There were many questions she thought to ask Castien, questions she was not sure the High Elder had answered honestly. Nara planned to bring him somewhere more private to converse.
Arriving outside his door, she brushed the gentle waves of her hair away before knocking and rubbing her sandal over the top of her other foot while she waited. Her heart beat faster with anticipation.
He opened the door and smirked. Behind him on a table sat half-eaten bread and meat. A small ration as it was, she questioned him with a nod. “Will you need to finish?”
Castien shook his head, rushing to retrieve his cloak. “No, no. I’ve actually finished all that I will need for now. Later perhaps.” He took wide strides back to her, pulling the cloak on and adjusting the silver, gailenia brooch that held it. All the while he stared at her with a gentle smile. “I was uncertain if you would come. It seems those here are more trustworthy than I would think. I’m pleased you came so quickly, too.”
“I was excited.” Nara looked away for a moment, trying her best to temper her feelings towards Castien and their situation. “How is your wound?”
Castien touched his side and shrugged. “Mended. But I have a scar now. Something to remember them by.”
Nara chuckled and reached out to grab his arm. Careful not to touch his skin, she led Castien away, her heart feeling as though a thousand birds flew through it.
“That’s good. We’ll be visiting the ruins today,” she said, “those the gods left behind after the sundering.” She released him, his boot heels clicking against the stone floor before they exited and were met with dirt. “They are a mile or two north of the guard at Gaia’s pass. With the stories that surround them, no one likes to visit the area.”
“Except you.” Castien winked.
“Yes.” She grinned, pushing ahead even faster. “There are guards and dryads that sit in the trees, but they never bother me. I also know ways the guards do not take.” They came to a small pass in the river she was familiar with. The stream was so narrow when it did not rain that she was able to skip across rocks imbedded into the soil. When she passed over and saw to it he had as well, she looked around to make sure no one was nearby. “Run,” she said, dashing into the tree line.
They ran through the forest, keeping a steady beat with hidden paths she had memorized. Occasionally she would look over her shoulder to see if anyone had followed them. Castien, as she had expected, kept in pace with her. His eyes lit up when he jumped over or dodged something before jumping onto another path. It made her push harder to outrun him. The elves were made for the forest, and Nara was glad the humans hadn’t taken that away from those who left Vheria.
She did not know how long they had been running for, but by the time they emerged from the forest, jumping onto dirt and sand, she was spent. Falling to her knees first, she rolled over onto her back, breathing heavily and wiping sweat from her brow. Usually she kept a steady pace, making sure she wouldn’t exhaust her elven capabilities. But she wanted to prove herself to him, so she had pushed herself harder than she had in the past.
Hands on hips, he stared down at her, his own chest rising and falling rapidly. “A morning run is always nice,” he remarked, his eyes drifting to the horizon. “Those are them then?”
She tilted her head back in the sand, feeling it grind through her hair and against her scalp. On the beach lay piles of white and blue-grey stone, all that remained of what had been on the original island when the twin islands had been joined. Intricate designs wrapped around the stone, words in elvish so broken apart that they could no longer be deciphered. Faces of the elder gods smashed beyond recognition. They stretched out into the water, disappearing as it became too deep.
“Is it not beautiful?” Nara asked. It was the one place she could come to that no one else would, giving her room to reflect or play around as if she were a child. Here, she was free. Here, she felt untouchable, even by the gods.
“It is,” Castien replied, his breathing having slowed. Nara turned to look up at him again while he removed his cloak and took his boots off. He sat next to her, taking his stockings off and digging his bare toes into the sand. “There is nothing like this in Ghela.” He stared out towards the ruins. “I mean you, of course.” Nara’s cheeks burned like Vhedril when his eyes and warm features settled back on her. Chuckling, he stretched out beside her, his hands behind his head. Speechless, she mimicked his actions and looked up at the sky. It was a clear day, and birds flew to and from Ghela.
