20. Chapter 20

Chapter 20

T he wedding planning kept my body busy for the next few days. There were so many questions and things others wanted my opinion on, but I honestly didn’t fucking care about any of it. I usually pointed to whichever option I found to be the ugliest. After all, this wedding was not mine. I didn’t care what color the flowers were or what food we ate. I didn’t care if I wore white or not.

My eyes darted to Jesper as he and Tally emerged from a storage room together, clearly having just fucked. Tally’s blue eyes met mine and gave me a sneer, but Jesper walked over to me with a frown.

“I didn’t know you were up here.”

“Like that would have stopped you,” I muttered. “I’m over all the questions about planning the wedding. I don’t care about the details.”

I thought he would get angry with me, but he nodded. His blue eyes darted around the room at the dozens of fae planning our wedding.

“I’m sick of all the questions too. I’ll tell the planner to decide,” he agreed.

Well, that went better than I thought.

“I don’t understand why you don’t just marry Tally.” I wasn’t angry because he liked my sister or was sleeping with her. No, I was angry because I was being forced to marry this monster. Why did I have to give up my future for him? He looked at me for a long time, then sighed heavily.

“Because Tally doesn’t have magic and you do. My children will hopefully inherit your abilities, making them feared.” He paused for a moment, like he wasn’t sure if he should continue. “And I want to throw you in Cassius’ face for the rest of our existence.”

“Like he cares.”

“Oh, he cares because Cassius hates losing, and you were the ultimate prize.”

With that declaration, he turned and followed wherever Tally had gone. I watched after him and felt all those emotions of him doing this to me before resurfacing out of nowhere. He had always been an ass. I had never really cared if I settled for someone like him because I thought he was as good as it would get for me. How wrong had I been. Cassius made me realize what it felt like to be cared for. Cassius showed me what love should feel like. He was the reason that I knew I deserved more than this shitty life my father had given me in Cerithia.

Jesper was delusional to think I would let him use me to breed children. He was not getting anywhere near me. I would kill him before he touched me in that way, or I would gladly die. Either way, it was a win for me. Had I ever been with another man besides Cassius? A violent longing burned in my chest for him. I wanted Cassius. My instincts told me that none of it had been a lie, so why would he kill the woman he loves if not for betrayal? Cassius was right, he did feel like home, and I was missing that feeling terribly today.

Sadness returned as I headed outside, my mind ruminating on missing Cassius. My father had stopped me from training the guards until after the wedding. He said he couldn’t risk me tainting them with my rebellion, whatever the fuck that meant. I didn’t understand why everyone thought I would be more easily managed when I was married. If anything, I would become even more rebellious. I smiled at the thought. I would make Jesper’s life a fucking living nightmare, my father’s too. That would be the sole purpose of my life—to bring destruction down upon them all from within these walls.

I had already decided the first time my father laid his hands on me that I would do whatever I could to make the walls of Cerithia and Kizar crumble at my feet. I would not win a war for them. I would not be their monster. I would be on my own, and I would burn the realm that thought they could treat me like trash. I would take everyone down with me.

I smiled to myself as I walked through the woods within the wall of Cerithia. I wasn’t stupid enough to disobey today. Not when tomorrow was the big day, the day I was going to Exile to see for myself if everybody was really gone, and if they were—the realm of Elloryon would crumble with me as I gave in and lost my mind.

I paused at a small, run-down shack in the forest. I looked around to see if anyone was near me as I moved toward it. It was falling apart, and I knew it couldn’t be inhabited, but I was still curious. I had not ventured into the forest here before, so I wasn’t sure why I felt like this shouldn’t be here. It seemed somehow... misplaced.

Maybe that was what drew me to it. The wood planks that made the walls were vertical to the ground, but some of them had rotted away with time. This allowed me to see that there was nothing inside, but that didn’t stop me from continuing into it. I assumed the roof was also made of planks of wood, but I couldn’t be sure because of the moss covering it. The thin door was ajar when I reached it. I peeked inside and saw nothing, but I still couldn’t stop myself from taking a step through the doorway.

Once my whole body crossed the threshold, I froze. The shack had suddenly transformed into a stunning yet quaint home. I looked around the space and saw that it was now the size of ten shacks. The floor was pretty hardwood, with beautiful rugs spread across it. Two large chairs faced a roaring fireplace that held little knick-knacks on the mantle.

I turned and saw artwork hanging on the walls. So much that there was no room to hang another piece anywhere. I took a hesitant step forward so I could see the handcrafted wooden table and chairs that sat in a small space by the kitchen. Who lived here? How had they enchanted this space to be hidden so well?

