18. Aramis

Chapter 18

Aramis

I have always known who I am, down deep to my core.

They don't leave you much freedom when you're born the son of the king. So, as prince, you're immediately forced to dress a certain way, walk, talk and think a certain way. I am not trying to hide behind the way I was brought up, I was still making choices even when I thought I did not have any. But now that everything that has ever defined me has been taken from me, I don't know how to rebuild.

The axe flies down with precision, and snow flies in the air when the log splits in two. It has been difficult finding dry enough wood for the fires, and after half of the refugees lost their homes, warmth is needed more than ever.

Another log splits in two.

A bloody dragon. How are we going to deal with that?

The cuffs on my wrist rattle against the axe's hilt. It has been so long since I have last felt magic cursing through my veins–the wind wrapping itself around my fingers–that I've become numb to the absence.

How do you prove your worth?

After meeting Axton, Sybil and Marcelene had returned to the infirmary to ready as many injured as possible for their upcoming travels. Two days, that's the time the Council has agreed on waiting before moving the camp, so we too have agreed to stay and help as much as we can before searching for the dragon.

Another log splits. I dry the sweat on my brow.

We find the dragon. We get the book. We kill Tricella.

I have been repeating the plan over and over in my mind, obsessively. The key to the plan is Sybil. Memories of her petite body bursting into light, with no control or direction, make me swing my axe harder and the log explodes and splinters. She could have killed herself.

I drop the axe and sit on the cold snow.

"Tired already?" Aries asks with a snicker.

"This is not the time," I wave him off, knowing that's exactly what's going to make him stay. Ever since Victor has assigned Aries as my guard, the shifter has been the bane of my existence. Although, fighting side by side during the shadow beast's attack has helped make him less of an asshole.

"I would have bet you'd be sneaking off at any chance to spend some time with your lady." He swings his dagger in his hands, leaning against a nearby pine.

"Are you here to give me love advice now, Aries?" I turn to him with furrowed brows and wipe the sweat off my forehead with the cuff of my sleeve.

"Fuck that. I'm just surprised you're here. And when you're not here, you're building tents or stretchers for the injured. Goddess, I've even seen you cook. Don't you think these poor souls have endured enough?"

I look away, suddenly feeling exposed by Aries' honesty. "I've been telling you since the day I first met you in the woods that I am here to help."

"And to get your girl back." The truth in his words makes my throat close.

Why wasn't I with Sybil?

I rake a hand through my knotted hair–Goddess knows, I need a haircut–and take some snow to rub between my aching hands. After a moment of silence, I take a deep breath and the words leave my lips on their own accord.

"I am not sure she still wants me. I am not the man I used to be, and I am still looking for the man I want to become."

After the first night spent in my hut, I have hardly had a moment to spare for conversations with her, except for the dinners shared with Nero and Marcelene around the firepit. She avoids my gaze, and every step I take toward her, she takes one step back. I saw her one night, resting on a pile of rubble, massaging her calves, and I could not take my eyes off her. I felt the pull of our bond, telling me to tend to her. To pick her up and run, take her to safety.

But she needs space. This is her destiny, I remind myself.

And I will hold her hand through it all, if she lets me.

"Aha, and I always thought princes had it easy with women!" He snickers. I wonder if I have willingly handed over more reasons for Aries to be unbearable to me.

I pick up the axe and raise it over my head, but pause as he clears his throat.

"I had a wife," he starts, so quiet I can hardly hear. I fight the urge to snap my head in his direction, but I pause, soaking in his story. "I lost her in one of the early attacks. We had no idea what the shadow beasts were at the time. They came out of nowhere and no one knew what to do." Pain laces every word and guilt rushes in like a punch in the gut.

"I'm sorry, Aries." I finally turn to him, setting down the tool. He is mindlessly rolling a golden band on his ring finger I have never noticed before.

"Her name was Emma. She had the spirit of a summer storm. She was headstrong and reckless, always getting herself into trouble to help others. I like to think the Goddess claimed her so early because she realized Emma had too much love to give and was going to become a Goddess herself if not stopped. She had always been one in my eyes." Aries scoffs and looks up at the sky.

The mating bond tugs in my core and I wonder if Aries and Emma were mates too. I shift my gaze back to my reddened hands, hoping the pain of the splinters will distract me from the ache in my heart.

