Chapter Seven

The next day, the entire citadel, staff included, attended the mating ceremony of Nexhavaren of the Gold Tytra Clan and Evina of the Frenhal Bear Ladrin. It was held in the newly built village of Fress, where Evina cared for the orphaned human children and where I had grown up.

It was good to see the village full of people again, even though most of them were visitors. In addition to the Wraith Lords, there were also Evina's clan, the residents of Fress, the human recruiters, and the Emperor of Varr. Oh, and the Emperor brought his adopted human daughter, Sally.

Sally was decked out like the duchess she was—or was she a princess now? I'm not clear on royal titles. I just knew her status was higher than everyone's but the Emperor's. Her long brown curls were pinned with jewels, but those gems couldn't compete with the sparkle in her eyes when she looked at her father.

Emperor Sarthares held Sally's hand as they strode through the crowd, but when they stopped to speak with people, she often played with the lavender ends of his dark purple hair. He pretended not to notice, but I saw his lips twitching several times. Finally, they made their way to my group.

“Uncle Ember!” Sally exclaimed as she released her father's hand to run to me.

I scooped her up and hugged her. “Ugh! What are they feeding you at the castle? You weigh as much as Xaedren.”

Sally giggled. “I'm growing up! I've already grown two inches. Daddy marks it on the wall.”

I lifted my brows from her to the Emperor. The image of the Emperor marking one of his beautiful walls with lines to indicate how tall his daughter was getting bloomed in my head. It was something my mother had done when I was a kid, but our walls were made of plaster, not marble and gold.

“Is that right?” I asked Sally. “What does he use to make the marks?”

“A knife!” Sally exclaimed. “He carves the notches into the frame of my bathroom door. Agal fainted when he saw them.”

I burst out laughing. “I bet he did.”

Agal was the Emperor's manservant, and he did not appreciate anything that messed with the beauty of his master's domain. Even if it was his master.

“Agal is fine,” the Emperor said. “And I want those marks there forever. They will be especially precious after . . .” he trailed off as his eyes went misty.

Oh, it was happening already. This is the tragedy of an immortal loving a mortal. The Emperor would have a couple of centuries with Sally at most. Although that seems like a long time, it's not for an immortal. One day, the Emperor would be alone again. I had a feeling that Sally's childhood bedroom would be preserved after she reached adulthood so that after she was gone, her father could sit there, surrounded by his memories.

“After I die,” Sally finished, shocking us all.

“Sally!” the Emperor exclaimed.

“What?” Sally looked at her father with innocent, brave eyes. “Death is not bad, Daddy. It's just an end to one life and the beginning of another. I'll go to be with the Goddess and my first parents. And I don't want you to be sad when I go. We have a lot of time to be together. I want to fill it with so much fun that you'll smile even after I'm gone.”

All of us gaped at her. Not because of her courage, but rather the wisdom in her words. And the sweet, sweet kindness. But there was one thing she said that hit me hard.

“Death is not bad,” I whispered in revelation.

“Ember,” the Emperor growled. “Do not take meaning from that which wasn't meant.”

“Huh?” Sally frowned at him.

“Yes. Huh?” I repeated as I set Sally down.

She went to collect hugs from my lovers while I waited for an answer from the Emperor.

He sighed before giving it. “I had a dream last night. The Goddess came to me and said she had comforted you, but it would not be enough. She said you understood the path you had to take and the destination you must reach, but you were hurting yourself unnecessarily along the way. I believe her words were, 'He is tripping over his own feet.'”

I gaped at him.

“Ember?” Rath asked. “What's wrong?”

“She did comfort me. It was just the other night. And I understood. I asked her to comfort Aranren too,” I said.

The Emperor nodded as if he wasn't surprised. “She finds many ways to communicate with us. Sometimes through visions, sometimes through dreams, and sometimes it's just a feeling—her presence.”

“That's it,” I said. “It was a peaceful warmth.”

“I know that feeling!” Sally exclaimed as she left Xae's arms to run back to her daddy. “I got it the day you became my daddy.”

We gaped at Sally again, especially the Emperor. But he recovered first.

