Chapter 20

CHAPTER 20

P anic woke Bel from a sound sleep. The urgency of his dream followed him into wakefulness: the terror, the yearning, the sense that someone nearby needed him.

He pulled on the silk robe Jessa had bought and left his room. As soon as he stepped out into the hallway and saw Lio, his heart gave a happy lurch until he noticed the pallor, frown, and downcast eyes. The wave of anguish hit him again. Whatever brought Lio to Farren's door at this hour might not have been Bel's business, but Lio definitely was. Bel strode across the hall.

Such pain in Lio's eyes. Why? Had something happened? Bel would tear anyone apart who dared harm his man. "What's happening?" he demanded, taking Lio's trembling shoulders in his hands.

Farren opened the door wider. "You might as well come in." He stepped back and allowed them to enter.

The invitation might or might not include Bel, but he entered anyway.

"Have a seat. I'll make coffee." Farren retreated to the kitchenette—much larger than in Bel's room—while Morrisey leaned against a wall and brooded. Even wearing nothing but boxers, Morrisey came across as intimidating.

Bel and Lio sat on the couch, close but not quite touching. Bel and Morrisey exchanged worried glances while Lio stared resolutely at the floor.

The combination of the living room and kitchen reflected what Bel thought might be Farren's choices, with matching furniture, the occasional purple throw pillow Arianna handed out like candy, and everything was neat and tidy, except for a pair of shoes by the couch too large to be Farren's.

The entire presentation reminded Bel of a furniture store's window display—tasteful, but not necessarily welcoming or personal. A metal sculpture hung from one wall that Bel couldn't quite figure out. Maybe the fender of a lightning-struck car?

A white cat meandered from the bedroom and headed straight for Lio. She hopped into his lap, letting out a "Meep" of greeting. Lio wrapped his arms around the creature and buried his face in her soft fur.

Farren placed two cups on the coffee table for Lio and Bel and went back to the kitchenette for two more. He returned and sat in an armchair, handing a cup over his shoulder to Morrisey. Morrisey continued his brooding and leaning, but now with coffee.

"Okay," Farren said. "Lio, I take it you've had some kind of breakthrough. What have you remembered?"

Lio bit his lip as he glanced at Bel, and then he sighed and focused on stroking the cat. "I remember who I am. Who I was, rather, in Domus. All of it. It's not good." His Adam's apple bobbed with his hard swallow, and he clasped his hands together, but the cat head-butted his arm until he began petting her again.

Bel's breath caught as he recalled the terrible story of Emilio. Could Lio's be even worse? The poor guy. Bel wanted to hold him, but now probably wasn't a good time. Besides, the cat seemed to have claimed the role of comforter. Whatever the pain, whatever caused it, Bel would gladly take it upon himself to spare Lio.

"And who were you?" Farren calmly took a sip of coffee.

Lio spoke in a wooden voice. "I was born into a Nutrix family. My parents called me Cassus, and they hid me when they realized I was Tenebris. Someone reported us, and the council came for me. They didn't destroy me, though. Instead, they moved me to an abandoned citadel and changed my name to Perditor."

"Destroyer," Bel and Farren said in unison.

"Yes." Lio nodded, eyes bleak. "They said my purpose in life—my only purpose—was to carry out the wishes of their god, Set, and without a Lux to balance my nature, I'd destroy all in my path."

Bel cringed at how matter-of-factly Lio spoke. While Terra wasn't perfect, they couldn't beat Domus for the cruelty of putting a spawn… child, rather, to death simply for their nature. Most Domusians considered spawn precious and nurtured them.

Except for Tenebris.

Lio shifted closer, pretending to reach for his coffee cup. Bel did the same until their thighs touched. Bel tried to send all the comfort he could through that minimal contact.

"Bastards," Morrissey muttered.

Bel fully agreed.

"What happened then?" Morrisey asked.

Lio shook his head, causing a lock of hair to fall over his forehead. Bel wanted to put the silken strands back into place with a gentle finger and say everything would be okay. "The citadel had once been a school by the sea, long abandoned and privately turned into what they called a monastery."

Farren paused in sipping coffee. "Domus didn't have gods to worship that I know of."

"It was a secret sect, only for elite Princeps—and me. The leaders said a being named Set appeared and claimed our world must be sacrificed. I was to be their instrument. I could never leave the monastery, and the only people I saw were monks or servants, and occasionally the priest."

The way he spat "priest" made Bel heartsick. He could no longer stop himself and put an arm around Lio's shoulders. Lio leaned into the embrace.

Domusians needed interaction. Few chose to live away from family and friends. Who would do such a thing, especially to a child?

