We entered the elevator.
Yanai and Zelda were escorting me to meet with the envoy from Kingdom OM—as per the request of the Praetor of OM. It seems he was told of an OM’s recent arrival seeking sanctuary.
It was surreal. All of it. The second Yanai told me the Praetor, Aedan, was anxious to see me, I stopped listening to anything else that came out of his mouth. Everything became a blur.
Aedan was alive.
And he was here. He was in Kingdom B.
But…
He was going to kill me.
I knew it. It was clear he had not revealed my true identity to Kingdom B, and I was sure this was only because he wanted to save the honor of harming me himself. He was OM, after all. First and foremost, they were warriors.
Loyalty was their creed.
And in his mind, I had betrayed him.
The rhythmic thump of my heart was all I could hear—I was certain Yanai and Zelda could sense it. My emotions were overwhelming me, flooding my body with heat and anxiety—it was all I could do to keep from flickering. I had left Larsa yesterday morning, thinking I would never set eyes on Aedan again, so I could not believe I was about to face him.
When the elevator came to a stop, I felt as though the oxygen was sucked out of my lungs.
The doors opened to an enormous perch that had four wooden bridges extending from it. They were wide enough for at least ten people to easily walk side by side. Each ended at the entryway of a round structure made of wood and cement, with walls of glass and a roof that could only be described as an upside down nest.
All but one, were built like nests with twigs, leaves and branches. The structures were enormous. I was sure they could house at least fifty people. The entrances were oval, and in the shape and color of a white egg. Whatever was on the other side emanated a bright light.
It was surreal.
I made the mistake of looking down. I couldn’t even see the ground through the leaves and mist that filled the air. It was intimidating and it took me a moment to gather myself.
And then I looked back up.
We were so high up in the sky it felt as though we were one with the clouds. We were literally above all the other Kingdoms, a Kingdom in the sky. It was incredible. I didn’t know how I could ever get used to living in such heights. I had never imagined such trees could even be real. Earth undoubtedly had treasures that were wondrous.
“It is magnificent,” Yanai said as he came up to stand next to me.
I wondered if mind reading was another one of his skills.
“It is.” I agreed.
“How could you ever get used to seeing all of this?” I asked. Even though I wasn’t particularly comfortable with how high we were, it still took my breath away.
I could tell Yanai liked my comment.
“I should warn you—the altitude will probably be an issue for a little while,” he said knowingly. “Delphine had quite a rough time for many days. Poor thing. She had to be looked after when she first arrived in our Kingdom.”
My mind had been so singularly focused on Aedan that I had momentarily forgotten that Delphine was in Kingdom B as well. And that I would probably see her soon. I quickly prayed for Jana and Kalypso’s survival. Out of all of us embarking on the mission, Delphine was the one I knew the least. She was an Orca Hybrid and we always kept our distance on Akasha. We never really had much in common—not that I did with any of the others…but none of that mattered now—she was Cetacean—she was my Breed, and I couldn’t wait to see her.
“How is she doing now?” I asked.
“She’s acclimating nicely,” Yanai said. “After you speak to your Prateor, I will take you to her. Perhaps you can stay in her nest until you are properly processed.”
“I still have to go through with all of that?” I dreaded the idea of returning to the cage and would fight against it. I thought the questions from Yanai at his fire circle had given me entry.
“Will I have to go back into the cage?”
“No,” he shook his head. “Your stay there is complete.”
“There was a woman with me,” I immediately thought of Nisira. “She is from Kingdom R…”
Yanai watched me.
Yanai finally held up his hand.
He was warning me and I took note.
For now.
“Let us go.” He commanded.
We reached the building and Yanai lifted his hand. He typed in a quick code and the door slid open. I memorized the sound.
Once we were inside, I was startled by the modern contrast mixed with vibrant trees that looked as though they were naturally part of the manmade structure. When I was outside looking in, I expected something rudimentary and rustic. This was more modern than OM, but with a vibe that was more welcoming because of the trees. The greenery made it magical.
