The Celestial King

by L Ward

  Chapter 34

  With Edinburgh in the distance and a stretch of beautiful night sky ahead, Evan could finally breathe. The air was bitter and fresh, their cheeks rosy with magic. He soothed Will’s panic and tried to settle his own anxiety. He couldn’t fathom what they’d find when they arrived in London but he hoped to all the gods that their forces had already taken back control.

  Time passed strangely when flying and he couldn’t get a grasp of it until they began their descent. The moment they broke the dense layer of bruised magical clouds, London exploded below. The entire area of Islington was blasted to rubble and the buildings of parliament were on fire. The city was a skyline of twisting towers and glittering glass blocks. The night was alive with the fleeing or the zoological.

  “Demon magic!” Evan shouted, pointing to the cursed border around parliament, spiraling up Big Ben like a helter skelter and crackling with darkness.

  “Comrades!” Will shouted.

  Below them the ground was littered with corpses as monsters ravaged their remains. Warlocks pointed their staffs to the sky, bellowing curses.

  The dragon was ready and they clung for dear life as he performed some fantastic tricks to evade harm. Evan felt the heat of the curses, the venom, the hatred in them. Never in his life had he expected to come this close to death or see this much carnage.

  An explosion threw them way off course.

  “Hang on!” Nath screamed and the dragon lurched into a violent barrel roll.

  Evan's eyes snapped shut and clung onto his husband, slathering them with magic.

  Will’s heart was on the brink of explosion as they spun through the air, a curse clipping the dragon’s flank; his terrible roar spliced the battlefield and Nath pulled him into a rapid ascent narrowly skimming a chunk of debris launched by a telekinetic.

  “Our army is fleeing,” Nath shouted, spotting a small number of troops abandoning the city.

  Bursts of light and screeches of death shot past grazing their magic and stinking of rage.

  “I don’t have the energy for this,” said Evan.

  Nath was pale, trembling, his heart raced impossibly as he steered the dragon away. “We cannot get into the heart of the fight,” his anger burned furiously.

  Another curse struck the dragon and he screamed falling through the air, wings crackling and sparking with static: a paralysis curse, and a powerful one to disable a dragon. They were plummeting like an asteroid, the dragon’s body rocking like a ship on the water, trying to break free.

  Nath threw up a hand and weakened shards of moonlight slashed the curse again and again. The ground was so close. Evan braced for impact, magic he struggled to summon raced from his body to protect them.

  At the last moment the curse broke and the dragon’s wings stretched in a magnificent parachute. He swooped, caught a current, and soared far into the sky well away from London.

  Shock cascaded Evan like a waterfall and he gulped lashings of freezing air trying to steady himself. He’d never felt fear more intensely than that moment. His mind was numb; his body shaking.

  ∞∞∞

  Home was the most magical place in the universe. Relief crashed over Evan when the dragon touche down outside the gates and a flurry of servants and guards greeted them; ushering them inside in a whirlwind of mayhem and insanity. Journalists skidded on the jet stone, barraging them with questions; nobility rushed to the scene to get a good look. Courtiers spouted their congratulations as they passed.

  Nath was flustered, tired and burned out of magic. “I’m calling an urgent meeting of the Privy Council,” he said loudly over their heads. Servants dashed about with their offerings and the guards peeled back the journalists to give them some room. They were on a high no one could explain as they reached one of the largest downstairs parlours. He slumped into a fat chair by the fireplace with a smile on his face. “The mission was a success,” he said wearily, “but it came at a cost.”

  “Ya knew that before we went and it was an amazing victory,” Will said admirably. “Edinburgh is back in the hands of the crown and Chairman Whittle is safe.”

  “Our troops in London…”

  Evan swallowed and sank down feeling shaky and high. In the last twenty-four hours he’d seen more death and destruction than most had in a lifetime. He’d experienced true pain and suffering, but also justice and righteousness. He gazed at Nath, letting it all sink in. All of his actions had resulted in them succeeding and escaping with their lives. Nath had commanded the dragon; he’d kept a level head throughout the ensuing mayhem like a true king and never once faltered in the face of danger.

