Cursed by Darkness (Once Upon A Curse)

43. Juniper

FORTY-THREE

Juniper

“I

order you to leave,” Juniper said with a grunt as the Ombrete lunged again and she blocked it with her shield of light.

Rafe ducked. “You can’t order me.”

“I outrank all of you here.”

“I’m not one of your subjects?—”

“Raphael!” She pushed her light out toward the monster as it tried to get closer. “Please go. I know you want to protect me, but I’m not a child anymore. And I’m currently the only one capable of stopping the Ombrete. The second I try to run, it will attack. So, I’m begging you to get Richard and go.”

“Juni—”

“Let me be the one to protect you all, for once, while I can,” she said in a quieter tone. Her strength was waning, but she didn’t want him to see that or the way her arm was blistered, burnt, and causing an immense amount of pain. “Please, Rafe. I have to do this.”

He hesitated for a long few seconds as she continued forcing the shadow creature back. Sighing, Rafe used one hand to brush some of her hair from her face, and she could feel his pride in his voice as he whispered, “I love you.”

Her throat burned with tears as she said, “I love you too.”

“The second you have an opening, get out of here.” He knelt to haul Richard over his shoulder. When he stood, he paused only long enough to say, “I’ll see you soon.”

She nodded, but she wouldn’t promise him anything. Knowing that he had that kind of faith in her gave her even more strength and resolve though. He turned to go, and she thanked Ronna. But before he’d taken more than a few steps, she swallowed and said over her shoulder, “Rafe?”

He paused instantly. “Yeah?”

“Thank you.” She hoped he understood that she meant for everything, not just for trusting her with this. He’d always looked out for her, loved her. And she knew he had a huge part in her arranged marriage.

A soft pressure touched the back of her head. Her brother silently pressing a kiss to her hair. Then, he was gone, leaving her to face the demon holding her husband captive.

Juniper clenched her jaw and stepped forward. From somewhere close, the sound of hooves beating on the ground reached her. Behind her, she heard arguing, but she couldn’t pay any attention to the rider or her family right now. She had to trust that Rafe would make the others leave.

Hands outstretched, she ignored her burned arm and used all of her focus on forcing more magic at the Ombrete. Its shadowy body wavered in her light, and it continued growling in what sounded like frustration. It was still on the ground, not flying away, which made her think the dissipating shadows caused it pain.

“Give him back.” She didn’t know if this was hurting Bodin too, and that terrified her. If she found a way to kill the monster, what happened to her husband?

In response, it opened its mouth and spewed more fire. Juniper twisted away and tried to throw her light at it. But it didn’t work. She still had no idea how to truly control this magic.

Weariness, along with the pain shooting through her arm with each movement, slowed her down. Sweat beaded on her brow as she considered how to extinguish the creature entirely. Even if she was sure it wouldn’t kill Bodin too though, she wasn’t strong enough. There simply wasn’t enough of her light.

The hoofbeats grew louder, closer. A brilliant white light joined hers, brightening the field around them. The horse stopped, and the rider dismounted in an instant, running to her side. Juniper turned her head and let out a breath of surprise.

“Focus,” the young woman demanded. She couldn’t have been more than a few years older than Juniper, but she had an air of authority about her.

She also had Gilarnian colors draped over the horse now galloping back toward the other side of the battlefield. Juniper returned her gaze to the cowering Ombrete. “We can’t kill it yet.”

“Excuse me? Are you mad?” The woman sounded absolutely outraged. “It’s down and weak. This might be our only chance.”

“It’s not just a monster,” Juniper said, pleading for her to understand. “It’s… my husband is trapped within.”

“What? How?” She sounded incredulous.

Juniper narrowed her eyes, even though she couldn’t look away from the Ombrete. “Do you want the specific mechanics of how he shifted right now? Or can it wait until after we find a way to help him turn back?”

“Fine,” she said. “What’s the plan to save the king?”

At that, Juniper’s gaze snapped over to her. “How?—”

“Also not important right now. What are we doing?”

Juniper returned her attention to the Ombrete. “I… don’t know.”

The woman sighed, her tone dripping with sarcasm as she muttered, “Fantastic.”

Ignoring her, Juniper combed through the information she’d learned. She thought about his story of how impossible it had been the first time and how he’d begged and pleaded with the creature to give him control after watching it kill his family. Bodin had said it was a separate entity and that he could see from inside.

