by Everly Frost
Still pressing the Queen’s heart to my own, I focus on the three other hearts as they continue to spin in a slow, lazy circle in front of me. They revolve slowly enough that I could reach out and grab them, but I decide that isn’t what I should do. The sense I get from each of them is so different: Virtuous responds to my sadness, Lightsworn responds to my determination, and Prime, well, Prime responds to the Queen’s heart with the same bond I’ve seen in Baelen’s eyes when he looks at me.
I don’t want to force a connection with the other heartstones like Howl did. Instead, I extend my free hand, palm open beneath them. Inside my mind, I ask: May I have your permission?
All three hearts drop into my palm. They’re too big to fit all at once but each one balances on the tips of my outspread fingers, weightless, not heavy. A glow spreads up my arm and I can’t help but smile at the happiness I sense from them.
As I open my fingers, preparing to release the Queen’s heart—my heart—the Priestess visibly braces. Baelen plants his feet. He thickens the tornado around me just in case.
I release all four heartstones into the air and a thread of light forms between the Queen’s heart and my chest. As soon as the diamond floats into sync with the others, the thread extends between them all, connecting them in a circle that is connected to me.
It looks just like the thread of storm power that used to link Baelen and me: a thread of deep magic.
The Priestess sags with relief. “Thank the ancients. Now that they’re all tethered, the Queen’s heart is not volatile anymore. It will only react to your conscious and deliberate thoughts. And what’s more…” Her gaze flickers back to the watching clan leaders and the remaining soldiers. “Nobody else can claim them. Remember this, Lady Storm: the stones are yours and yours alone. Even Howl was not tethered to them.”
I have a feeling I should be afraid, but I’m not. For the first time, I understand why Cassian believed so strongly in this, why he gave his life for this. My purpose now is to keep the stones safe. To never allow them to be used like Howl used them. Never again.
The Priestess rocks back on her heels while Baelen eases the windstorm around me, lowering me to the ground, shifting me away from Cassian. The gusty wind dies down but Baelen retains his position as my quiet sentry, staying out of the Priestess’s way but remaining close at my side.
I meet his fiery gaze. While he’s in this state, I can’t read anything in his eyes, but the quiet curve of his lips and the angle of his shoulders tell me he will help me, no matter what I have to do.
Everyone has moved closer to me now that the threat is over. I expected to see Jasper at the front given that he was determined to get to me before, but instead he pushes his way back through the crowd. I follow his line of sight with a gasp.
Llion has collapsed to the floor. Liliana crouches next to him, crying.
That’s it. I’m not staying put any longer. “Llion needs my help.”
The Priestess blocks me. “You need to convince the clan leaders to accept you.”
I glare across the room at the older males standing apart from the others. “Their acceptance is not more important than my friend’s life. They can wait.”
Her lips compress, but understanding warms her eyes. “Very well, I will do what I can to hold them off.”
That’s good enough for me. My heart hammers inside my chest and the heartstones flare. I take off toward Llion with Baelen close behind. Baelen uses a firm but gentle breeze to pick onlookers out of the way, setting them down at the side, creating an opening for me straight to Llion. It’s just as well because the gargoyles nearest to me scatter as soon as I approach. They obviously don’t want to touch the stones that fly after me wherever I go. I growl inside. If being Queen means I’m going to end up isolated like I was when I was Storm Princess, then I’m going to abdicate super fast. I’ve tasted a life where I was one of them and I don’t want to go back.
When I reach Llion, it’s my worst nightmare. His breathing is labored and his skin is pale and tinged with a shade that reminds me of death. Liliana clutches a cloth soaked in blood. Jasper holds his head and both Roar and Welsian support his wings on either side. One of his wings is a gruesome mess from shoulder to tip. A gargoyle’s wings are indestructible but Howl used the heartstone’s power to tear Llion’s wing apart.
Jasper’s solemn expression breaks my heart. “He’s dying, Marbella. He doesn’t have long.”
My jaw clenches. “Llion is not dying today, Jasper. It’s not happening.”
