Clythia scoured the area, searching for the vampire king. She could feel the thorny webs of danger squeezing her, but a sense of numbness overtook her—there was no escape. And what was the point of escaping when the thorns kept her son safe?
Since things were only going to get worse, Clythia didn’t want to waste time trying to convince Morven when magic was at her disposal. True, it would take a toll on her, as tapping into the Inner Sense and pushing its limits demanded a great price. Making someone into a puppet, especially when the puppeteer was the most powerful witch in Zyvern and the puppet was the most ancient vampire in history, was risky. A lot could go wrong.
Morven was soaking in the noon sun on a hill a few yards from the inn, basking in her gift a bit too much, it seemed. Watching him under the scorching sun made her wonder if he truly missed his vampiric speed. He wore a dark brown cloak, tight trousers, and a white shirt beneath.
Clythia didn’t have much time. She closed her eyes, dragging her magic to the surface and stretching it like a web until it blanketed over Morven. She was met with a solid, stone-like mental shield. It would take an impossible amount of time to break through, and Tiyus would ensure she paid a heavy price if she delayed even a minute.
She probed his mind shield from different angles, but there wasn’t a single weak spot. She shouldn’t have been surprised; it would’ve been more shocking if he hadn’t developed a strong shield after all these centuries.
“What do you want?” The vampire’s voice carried through the wind.
“Follow me,” Clythia murmured, her eyes fixed on his back.
“Because your intrusion didn’t work?”
There was no point in lying. “Yes.”
“What if I don’t?”
“Things will be worse for you.” The wind seemed to amplify her words, carrying the message with a low chuckle from the vampire.
“I won’t go with the Shadow’s harbinger.”
Clythia’s heart sank. If her son was going to pay for Morven’s disobedience, she would make Tiyus seem pleasant in comparison to the torture she would inflict upon him.
“That’s your choice, but know that you can’t run from him. No matter how far, he’ll find you.” She began to walk away before his voice stopped her.
“Let him.”
“You’re supposed to be at the three-story yellow building.” With that, she strode to where Tiyus expected Morven to appear.
She had passed the inn and was heading down the cobblestone street when she nearly collided with a disheveled, out-of-breath Vina.
Before Clythia could ask what was wrong, Vina blurted, “I know who the Sovereign is, and you won’t believe it!”
“Who?”
Vina opened her mouth but was interrupted by Casarda’s sudden appearance dressed as scantily as always—today in lime. “My queen, I’ve been looking for you everywhere—” Her musical tone was cut short as Vina slapped her across the face.
“You!” Vina snarled, gritting her teeth. “You traitor. You’ve been selling us out from the beginning.”
“To whom?” Clythia asked, her eyes shifting to the Lady of Spies, who held her cheek, her gaze bouncing between them.
“The Sovereign.”
“Deal with her,” Clythia ordered Vina. “I have to go.”
It was likely just past noon when she arrived at the building, bathed in amber from the sun’s rays. No one was there, nor was there any sign of anything unusual. Why did Tiyus want Morven here? Clythia peered to the left side of the building, at the narrow space between it and a neighboring cottage.
There, she saw Kay with Afia. He was gazing at her servant, as if nothing else in the universe existed. Afia was equally entranced, so much so that she wouldn’t have noticed Clythia approaching until it was too late. What game was Afia playing? Wasn’t she interested in the vampire? Or was she one of those polyamorous types? But no, if that were the case, she’d likely be open about it. Sneaking around with both kings suggested she didn’t want either of them to be aware of each other.
Kay leaned in, brushing his lower lip over Afia’s nose, prompting her to release a shuddering moan, her eyes shut tight. When her eyes reopened, they shone with hunger, her scarlet hair accentuating the intensity. It wasn’t affection, nor was it the longing of someone in love.
It was lust.
Then, Clythia understood why Tiyus wanted Morven here at this moment. There was something between the vampire and Afia, something she had overlooked. If it weren’t serious, Tiyus wouldn’t have exploited this vulnerability to punish him. Tiyus had promised a fate worse than death, and this was his plan. If the ancient vampire king would be damaged enough to wish for death over this, then either he had a surprising weakness for a vampire, or Tiyus was overestimating his power.
A gasp caught her attention. Morven was standing slack behind there, hand over his mouth. He slowly backed away and turned to run. This caught the attention of Afia and Kay, who now only saw Clythia.