"But I get you, Prince. Never, for a single moment have I ever thought I was worthy of Emma. The woman deserved every crown and jewel in existence, and I was a piece of shit with anger issues. But let me tell you this, now that she is not here, I regret wasting even a second not fighting for her, trying to find faults in something that was so... right."

I can hear the crunch of snow under his boots as Aries steps closer to me. He throws a little sachet with fresh bread next to me.

"For what it's worth, Aramis, you're not half as bad as you think you are. I just like taking the piss out of you. I don't know what the Goddess is expecting from you, but as far as I'm concerned, you're showing your worth. But don't you expect me to go soft on you." He crosses his arms over his chest and raises an eyebrow. "Now, get up and go show the unicorn some love."

Before I can respond, I hear her voice.

"Aramis! Come quickly," Sybil says breathlessly as she runs in my direction. She still has her healing apron ties around her slender waist, pockets full of vials and blood stains on its hem. Her cheeks flush deep crimson as they land on my bare chest, moving slowly to meet my gaze.

"Sybil." I straighten, stepping toward her as I feel the bond urging me to go to her, but I pause. "What is it?"

She shakes her head as if she's waking up from a stupor, hands twisting restlessly.

"Phoebe has returned."

Aries clucks his tongue and tosses me the tunic I had hung on a branch. "Let's go."

I quickly pull the fresh tunic over my head as we follow at her heels back to the council's tent. My eyes devour every movement she makes, hardly able to let her leave my vision. So close, yet so far.

"Sybil." I reach out and slide my hand down her arm until it encompasses her wrist. She inhales sharply and looks at my hand before meeting my eyes again. "No matter what happens, I will be by your side. We will take whatever news we can and plan accordingly to keep this village safe before we go after the book."

"I know." She nods, interlocking her hand with mine and giving me a reassuring squeeze. Marcelene turns the corner of the next tent and into our path.

"Where have you been?" Sybil whispers, and immediately drops my hand to turn to her friend. "You were supposed to be helping me yesterday with the healers. You didn't even come to dinner."

"I've been... around." Marcelene looks between Sybil, Aries and I before cocking her head to the side. Her feline slit pupils stare at us unblinking as her tail flicks back and forth behind her.

Why is she in her demi-form?

"What do you mean? What's going on?" Sybil looks over her shoulder.

"There is something strange going on in this village, but I can't quite put my finger on it," she replies with a shrug. "It's possibly nothing, just wound up from being cooped here, waiting for answers."

As we pass another group of tents, Nero turns onto the main path toward the Council tent and joins us.

"Evolet told me about Phoebe," he immediately says, but his gaze shoots to Marcelene, who bites her lip and looks in the opposite direction. I watch between the two and make a quick note to get some time alone with Nero to find out what is going on.

"Marcelene was telling us there's something going on here and I don't know how to explain it, but I think she's onto something," I say, the corners of my lips pulled down. I hadn't voiced the thought out loud yet, putting it off as just a manifestation of everything that had happened. But no one had yet managed to explain to me who the battered rat shifter who had attacked me in the cell was.

"Now, don't ye get that witch's feline cryptic senses affecting ye." He shrugs and gestures at this town. "These are yer people, Aramis."

I sigh as we arrive at the Council tent, I pull back the flap and gesture inside. "You're probably right. Let's see what the fox has to say."

The rising sunlight filters through the canvas, creating a muted tone as we are the last to take our seats. Nero, Sybil, Marcelene and I sit side by side amongst the council. Aries stands at the far end, the usual smug expression back on his face, but I have a newfound respect for the man.

"We are glad to have you returned to us, Phoebe," Victor says with a nod. "Tell us what you have learned."

Phoebe sits at the other end of the table. Her red hair is disheveled, dark shadows circle her wisp eyes. She probably traveled without stopping, aiming to get us the information she discovered as soon as possible.

"The shifters and elementals building the tunnels have been successfully warned of the threat. They're currently traveling back to the camp but agreed it would be safer to take different routes."

Everyone nods, relieved this first mission went as well as they could have hoped for.

"I successfully entered the castle through the water duct by the crypts," she continues, nodding at me in gratitude. "I eluded the guards and made my way down to the dungeons. The cells are still full of shifters, all alive, for now. But there's more. She's creating new monsters. Grotesque creatures the size of a minotaur, with menacing tusks protruding from their mouths, vacant eyes, and razor-sharp claws. They are made of flesh and bone rather than shadow, but that does not make them any easier to kill. I saw a guard cutting their limbs off, over and over, and they regenerated."