I’m not letting him go. I’ve lost one friend today. I’m not losing another. Tears fill my eyes as I meet Llion’s.
He sighs, trying to smile. “Lady Storm, you are Supreme Incorruptible now…”
My shout echoes through the suddenly quiet Court. The heartstones crackle around me. “You’re not dying today!”
I seize the Queen’s heart in my fist and drop to my knees beside him, drawing on its power. I will heal Llion. I will save his life—
“Stop!” The Priestess’s shout breaks through my concentration as she races back to my side. Once again she moves faster than expected. “You can’t use the stone to heal him.”
Incredulous, I raze her with a fiery glare. “Why not?”
“Because the Queen’s heart can’t heal. It is a destructive force. Only Virtuous’s heart can heal, but it will only heal you, not anyone else. The heartstones belong to you now. They will only destroy others. That is the balance in Erador. All the good went into our beautiful moon, our majestic mountains. All the bad remained in the hearts. It is why our ancestors buried the hearts beneath the mountains.”
“Are you seriously telling me that all of this power is useless to me right now?”
“I’m sorry, Lady Storm. Deeply sorry. Only the deep springs can heal Llion and they are closed off—”
“Not for me.” I jump to my feet. “Liliana, I will not let your husband die. Do you believe me?”
Her response is immediate, her trust complete. “Yes.”
I spin to Baelen. “Can you help me move Llion without hurting him?”
Baelen responds with action. He barely moves when he uses the storm power, but Llion rises from the ground, his legs gently tucking under him, his good wing curling around his torso and knees. His damaged wing remains at the exact angle and position it currently is, protected while he floats.
While Baelen moves Llion, I grab Roar and Welsian’s attention, speaking quickly. “Roar, please, will you go and free the females in Harem Hall and the slaves in Slave Station? Make sure they find their families.” My expression softens. “Your wife will be so happy to see you.”
Roar’s expression is a mixture of hope and sadness as he immediately calls a group of miners including Iago and Arlo to follow him. Roar’s wife Gilda was forced into Harem Hall while Iago and Arlo’s wives were enslaved to work in the palace. They have waited years to see their wives again.
To Welsian I say, “Would you please tend to the fallen in this Court? I want each fallen gargoyle treated with the same respect, whether they were miners or soldiers.”
Welsian bows low to me, before he calls the remaining miners to him. To my knowledge, he is not married and has no children so I hope he won’t mind staying behind. “Lady Storm, I will wrap them in their wings as is the gargoyle way.”
“Thank you, Welsian.”
Finally, I snag Jasper’s arm. “I’m taking Llion to the deep springs. You must come with me. Elyria is there and she will need your help.”
He gives me a quick nod. I follow Baelen as quickly as I can. The remaining guards and clan leaders part for me, but this time—maybe for the first time—they watch me with respect as I lead the procession to save Llion’s life. The Priestess, Jasper, and Liliana stay close behind. Outside, I judge the distance across the ravine to the deep springs. I remember standing at this exact spot when I realized how close the springs are located to the Court. At the time, that was a bad thing, but now I’m grateful.
> “Baelen, can you fly Jasper and me over to the springs?”
“Of course.” He is already floating across the space with Llion held securely in front of him, and within minutes, we alight onto the cliff in front of the springs. Jasper wobbles as he finds his feet, but his focus is the female huddled against the side of the cave.
Elyria sits with her knees drawn to her chest, her hair hanging down over her face, and her shoulders slumped. She’s listless and absent, doesn’t even seem to notice our arrival. I can’t imagine the cruelty she’s witnessed. She has shut herself off, stopped looking, created a mental barrier to protect herself.
Jasper runs straight to her, refraining from touching her at the last moment, but his hands swill the air around her face and shoulders. “Elyria?”
“Jasper?” Her tiny voice is frail and lost, gaining a little bit of strength when she sees him through the curtain of her hair. Her eyes widen. “Jasper!”
“I’m here.”
She starts to sob, her chest heaving. Jasper gathers her into his arms, pulling her against his chest, wrapping her up as much as he can.
