Tale of the Heart Queen (Artefacts of Ouranos #4)

Chapter 58

C HAPTER 58

“ H old still,” Willow complains as she pins up the front of my hair, allowing long curls to trail down my back. We stand inside a small cabin deep in the mountains, surrounded by snow and stars and nothing but white and grey stretching on all sides. She’s wearing a borrowed dress from Amya, constructed of black lace and silk, all edged with bright aurora colors. It looks amazing on her. Almost like she belongs here.

After Bronte located a cavern made of virulence to perform the ceremony, she also happened upon this small, dusty, but surprisingly cozy hunting cabin where we could get ready.

Between Anemone, Willow, and the queen of Tor, they did the best they could to make it presentable, and the irony of having this fearsome warrior queen scrambling about like a mother hen isn’t lost on me. Morana and Khione wait patiently at the door, lying on their paws, watching us flit about the space.

Anemone and Bronte both wear the clothes they arrived in—Anemone in a blue dress covered with a cloak she borrowed from Amya and Bronte in her grey fighting leathers. She’s clearly used to the cold and comfortable, even with her arms bare.

What a motley crew we make.

“You look beautiful,” Willow whispers as she adds some finishing touches to my makeup. Without a mirror to use, I have to take her word for it. “He’s going to lose his mind.”

“Pretty sure he’s about two seconds from that every time she walks in the room,” Anemone jokes from the rickety table, flipping through the Book of Night.

“You sure we’ll be okay?” I ask her, my constant worries about what happened with my grandparents ever at the forefront of my thoughts.

“Not entirely,” she answers, offering me an uncertain look. “But mostly.”

“Willow, maybe all of you should go somewhere else,” I say. “Far away. Just in case . . .”

Just in case this causes another explosion and kills everyone within firing range.

“If you think I’m about to let you bond without me there, you’re dreaming,” Willow says.

“But—”

She flips a hand. “But nothing. Anemone will ensure we’re all fine, and I will not let you do this alone. I wouldn’t miss this for anything. ”

I give her a small smile. “I love you, Willow.”

“I love you too. Now let’s get going. They’re waiting for us.”

We gather our things and, with the dogs leading us, make our way down a short path to a cave entrance. We wind down a tunnel, deeper and deeper into the mountain. It takes us what feels like a long time to get there, and I try not to think about the weight of stone over our heads. As we descend, it starts to feel like the walls are closing in on me. My breath grows tight, and sweat breaks out on my forehead.

“Lor? Are you okay?” Willow asks as I come to a stop, pressing one hand along the wall and one to my chest as I try to draw a proper breath.

“She’s claustrophobic,” Bronte says, her voice distant and hollow in my ears. “It’s normal for a lot of people when they go under the mountains.”

Bronte gently touches my forehead with two fingers, and the tight feeling in my chest dissipates, the wooziness clearing from my head.

“Common enough that my magic can help,” she says.

“Thank you,” I whisper, grateful that I can breathe again.

“Come. We have a ways yet to go.”

We continue to wind into the mountain, and though I continue to feel a bit like we’re being buried alive, Bronte’s magic makes the trip more bearable.

Finally, she takes a left and gestures us down another tunnel.

“Through here.”

We enter another short path where lanterns sit at the base, guiding our steps. Set into the wall is an opening that branches off .

“Lor,” Willow says, turning to me, “Wait out here for a moment. We’ll go in and make sure everything is ready.”

Anemone brushes past me and enters the next cavern.

“I’ll come get you,” Willow says, stretching up to kiss me on the cheek before she disappears around the corner.

“Sure,” I answer. Then I wait in the dimly lit tunnel, trying not to feel like a thousand eyes are watching me from the shadows. Thankfully, Morana and Khione wait with me, their ears pricked in alertness, which makes me feel less alone. I crouch down, pressing my nose into Morana’s fur as I rub her head, inhaling her fresh, earthy scent.

A noise catches my attention, and I spin around, peering down the path, but beyond the row of lanterns, the black is as impenetrable as a thick, heavy sheet of velvet. I shake my head at my foolishness. What could possibly live all the way down here?