She took a deep breath to steady herself.

“What are you going to do?”

“Something incredibly stupid,” she whispered. “Can you hold it back on your own?”

“Yes, but I don’t know for how long…”

“All right. Just… do the best you can.” Juniper lowered her arms. Her hands still glowed, but it wasn’t directed at the Ombrete anymore. She started moving forward, nearing the monster lying on the ground.

“What in the burning hells are you doing?” the woman hissed, her own light shining a little brighter.

Juniper ignored her. “Bo?”

The Ombrete lifted its head with a snarl, and she paused. She didn’t know how hurt it was or if it was only pretending so it could lure her into a trap. It didn’t matter though. Either way, she would take the risk if it meant saving Bodin.

“Bo,” she repeated, taking another step closer. “Please come back. Fight it… for me.”

It looked from her to the woman, who quickly expanded her light to create a ring around Juniper and the creature.

“Bodin,” Juniper whispered. “I need you.” She choked on her words. “I love you.”

The Ombrete let out a grumble.

Holding its gaze, she knelt and said, “Give him back control.”

That only seemed to make it angrier. It pushed to its feet, and she jolted upright once more. The creature was taller than her, massive compared to any animal she’d ever seen. Her mind had trouble believing it was real, despite it standing in front of her. Its hot breath swept across her as it inched closer.

“I demand you let him go,” she said in a louder voice. That old familiar breeze brushed along her face, giving her a sense of serenity and strength. The next words out of her mouth were not her own. “Theran, that is enough .”

Theran? The God of Light? Juniper didn’t understand what was happening. Someone or something was using her voice, infiltrating her entire body as it took over. Was this similar to what Bodin experienced? She searched for the source, trying to confirm what she suspected. In her mind, she said, Ronna?

Yes. Breathe, human queen , said a soft whisper in her head. I will not let my brother harm you or your little one.

Juniper’s eyes widened, and her hand went to her stomach. “Bodin…”

The Ombrete’s head snapped in her direction, and she knew deep in her soul that it was her husband seeing her, not the monster. She knew how much this would mean to him, especially after everything he’d been through in the past. But she also understood the fear that came with the possibility of her having a child. She’d read it firsthand in his journal that mentioned Beatrice.

“This was not our deal, brother,” Ronna said through Juniper—a terrifying sensation, but one she didn’t fight. If the goddess was here to help them, she wouldn’t dare refuse. No matter what it took. “You were never meant to attach yourself to one of them.”

Juniper gasped and fell to her knees as images flooded her mind, scenes from a past long forgotten.

“You… you killed him,” Ronna whispered, staring down at the still form on the ground. Her father had always warned her about her brothers, had tried to instill upon her the coldness with which he ruled. Time and again he told her that love was a weakness. It was beneath the gods to have such feelings.

She’d always disagreed. Love gave them strength. It gave them something to hold on to and fight for.

And yet, as she knelt beside Eryx, she couldn’t stop the tears from rolling down her cheeks. He had fought for her, protected her throughout her entire existence. She bent over her brother with a hand on his chest. His shadows were gone, his magic vanished. The only brother who ever treated her as an equal. Despite his darkness, he was full of love.

“Heal him.” She lifted her gaze to Theran. “Use your light to heal him.”

“You know it doesn’t work like that. That’s why I couldn’t help your daughter.” He reached toward her then seemed to hesitate before crossing his arms. “It’s over, Ronna. Let him go.”

She brushed her tears away and stood, shaking her head. This wasn’t acceptable. Her brothers had always warred over this world and power, and now one of them was gone forever. He couldn’t even return to the stars. Clenching her jaw, she reached for her own power. Not the strength and immortality that came from her father, which had been faint in her soul, but that from her mother. The magic she’d hidden for millennia.

For she could manipulate beings into another form, shift any sort of matter to her needs. She could create anything out of nothing. All she needed was to picture it and then the very air around her could transform. It was how she had erected mountains to separate the kingdoms, made the magical lake, and kept her kingdom safe and thriving for centuries.

“I will not let you get away with this,” she said in a steady tone. “You are done destroying those I love.”

“Because there are none left,” he whispered with a malicious curl to his lips.