“Thea,” a frail voice from behind, startled me. I turned to see a man sitting in one of the chairs by the fireplace that had been empty a moment ago. How had I not heard him? He was small—at least two feet shorter than me. The gray hair on his head was scraggly, and his beard was unkempt, like he didn’t know what a brush was. His clothes looked handmade and old, stitched with patches and threadbare on his papery skin. I held my breath when he turned slightly to me, his cloudy white eyes surprising me. He was blind.

“How did you know it was me?”

He scoffed.

“I expected you days ago, child, but better late than never, I suppose.” He waved his arm to the other chair by the fire, and I took it. Nothing told me I should feel in danger. In fact, I almost felt like I belonged here.

“Should I know who you are?”

“No.” He turned his head to the roaring fire. “We’ve never met.”

I looked at him for a long moment, trying to decide what I should ask first. He started rocking his chair slightly as I stared speechlessly at him.

“Then how do you know my name?”

“Everyone knows who you are, Thea,” he scoffed, like it was ridiculous that I didn’t know that. I glared at his bad attitude, not that he could see it. “Don’t look at me like that.”

My face dropped immediately, and he laughed loudly. The high-pitched cackles echoed in the small space.

“A seer may be blind, but we see all.”

A seer, I had never met one that I knew of. I smiled at him as I leaned back in my chair and rocked in tandem with him. Something about this quaint space made me feel calm and safe.

“You are troubled,” he frowned. “I feared you would be after the prophecy revealed itself, but I did not know it would cause so much deception and betrayal for you.” He turned to me. “I’m sorry I revealed the prophecy, but as a seer, I did not have a choice. If I had, I would have never spoken about your identity.”

I stopped rocking immediately. This was the man who had revealed the prophecy. This was the man who saw what I was to become and terrified everyone by revealing it.

“You are responsible for the prophecy,” I muttered, not sure how I was actually feeling. “You’re Brim?”

He nodded at his name. “No, I am not responsible for anything. I am a mere vessel for the prophecy. It chose me to speak the words, but that is the extent of my doing in all of this. Being a seer is not a job for the faint. We must tell our visions, even if it is not always for the best.”

“And what did the prophecy say of me?”

“No one has told you?” He looked truly appalled. “That’s a bunch of shit.” His choice of words made me chuckle loudly. He smiled at the sound.

“I have heard bits and pieces of it, but no one has revealed its entirety. I know that kingdoms fear me, fight over me, and even think I’m a monster because of it.” I frowned as I said the words out loud. He rocked silently for a moment.

“They are all idiots,” he finally declared. “The problem with prophecies is that they can be interpreted to suit anyone’s needs, being misconstrued and twisted into what they are not. I suppose that is part of the allure of a prophecy. Sadly, though, I am not in a position of power or authority to try and tell them that they are wrong.”

“Did anyone interpret it correctly?” I asked.

“Yes,” he sighed thoughtfully. “Although I cannot reveal who, you must discover it on your own and draw your own conclusions from it.”

I nodded as a response.

Clearing his throat in preparation, the old man began to speak in a measured cadence, using a tone that elicited my full attention.

A day in which a decision was to be made—a choice that only results in death

To be reborn is to be freed from a cage they inhabited

She will be the end of all we know

Destruction to the kingdoms of Elloryon

A power will be awakened by a knife’s blade

She will hold the fates of everything

Those should bow to her magic, for there is none like it; it is unmatched and unbeatable

Elite magic so grand that even the heavens above and hells below do not know where it belongs

She will not fail, so be wise, for she will determine fates

And all should bow to Thea Alzara, for she possesses power that will make kingdoms crumble and destroy all we know. She will kill kings.

His words wrapped around my mind. That could mean anything. I admit that it didn’t sound great for me. It made me sound… unstable.

“It sucks, huh?” he sighed. “So much left for interpretation.”

“They concluded I was a monster from this,” I muttered.

“Like I said, idiots,” he scoffed with disgust. “They do not like that you hold this power, Thea. They will always see you as a threat, and make no mistake, a threat you are. But that does not mean you are evil or bad. Maybe Elloryon needs a little... restructuring. But change scares others and is generally unwanted. It also makes men in power do stupid things.”

“I have witnessed that firsthand,” I nodded. “You can’t tell me anything else?”

“Afraid not.” He stopped rocking. “Some will see power and crave it. Others will cage it, tame it, use it for pointless things, beat it to submission... Then there are those who will protect it, love it, and be in awe of it, but still know to be cautious. Just remember that not everyone sees your power as a way to cage you.”

