Total pages in book: 248
Estimated words: 236909 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1185(@200wpm)___ 948(@250wpm)___ 790(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 236909 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1185(@200wpm)___ 948(@250wpm)___ 790(@300wpm)
What had Kolis said when I demanded to know what taking Thad’s life would give him? He’d said it would tell him everything he needed to know. And it had. “Is there more to the prophecy?”
Callum’s laugh echoed behind me.
Kolis nodded. “‘And the great powers will stumble and fall, some all at once, and they will fall through the fires into a void of nothing. Those left standing will tremble as they kneel, will weaken as they become small, as they become forgotten. For finally, the Primal rises, the giver of blood and the bringer of bone, the Primal of Blood and Ash.’”
My lips parted as my eyes widened. “The Primal of Blood and Ash…” A shudder of disbelief coursed through me. A being that should not exist. “A Primal of Life and Death.”
“Clever girl,” Kolis remarked.
“I’m not a girl,” I snapped, my arm falling to my side. “And one does not have to be that clever. It’s literally said right in the prophecy.”
“No, you’re not a girl,” he purred, sending a curl of disgust through me. “You are the vessel who will fulfill what the Ancients dreamt of. Who will give me what I want.”
“And that’s…to do what? Rule over Iliseeum and the mortal realm?” I laughed. “Sounds to me like it will only give you what you deserve.”
“And that is?”
“Your death.”
Kolis’s still eyes met mine, and several seconds ticked by as tiny bumps spread across my flesh. “You would think that. Perhaps that is what it originally foreshadowed, but I suppose the Ancients never thought I’d try to change it. That I’d dare to do so. Apparently, it was acceptable—even foretold—that Eythos set things in motion.” A sneer accompanied the mention of his brother. “But me?” He laughed coldly. “No, they thought I’d just stand by and do nothing. They should’ve foreseen that, but even in their dreams, they underestimated me. What I will do to not only stay alive but also get what I want. And that is to be the one, Seraphena. The beginning and the end. Life and death.”
His eyes began to glow. “There will be no need for mortal Kings. There will be no need for any other Primal. Not when a Primal of Life and Death has risen.”
A new horror descended over me. “You…you want to kill all the Primals?”
“Most of them. Yeah. What?” He snorted. “You look surprised. Come now, you’ve met a few of them.” He shook his head. “You’ve seen firsthand how fucking annoying most of them are.”
Well, I couldn’t argue with that, but…
“Whiny, sniveling brats who have forgotten the way things were. When we were respected and feared by not just mortals but also by the gods. When even the draken bowed to us.” His lip curled. “When power actually meant something.”
I took a step forward. “Do you not already have enough power? You’ve crowned yourself King of Gods. You already usurp any mortal ruler, as do the other Primals.” Anger flooded my senses. “Why would you need more power?”
“Why? What a silly fucking question,” he replied, and Callum laughed on cue. “One only a mortal would ask. Besides the fact that if I do nothing, I die? Power isn’t infinite or limitless. Another can always rise. Power can always be taken, leaving you weakened and incapable of protecting yourself or those you care for.”
“As if you care for anyone but yourself,” I snapped.
His eyes flashed pure gold, then he was inside the cage. With me. He remained several feet from me, but I felt his hand on my throat, squeezing tighter than the band there.
“As if you know a thing about me that hasn’t been told to you, Seraphena.” He took a step, the edges of his body blurring. “You think I’m the villain?”
I breathed in, but the pressure sealed off my throat. My hands flew to my neck.
“You think I’m the only villain in this tale? That the other Primals deserve to continue when they did nothing to help me when my brother ruled as King? Not one of them? That the mortals who carry wealth and prestige are innocent, worthy of life despite their many wars and lack of empathy for their brethren? You think I’m the only one who seeks absolute power? If so, then you’re not as clever as I thought you were.”
I couldn’t breathe.
He took another step forward. “Every mortal wants it. Every god. Every Primal. Even Eythos. What do you think he was setting up his son to become by putting the embers of life in the mortal promised to him as a Consort? ‘A silver beast with blood seeping from its jaws of fire, bathed in the flames of the brightest moon to ever be birthed will become one.’ Emphasis on the will-become-one part. Eythos put those embers in you so his son could take them—something Nyktos would’ve done the moment he knew he was ready, if he’d been aware of what it meant. He wanted Nyktos to be the Primal—the silver beast. To not only overthrow me and end me, but because Eythos knew his days were numbered. After all, the Ancients dreamt of just such a powerful being as the Primal of Blood and Ash. He knew what that meant for him, but he also knew that once his son took those embers and Ascended, Nyktos could even raise him.”