Chapter 7

In Twilight, any descendant can find their true flame…

Z iven, wearing a crown, should be considered more dangerous than a dragon. He's stunning, absolutely taking my breath away. Ziven is dressed fully in tailored black clothes, with beautiful red and gold moons stitched down the side of a thick cloak that falls from his shoulders. His crown is beautiful moons and dragons wrapped around like they're continuously fighting in a braid to make the crown, and it is nestled in his dark hair. His silver earrings glitter in the firelight, matching the deep silver colour of his eyes. The dark moon marking on his cheek seems to glow almost, as he stands before me like a rightful king of the fae. The only king that is standing up to face the fae.

He is standing right by the doors that lead to a metal balcony that overlooks the front yard of the mansion. Another door that's appeared now that the magic is broken. I clear my throat, glancing down at my clothes. I feel overdressed, but I have to admit, I like the top. I have a similar cloak to Ziven's attached to my shoulders, but it's not heavy. Mine has silver moons decorated around the collar before falling down my back. There's a cross pattern on my black top that's very tight and tucked into tighter leggings and black boots. Somehow, Ruelle had all this ready when I got to my room.

Kyrell is with Calix, who's keeping an eye on him. The rest of the Moon Dynasty is still hunting vampyres in the city and rounding up the vampyres who have bowed and given up into a controlled section of the city for Ziven to deal with later on. Most of the vampyres are dead; not many of them, except children and women, wanted to bow to the dragons and fae because they are too used to being in control.

Ziven shuts the door behind me, his eyes drifting over my outfit, and he smirks. "If only you didn't volunteer us for a speech. We could be alone in my room."

Shivers spread down my spine. "Who said I would go into your room? You're my enemy, remember?"

He laughs and I love the sound as he closes the space between us. "Fucking my enemy is my ultimate desire then, Storm." He tugs something out of his cloak and holds it in his hands between us in the light of the fire. A tiara and it is beautiful. There's a crescent moon straight in the middle, with silver branches and leaves to hold it together with sparkling white and red diamonds. "You need to wear a crown when you stand with me."

"Ziven…I'm not your queen. You can't put a crown on me and walk me out there in front of everyone!" I warn him, but he doesn't listen. Ziven places the tiara on top of my head where it fits so perfectly. Too perfectly. "Ziven…"

The doors flicker open with a flash of moonlight before I can take it off and make him understand that this is a bad idea. We aren't together, or at least we haven't spoken about the many, many issues we have. Ziven can be all-consuming in both hate and love, and I'm not sure I will end up surviving either.

Dragon roars echo from outside as I follow Ziven out into the light, and I look up at the top of the mansion, seeing several Moon Dynasty dragons perched on top of the towers. The sky is still full of dragons. There are dozens flying around, mostly Sun Dynasty, a few grey ones here and there. The sun is rising high, casting beautiful orange and red light across the sky. But my voice seems like it catches in my throat as I look at the crowd gathered around the gardens at the front of the mansion, stretching far into the thick forest that hides them like a dark wave.

Most are covered in ash or have untreated burns, and there are so, so many children that my stomach feels like it's going to drop. One by one, the fae from the city look up and see a fae king for the first time in their lives. I was one of them, and I wouldn't have believed it if I didn't see it myself. Several gasps and heavy whispers burst out around the crowd, and yet the many, many fae from the Sun Dynasty stand still in a line in front of the mansion with their backs to it. To Ziven. Where is their king now? I don't want to ever see Daegan again, but abandoning his people when they need him is stupid. They might start looking at the moon instead. I stand at Ziven's side, willing because he is right. I love him. I loved him enough for the magic to break.

"Welcome," Ziven begins. "My name is King Ziven of the Moon Dynasty. I am over five hundred years old, and we have been trapped within this mansion and the caverns below all this time with the dragons. When the vampyres took over, a royal decided that us being locked away was the safest way to keep us alive. The world continued on without fae royals, and your ancestors were left to fend for themselves. The vampyre took everything. There's not a single one of us fae here that wishes we couldn't have been there to fight for who was left outside that day. We all lost someone."

The wind blows around me, and I glance up at Ziven, the powerful Moon king who stole my heart. Who protected me? Who would do anything for me? I realise I haven't given him a chance since the mansion came down to tell me everything. I haven't told him I love him and, even if I end up dead, my time with him is never something I regret. I wish he had told me from the beginning, but I understand why as I look at all these fae. They have a chance of freedom now, and that wouldn't have happened without my near death. I know if Daegan didn't use Hettie to distract Ziven, he wouldn't have gotten close to me. A strange feeling settles in my gut at the thought of the rest of the fae in the world who need dragons and royals to fight for them.

"But we are free to fly, and I fly for the fae. These lands are mine. I was a prince of the Moon Dynasty when I was locked in here, and now I am king. I know this means nothing to you. I know you're standing here by the luck of the deities and nothing else. Every single one of you will have known someone that died in the city in the fires when we took over. Fire consumes and, to win a war, death will be burning through the world. I will burn it to make us a free race!" His shout echoes loudly, and the crowd watches him like he is a god ruling over them all. "I'm not asking you to stand here and believe that I can keep you safe because I'm a king, when the only royals you've known have truly been monsters. You can't trust a fae you do not know or respect, but give me a chance, and I will fight for you with the power of the moon in my blood."