“I’ve done what you asked,” Clythia said, not to Kay, marring confusion on Afia’s face. In an instant, he transformed into Tiyus, his long cloak replaced with tight leather, his eyes shifting from brown to silver, his the human king’s features sharpening and changing until he fully became the Lord of Shadows.
Afia’s jaw went slack. “What are you?”
Ignoring her, Tiyus replied to Clythia, “You did well.”
“So what now?” Clythia dared to ask.
Tiyus only gave her a smile and planted a light kiss on her cheek that shot straight to her core before he vanished into thin air.
“What have I done?” Afia shook her head in horror, searching for an answer from Clythia. “Morven saw that, didn’t he? I swear, my queen, I don’t know what got into me. I remember everything, but—but I don’t know why I did this.” She said the last word with disgust, a tear escaping down her cheek. “Morven, he saw this, didn’t he? I heard his footsteps, but I couldn’t tear my eyes away. What have I done? You have to believe me.” Then, she stopped her wailing, her expression turning bitter. “You knew. You did this, didn’t you? I didn’t do anything wrong.”
If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.
“Excuse me?” Clythia raised her brows. “You haven’t done anything wrong?”
“Yes, I didn’t plan to elope or abandon DavinSaw for the vampire. I was preparing myself to forget Morven.” Afia said his name with such softness that Clythia wondered how she had missed the signs, and how such a bond could have formed between the vampire and the witch’s servant in such a short time.
“You love him,” Clythia said quietly.
Afia’s jaw clenched. “I do. But now it’s over, thanks to you, my queen.”
That kind of response would be intolerable from any of her subjects, let alone a servant, but Clythia wasn’t in a position to punish anyone right now. She wasn’t the queen DavinSaw deserved; she had let them down, and sooner or later, they would know.
“I had no part in this,” Clythia said, surprising Afia, though the servant masked it quickly. “I didn’t know you would be here, or Kay, for that matter.”
“But you said—”
“Leave.”
Afia heeded her words then.
----------------------------------------
“That cannot be true!” Clythia’s throat tightened. “That is impossible.”
“I swear it in Ilyana’s name,” Vina said through clenched teeth, scouring right and left for any eavesdropper. They were further from the inn. After lunch, Vina had practically dragged her away to reveal her discovery. Once they found a place where none of Tiyus’ minions or the rebels were around, Vina kept repeating the most bizarre thing.
“Kay is the Sovereign,” she said again.
“I’m telling you that is impossible,” Clythia was annoyed. Though she didn’t know if it stemmed from Vina and the delusion she kept on parroting or everything that’s happened thus far.
Vina’s eyes narrowed. “Why? Do you know something?”
“Fine.” Clythia ignored Vina’s suspicion. “Tell me, what do you know?”
“After you told me to find out who the Sovereign is, I went from tavern to tavern.” She shuddered—no surprise, as Vina isn’t fond of such low-class establishments. “An angel murmured something as he left; he was drunk, as was everyone at the tavern, even the guards,” she added with distaste. “One of them even punched him in the face. The angel accused the guard of betrayal for abandoning the true Sovereign and bowing down to a false god, and he cursed him in some other language I didn’t recognize, but I heard the word Shadow. I got close to a group of angels talking about how the Dark Lord is cruel and twisted, how he’s been corrupting angels. There was sorrow in their words, as if this Dark Lord had affected some of their kin.
“Then I did something stupid that turned out in my favor. I asked, ‘How can the Shadow immobilize the Sovereign?’ out loud. I thought they would see through my ruse, but they didn’t. Instead, they answered. The host of the Dark Lord was already very powerful, and they had made an alliance to immobilize the Sovereign so the host could become Sovereign in her stead. The Dark Lord would rule over whatever the Shadow desired, and the Sovereign would take over the continents. The host succeeded in capturing the Sovereign—your face has turned pale. Are you alright?”
“No, I am not. We are done for. All that power in one man? No wonder I blacked out,” Clythia’s words flew out of her mouth. “But how can the host succeed alone? Won’t the Dark Lord know?”
Vina shook her head. “That’s a mystery. I didn’t dare ask, fearing I might draw unwanted attention.” Clythia understood that. “But, my queen, you know something. You have to tell me!” she demanded.
“Fine,” Clythia exhaled. “Kay is the host of the Dark Lord. Kay is the Sovereign.” Vina gave her an unsure, speculative look. “He’s already powerful, believe me—I know. I’ve seen it.”
“So the weakest of us all turns out to be the most powerful...” Vina trailed off.