  “I’ve never seen bravery like that from anyone, not even Elijah,” Will said very seriously.

  Evan looked up and the air glittered in fragments of crimson around him, his eyes were swimming with awe. “You’ve done the impossible, Nath.”

  Footsteps arrived at the door and the guard showed the men into the room. They bowed to the King and scattered about the chairs, alarmed and confused. Servants summoned their drinks and left with a row of curtseys.

  “Where is Gerard?” Nath frowned, searching the familiar faces of his small council.

  Sir Alvarez and Sir Winscott exchanged looks.

  “Missing, Your Majesty,” said Sir Alvarez.

  Will sat up and a strange look passed his face.

  “Missing?”

  “He disappeared without word the morning after you left,” said Sir Winscott, face creasing with worry. “We’ve been trying to trace him but so far not a word.”

  “Where is his wife?” Nath frowned.

  “She said she believes he went to his parents’ manor for some sort of family emergency.”

  “And she didn’t go too?” Evan raised an eyebrow.

  “No, she wanted to be certain Sir William returned safely,” said Sir Alvarez, glancing at Will.

  Will frowned. “How long did it take for anyone to notice the King was gone?”

  Sir Bartholomew and Sir Kipper exchanged grave looks. Bartholomew cleared his throat and said, “it was when Their Majesties didn’t rise for duty by lunchtime.”

  “Then how did she know I was gone?” said Will.

  There was an awkward silence.

  “I want Gerard found and brought to me at once, and I’ll also speak with Marianne,” said Nath.

  Sir Kipper got to his feet and hurried to write a spellogram.

  “Very good, sir, it is possible they’ve fallen victim to foul play. I heard the senior Sir Starstone telling his entourage he needed to visit the Americas soon as part of banking and marriage trade, perhaps he was called urgently.”

  Nath looked at Will sharply.

  Evan’s lips popped apart. Marriage trade?

  “He’s been receiving a lot of confidential paperwork,” said Will. “Not everyone likes him.”

  Evan stared at him again, he was sweating slightly and looked oddly dishevelled.

  “It’s rather ridiculous, disappearing at a time like this,” Nath said angrily. “He’s a high prize. The fool!”

  “We have few out searching for him and getting in contact with his companies to see if he’s turned up anywhere because nobody has heard from him,” said Sir Alvarez.

  “And nobody contacted his parents to verify the Lady Marianne’s account?” Nath raised an eyebrow.

  “We haven’t heard back yet,” said Sir Kipper.

  “Nothing weird about that for them, they usually take ages to reply. I only hear from them around me birthday or Christmas,” said Will.

  “Then an urgent response should be sent but there are more pressing matters at hand- the London riot. We saw it, and there’s a high number of dead,” Nath pressed, taking a large gulp of drink with shaking hands. “Central London was impenetrable. They’re closing off parliament with demon magic.”

  “They risk destroying the entirety of our capital!” Winscott gasped. “I don’t suppose they even thought of what this would do to the magical wildlife or disp
ensed magic. The place will be a riot of storms next!”

  “It already is,” said Will.

  Winscott appeared on the verge of fainting.

  “Some of our forces were fleeing the site and I don’t blame them. I want them collected and returned to their stations for medical care and rest.”

  “As you wish, Your Majesty,” said Sir Kipper.

  “Edinburgh is in our hands and if the gods will it London will be too,” Nath breathed closing his eyes for a long time.

  “What will you tell the civilians?” said Sir Alvarez.

  “The truth,” he replied and got to his feet, draining his glass. “Regardless of the situation I have until the full moon to make my move on Undermouth. It’s good to know this matter will be reprehended by the month’s close.”

  Silence descended and Nath looked at each of them in turn. “If you’ll excuse me I’d like to dine with Evan and William alone.”

  They were itching for more; Evan could feel it, but he also held mistrust close to his heart. Someone was a traitor and they could be in the room right now.

  The men bowed and left looking sour and strained.