Ziven takes my hand, linking our fingers for all to see. "These are my ancestors' lands, and I am claiming them once more. Anyone within these lands is under my protection and welcomed to the Moon Dynasty. You can come into the mansion where there are healers and food. We will find beds for you all while we hunt the remaining vampyres within the city and the barrier. This is my queen." He lifts our hands high. More gasps and whispers echo out from the crowds. "She's one of you. This is Story Dehana."

He arches an eyebrow and waves me forward. The fucker. I clear my throat and look over at the crowd. "I was born in the breeder camps, and I am half powerborn, half lessborn. The mix of my parentage made me weak in the eyes of the vampyres, and I was sent to be a blood slave for the majority of my life. Now I'm free. Now I'm a dragon rider, and if I can be this, then aren't I a sign of the world changing that you can trust? I side with the Moon Dynasty king because he is a good person. I've seen firsthand that royals are rarely good, but King Ziven will give the fae a chance. A chance we were never born with." I look up at the sky. "I am a dragon rider, and I choose to belong to the Moon king. I hope you join us."

Chatter spreads around the fae as they watch us, and Ziven waits until they have had a chance to speak within themselves. Ziven has to understand the fae here will do anything for a chance of freedom, but they hate the vampyres. "My queen, she has told me about what happened to you and how your monumental history has been destroyed by the vampyres. Powerborn and lessborn are titles they made up, and they do not exist in the history of the fae. Lessborn are simply fae who are unmarked by a dynasty or they have not found their power yet. Powerborn are luckier and the ties to their ancestors are still fierce in their blood. Every fae has magic. We are magic and I will teach you." His voice rises. "Vampyres were once fae, and the first vampyre was a Dawn Dynasty king who used dark magic to twist his soul into a monster. The vampyres come from us, and they will end with us too." Ziven looks at me and I feel the war dancing in his eyes. "We have dragons, and they will not be stopped. The barrier will be taken down eventually, and I invite each of you into my army. We will be ready to take on what is outside the barrier. Come and fight. It's about time we take back the world for the fae like it once was."

The silence echoes on and I know Ziven needs help. They don't want power, not most of them, and I know because I never did. I wanted comfort and safety. I want my body to be mine and to have a choice on what is taken from it. "I feel terrified to face the vampyres, like I imagine many of you are. We were not taught to fight back or rebel. We were taught to be slaves and die." I catch so many of their eyes, and I see it. I see the fear I've felt my entire life. "I was but a slave to the crown prince." This catches their attention more, and I hear my name whispered loud. They know of me now. "While we follow the rule of the vampyres and live in fear, we will always be slaves. Our children, their children, and it will never end. The royal vampyre family is corrupt, and they want us to be food or labour and nothing else. We will always be killed and tortured and drunk from. It will never stop. It will be an endless cycle for them, and I promise they don't even remember our faces, let alone our names. The dragon riders here give us a chance. We are all fae, and I stand before you as someone that's seen both sides of it now, seen what's inside this mansion, these people, seen what's outside with the vampyres in charge. Trust me, it's better for us to know who we are and to fight for our people."

The crowds murmur before a man steps forward. He's powerborn, a symbol of an axe on his cheek, but I don't know what that means. I don't know much about the powerborn where my father came from. "You brought fires to the cities and destroyed the vampyres that owned us, but we lost much. The vampyres heard what happened in the city before your riders could reach it. They killed every fae man, woman, and child in the breeding district so they couldn't escape." Sickness rises thick in my throat. I grew up there. Heartbreak nearly snaps me in two, and Ziven wraps his arm around my waist as the man continues. "You ask us to fight for you, but we are not fighters. The vampyres will slaughter us."

Ziven lifts his head. "I am sorry to hear of the breeding district. The barrier around the mansion fell quickly, and war was swift. Even with no notice, Nightwell city was under my control within a day. You will not fight alone. You will fight with dragon riders, and we will train you."

The man lifts his fist into the air. "For the fae. For the Moon Dynasty. We fight!"

The roars echo loud and I proudly watch the crowds of fae, who are broken just like me, not giving up. They are going to fight. Ziven walks right back through the doors, and the second I follow him, they shut behind with a click of his magic. "Your queen? You can't just declare me that in front of everyone, Ziven!"

He stops to face me, raising a single eyebrow. The smug look in his eyes makes me want to throw something at him. Instead, I walk to the door, and he catches me, spinning me around so my back is against it and his impressive body is pressed into me. We fit so well together, and my body comes to life everywhere we touch. "I can declare you whatever the fuck I want. My queen. My enemy. My storm. My everything because I am done pretending we aren't it."

He kisses me with enough passion to set everything on fire once more. I moan into his mouth as his hands dig into my waist, his tongue sinking into my mouth, and I wish we did take the chance to have a room alone. I would be lying to myself if I didn't admit how many times I thought about Ziven and me being in heat. He breaks away when I'm dazed and breathless for him. "You're my entwined mate, Storm."

Shock keeps me rooted between the door and him. I nearly shake with that news. "What did you just say?"

He presses his forehead into mine. "I wasn't sure, not to begin with. But fuck, I knew the moment I was inside you when you were in heat. So, yes, you will be my queen. My obsession with you makes sense to me now. It's always been you and me. I fucked up last time by not telling you everything, and I'm not doing that again. You're mine."

The door is knocked twice. Ziven and I ignore it as my heart races, and we stare at each other. It's knocked again and Ziven sighs. "We can talk about mates and your new powers later, I promise, but currently there's a mansion full of new and injured fae walking in here, and the twins are outside waiting for orders."

I can only nod, moving to the side to let him out. Ziven, the Moon king, is my entwined mate. I can't breathe as I watch him walk away.