A light grey metal fused with white sandstone made up the floor and ceiling. The plants and trees that grew weaved in and out of the floor. There were two giant fires in long black marble devices that came up from the ground to flank each side of the circle. A silver egg that was the size of an elevator hovered in the corner of the impressive room. It went up as high as I could see with two enormous trees flanking its sides. It was an awesome sight.
The Birds really did prefer their heights.
The one thing that I did find peculiar was that we were the only people around. I didn’t see anyone else and it was strange how still it was. How quiet…
“Where are your people?” I asked.
“They are here,” Zelda finally broke her silence.
I looked around and couldn’t see anyone.
“And the rest of your people? The ones who are not on guard?” I asked her.
“They are nesting,” she revealed. “It is the time of day when most, if not all in our Kingdom, nest.”
It sounded like nap time, but who was I to judge? I couldn’t imagine such a thing existing in OM. Or even Akasha.
“We find that nesting calms the mind, eases the soul, and can be extremely grounding because we are always flying about in the sky,” Yanai looked up as he said this. “And in many ways, it is also helpful for breeding.”
I could feel myself blush.
“Come,” he thankfully changed the topic. “We go to see your Praetor.”
I actually felt worse. And even more terrified.
We walked to the corner of the room and entered the silver egg. I was right, it was another elevator, only it rose very quickly, which added to my already frayed nerves. How much higher could we go? We were moving so fast it was as if the elevator was mimicking my life flashing forward at a pace I didn’t feel I could keep up with. I felt like the world was trying to close in. Yanai gently touched my shoulder and turned to me as soon as the elevator came to a stop.
I couldn’t focus.
“Are you running, Siren?”
My breath hitched.
“I’m seeking the asylum that your Kingdom has offered,” I said.
He studied my face for a long while.
“Everything comes with a price.”
His words held power.
It was the second time he had said them to me. He was trying to warn me. Against what, I had no idea. But where could I go if not Kingdom B? What was left for me?
“Like I said,” I kept my gaze on his. “I don’t run, and I know what I’m doing.”
But I didn’t like the way his words were making me feel.
Yanai stared into my eyes. “There is no going back…there is no OM again.”
The finality of those words were hard to hear.
“I understand.”
“Do you?” His smile was small and almost sad.
It was a strange situation to be in. Knowing this was wrong. Knowing that Kingdom B didn’t feel quite right, and yet, there was nothing I could do about it. I had no choice but to try and exist as Kingdom B.
“Once the doors open, we’ll leave you in the room.” Zelda’s voice was serious.
“Alone?” I asked in surprise.
“Yes,” her eyes narrowed as she studied me. “Your Praetor requested it.”
“He insisted upon it.” Yanai said.
My stomach dropped.
“You have nothing to worry about,” he assured me. “You have crossed over into our Kingdom now. You have our protection, even if you haven’t been processed. You have my word on this as the spiritual leader of Kingdom B.”
As if that would stop Aedan. But I still nodded in gratitude.
“We’ll see you when you’re done.” He lifted his hand in goodbye just as the doors opened.
I held his gaze for a second longer before I turned and walked out of the elevator. Once I stepped out, the doors closed, and it zipped away. The room was the same thematically as the hall we entered. Only, there were two long brown couches with a longer raw wooden table between them. It was dimly lit and eerily quiet.
My heart was beating so loudly that I couldn’t focus on anything other than that sound echoing through my head. I didn’t know what to do with myself, so my gaze swept around the room in a frenzy—searching…for something. As I looked back over the room, the couch caught my eye and I decided to sit down and try and calm myself.
The sound of Aedan’s voice pierced through my soul.
I spun around and took him in. He was leaning against the wall, hidden by the shadows in the room. His arms were crossed and he was watching me. Studying me. Like he was a predator about to pounce. He had a substantial dark bruise under one eye, and a gash on his lip and chin, but other than that, he was as he always was. A fierce, handsome warrior. I hated how my entire body reacted just to the sight of him.
He made me feel alive.
But from the look on his face, I didn’t think he returned the sentiment.
No. Aedan’s energy gave off something entirely opposite. His eyes glowed like amber jewels as they took in my new attire—the clothing of Kingdom B.
“You are quite a chameleon,” he sounded enraged.