I looked at this frail man in front of me and felt a connection that seemed to have been forged long before we met today. Perhaps we had met in a different life. Or maybe he was the only one who could see me without having to even look. He seemed lost in thought as I watched the crackling fire.

“Fine, you twisted my arm,” he said suddenly, surprising me and making me sit up straighter in my chair. “This prophecy cannot be fulfilled until you break the curse.”

“But–”

“Your mother unintentionally cursed you with the binding of your magic, but Cassius freed you from that curse long ago.”

I shook my head, trying to form a question to ask. Freed me, he had freed me?

“I don’t understand.”

“You are not the only cursed soul in this, Thea.” He turned his cloudy, white eyes toward me. “Cassius was the one who angered the god, Mikel, not you. I believe Mikel was trying to give you mercy by taking away the memories of Cassius’ betrayal.”

“So, this is Cassius’ curse?”

“You are both cursed.”

“Does Cassius know that it belongs to both of us?”

“Cassius is a clever man, but it doesn’t matter if he knows that particular fact. He knows how it must be broken, and that is what matters. Your prophecy happens because you are able to see the truth of others on this journey, which allows you to save both Cassius and yourself.”

“Cassius needs my bloodstone, doesn’t he?”

Brim’s cloudy eyes shone brightly.

“Yes… You figured that out?”

“I’ve been piecing together information, and it all circles back to the bloodstone. My father told me Cassius was cursed too. He said Cassius needed my bloodstone so he could take his crown and bear an heir. He claimed that Cassius would lose part of his elite magic every year that passed if I did not break the curse, and that it would only break once I gave him my bloodstone. Is that true?” I frowned as I glanced toward the large flames of his fire.

“Your father is a master manipulator. Cassius is not cursed in such a way.”

“Then how is he cursed?”

Brim’s cloudy eyes stared into the fire.

“He must watch the woman he loves look at him like a villain. He watches you die over and over. I would say that is a terrible fate.”

“But he killed me. I do not understand why everyone thinks it is justified. He loves me, but he stabbed me. He was cruel to me in the clearing.”That was the one piece I couldn't understand. If he killed me for a good reason then why was he so cruel to me?

“Love makes us do things we do not always want to. Sometimes, we love someone or something enough to hurt them in order to save them. You still haven’t actually talked with Cassius. That is another part of the curse: he is the only one allowed to tell you the truth. He must tell you himself why he killed you and why that cursed you with no memories.”

I opened my mouth to beg for more information, but he held up his hand to silence me. I didn’t dare breathe, as he seemed to be trying to hear something.

“You should go. They are looking for you in the forest,” he whispered. “Best of luck to you, my dear.”

Then, as if I hadn’t been in his home at all, I fell to the forest floor on my ass. I was sitting inside the shambled shed alone. No trace of his inviting home around me. Although I could smell the fire on my clothing. Heavy footsteps sounded close by, and I stood up quickly. My head poked out of the shed, and Jesper stood ten feet away, with a handful of guards behind him.

“What the hell are you doing?” he snapped.

“I was exploring the forest.” I stepped out of the shed, and he grabbed my hand, dragging me back toward the castle in a haste.

“I was told I couldn’t leave the wall, not the castle grounds,” I responded to his silent anger. “Is that wrong?”

“No, of course not,” he sighed. His fingers gripped me tightly. “I just get worried when I don’t see you for a while.”

“Can you stop hurting me?” I groaned as his fingers dug into my barbed wrists. Jesper looked over me before irritation took over his features.

“I’ll do whatever I want to you.”

He gripped me by the back of my neck and shoved me toward the castle, making me fall into the tall green grass.

He was one who aimed to cage me. He feared my power and hated me for it. The fear I could understand. After all, I could change an entire realm with a flick of my wrist if I chose. I, Thea Alzara, should be bowed to.

Through the haze of pain, I smiled at the words of the prophecy. I would have loved to see the faces of everyone when my name was called out.

My eyes caught sight of Haden standing in the forest of Cerithia as he watched Jesper forcefully rip me up by my hair. What was he doing here again? His clenched fists were covered in frost as he watched Jesper hurt me. Quickly, I glanced away because I didn’t want Jesper to see him. When I glanced back, I saw Wisp floating by where he had been standing.

Haden was gone, and within a moment, so was Wisp.

My eyes drifted to the training fields, where I spotted Leer. He was watching me, relief on his face that I was alive. I needed to go see him and his family tonight.