Chapter 49

CHAPTER 49

WREN

A wall of obsidian enclosed Wren, holding her like a statue. Not the magic Leander had tried to use to control her now but the raw power of the Nox.

She had thought they had reached some kind of compromise, this power and herself. Had it all been a lie? With the prospect of the blood of Sidon spilled on her behalf no matter what the outcome, and the possible destruction of the Aurum, the Nox clamped down on her as if made of iron.

Once it had been a choice, that sacrifice, that was what it had said in the caves. It had accepted Finn’s body and his love. But with Leander’s abuses, it wanted blood. Madness had taken it, and with it the desire for vengeance returned. The blood of Sidon had always betrayed the Nox in the end. And now it wanted to spill it. All of it. Every last drop.

That blood was far too close.

The Nox sank claws deep into Wren’s heart, anchoring her in place and holding her there even as she tried to pull herself free. But her efforts were to no avail.

Finn moved in a fluid and lethal dance, he and Leander joined in a way that defined both their lives and all their interactions. The princes of Sidon always killed each other. It was an integral part of their line.

It didn’t have to be like that. She and Finn had discovered that. It could have been a sacrifice of desire and love instead. But once more they had chosen blood. Leander had chosen to kill for her. Every one of them, except for Finn, had chosen blood. They had chosen death.

Sidon had trapped the Nox and used her and forced her to do unspeakable things. And ever since then, his descendants had done the same. They had sacrificed their own to call her, to force her to comply. They had used her own desperate need for revenge against her.

They had chosen this, the Nox reasoned, as much as it could reason anymore. They had the option for love and passion and they chose to kill. They chose blood. Every single time.

And now madness had taken over, the Nox demanded it. She thrived on it. This was her vengeance and she hungered for the splatter of their blood. Once there had been a choice, but no longer. Blood was all that would satiate her now.

‘Don’t you see what they’re doing?’ Wren tried to ask the goddess, but her voice was small and unheard. ‘It’s the same cycle again. They’re still using you. Leander is using you. It’s a trap.’

But the Nox no longer listened to reason. She had been enslaved and used, made savage in service of a crown she hated, she had been broken by Elodie and scattered, banished to a lifeless endless place. Now she was back she was clinging to Wren and would not give an inch in case it all happened again. For all her power, she was terrified.

The two men danced through shadows and dark-flame, illuminated by otherlight. It ran across their skin and blazed in their eyes. The passion of the Nox and the Aurum reflected in them, robbing them of humanity. The more Finn relied on its strength, the more the Aurum ate away at what he truly was. The man in him was fading before Wren’s eyes. He was becoming living fire and there was nothing she could do.

‘Please, you have to make them stop.’

Blood of Sidon would be spilled here, in the chamber of the Aurum. It didn’t even matter which one of the brothers it belonged to. Finn was preferable because that would hurt the Aurum itself but really…

The Nox didn’t actually seem to care.

Wren had to stop them. Somehow, she had to put a halt to this.

‘Wren? Princess?’ The voice shook, wavering as the boy crawled towards her across the shining floor. Distracted by the battle, his guards had forgotten him. She turned her gaze on him and saw him quail. ‘Goddess? What…what can I do?’

As he reached her side, he reached up and took her hand. His fingers were so cold, shaking, and yet still he took her hand. Something like clarity shimmered just within reach.

‘Laurence…’ she said and her voice sounded as if it was made of broken glass, even to her ears. He really was innocent. And so very broken. Leander had manipulated him, made him kill the mother he adored, and he was still trying to help. He was blood of Sidon as well, through his mother and her line, but like Finn, he was different.

No one else came near her. No one else dared.

She had promised Hestia she would protect him and she was doing an abysmal job of that. She wouldn’t be surprised if Hestia came back from beyond the grave to punish her.

Beyond them the sound of Finn and Leander’s battle changed tempo, the clash of their blades married with grunts and gasps. Finn had driven Leander back towards one of the great stones, but at the last minute the king of Ilanthus twisted away and caught Finn a glancing blow in the side. Wren’s heart lurched and the Nox snarled.

Whoever wins I will make him ours, mindless and devoted. I will smother the light that remains. They will crawl…

It was so loud now, as if the goddess was hanging over her shoulder, snarling into her ear.

‘Help me, Laurence,’ Wren whispered.

He looked up at her. ‘How?’

‘Take off the crown.’

Finn was down on one knee, and as Leander pressed forward, he launched himself up in a flurry of movement which took his brother by surprise. Leander fell back, scrambling for balance, and Finn’s face seemed to change. A ferocious expression burned across his features and Wren didn’t know him anymore. She was going to lose him. One way or the other.