My heart wrenches. I want to go to her, but I’m very afraid for Llion now. He has lost all his color and his head sags without any strength left in his body. Elyria is safe with Jasper for now, so I return my focus to the task in front of me, narrowing my eyes at the monstrosity blocking the entrance to the deep springs.
Shivering gargoyle wings stretch from one side to the other, glued together by Howl. In the moonlight, they appear to breathe in and out, struggling to be released. When I first arrived here, I discovered that the wings are still alive. My stomach turns and my anger boils at Howl’s cruelty. Approaching the wings, I run my hand across them. I will not destroy them. My target is the magic that holds them together.
Drawing my finger along the join lines between the wings, I draw on the stone’s destructive power. All at once, the wings slide apart, lifting out from the jigsaw puzzle they formed. I was prepared for them to collapse, but they don’t. Instead, they pair up, folding neatly into each other. Pair by pair, they float down to ground level, lining up against the cliff face next to the opening. There are at least ten sets of them: ten gargoyles who lost their wings. One of those gargoyles was Rhain, a male who used to be a miner. The one who found the Virtuous Heartstone. He tried to use it to free his wife Carmen from Harem Hall. Howl punished Rhain by cutting off his wings.
Within moments, the entrance is clear. It’s sickening how long the springs were blocked, but I’m relieved at how quickly I can undo it. I inhale the surprisingly fresh air wafting out from the cave inside.
Liliana whispers at my elbow, “If you would do me the great help of asking the Wrathful One to keep Llion afloat, I would like to take it from here.”
Elyria once told me that the deep springs is a place where the females can harness deep magic. It makes sense that Llion’s wife should be the one to heal him.
“Of course.” The truth is that I’m glad. I came here to heal Baelen. Now I’ve come full circle and my journey has given me friends and knowledge about myself that I never expected to find. But something tells me I can’t go inside unless it’s with him. Nearby, he gives me an affirming nod: he can make sure Llion doesn’t fall.
I say, “Go safely.”
I return to Baelen’s side. I want to reach for his hand, for the comfort of sharing this moment of anxiety as Llion and Liliana disappear into the darkness. I need this to work more than anything, because if the springs heal Llion, then they will heal Baelen too.
“Marbella.” Jasper calls me from the side of the cave and I hurry to him. He crouches with his back to the cliff face, Elyria wrapped up in his arms, her face hidden against his chest. “You need to untether Elyria from Baelen. It’s killing her to be like this.”
I agree, but I’m not sure how. The Priestess said the power I hold now is only destructive. Is it dangerous to Elyria? Could I hurt her?
“Marbella.” Jasper is growling now. There’s definitely gargoyle in his voice. I glance between them, from the way she clings to him, begging him to help her, to the way he pulls her closer trying to draw the agony out of her body into his own.
He says, “She’s in pain. It’s destroying her. You have to free her. Now.”
He’s never give me an order before. He’s always nudged me in the direction he thinks I should go, but there’s no give in his expression now.
I have to trust his instincts.
“Okay.” I draw my focus to the force that exists between Baelen and Elyria. Several paces away, Baelen senses my intentions and he braces but doesn’t try to stop me. The force between them is not a thread like the connection Baelen and I had. It’s more of a wide pull, like a magnet. I gather the destructive force inside the stone and push against the connection, physically leaning into the space between them as I try to claw it apart.
I shoot Baelen a worried glance. I don’t want to hurt him either. But he nods: keep going.
The connection rakes through my bones, thick and heavy, pushing back at me. I extend my fingers and exert all my strength, the heartstones flaring and gleaming at my side. There’s a final burst of power from the stones and the connection breaks. I stumble forward, losing my balance without the opposing force against me.
Two things happen at once. The first is that Elyria slumps in Jasper’s arms, but her deep, indrawn gasp tells me she’s more alive now than she was before. In fact, it sounds like her first real breath since we arrived in Erador.