“You felt the Goddess that day?” Emperor Sarthares crouched to bring his face to the level of hers.

“Uh-huh.” She nodded as if this wasn't anything special. “I knew you were my second daddy then. I knew I was very lucky to have been born with two daddies.”

“Oh, sweet Goddess, thank you,” the Emperor whispered as he blinked back tears.

“Don't be sad, Daddy.” Sally hugged him. “I love you. Second doesn't mean less.”

The Emperor bent his head into Sally's hair, his shoulders shaking suspiciously, and we all looked away, giving him a moment to gather himself. A sniff came, and then he stood, bringing Sally with him. With his daughter sitting on the crook of his arm—a little awkwardly now that she was bigger, the Emperor faced me again, this time with wet but joyous eyes.

“You see, Lord Ember?” the Emperor asked. “As my Sally says, the natural state of death isn't bad, but the Consciousness is. And this is how you fight him.”

“I'm sorry, Your Imperial Majesty,” I said, utterly baffled. “I don't understand.”

“Ember, you can't fight Death with Death Magic,” the Emperor said. “I see that thought in your eyes, and you must banish it.”

“I know that most of Death Magic is bad,” I argued. “But I think it depends on the caster and the spell. If I—”

“No!” Vexen growled as he prowled up to us. “You can't ever use that vile magic again. I felt it in the Corrupter, actually felt the greasy evil seeping out of him, trying to enter me. You have to stay away from it.”

“But that was Death, not the magic. I . . .” I looked from Vex to my lovers, and then the Emperor. They all wore matching expressions. Stern, steady expressions that said they'd sooner chain me in a dungeon than allow me to use Death Magic.

“Death is like the dark,” the Emperor said. “It cannot be fought with more of the same. It can't be fought at all.”

“Uncle Ember,” Sally said hesitantly.

I cleared my throat and changed my expression to suit her. In other words, I smiled despite the anxiety I was feeling. “Yes, honey?”

Sally looked from me to her father. Only after he nodded did she speak, “When I go to bed, sometimes I get scared of the dark. So Daddy leaves a light on for me. Just a little one, but it sends the darkness running. It works every time.”

The Emperor beamed at her, then looked at me. “She is brilliant, isn't she?” His smile shifted into a smirk. “Smarter than you, Lord Ember. She understood immediately.”

I felt lost and a little defensive, what with everyone nodding and smiling. I still didn't get it. Frowning, I asked, “What are you talking about? You want me to battle Death with a nightlight?”

Sally burst out laughing.

“No, Lord Ember,” the Emperor said in a gentle tone. “Listen to me closely. If you want to defeat the darkness, you don't make it darker. You simply turn on a light.” He laid the palm of his free hand over my heart. “Be the light, Ember.”

With his touch more than his words, I understood. “Be the light. I need to counter Death with its opposite—life. Spirit Magic.”

“Yes.”

“Took you fucking long enough,” Keltyr muttered behind me.

“Hey!” I snapped at him.

“Sorry. You're smart, Ember. I know that,” Kel said.

“No, I don't care about the insult. I know you didn't mean it. I just don't want you cursing around Sally.”

“Oh. Sorry, Sally.”

“It's all right, Uncle Keltyr,” Sally said.

The Emperor chuckled. “You see? You are already a wielder of the light. Which leads me to the last thing the Goddess said to me in my dream—the words she asked me to repeat precisely.”

“What did she say, Your Imperial Majesty?” I asked as the rest of the men waited eagerly.

“When all seems lost, feel my love inside you, and keep burning bright, little spark. I will never forsake you.”

My breath caught. “She's said that to me before. 'Burn bright, little spark.'”

“Did you think I was making this up?” the Emperor teased. “It was a dream, but I know the Goddess spoke to me through it. She gave me hope. Hope that this war will end and my friend will be restored to his true self. The glimpse we got of Aranren may seem cruel, but it was necessary to show us what's possible. So, instead of being disheartened by Aranren's recapture, I choose to focus on the proof that he can be freed.” He leaned closer to add, “And I am certain you will be the one to free him, Lord Ember.”