Unless she could put a stop to it.

Laurence pulled himself up against the throne. She could see the bruising all down the side of his face now, purple and yellow and enflamed. Another reason to hate Leander, as if she needed one. She lifted her hand and pressed the palm to his cheek. He flinched back from the blade that came with it and then stilled beneath her touch.

Is he ours? the Nox asked suddenly.

‘Yes,’ Wren said, ‘he’s ours. Blood of Sidon, blood of the goddess, and innocent of the crimes of his line… His mother was Hestia, your servant and my friend. And he’s your child too. He has suffered and struggled, and tried to serve even though all around him abuse him. All the others have their own agenda. Even Finn. But not him. He alone is ours.’

The Nox gave a curious kind of purr and shadows twisted around the boy. He tried to pull back, tried to recoil, but he couldn’t. These shadows didn’t overpower him, or hurt him, though. Slowly the bruises vanished and his suspicious gaze grew round in wonder.

‘Lady, let him go. He’s just a child.’ General Gaius stood before the throne. He looked haggard, but undefeated. There was blood pouring from a wound, turning his left side scarlet, but he still stood tall and proud.

‘ Soldier of Ilanthus ,’ she mused, and it wasn’t Wren’s voice this time, though she spoke. ‘ Most loyal general. Have you come to supplicate yourself? ’

She was losing control of herself. There wasn’t much of Wren left. Tears stung her eyes again, threatened to spill down her face, and the Nox didn’t even bother to blink them back.

‘I will always serve you, lady, but release the boy. I swore to his mother I would protect him.’

The Nox smiled. ‘ So did I. And I have need of him .’

Gaius looked anguished and then dropped to his knees. ‘Take me instead. I’m not blood of Sidon but my line is noble, and we have served for generations, devotedly so, the goddess and our royal family. Please, lady… Haven’t you spilled enough of his family’s blood?’

His family? Didn’t they even realise what the blood of Sidon was? Of course not.

‘ My blood ,’ she whispered harshly. ‘My blood. Hasn’t that been spilled enough? ’

Gaius looked confused, and his voice was no more than a whisper. ‘Your blood?’

Wren turned her attention to Laurence again. ‘ You have a role in this. She must have seen that too, Hestia. Son of Sidon… ’ For a moment all she could do was stare at his face, so young. If she got this wrong, if he wasn’t fast enough, the Nox would kill him anyway. All she could do was pray…

‘She told me…’ Laurence whispered, his voice shaking.

‘ Told you what? ’

He looked up into her eyes, his expression desperate and afraid. But she could see Hestia in him as well. Could see his mother’s strength and determination. ‘That when the moment came, I was to follow my heart. Trust myself. Do what was right…’

‘Laurence, please…’ and it was her own voice. It broke on a sob and the Nox rose up around her to finally smother her.

Laurence snatched the crown from her head. The Nox lashed out, the blades like lightning in the darkness. It was wild now, out of control, and the crown, the only thing suppressing it, vanished abruptly. She would kill him for his presumption, for siding with Wren over his goddess, or simply for who he was. For being within reach. He was Blood of Sidon and that was what she wanted after all. Spilling it would make her strong once more. She had promised to kill them all. Sons of Sidon, line of traitors and cruel monarchs, that blood flowed through his veins like a poison. She would take it and make it hers. She would tear him to shreds. She would…

‘Wren!’ Finn shouted. ‘No!’

Something hard and cold slammed into her hands, knocking her blades aside. Laurence fell back with a desperate cry, holding the crown against his chest, and Gaius moved like the wind, pulling him out of the way and shielding him. The Nox’s blades tore through the metal of the ancient dark sword Finn had wielded as if it was no more than paper, shattering it and scattering the pieces on the floor around her.

The sword Finn had thrown to protect Laurence, to protect them both, was destroyed in a burst of released magic and in that moment some kind of sense thundered back into Wren’s mind. The crown was gone.

With a gasp of air which filled her lungs like fire, Wren surged to her feet. The blades disintegrated and the choker around her throat fell to pieces, scattering across the stone floor and vanishing in the black flames. The Nox gave a cry of thwarted rage as the insidious power it had wrapped around her shattered.

Wren looked for Finn, desperate to see where he was and what had happened. He was unarmed now, helpless. He had given up his only chance in order to save Laurence, and to save her.

Leander kicked him full in the chest, sending him sprawling backwards. Finn rolled, tried to rise, but only made it as far as his knees.