All kinds of horrible, wretched things, that’s what.

I read Rion’s notes about his experiments with the low fae that created the monsters in the Void. And that’s probably only a taste of the ancient, long-forgotten creatures that might dwell in these mountains.

Anything could be down here. I shiver as a chill races down my spine. I keep staring into the dark, refusing to turn my back on it when something touches my shoulder. I screech, spinning around to find a surprised Willow with her hands up.

“It’s only me,” she says. “Are you okay?”

I blow out a long breath, willing my heart to settle.

“Sure. You startled me. I . . . don’t like it down here.”

“It is pretty creepy,” she agrees. “Sorry. I should have thought of that. ”

I shake my head and smooth down the front of my dress as I square my shoulders and wave a hand at my face, trying to cool myself off. Though a chill seeps through the layers of rock, my anxiousness about a million things that could go wrong is making me too warm.

“I’m fine. Are we ready? The sooner we get out of here, the better.” I try not to think too hard about our next step—following Rion’s map to the Underworld and traveling even deeper than this. Add it to my list of problems.

“Come on,” she says with a huge grin. Then she turns around, and I follow her around the corner with the dogs trotting behind me to find a large cavern.

The sight makes me still in my tracks. They’ve filled the entire space with hundreds of candles lined along the edges. Balls of colorful light hang suspended from the ceiling courtesy of, I assume, Amya and Nadir. In addition, there are roses everywhere . They cling to the walls, hang from the ceiling, and carpet the floor.

It’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.

“Willow, what did you do?” I whisper, my voice raw with emotion.

“No crying yet,” she says, taking me by the hand and pulling me down the center, where candles light our way. Nadir stands in the middle of the space wearing a tailored black suit and a bright smile that shifts the pieces of my heart. I take in the broadness of his shoulders and the way the fabric molds to the curves of his arms and thighs. His long dark hair shines in the dim light, as smooth as glass. He’s not just beautiful, he’s raw and wild, forged in the knifing chill of arctic winds and the sinuous glow of the northern lights .

He stares at me with the universe reflecting in his gaze, and I’m so overcome I can’t make my feet move.

He tips his head, his smile crooking higher. “Not having second thoughts, are you, Lightning Bug?”

I shake my head, tears blurring my eyes. “Of course not.”

His gaze drags down my body and then lifts as his eyes swirl with points of crimson and cobalt.

I’m wearing the red dress I bought in the Violet District with Amya when I told myself I’d never belong to Nadir.

It was still hanging in his room and felt like the perfect choice. The only choice.

Around my waist is a belt holding the dagger with the heart-shaped jewel he purchased for me in Aphelion.

“That dress,” he says. “I thought I’d never get to see you in it.”

A wave of tears threatens to drown me, but I push them back. Willow is right. No crying yet.

He reaches out a hand, and that’s all I need to stir me into movement. I trip towards him, and he tugs me against him before I collapse into his arms.

“When I first tried this on, I swore you could never claim me,” I say with my hands pressed to his chest and looking up. “That I would always be mine. That I was my own fucking castle.”

He smiles and touches a curl lying against my cheek.

“You will always be your own castle, Lor. I never wanted to take that from you.”

“I know. I see that now.”

“But I am claiming you,” he adds. “Never forget that you are mine.”

“And I am yours for as long as you’ll have me. ”

“You’re stuck with me until the end, Lor . . .”

I blow out a shaky breath and notice everyone else watching us with soft smiles. Tristan and I exchange a look. Something changed in Heart when Nadir talked him down from his fears.

I remember my brother’s shouted words in the Heart Castle.

All I ever wanted was for you both to be happy.

Tristan tips his head as though he can read my thoughts.

I am happy, big brother. Despite every challenge we have yet to face, I am happy.

“Shall we begin?” Anemone says softly. On a table behind her sit the Heart Crown and the Aurora Torch. She picks up the Torch and hands it to Nadir.

“First you must ask it to release you,” she says.

“Will it speak with me? I’m not ascended.”

Anemone nods. “As you’ve seen from your mate’s experience, the Artefacts will speak to others when it’s necessary. It’s just simpler to let everyone believe they communicate only with their rulers, lest anyone gets it into their head to ask for favors.”