She shook her head in grief and disgust. “You may have killed him, but you won’t gain control of these lands and people. The magic from you both will continue to aid those in your kingdoms, but you are done here.”

Theran scoffed. He underestimated her, just as he had her entire existence. But she wouldn’t continue this way anymore.

Neither would he.

“You hated Eryx’s dark magic? Well, now it’s all you will know.” Ronna raised a hand in front of her, and her brother raised a brow. “You will no longer live in the light. Your physical body will cease to exist, and instead, you will be trapped among the shadows.”

“Ronna—”

“Until you can accept them,” she finished. “Until you can see that shadows cannot live without light, that light does not matter without darkness. Until one born of darkness and one gifted with light can prove that love is the strongest power in this world, not magic.”

A flash momentarily blinded Juniper, and she was thrown back into the present, facing the god who’d taken over part of her husband’s mind so long ago.

Until one born of darkness and one gifted with light can prove that love is the strongest power in this world, not magic. Juniper had been right; they were the perfect balance. They were made for each other. And they were the proof needed to end this curse once and for all.

As Juniper stood, Ronna used her voice again. “You’ve warped into the very creature you’d killed to extinction ten thousand years ago, Theran. But I see the struggle in you. I’ve had a long time to think about everything that happened, and I know you killed Eryx out of grief. That’s how you latched onto this man, isn’t it? He’s suffered the same pain.”

The Ombrete growled, but the shadows shifted and swirled.

I don’t understand , Juniper thought.

“The stories told across the lands were changed,” Ronna said out loud through Juniper. “Even my memory isn’t accurate. I saw it differently because of my own grief and anger.”

An image reappeared in her mind. This time, as Theran told her she didn’t have any loved ones left, he wasn’t grinning. He appeared as distraught as she felt.

“The humans wanted a fairy tale, a clear good and evil, but it is never that simple,” Ronna went on. “They made Theran a villain who slayed his kin out of spite and greed, but he hadn’t always been that cruel. He had loved me and Eryx, despite the wars over the world. And he’d once loved a human woman more than anything. A Mesairlan woman for whom he was prepared to give up everything.”

Juniper’s head spun, her eyes widening. The monster let out a low rumbling sound and stepped toward them.

The ring of light brightened around them slightly, stopping it in its tracks.

“She was unfaithful,” Ronna continued. “She betrayed him… with Eryx. And then, she died of a fever shortly after giving birth to a son. They weren’t sure whose child it was, but in the end, it didn’t matter. He was lost to illness too.”

No . Juniper clenched a hand to her chest. His tragic story was too familiar. That’s why he affixed himself to Bodin, how he took over. He understood that pain.

Yes. He loved the boy because it was the woman’s son. Because he was family, regardless of who fathered him.

He blamed Eryx for their deaths.

Juniper had been right. The storybook Bodin gave her had been connected to everything. He’d given it to her, saying he needed her opinion, but then they’d argued about coming here and got so caught up in the chaos that he never shared what he meant. Did he know it was Theran this whole time?

“I can’t hold this much longer!” the Gilarnian woman shouted beyond her light.

Juniper silently pleaded to Ronna to hurry. They were running out of time. Patience, young queen . “Theran, let him go and I will free you from the shadows. This must end.”

It huffed, steam billowing from its lips.

“You know what he has gone through,” Ronna said through her. “He’s lost everything, just like you did. But he found another chance, and now I’m offering one to you as well. Let me send you back to the stars.”

The moment the words were out, Juniper knew it was the wrong thing to say. If this truly was the God of Light, who’d killed his own brother, as well as his sister’s family, he wouldn’t be content leaving this world that he’d fought so long to control.

Another lie in the stories. He didn’t touch my family. Time, illness, and war took them from me.

Juniper’s heart broke. Theran hadn’t killed them. People made him a villain to fit their stories.

Just like they’d done to Bodin.

Just like they’d spread false stories about her.

The Ombrete’s stance changed; it reared up as if preparing to attack. Juniper could practically feel the rage emanating from it. And she understood why now.

Swallowing, she took a step back. Fear coursed through her when it stood to its full height.

“I love you, Bo,” she whispered as the creature opened its fanged mouth. The glowing embers brightened in its throat, and she wrapped her arms around her stomach and squeezed her eyes shut just as heat enveloped her.