Oh what freedom they have, she thought painfully, to be able to come and go as they please without fear of disappointing themselves or others.
Resting her folded hands across her stomach, she sighed. “Will I be able to venture out, Castien?”
“Yes,” was his immediate response. “In fact you, as crown princess, are encouraged to do so. It will help to promote trade and travel between us and others. While we tend to be as friendly as we can towards other kingdoms, they are not always trusting. Some allow travel. You will be expected to travel alongside your brother.”
“I have a brother?”
“You have a younger brother, also a sister, an uncle, and two cousins.”
This overwhelmed Nara some, and she looked at Castien to see if he were being serious. His eyebrows rose, honesty shining in the glint of his eyes. Nara stroked her thumbs together, trying to believe the reality that she went from no family to that many. Compared to others, it seemed a small family. But to Nara, it was a great deal.
Castien turned onto his side, propping his head on his hand. He kept her attention with a steady gaze. “Your rites are tomorrow night,” he murmured, drawing nearer to her. She knew the touch was calling them, but she tried desperately to not think of it, focusing instead on coming events.
Just before he could touch her, she rolled away and stood. Running her hands through her hair to free it of sand, she asked, “What is my father like?” She refused to look at him when he stood.
“He is kind, in most respects,” Castien replied, drawing nearer again. His voice lowered the closer he came. “He is driven, passionate about everything he does and everyone he cares for, but enjoys his own company as well.” He was too close for her comfort. Flutters began in her stomach, and she moved towards the ruins.
Reaching a white pillar, with etchings blank from the torture of time, she looked upwards, letting out a silent prayer asking for direction.
“What is it you do?” she asked, turning around. He stood face to face with her. Just as before, her heart pounded, like a drum in her ears. A poor surrounding to escape the situation, her back met with the pillar that once stood tall but now leaned over, while rubble lay to either side of her. Reaching her hands above her head, she blindly searched the pillar for handholds to pull herself up and away from him.
She found none.
“Do you hear the drumming?” Castien asked, his expression profound. Heavy desire wrought across his face. “Nara.” Her name came breathlessly, and his hand swept across her face. When he touched her, he ignited the charge both of them longed for while at the same time avoided. He was braver than she. The shock had grown stronger just as she thought it would. It was unbearable, the drumming beat louder, insistent on him pressing harder into her. Energy pulsed around them, visible against the turning sands, and Castien raised her face upwards to momentarily gaze into her eyes. Lips meeting hers, the drumming stopped with a rush, but the urge to be closer came ever stronger.
“Castien, we mustn’t,” she whispered between kisses, her mind sane enough to tell her to stop but her body unwilling to. While she had been daring enough to not care in the forest, the emotion of betrayal had somewhat faded, leaving her to think more clearly. Tomorrow she would undergo her rites, a ceremony she was meant to go into untouched. A union would taint the magic meant to come through her blood crystals. Since the time of Elona, this was how it had been.
Castien seemed uncaring, taking cues from her willing body and from the energy that urg
ed them onwards. His lips traveled down, delicate kisses falling against her exposed neck. He was going farther than before, unwilling to take his time. One hand undid his trousers while his other grasped her hip, perhaps to steady her when her legs weakened and she began to slip away. Staring up towards the sky, she felt the energy within her and surrounding them growing stronger with each pulse, urging her to make a move, but she fought to resist.
That did not stop him.
“Nara, say yes.” The words were barely audible. Pressing into her, both his hands grabbed her face, and he kissed her deeply. “Say yes,” he breathed, nose to nose with her, thumbs stroking the sides of her face. Control was lost; the feelings intensified; her body quaked, and she nearly fell again had it not been for Castien pressing against her so firmly. “Say yes, Nara. It is unbearable,” he pleaded, sounding as winded as when they had been running, fingers digging deep behind her ears.