“I thought you knew from the way you accused Casarda?” Clythia asked.
“I didn’t know her part in this. Or if she even has a part. I saw her sneaking off at night with him several times, so I tracked her. I almost went mad for it—cursed Shadow,” Vina spat. “But it paid off. She was passing on every little detail you and every traveler shared, even the most mundane ones.”
“What about him? What did he say?”
Vina’s eyes unfocused, looking past Clythia’s shoulder. “That’s the weird part. He never said anything. It was always her who spoke.”
“What have you done with her now?”
“I’ve bound her magic,” Vina said coldly.
That was the cruelest punishment any subject of DavinSaw could face. It was like losing part of oneself—part of your mind, your body, something essential. Clythia hadn’t experienced it herself, but she had seen people commit suicide six out of ten times because the emptiness became unbearable. And for treason like this, such punishment was justified, even if it didn’t follow court procedure or involve a Punisher Mage—it was the right move.
“You did well,” Clythia said. “I have to tell you something.”
Vina and she had never seen eye to eye, except for the times when alcohol was involved, but if anyone was supposed to know, it was her. She didn’t approve of Vina’s judgmental, competitive, and uptight personality. She was unlikable, all right, but she was smart and strong—a better spy than the two-faced Casarda. She was more loyal to DavinSaw than anyone, perhaps even more than Clythia herself.
“Now you do?” Vina retorted.
“Shut it,” Clythia huffed. “It’s better if I show you.” She unwrapped the shawl around her neck, revealing the choker she wore. The Lady of Hypercas’ eyes widened.
“What is that?” Vina asked, examining her with a frown of concern. “Am I looking into your kink tendencies?”
“I wish that were the case, but no. I’m enslaved by the Dark Lord. He disguised himself as my guard in DavinSaw, and I fell for it.” Clythia wanted to continue, but a sob escaped, and she had to clear her throat.
“Why didn’t you fight against it as soon as you knew?”
Clythia was expecting a snide remark, but Vina’s question took her by surprise. She then answered, “For Clen. He threatened my son, the future of my kingdom, if I didn’t comply. The reason I asked you to find the Sovereign is because he doesn’t know where she is. I think, from what you’ve told me, a conflict has arisen between the host and Tiyus—”
“Who is Tiyus?” Vina crossed her arms.
“The Dark Lord. It means Kay has kept the previous Sovereign for whatever devious plan he has, and Tiyus wants me to find her and destroy her. That’s the true purpose of this mission.”
“You said it’s to save DavinSaw.” Vina shook her head.
“It is.” Clythia let out a sigh under the weight of her stress. “I wanted you to find the Sovereign to know where to start looking for the previous one. So that I can destroy her before Kay knew.”
“You didn’t want me to ask around because of the locals’ allegiance.” It wasn’t a question. “I could be asking the wrong angel or fairy. That’s why, isn’t it?”
“True,” Clythia replied. “Do whatever you want with the information I gave you. I say this because I trust you.”
“That opinion isn’t mutual,” Vina replied, pursing her lips.
“I understand.”
“But I get why you did it.”
“You do?”
Vina gave a curt nod. “Even though you’re brash, I know when someone has the best interests at heart, and you have that for your continent and your son. However, you have to right your wrongs. If anyone finds out—the rulers, your subjects—you’ll have everyone as your enemy. The warlocks, witches, and tribes, the whole continent will all rise against you. Tell me you have a plan to save yourself.” She added the last statement coated with desperation.
“The plan was—is to do what Tiyus says.”
“Tell me this is one of your jokes?” Vina’s brows shot up.
“You have no idea how powerful Tiyus is—and Kay too. Now Kay is the Sovereign, the host of the Dark Lord, and holds hostage the most powerful being in the universe, even beyond—the previous Sovereign.” Clythia clicked her tongue. “I don’t like my chances. I don’t fight a war I can’t win.”
“So what now?”
Clythia let out a defeated chuckle. “I asked the same thing, and all I got was a victorious smile from the Dark Lord. But promise me one thing, Vina.”
“What?”
“If, by any means, I lose the throne or don’t return to my son, rule in my stead and look after him. Look after DavinSaw. Fight if you have to, declare war if necessary—do whatever it takes. But I trust only you and the General to keep DavinSaw safe.”
Clythia made a complicated hand gesture—a rune symbolizing mind and memory—which shimmered and then settled into an intricate design before diving into Vina’s head. “I allow you to share this memory.”