  Silence was consuming; they sat and processed the events of the last forty-eight hours. Death, destruction and curses so dark they damaged the user’s soul.

  When food arrived Evan realised he was ravenous, and despite his churning stomach, he ate the large helpings of dinner and dessert.

  “From now on I will not share any of my real plans with the Privy Council, but rather with only the two of you,” Nath began. “I feel a shift inside the palace. Something is afoot.”

  “I know what you mean,” Evan bristled a little. “But it could be because we disappeared for a few days and returned with our hands full of victory.”

  Nath smiled into his trifle. “Nevertheless, I’m waiting for their response. They lost many of their own in that fight and the city is back in our hands. Now it’s time to formulate a plan to get into the palace and achieve what we set out to do. I do, however, wonder about his threats.”

  A servant arrived clutching newspapers and magazine articles about the King's attack on the labs, photographs showed the explosion’s as beautiful magic mushroom clouds, psychedelic against the pitch-black sky. The reports, however, were terrible: acid rain, forked lightning, spontaneous combustion and layers of magic dust so dense a village disappeared beneath it like an overdone Christmas card. People were being pushed away from the parlour doors to give them their privacy. Most of the readings were neutral, some blaming Nathaniel for catastrophic damage done to the country. A total of fifteen rifts had torn, violent shades of magic exploding from them. Warlock portal summoners were trying to control them but the radiation from the labs was too much.

  “The very fabric of this world is becoming dangerously unstable,” Nath said gravely. “If this continues we may not make it until the full moon.”

  Evan looked up, shock clenching him in its icy fist. “Don’t say that.”

  Nath’s eyes flickered with sadness and he sank his teeth into his bottom lip.

  “He’s only telling the truth. I could feel it out there, the world is getting too dangerous,” Will said calmly. He met Evan’s gaze and held it. “We need to be careful about any attack we instigate or we could set off a major chain reaction.”

  “The best thing to do for now is give the country time to heal,” Nath decided and got to his feet. “I’m afraid I’ve used too much magic and I need to rest.”

  Evan felt as though his bones collapsed with relief.

  “When you wake up come and meet us. If you hear news of your father—"

  “I’ll come straight away,” said Will.

  Evan didn’t register leaving the room or the brisk walk to their bedroom. Journalists and courtiers clamoured after them, some in their night attire. Exhaustion and the mind-dazzling effects of his magic left him too tired and too out of it to speak.

  ∞∞∞

  After the last full moon he hadn’t expected to act as Regent again so soon, but it was ten in the morning, Will had turned up with his mother and two guards and servants were piling media coverage by the door.

  “Is Nathaniel alright?” Marianne asked as Evan invited them into the lobby.

  “He’s resting,” said Evan. “Any news on Gerard?” He looked between mother and son and Will’s expression soured.

  “No.”

  “Please, Your Majesty, I don’t quite understand all the fuss. He told me he was visiting his parents because his father is unwell and needed help managing the estate,” she pleaded, eyebrows drawn. “He’ll have gone with protection.”

  He searched her dark, sorry eyes but couldn’t tell if this was a masterful deception or if he was just paranoid. Marianne adored Gerard; she wouldn’t possibly put him in danger.

  Will stared at her strangely. “What’s wrong with Granddad?”

  “He didn’t say, but knowing Juan it’ll be his hip,” she replied swiftly. “He broke it three years ago on a yeti cave hunt and fell off a cliff,” she said to Evan.

  “My granddad became adventurous in his old age,” Will deadpanned.

  “The man is only seventy and fit as a fiddle,” she tutted.

  Will rolled his eyes.

  “Has there been any other news?” Evan asked, and Will brandished a newspaper with a main page photograph of an brilliant light exploding from Edinburgh central, fire and curses cowered in its wake and Evan was flooded with horrifying memories from the night before. He’d smoked an enormous bong rip hoping to numb his mind before bed; fortunately it’d worked.

  “The battle of London has ceased,” said Will. The air crackled and Evan almost didn’t want to hear his next words. He sucked in a breath and said, “the warlocks retreated, the place is in ruins but it’s ours for the taking.”