“Aedan—”
I could feel his hatred. It permeated every pore of my skin. He advanced upon me, but I remained still. I would not cower. He stopped when he was less than a foot away, his hands balled at his sides.
“Do you know what happened in Larsa?” His voice was dangerously soft.
I knew what was coming.
“I can’t imagine,” I shook my head back and forth as my heart shattered over such horror, and my eyes welled with tears.
His dig was not lost on me. But he still did not betray me.
Despite his fury…despite his ill-founded accusatory tone, I hated seeing him this way. I hated the devastation he reeked of.
“I am the leader who failed his people,” he went on harshly, the anger and self-loathing evident.
I didn’t think and stepped closer to try and comfort him. Just as I reached my hand out to touch his arm, he grabbed ahold of it tightly.
His touch imprinted into me.
“Should I tell you what they did to my people?” His voice was cold. He wasn’t about to let up on me.
“Tell me.” I wanted to hear. I wanted to know what happened.
My acquiescence startled him for a second, but then he continued.
“They butchered them,” Aedan said softly. “Like the ancients had once done to our soul ancestors—they butchered them.”
“As your people did to mine.”
The words came out before I could stop them.
I don’t know why I thought it would be the right thing to say or even the right moment to say those words, but a second later when he turned around and stepped toward me, towering over me with his impressive height, staring down at me as his eyes began to change shape into his Shadow’s—I realized I might have just made a monumental mistake.
“I’m sorry,” I rushed out as fast as I could. “I didn’t mean to come off as sounding callous. Please. I am devastated for—”
“Do not utter lies!” He roared down at me. “I will not fall for them again!”
“What have I lied to you about?” I yelled back just as angrily, my fury over my entire existence—my mission—exploding around me. I wanted to know what crimes he was accusing me of. What had I ever done to him?
“You have been plotting with the Reptile.” There was a bite in his voice.
I kept my own hard and devoid of emotion as I replied, “You are wrong.”
His eyes narrowed but I did not waver.
“What is the next crime I’m guilty of?” I asked with great disdain.
There was a hint of respect in his eyes, but he masked it quickly.
“You freed the Reptile.”
“I did.” I lifted my chin when I said this.
He didn’t like that. His eyes turned to liquid fire.
“Do you think I helped the army of Reptiles march into your Kingdom?” I tried to think of everything he could possibly accuse me of. “Are you actually going to stand here and accuse me of that crime when you know about Milo and Dr. Novak?”
“The only reason I am not accusing you is because of Sara,” Aedan’s voice lost some of its edge. “You owe her your life.”
He meant those words.
Gone was the tender lover. Gone was the man who had let me inside his heart. This was a new Aedan, a cold warrior, and I longed for the old one to return. He turned his back on me again.
“Tell me of the people in Larsa,” I begged him, wanting to know if I had lost any of the friends I had made. “Bibi, Gaia… Cyrus? What are the casualties? Please, I need to know…”
“Over one thousand.”
My heart stopped.
For a population of less than fifty thousand, that was quite a substantial blow. And I did not consider it a good sign that he wouldn’t let me know my friends were all right.
There was a long silence before he spoke again.
“Would you like to see what happened yourself?” Aedan’s voice was dangerously soft.
“How is that possible?”
He turned to face me. He was holding two round black chips, in the shape of and as big as human eyes.
“When I woke up and realized we were under attack,” he said slowly, “and that you were gone, I grabbed the bracelet Dr. Novak had made for you. Sara recorded everything I saw. When you put these on, you’ll see and hear everything…just as I did.”
He held out his hand and waited for me to take the device.
We locked eyes.
I did not want to see. Not a single part of me wanted to relive the horror that I knew took place. In a short time, my imagination had already taken me to many different dark corners—I knew the reality could only be more monstrous.
But…
The look in Aedan’s eyes. He was determined.
The last thing I wanted to do was live through the death and destruction of a Kingdom I had grown to love. But without watching what had happened, without seeing with my own eyes, I would never really know the depth of the tragedy. I couldn’t look away. I had to face the darkness.
I had to.
And maybe, I could somehow take some of the burden away from Aedan by seeing what he had. I reached out my hand for the device.
“Show me.”
