“Did Griffon bathe here?” What I preferred to know was if Griffon realized I’d be dethroning him.
“No,” she admitted. “Griffon is king by proxy, but only in this false land. The true Kingdom of Fire wouldn’t recognize him or his brother, Hagen. Tirsynth even bred an army of bastard born princes to seek the approval of my land. Then Hecate laid waste to it, and Griffon crafted this false realm. You felt the weakness of this realm when you entered it, didn’t you?” When I nodded in reply, she chuckled. “I know you’ve felt the call of the true Kingdom of Fire as well.”
“I have felt the call to both Norvalla and the Kingdom of Fire. I wasn’t sure why I didn’t feel this place,” I admitted as I considered what she’d disclosed. “Does that mean this land will continually devolve until it ceases to exist?” I’d known something wasn’t right the moment we’d entered. This place held no attraction other than wonder for me, yet I felt a strong connection to the Kingdom of Fire.
“Indeed, but my son was aware of what you’d become. Of course, I only meant Griffon to hold the crown until you discovered your truths. Then he created this realm with the help of others, and concealed our people so that they could recover from what Hecate had done to them.”
“And what are my truths?” I questioned cautiously, savoring the repartee we participated in.
“There was never a son in the prophecy. The heir of the land inherits the Sunfire, which is what we need to drive Hecate back into her tomb.” Scylla systematically began lighting the torches around the pool of water. “My mother ensured no man could take from us, Aria. Freyja lived in a time where women held no worth other than their inheritance, which only a man could spend, or her womb.”
“Yet, she forced me to be made in order to remove Hecate?”
“She did nothing of the sort, child.” I wasn’t enjoying being called a child, but seeing as Scylla was older than dirt, I was letting it slide. “How magnanimous of you, truly.” My jaw dropped as she read my thoughts. “Of course, I can read them. You could as well if you’d ever cared to try. Both my mother and I see and alter the future as needed, influencing change when and where it is necessary. How do you think I predicted what you’d become? I’ve spent half my lifetime running scenarios inside my mind’s eye to find one in which Hecate was overthrown. One out of a million, one successfully sent her back into her tomb, which isn’t the death you wish for her, but it’s the best we can do.”
“Fire is a weakness of Hecate’s, and I’ve trapped her inside her true form. If I can wield enough fire, she’ll die.”
“And so would you, Aria. She isn’t worth your life. It’s difficult to kill a phoenix, but if someone extinguishes its fire, it dies forever.” Her statement had my shoulders dropping as the realization struck me hard. “You cannot kill her. No one can. Not with her magic now a part of the Nine Realms. Without her, there is no land. You weakened her greatly, but your path wasn’t ever to kill her. It’s sending her to her tomb, which for her is worse than death.”
“I don’t like this anymore,” I pouted with defeat, crushing me.
“You knew it was impossible to kill her. Wanting her dead is normal after what she’s done to you. As well as those you care about. It isn’t wrong to wish her dead, but it is unrealistic. We cannot kill Hecate without disastrous repercussions.”
“You’re saying that if we kill her, it will alter the land?”
“Who would be the ‘we’ you speak of, Aria?”
“King Karnavious, along with the rest of those she’s continually tortured throughout the time your people have been here hiding. Outside of this realm, there’s a fight going on and we’re losing,” I informed with emotion heavy in my tone.
“Her magic is a part of the realms now. Which means you could no sooner eradicate it, then you could remove ours. I understand Hecate has not been easy on King Karnavious. He might not be able to change due to his brokenness. Sometimes, it isn’t worth the trouble of trying to glue something back together. You’re so young, Aria. I was once young too, and I had to let the man I love go. I had to do so in order to wed Tirsynth. It was who blessed me with your father, which I did for the betterment of our world.”
“Knox and I are both broken. He understands me better than anyone else could ever hope to. His edges cut hard, and they’re very sharp. However, when he forgets that we’re sworn enemies, feeling his walls crumble, if even for a moment, it’s worth the pain I’ve endured.”
“You love him?” She spoke softly, but she didn’t need me to answer the question. “He’s not for you, Aria. He will not survive Hecate’s obsession with him. I’ve seen the future, and he’s not in it with you.” Her eyes showed genuine sympathy, yet it failed to sway my decision.
“Then I don’t want to save the world.”
Chapter Five
Aria
The chamber grew thick with tension at my outburst, but I refused to back down. I didn’t want anyone else. Knox deserved a future, even if that future wasn’t with me. He endured unimaginable hardships to safeguard the Nine Realms, so if there was even a slight possibility of his demise, I would battle to avert it. I’d burn down the realms to save him from that fate.
“You’d throw everything away for his future? A future that might not even include you? He may very well turn against you, Aria. Have you considered that?”
“No, because Knox is loyal to those that he considers family.”
“Does he consider you such? Or are you merely something he wishes to own?” she asked carefully.
Her question had me backpedaling, but I wouldn’t concede. “I honestly don’t know what he considers me, but it doesn’t matter to me if he does or doesn’t. He’s my mate, and if you’re asking me to disregard that bond and to allow Hecate to claim his life, you’re going to end up disappointed.”
“I understand. Karnavious blood is very addictive, but then, who doesn’t relish catching the heart of a dragon? Did you know his bloodline’s the only one able to actually shift into dragon form? Like our bloodline, the world fuels their shift, and they’re cursed because of the fire in their veins.”
“I was told as much,” I admitted as I let my guard down a sliver. “The future can be altered by a single deed, Scylla. One choice can change everything.”
“It can. That much is true. But could you watch the world burn to save him?” she countered with a calculated look burning in her aqua-colored depths. Reading my mind, she exhaled heavily. “A phoenix doesn’t always have a singular mate. Sometimes, we have many.” When I opened my mouth to argue, she lifted her hand up for me to allow her to speak. “We don’t mate purely for love. Love isn’t something our breed desires from another. Sometimes we merely mate to create young, if our previous mate isn’t producing young. Others mate for protection, be it their own or for their young. Hell, we’ve even been known to mate merely for companionship. Our breed does what is needed to ensure new phoenixes are born as often as possible and are protected as well afterward. That you are in love with your dragon is most puzzling to me.”