Gasps of horror fill the tent. There's no denying now that, if it comes to a full-fledged war, it will be one of the bloodiest Craeweth has ever seen.

"How many are there?" I ask, calculating the number of soldiers we'd need to have. The odds were stacked against us.

"I cannot say for sure. I stayed as long as I dared but did not explore the lower dungeons," she says with a flick of her tail.

"How many?" I ask again. Will I have to fight my own men? I need to get them out of there. Tricella cannot force them to fight for her.

"Aramis," Nero warns at my side.

"It will be a massacre, Nero. The shadow beasts. Now these monsters, look around you. If we die, the resistance dies. There must be something we can do to prepare for this eventuality. She has attacked once, what stops her from doing it again."

"We will leave this location by the morrow, but Aramis is right, we don't have the forces to launch an attack on the kingdom nor defend us from one," Victor replies.

"If we cannot find a way to break Tricella's hold on dark magic and on my father, war will be inevitable." I meet his glance over the table, heat flicking up my neck.

"We are hoping that by retrieving the Book of Light, there will be some inscription in it to help me use my magic to counteract her," Sybil says to break the tension. "But the book is kept captive by a dragonin the Rocheux mountains, we suspect. We will try our best, but we cannot rely solely on a single solution. Aramis is right. We need to prepare for the worst and hope for the best."

I clench my fists at the thought of Sybil confronting Tricella.

"Talking about the book," Phoebe continues. "I saw it. Only one, with a black leather-bound cover. I did not even dare get close; the evilness it was emanating... I have never felt anything like it."

"What about the soldiers?" Nero interjects. "How the fuck are they supporting her?"

"Well," Phoebe starts and quickly glances at me with apprehension. I rake my fingers through my hair and pinch the bridge of my nose, preparing for the news to come.

"They are shells. Eyes vacant. I believe they are under the same mind control as the King is. They will do whatever Tricella asks without batting an eyelid. This is how she's kept the elementals in check from rebelling against her. Her power is... extreme. It's like a virus and it's only growing stronger."

Sybil shifts in her seat next to me. She's sinking her nails in the palms of the hands, her breathing accelerating. I cover her hands with mine and when our eyes meet, I see my panic mirrored in hers.

The council members murmur between themselves. For a moment, it feels like it's only us and the burden we carry.

"Were you able to discern any of the queen's plans?" Aries drawls from the other end of the table, breaking our spell. A few members cast sharp looks at his tone.

"I found her advisor's chamber. The seer. I saw maps and battle plans not only across Shadowvale but beyond. The only area they're turning a blind eye toward is Caelo."

"That would mean crossing southeast through the mountain ranges." Nero frowns, looking around the room. "It would be an easier trip south to Kallistar."

"Kallistar is too risky with the queen's current motives. We'd be safer facing the mountain passage than we would facing her shadow beasts in the forest," Phoebe agrees.

"We will consider if moving camp there is a viable option," Kaitlin says and nods at Evolet, who promptly goes to circle in red the area on the map laying on the table.

"The seer also kept notes about you, Sybil," Phoebe continues and looks at her. Sybil squares her shoulders and forces a smile.

"They are still hunting you. Something about balance, and you being the key."

Sybil freezes and I squeeze her hand, sending her comfort down our bond, even if she probably does not feel it.

"What about the elementals she kills?" Kaitlin, Kela's mother, asks. The question takes me somewhat by surprise.

"What do you mean?" I ask. Nero matches my confused expression, but everyone looks at us as if we were stupid and Aries starts laughing.

"When the attacks first started," Victor explains. "Nero told us about villages known for the peaceful coexistence of elementals and shifters being attacked, and nine times out of ten, the only victims were elementals. The Queen of course, used this to weave the narrative that shifters were attacking elementals, and manipulated you, Prince, to start a crusade against us. But we never laid a finger on elementals."

My brows furrow, the cogs in my mind turning furiously trying to connect everything.

"We thought Tricella sent shadow beasts to target elementals, but did you ever wonder why there were never elemental bodies left behind? We thought she was experimenting on her own?—"

"There's nothing about her messing with elementals. Her focus is on siphoning shifter magic alone," Phoebe explains.

"Something else is at play here," I whisper and worry about what is going to be the answer.