Total pages in book: 362
Estimated words: 347293 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1736(@200wpm)___ 1389(@250wpm)___ 1158(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 347293 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1736(@200wpm)___ 1389(@250wpm)___ 1158(@300wpm)
A moment later, I felt the throb of a Primal.
“That’s my Queen,” Ash murmured, his thumb stroking my side as I repeated it for Maia and then Penellaphe.
I felt them arrive and focused on Phanos. The appearance of another Primal throbbed through me. My breath caught a little, but I wasn’t done.
I took another deep breath and closed my eyes once more. I felt the moment my compulsion reached the two Primals.
I compelled Veses and Kyn to appear before me.
CHAPTER FORTY-NINE
The arrival of the remaining two Primals throbbed in the center of my chest, and I had to smirk, imagining their fury.
We stopped as we neared the final doorway—the one leading to the dais in the throne room. Doubts began creeping in. I had no idea where Maia and Phanos would stand. What if I said the wrong thing? What if I wasn’t convincing? That was definitely possible. What if I walked right out there, took one look at Veses, and throat-punched her? Also, very likely. Or Kyn decided to breathe, and Ash would be forced to put me into stasis? Gods, that wasn’t completely likely, but it wasn’t impossible. And should we stand or sit? If I started pacing, would I walk right off the dais—?
Ash’s fresh, citrusy scent enveloped me for a moment before his lips brushed my forehead, right below the crown. “You’ve got this.”
Did I?
“You do,” Ash whispered.
Had I asked that question out loud? My hands trembled slightly as my grip tightened on Ash’s hand. Weight began settling on my chest, causing my shoulders and neck to tense.
I took a deep breath and held it for five seconds. Ash’s gaze caught mine. He gave me a short, barely noticeable nod.
I reflexively sought that veil of nothingness where I could retreat into myself and become whatever was needed of me.
You’ve got this.
That was what he’d said to me before we met with the gods after I’d awakened, too. And while I hadn’t been convinced, Ash had been sure. He had faith in me. He didn’t believe my anxiety made me incapable. He didn’t believe that me being born mortal made me weak. None of the gods here thought that.
I was strong.
My time in Dalos had proven that, and it had nothing to do with the essence pumping hotly through my veins. I didn’t need to don the veil of nothingness to find strength. I just had to be myself. Though not the burn-it-all-down version. Maybe the fifty percent burn-it-all-down version—okay, more like seventy percent. But also who I was becoming.
“Ready?” Ash asked.
I nodded.
Ash held my gaze for a moment longer, and then Nektas opened the throne room door. Fresh, late-afternoon air washed over us as we walked across the dais, his hand remaining wrapped firmly around mine.
We passed the hauntingly beautiful thrones carved from blocks of shadowstone, their backs stretching into wings that touched at the tips. The only sound was our footsteps as Nektas veered to the right, and we reached the edge of the dais.
Thousands of candles jutted from the smooth, black walls, and hundreds more hovered above the main floor, scattered throughout and casting a soft fiery glow over the massive, circular chamber open to the shining stars. Guards lined the walls, two by two, standing together every four feet, dressed in black, their hands resting on the pommels of their swords. The main doors were closed, but I knew a small army’s worth of guards was stationed outside the doors and all along the Rise.
Ash squeezed my hand, and I realized I was holding my breath for far longer than five seconds. Forcing my lungs to work, I looked past the empty shadowstone benches, my gaze momentarily snagging on Penellaphe. She…she looked well, dressed in a peach-hued tunic and pants. The bronze crown of olive branches and serpents looked better on her than on Embris. Though I could’ve done without the serpents. I started to look away, but a dark figure against the wall snagged my attention. Thierran. My lips twitched. He was leaning against the wall with one boot propped against the shadowstone. He stared straight ahead at no one in particular. It amused me that he had weaseled his way in. Then I saw who stood near him, and relief surged through me once more. I saw a familiar brown-haired god beside Attes: Elias. The guard I’d met in Dalos gave a short, quick nod. As Rhain moved to stand at the foot of the dais, my eyes locked with hers. I saw no one else.
Veses was toward the back, and it registered that she stood next to Kyn. Her blond hair fell in ringlets to her impossibly narrow waist, and the jade tree crown made from a stone matching the deep red of her gown sat upon her head. Her dress covered her from the neck down, yet every part of her body was still somehow revealed in the skintight crimson silk, from her ample breasts to the indent of her navel.