The second is that there are multiple gasps behind me where a crowd of gargoyles has gathered. Some of them point, others whisper. My eyes widen for the thousandth time today. They’re pointing at Elyria. I’m guessing this means she isn’t invisible anymore.
I really hope you know what you’re doing, Jasper.
Elyria raises her face to his. “Jasper, please, take me away from here.”
He scoops her up into his arms. He’s still wearing his mining clothes. He’s still splattered with blood. But none of that matters. He looks to the sky as a brilliant blaze grows in the east.
Phoenix!
The firebird responds to my mental cry. I am here, Princess. In the sky above you.
You’re free! The last time I saw the Phoenix, it was imprisoned in a dungeon beneath Howl’s palace.
I broke free when Howl died.
A streak of burning light precedes the Phoenix onto the cliff’s edge. Proud and beautiful, it glides above our heads, dropping into the widest space it can find. It folds its wings to the side as I run to it while Baelen watches on. The stones follow me, slipping neatly behind me. For a long time, the Phoenix was the only creature I could touch when my storm power was dangerous. I throw my arms around its large neck, barely able to reach around it, and bury myself in its fiery feathers.
Phoenix, it’s so good to see you.
You too, Princess. It lowers its solemn face to me, nuzzling my cheek. I’m glad to see you looking so… luminous.
My eyes and skin changed after I came into contact with the Queen’s heart in the mines, becoming pale and silvery; even my hair became a lighter shade of auburn.
The Phoenix smiles, not with its mouth, but with its voice. You have a long path ahead of you, Princess. Its tone becomes solemn. But it seems Elyria needs my help now.
I make way for Jasper as he carries Elyria to the Phoenix, tucking her wings into her side, gentle with her broken one. His hands are full but he takes a moment to speak with me.
“Thank you, Marbella.”
“Where will you go?”
“Wherever makes Elyria feel safe. I’ll contact you as soon as I can.”
The Phoenix extends its strong wing so that Jasper can walk up it with Elyria in his arms and settle behind its neck. Then they disappear into the night sky, the Phoenix’s fire forming a graceful arc beneath the moon’s white glow. I check the sky for evidence of Elyria’s storm power, but the sky is clear. She used to rage every day, and every da
y I had to calm her, but since our first night here, she hasn’t raged at all.
I don’t know where Jasper will take her. I just know it’s going to be far away from here. I have to trust him to know what he’s doing and I know the Phoenix will take care of them both.
A gargoyle drops to one knee in front of me, drawing me from my thoughts. I’m surprised to see Rhain, the gargoyle who lost his wings.
He says, “Supreme Incorruptible…”
Okay, that seems to be my name now.
“Will you grant me my wings?”
I blink at him in surprise. He doesn’t need my permission. A quick glance at the line of wings tells me there’s a pair straining forward as if they know who their owner is.
“Your wings are your own, Rhain. Take them and heal.”
I look for Carmen, Rhain’s wife, but it doesn’t look like any of the females from Harem Hall are among the gargoyles gathering at the edge of the cliff. Rhain collects his wings and waits at the entrance to the springs for his turn to heal.
When I turn back to the crowd, I find countless gargoyles waiting in the air at the edge of the cliff, remaining in a holding pattern that takes my breath away. There are at least a hundred. Some of them carry wingless ones. Others are injured themselves. I gesture them forward while Baelen helps those who can’t fly for themselves.
“Anyone with injuries or who has lost their wings, come forward to heal.” My voice lowers. “Um… Priestess?” I spin, finding her at my elbow.
How does this female manage to stalk my heels so closely?
“Can you please make sure they access the springs in the order of greatest need? Anyone who is badly injured needs to go in first.”
“Of course, Supreme Incorruptible. Your ruling on this is wise.”
My ruling?
She relays my instructions to the waiting gargoyles and sets to work assessing their needs as they come forward. There are so many. Half of their wounds aren’t fresh, but days old. Not from the battle but from mistreatment over time. The female slave whose neck Howl nearly broke on the night he made me prove I didn’t have my storm power, bears deep bruises around her neck and is unable to speak. She tries, but I stop her.