“And then what?”

“While that is happening, I will begin reciting the necessary lines.”

“What if it refuses?”

She tips her head. “It may. But I believe that if you explain the situation, it will see reason.”

Nadir nods and accepts the Torch, clasping it in his hands. He turns to face me, and I watch as the flames reflect in his eyes .

Anemone then picks up the Crown and holds it out to me. “You will need this.”

I place it on my head, feeling its weight settle.

“And this won’t make me ascend?” I ask.

“No,” Anemone asks. “You must be in Heart to ascend. You are as safe as you can be here.”

Anemone opens the Book of Night, flipping through until she lands on the page she’s looking for.

“Are you ready?” she asks.

“This could still go wrong,” I say, looking around the cavern. “I’d still feel better if everyone moved away.”

“I’m not going anywhere,” Willow says, folding her arms and spreading her stance.

“Nor I,” Tristan adds, mimicking Willow’s position.

“We aren’t leaving either,” Cyan says, indicating him and Linden. She tosses him a scowl but remains quiet.

“Same here,” Mael says. “You think I’d ever let our boy go through this without us?”

I look at Bronte and Cedar. “What about you?”

“I think I’ll stick around,” Cedar says, and Bronte nods her assent, all of their expressions resolute.

I blow out a breath and hope to the gods that this works.

Nadir and I hold hands as Anemone starts reading the incantation, repeating the words over and over. The Crown grows warm on my head while the Torch in Nadir’s hand begins to flame and spark.

The world around us melts away until we’re both standing together in another place. Around us is a mixture of roses woven with bands of colorful aurora light. My mouth parts on a gasp as we witness this melding of ourselves, this coming together.

Nadir squeezes my hand and then asks the Torch to release him from his duty. We both wait in the swirling nothingness of this space. Then I hear the voice I recognize from when I also spoke to the Torch. The voice of King Elias.

Aurora Prince. I have been expecting you.

“Have you?” Nadir asks into the void.

Indeed. I understand what your mate must do and what your role must be.

“Then you’ll do it?”

I once told your mate that your love would lead only to heartbreak and ruin, Aurora Prince. I believed your connection would lead down the same path of destruction. I did not know if you would make this choice. But unlike your father, you are choosing love, not a crown.

Nadir gives me a puzzled look. “Unlike my father?”

He chose his power over love, and though it did not break the world, it did break him.

Our gazes meet as we both attempt to tease out that riddle without much luck.

“I’m not sure I understand.”

No . . . but you may yet.

The Torch falls silent.

“Will you do it?” Nadir asks. “Release me?”

There’s another long pause, but I know it will answer.

We will need another.

“My sister. It should have always been her.”

Another pause .

It is done. Farewell, Aurora Prince. May your sacrifice not be in vain.

After the Torch goes silent, we remain suspended in the void. Somewhere in the distance, I hear Anemone continuing her chant, the syllables dancing around the cavern. I can practically feel the spell it weaves.

The walls around us begin to dissolve, transforming into crimson forks of lightning and beams of aurora power. Our magic’s two halves twin together, the sharp edges of lightning meeting soft curves of light. We’ve always felt like two parts of a whole, one but separate, and now our magic will become that way too.

I feel the ground beneath us rumble as Anemone recites her lines while more magic moves around us. It fills me up. The magic of The Aurora grows in my veins, trickling in slowly, and then . . . the magic of Heart crashes in behind. It flows into me in rivers, filling my cells and my pores. I can feel it growing, swelling in my chest with such force that it feels like it might tear straight out of me.

I clasp Nadir’s hand tighter, and the magic swirls as our surroundings continue to shake. I feel the sting of pebbles shearing from above.

Anemone’s voice grows louder and louder, and then our magic twists around and engulfs us in a swelling wave. This looks so much like the vision in the Woodlands Staff before my grandparents ruined everything, and I wonder if we’ve made a mistake.

Fear seizes my chest, my ribs growing tight. I want to stop this, but it’s too late, and then a white light flashes in my eyes before everything goes dark.