I froze.

  But then Dad gave me a warm and understanding smile, causing a wave of sheer relief to wash over me.

  “Son, times have changed,” he said. “Our dragon traditions won’t all
survive in the future. We used to take celibacy oaths for reasons that were always deeply personal to us, but that doesn’t have to apply to all dragons.”

  “Dad, I just… I don’t want you to be disappointed in me—”

  “That’s ridiculous!” He cut me off. “Why would I be anything but proud of you, after what you’ve accomplished here? Blaze, you’re more of a dragon than I ever was at your age. You don’t need the celibacy oath to validate you. I would’ve appreciated you seeing it through, since you went ahead and took it, but… honestly? It’s not a big deal.”

  It took me a few seconds to properly digest what he’d just said. My heart swelled with gratitude and love for him—he had a way of confusing me sometimes, but that was just a part of who he was.

  “So… You’re okay with me not fulfilling the oath,” I said, trying to get him to say it again, just so I’d make sure I was in the clear.

  “Son, you can do whatever you want,” he replied, grinning. “You proved your worth long before you even set foot on Neraka. If being with Caia makes you happy, I’m fully behind you on this.”

  In a split-second, I’d already wrapped my arms around him, pulling him into a tight hug. He was still bigger than me, but even he couldn’t resist his son’s embrace. He hugged me back, chuckling softly. As soon as I stepped back, I nodded.

  “Thanks, Dad,” I muttered.

  “Nothing to thank me for, son. Traditions can be overrated, if you ask me,” he replied. “We could start some new ones instead.”

  I laughed lightly, then took Caia’s hand in mine. She was once again relaxed and smiling, as if the weight of the whole world had just been taken off her shoulders. Dad gave her a brief, albeit not-that-serious scowl.

  “You’d better not break his heart, little fae,” he said firmly. “My fire is stronger than yours.”

  It was Caia’s turn to blink several times, unsure of how to respond to what had sounded like quite the threat. Knowing Dad, however, I chuckled, helping her loosen up a little. I swallowed my humor when he then glowered at me—he wasn’t joking this time. I could feel my spine tingling.