The tips of her ears turning red from holding on for so long, her words came out as though they had broken a dam. “Yes!” On her word, he hoisted her up with ease, lips unrelenting against her own. Castien spread her legs and pulled her hips towards him, breaking through her last barrier with great force. Another cry erupted from her into his mouth from the immediate pain. Innocence lost, she had no care now for what he did with her.
I have made this so. What’s done is done, a voice like a warm echo whispered in her head, relaxing her into the moment. Nara returned his kisses completely now, her arms wrapping around his neck while he steadily moved against her.
There was a deep feeling in the pit of her stomach, another trembling. While his head came to rest on her chest, Castien grunted, oblivious to what she saw and felt. Sands rose high, swirling and pulsing about them. The energy became so thick it made her head feel as though it were swelling. His fingers dug into her hips while the great amount of energy touched even the water, pushing waves away from the shore instead of rolling across the sand. Her eyes widened at the sight as Castien’s unrelenting and urgent movements sent a grip of pleasure through her, and she clutched his back.
His final movement came, deep and unbearable. With this, the power that had surrounded them burst. That unknown and frightening source threw everything away from them, causing waves to crash backwards while trees bent. At last the quaking across her body yielded along with the urging to be with him, both replaced instead by something else, something far more profound.
Castien lowered her to the ground with care. Her now sensitive feet felt the roughness of the sand with every particle that rubbed against her bare soles. Her whole body had become sensitive to all touch, and while her legs trembled, she pressed her head into his chest, holding onto him for both physical and emotional support. When he wrapped his arms around her, bare hands meeting exposed flesh without that intense feeling, she felt as though everything had slowed. His heartbeat proved otherwise.
That was not the drumming she had heard, and she did not know which she wanted to hear.
She was not without question, knowing what she had done and knowing what she should have waited for.
“Is this love?” she asked distantly. Castien squeezed her, his cheek pressed firmly to the top of her head. Though he did not answer, he seemed unwilling to let her go. Whether it was a shared experience or the desire to know more about him, she felt a deep and immovable love for him.
Perhaps that was what this had been all along. Was it destiny and the gods’ will for them to have been together as such? Now consummated, she was curious as to where this would lead her in her new life.
More importantly, who was the voice she had heard?
VALIA
The throne room hurtled into panic. Its audience backed against the walls while the Maiden Guards sped forward to stand before Queen Valia Thanis and Princess Illyria. Both mother and daughter, draped in white and lines of gold with feathered, golden crowns, remained seated. The Maiden Guards, handpicked by the queen when she came into power, stood with swords drawn. Gold and silver plated armor gleamed against the light that shone through the high-arched windows.
A cloud of smoke caught with streaks of lightning rose in the center of the room and it smelled like burning metal. A pressure filled the area around them, making it difficult for all to breathe while crashes of thunder roared within the cloud. Valia placed her golden-ringed hand against her chest and pulled her daughter even closer with the other. Never having faced something like this, she didn’t know what to do. While magic was not completely forbidden in Ilystaria, its workings were forbidden in her presence. At this moment she wanted to pray for the aid of Thena, but she knew her prayers for angels would only be answered if there was a city siege. She knew that her life meant nothing as long as her people were safe.
The smoke cleared, revealing a shorter woman with brunette hair pulled back by a piece of leather. Her eyes, touched by streaks of sun, focused on Valia. Undeterred, Valia lifted her chin, hands wrapped around her daughter. While her heart beat wildly, she did her best to show control. Her bodice felt tighter than ever before as she tried to calm her breathing.
“Queen Valia Thanis,” the woman spoke with courtesy, an unnerving calm about her. Valia thought it odd to see a woman dressed in men’s clothing but having the mannerisms of a lady.
“Who are you?” Valia demanded, running her hand through her daughter’s honey-toned locks. The four-year-old simply stared as she sat on her mother’s lap, dodging her head about to look past the guards.
“My name is Nysa,” the woman replied, a light attitude playing across thick lips.