"The elite wanted to tap into the atmosphere of Domus itself and bleed away the energy for Set, but they were afraid the Magestra would notice, so they brought people to the tower and drained them instead." Lio turned shimmering eyes to Farren and then to Bel. "They caused the initial disappearances. They banished entire families…." His voice ended with a sob.

Bel's blood ran cold. Those disappearances began three generations ago. Three generations of Domusians crying for their loved ones, not knowing their fate.

Some asshole knew and willingly caused the suffering, the deaths?

Farren sat forward in his chair, resting his elbows on his knees. "What about the gray mist?"

"The missing power destabilized sector after sector," Lio said. "Even the monks were surprised when the first one disappeared."

Bel couldn't help himself and reached out a comforting hand to Lio, which Lio took into his sweaty hand, lacing their fingers together, though he didn't look Bel's way. The cat glowered but stayed on Lio's lap.

Bel kept his voice gentle to avoid Lio sensing some kind of accusation. "Where did you fit into this?"

"Set wasn't satisfied with trickles of power. He wanted it all now , according to the priest. Once I was old enough and had the necessary control, I would drain our world for Set. But people started fleeing to Terra. The leaders truly believed Set needed every Domusian life, so they groomed me to come here and make that happen, though it was never made clear to me how Set would obtain the power."

"What?" Morrisey bellowed, sloshing coffee over the side of his cup.

Farren cleaned the spill with a wave of his hand.

"Calm down, big boy," Lio replied with a lopsided grin that was anything but happy. His fractured state of mind made him bold enough to speak so to Morrisey when normally he'd have avoided the man's notice. "I had no intention of doing what they said. They thought I would blindly follow their orders. I think that's why I lost my memory. I was determined not to be their tool. We have more powers here than in Domus, so when I crossed the portal into Terra, I wanted to forget all I knew."

Farren tipped his head to the side and hummed softly. "That makes sense."

"The priest said I'd remember their instructions when the time was right. I forgot everything, though." Lio buried his face in the cat's fur again. "I won't do it. I'd rather you banish me now than risk harming so much as one person."

Bel rubbed Lio's back in slow circles, willing him to calm.

"I'm glad you came to us." Farren sent a decisive nod toward Morrisey. "I don't think it will be necessary to banish you."

Lio sprang from the couch, dislodging the cat, who spat and traipsed off with her tail held high. He paced to the kitchenette and back, pulling at his hair. "But what if I suddenly activate like a bomb or something?"

Bel remembered Errante's words about a ticking bomb. "You're Tenebris. I'm Lux." He turned his desperation toward Farren. "Can't you help me and Lio bond? Wouldn't that balance him?"

"Yes, but it's not simply a matter of bonding. When Morrisey and I bonded, we'd been fighting our souls for weeks because they wanted to bond earlier. Have the two of you felt a connection?"

The warmth when Bel thought of Lio and an overwhelming need to protect. The dreams, and even feeling Lio's distress tonight. "I have." Without a doubt.

"It's got to happen on its own," Morrisey said. "You can't force the bond."

Farren stroked his chin, staring out at nothing with a faraway look in his eyes. "Many of our people bonded by choice, but it wasn't a true bond."

"What's the difference?" Bel's parents never told him much about true bonds since they were rare. He set himself on a trajectory to intercept Lio's pacing, wrapping him in a hug. "It's going to be all right, Lio."

Farren continued, "Morrisey and I can read each other's emotions if he allows it. Before we bonded, we didn't know Morrisey was a traveler."

Another matter bothered Bel: "But you knew us on sight. I'm Princeps. Shouldn't that have kept you from recognizing me as a traveler?"

Farren winked. "Not when another Princeps teaches you how. Morrisey learned from some Princeps who came to Terra many years ago. Few can hide from us anymore, though we're not infallible, which definitely helps maintain the peace, and neither of you was shielding."

"Can someone hide from you?" Could Lio hide?

Farren rolled his shoulders in a shrug. "A few of our people have learned to shield, but eventually, they slip up and let their guard down."

Bel glanced down at the man in his arms before returning his attention to Farren. "What can we do?"

"You get to know each other and work together, like Morrisey and I did." Farren gave Morrisey a fond look. Morrisey's scowl lessened, which Bel thought might be his version of a smile. "It started when I entered his mind to gather details about a case. Our souls tried to bond on their own without any input from our consciousness. We could try that with the two of you."

Another thing bothered Bel, though. "If our world and this one are destroyed, the monks would also be destroyed. Why would they agree to such a thing?"

Lio sagged against Bel. "Set promised they'd travel with him among the stars. And they weren't all monks. The highest-ranking member went by the title of priest."

"Wha… what was this priest's name?" Bel didn't know how he knew, but he did. Someone powerful. Someone others would willingly follow. Bile rose, and acid bit the back of his throat as he waited for the words that would rearrange his life as he remembered it.

Lio confirmed his suspicions. "Udeall."