  Evan heaved an enormous sigh of relief. “Nath’ll be happy- not about the damage though.”

  “It’s not all good news, Your Majesty, we’ve lost eighty-five percent of our army. Before they left the warlocks set off an earth magic curse and the ground collapsed under dozens of them, crushing them beneath the debris.”

  Marianne gasped, hands flying to her mouth.

  “Those poor souls,” Evan shook his head and looked back through the archway as though Nath would materialise with bed head and his sleepy voice. “Lady Starstone, would you kindly ask Sir Winscott and Sir Kipper to organise removal of the bodies for burial?”

  “Of course, Your Majesty,” she smiled sadly. She turned to leave but paused and looked back. “How is Nathaniel?”

  “Tired,” said Evan.

  He watched her go and Will let himself into the private rooms to sit by the fire like he owned the place.

  “I’m surprised you’re here waiting for Nath to get up when you could use this as an opportunity to go and visit your boyfriend,” said Evan.

  Will’s face dropped and he was off the chair in a flash pressing Evan into the sofa. “Stop running ya mouth about this ya fucking 'tard!”

  A wave of panic surged up his spine but he refused to let Will win. “I haven’t told anyone but Nath.”

  Will’s fury didn’t subside, his irises warmed to molten lava and his cheeks were rosy. “My private life is none of your business and I’m not gay.”

  “No, you’re bi,” said Evan. The pressure on his arms increased and his magic pooled beneath the skin at the ready. “And you have every right to fuck girls and guys. I wasn’t taking the piss and I’m not gonna tell anyone.” He felt Will relax and as his irises softened to a cosy brown, he pulled away and offered an apologetic hand. Evan didn’t accept it and remained sitting back on the sofa, staring at Will and enjoying his extreme discomfort at having caught himself mishandling the Prince again.

  “What are you doing?” Nath asked from the bedroom archway.

  Will jumped back so fast he nearly stumbled over the treat table. “You’re up.”

  Nath studied him a moment. “It isn’t my husband�
�s fault you cannot confront your father.”

  Will looked stricken.

  “Any news?” Nath’s face softened and he looked between them.

  Evan pointed to a stack of magazines Will brought and Nath flipped through them, reliving the horror each time a cover swished and more images of storms, explosions and groups gathering to mourn the dead appeared.

  Nath stopped abruptly, eyes widening.

  “What?”

  He sank into an armchair, eyes scanning a large spread in one of the most influential media stations in the world. Slowly he handed it over and Evan began to read:

  Nathaniel I: Finally, A King with Balls.

  Evan smirked and looked up at Nath, he was relaxed and flirted with a smile.

  It’s been a horrendous few months for the enchanted world with the declaration of war and the tragic death of the late King Elijah, but finally things are taking a more positive tone with the retribution of his majesty King Nathaniel, bravely putting himself on the front line to fight for his country. While his capabilities as a monarch have been in question due to his full-blown lycanthropy, he has blown the nation away with his sheer determination and proactivity in bringing the dark side to justice. Without disrespect, he has been more of a true warrior in the face of danger than his father; not only has he destroyed an abominable factory-production laboratory filled with experiments to fuel your worst nightmares, he’s eliminated dangerous rifts allowing warlocks to infest our nation, and regained control of Scotland's capital. He didn’t, as many believed, allow it to fall out of weakness or desire, but to ensure the safety of his people. A full palace report has been listed and published for public viewing by a member of the Privy Council Sir William Starstone in the small hours of this morning. His Majesty did not accomplish matters alone, with the help of his charming consort Prince Evan and Sir William Starstone (son of the great Sir Gerard Starstone, knighted and senior member of the Privy Council for two kings over two decades.)

  Will huffed angrily down the back of his neck.

  Support for Their Majesties is growing across the nation and abroad with people rallying to fight and civilians signing up to military training camps preparing for what could be one of the greatest wars of all time. With a direct threat from Governor Undermouth looming in twelve days, we must all prepare for the potential disaster to come.