“Nysa of the Thieves,” Valia breathed, her sapphire eyes wide as she made sure not to provoke the woman. Glancing at her court to make sure all were safe, Valia was surprised to see Nysa narrowing her eyes when she returned her attention to the goddess. Still, the goddess nodded with tight lips. Valia swallowed hard, feeling less protected behind her guards now. She would behave as she always had, knowing her goddess to be far greater than the one who stood before her. “State your business.”
Nysa blinked, also looking at the others for the briefest moment.
Tilting her head forward, Nysa grinned. “Your Majesty, I’ve seen a great army marching towards Thanis and only wish to inform you, to give you the advantage, if you will. Elona and Thaos plan to attack your beautiful city.”
Valia shifted in her seat, not believing her words. While Thaos had tried to attack in years past, Elona, to her knowledge, had never traveled this far north. The two gods were still to be feared, more so when together. But Valia knew they were not more powerful than her beloved Thena. “Goddess of Thieves and Bandits,” Valia replied, tilting her chin upwards, “why should I believe you when the very people you protect are liars and murderers set on gaining all it is that they can?”
Throwing her hands into the air, Nysa exclaimed, “What harm would it do you to send out a scout whether you believe me or not? They travel with at least eight thousand heads, if not more. Would you take the risk and have your people harmed?”
Valia shook her head once, understanding what the goddess meant. For her to fail in this would cause unrest amongst her people and anger towards her. Her family had always ruled intelligently and lovingly. “How far do they have left to travel?”
Nysa lowered her hands, her gaze warming. “Two, maybe three days. Maybe tonight. I am unsure how fast they travel at present. They come from the south, perhaps through the golden pass.” Nysa paused, fingers tapping the short sword that rested at her side. The pommel glinted green. “Do not allow them close enough to converse. I heard talk they wanted to use this as a means of gaining quick entrance, after which they plan to set their fiends loose on your people. You’ll need angels to guard you if you wish to win against two gods. Elona’s Chosen have garnered more power in these last thousand years than I ever have in four.”
Valia knew exactly what Nysa meant her to do. Pray, which would take time or no time at all. Depending on how urgent the call, she would hav
e to call for the Priestesses of the city and her Maidens. She would have to send out scouts to gather information and base her timing on that. In the meantime, her own heavy prayer would be sent out to Thena for strength and support of her spirit.
Still, Valia was skeptical. “Why is it that you’ve decided to come to me?”
Nysa’s hands spread while her eyes turned jovial. “I enjoy Thena’s festivals, and I do not want my enjoyment spoiled. Thanis is known for its wine, and I plan on drinking plenty as the lanterns are cast overhead.” Giving a quick curtsey, the goddess vanished into a cloud of smoke and left behind the scent of the sea.
After a long moment, Valia looked at Meghan. The Valkyrie of her Maiden Guards had worry etched across her heavy brow. Whatever it was she thought would have to wait. Valia never liked to take a chance, no matter the size. “Call on Commander Jonus to send scouts, to prepare his men; tell him I will take his son and daughter to stay with Ilyria while we prepare. We cannot risk this.”
FALLON
Though Fallon heard the carrying voices in the halls, the air was motionless around him. He had returned to the temple the day before but spent that time praying and reflecting. He had made a difficult decision and he would stick by it.
He went in search of Nara. Tonight would be the Summer Set festival; then the day after she would take her rites before leaving. Fallon wanted to spend the celebration with her. He also wanted to inform her he would leave with her to ensure she wouldn’t leave without him. He was leaving his father behind for her. Even if he rescinded his decision, he doubted Solon would. He had tried to follow his parents after a time in an attempt to make them see his side, but his mother had forced him to leave. There was no point in pleading for his father’s understanding again. When Solon set a decision, he rarely, if ever, changed it.
After softly rapping on her door, he waited, listening to the shuffling behind it until at last it opened. Nara gazed up at him, the tips of her ears scarlet while her eyes were swollen and tired. Swallowing hard with worry, he made to touch her before deciding otherwise.
Dryad's Touch Page 12