A look of stark rage contorted Eurus’s features into a frightening mask. “So your friends can kill me? I don’t think so.”
I recoiled, my heart kicking at my ribs. Just as quickly, his face smoothed back into amusement. “Unfortunately, I’m in no position to force you. Alas, even gods must retreat when confined in inconveniently breakable bodies. However, denying me now will cause you… deep regret in the future. You have already destroyed one of my Minax. I will consider waiving your punishment if you cooperate now.”
“I’m not going.” As Arcus had said, there was no way to know Eurus wouldn’t kill Marella the second I complied. And if I went with him, he’d have the Minax, too, which he needed to open the Gate of Light. He would hold all the cards.
The portal contracted. His nostrils flared. “As you wish. I’ll be back for you.” He grinned, Eiko’s green eyes glinting with a god’s haughty malevolence. His attention shifted back to Arcus and Kai, who stood tense and ready. I noticed for the first time that Eurus was bloodied and battered, breathing heavily. His legs trembled. Arcus and Kai had given him a beating. The thought gave me a moment of satisfaction before he spoke again.
“This Frostblood lady won’t last more than a few hours as a host for the remaining Minax, poor thing.” There was no sympathy in Eurus’s tone. Only amusement. “Why don’t you keep my creature, my daughter? Consider it training—a lesson to prepare you for your future.”
The blood drained from my face. He was going to leave the Minax with me. I was hosting the creature, and I had nowhere to trap it. No way to destroy it.
Eurus grinned fiercely. “Until next time, Ruby.”
He turned and leaped into the portal with Marella in his arms. I rushed forward, trying to grab her at the last second, but before I could touch her, the light flickered and contracted to a pinpoint. A rushing noise filled the air, a sucking hiss that echoed off the stone walls and faded into silence as the light disappeared.
The silence didn’t last. The floor shook with another tremor. Pebbles rained down from the ceiling, covering my face and arms with a layer of gray dust. I rubbed it from my lashes, opening my eyes at the sound of someone coughing.
Across the wide space, a few feet inside the doorway to the tunnels, Queen Nalani and Master Dallr stood side by side, staring in confusion.
After a stunned pause, the queen demanded, “What have you done with my husband?”
TWENTY-EIGHT
MASTER DALLR STRODE FORWARD, his orange robes swirling around his feet. Several masters filed in after him, the torchlight glinting off their wrist guards. They all wore ceremonial garb, obviously straight from the initiation. Queen Nalani followed slowly, her hand pressed to the wall for support.
“What is the meaning of this?” she demanded.
Master Dallr looked furious. “A guard reported seeing frost and fire within the tunnels. Explain yourselves!”
I shook with exhaustion. My body felt strangely cold. The throne, Marella, the fight, Eurus—they had taken everything out of me.
Kai stood straight, but his skin was coated in sweat, his breathing still uneven. Arcus was made of stone, his expression flat and empty. He watched the queen, waiting for her next move.
My heart sank, inching toward despair. What hope did we have that she’d let Arcus go? None. The Minax, grief-hungry, stirred in the back of my mind. I tried to ignore the feelings.
Focus on each moment, I told myself. Make sure Arcus is safe and then rest.
Master Dallr took in the scene, staring at the spot where the throne used to be. “The throne of Sud is gone. What treason is this?”
The queen stared at the empty central area, her hand still braced against the wall. I was shocked to notice a tremor run through her. She was normally the embodiment of strength.
“We did what we had to do,” I said shakily. “Prince Eiko wanted to protect the queen. The curse was gaining strength—corrupting the queen.”
“The curse?” Queen Nalani frowned. “What is the girl speaking of, Dallr?”
“Eiko had no right!” Master Dallr said harshly to me. “He had no right to destroy the throne that gives the queen her power.”
The queen put a hand to her chest and rubbed, as if easing a pain there. Her keen gaze swept the room and landed on Master Dallr, fixing on him like an archer taking aim. “So you lied to me about the throne’s destruction. You hid the throne here. You hid it from me.”
Dallr hung his head. “Yes, Your Majesty. But it was for your own protection, a necessity once we realized the curse was active. Had you known the throne was still on Sere, you would have insisted on using it. This way, you had the benefit of the throne’s power—but we kept the curse controlled.”
“The danger of the curse outweighed the benefit of the throne!” I said.
Dallr’s lip curled. “The throne was safely contained here where the curse could not affect the queen. Now look at her. She’s weak.”
It was true. She leaned heavily against the wall, her expression haunted. Perhaps the absence of the throne caused a deep emotional rift, or maybe the separation was affecting her physically. She reminded me of Rasmus after the frost throne was destroyed—grieving for the Minax he thought he couldn’t live without. But Nalani hadn’t even known that the Minax was present. She was yearning for something she’d never known she’d had. She clearly felt the loss just the same.
“You’re wrong.” I fought to sound calm, to not show the anger that swirled inside me. “It’s the removal of the curse that’s making her feel sick. She’ll get better now that it’s gone.”
I could only hope that were true.
Dallr ignored me. “You will have to answer for these crimes. All of you.” Without turning his head, he ordered, “Take the king back to the north tower.”
The masters moved forward toward Arcus. Ignoring my exhaustion, I bent my knees, widened my stance, and raised my fists.
Master Dallr barked a command and the masters halted. To me, he said with forced patience, “Be sensible, Princess Ruby. Don’t make this harder on yourself.”
“Ruby,” said the queen, bringing my gaze to her. Her voice sounded faint; she looked tired and strained. “Where is my husband?” No one had answered her before.
I swallowed and stepped closer. “Your Majesty—Queen Nalani—I’m sorry. Your husband is gone.”
“He was here a moment ago.” She looked around as if expecting him to step out from behind a pillar. Her voice sounded thin, her face crumpling like a child’s as she searched the room with frightened eyes. “This is not the least bit amusing.”
My breath came shorter, dread settling in my belly. This was going to crush her, especially now when she was feeling the absence of the Minax so acutely. “We… have much to tell you.”
“Then tell me!” she demanded hoarsely.
I pushed myself to recount the events of the last two days, including my search for the book, and my conversation with Prince Eiko, when he’d told me his suspicions about the throne’s influence. Then, haltingly, I described the destruction of the throne, Marella’s betrayal, and the portal that opened to the realm of the gods. I left out the revelation that I was a Nightblood, that I held the Minax now. I wasn’t sure what her reaction would be if she knew it was so near.
I stumbled a little as I told her what happened to her husband. “Then Eurus… the… god of the east wind, entered through the portal and… and took over Prince Eiko’s body. He—”
The queen held up a palm. She was shaking her head, her expression more haunted than ever. “You expect me to believe this, Ruby. Surely this can’t be true.”
“You saw it yourself. I know you did.”
“I saw a bright light.” She lifted her chin proudly. “It could have been… a reflection of fire.”