Crown of Fire (Book 3 in the Crown Trilogy)

Thirty-Eight

The air takes on a different feel the moment we cross the Pliris border. It is fresher, lighter. Every breath is easier to take in. Maybe it has always been this way and being away gives me a new appreciation for what I've always had. Or perhaps it's being so close to home that has me relaxing for the first time in six days.

My friends feel it too. Their eyes sparkle with the prospect of seeing those we left behind, and the tension they carried during this journey seems to have given way with being on our own land. After everything we've been through, it's good to see them returning to normal. They aren't the only ones who appear to be lighter.

Raelle sits tall on her horse. Her leathers are covered in a thin layer of dust and little wisps of her hair have broken free of her ponytail. A smudge of dirt streaks across her cheek from where she has brushed the sweat away. I've seen her in gowns and a decorated in jewels, but she's never been as beautiful as she is right now... in our kingdom where she will rule by my side.

I never saw her as anything but the queen she is meant to be, but I know she forfeited that belief in herself when she returned from Allaji. It was unlike her to rollover in the face of adversity. Since the moment I first met her, she was fighting against the status quo to do the right thing. It was her first trait I fell in love with. While I was living by the rules, she was breaking them.

It was a blow to my gut when she lost that same spirit when it came to fighting for us. A part of me knew she had been broken, whipped, and degraded until she was grateful for a fraction of what she deserved. She would have settled for a king and servant relationship with me if it meant we were together. It was so unlike the princess who attended my anointment to become my mother's heir. She offered me no grace even after she found out that my intentions were for her and her father. And rightfully so. She deserved to be treated as my equal, not a pawn in my righteous plan. Her fire I love is back, and I'm going to do whatever she needs to keep it that way.

I never asked for much in my life. It wasn't that I thought I was unworthy. I just accepted that the color of my eyes was a dead giveaway that I didn't belong in Lucent. It didn't matter that I didn't siphon other's gifts now or that I couldn't remember my time in Stigian. The fact was that I stole a gift, let it feed my own, and it was an unforgivable sin to the people in the kingdom I considered home.

No amount of tears and blood was enough to redeem myself. To the people of Lucent, I could have very well been the reason that someone they loved didn't come home ever again. I empathize with their heartache because I drained my own father of his gift and killed him. I was the murderer they feared me to be. The rest of my life is dedicated to atoning for his death by undoing the harm of my mother and every ruler in my bloodline before her.

But I didn't just live for myself or to right the wrongs of the past anymore. Raelle and I shared a dream. Our hopes extended far beyond us—equality, peace, freedom. I want those things so badly for Pliris that I would bleed for them. But it's our future I'm most excited for. The possibilities are infinite.

I would create the family I always wished I had with Raelle. My friends and her family would join us to celebrate holidays. Our children would be surrounded by love and laughter. Our children... A mixture of a snort and a laugh bubbles out of me. I never gave myself permission to really consider having children. It was impossible to see where they would fit into my life, but now I see it so clearly.

"Ky?"

I snap out of my daydream at the panic in Terro's voice. He tilts his chin up, urging me to look at the sky. My chest constricts and bile rises in my throat. At least a dozen massive birds swarm over a particular location. One at a time, they swoop down and then shoot back into the sky. It's like they have found a carcass to scavenge from. I don't need to move closer to know what they are pecking at... Stigian.

War was a given, but I hoped we had time. I should have known better. If I were planning to raid a kingdom, there would be no better time than when its leader was nowhere to be found.

Raelle eases Nortus so close next to Samson that her leg brushes mine. I tear my gaze from the sky and meet her brown eyes. The future I was just planning with her teeters on a knife's edge. We fall into destruction or Pliris rises to its true purpose in the five kingdoms. The outcome is far from determined.

She curls her fingers around the front of my tunic and pulls me to her. Our lips brush as she says, "No matter what happens, you come back to me. Do you understand, Kyron LeFur?"

"Only if you make me the same promise, Raelle Mansi."

"I'll come back to you."

"Always. I'll always come back to you."

Her lips meet mine in a desperate kiss, and I match her fever. I fully intend to keep my promise, but if it is ripped away from me, I need her to know how much I love her. How I will always love her even in death.

"I love you," I whisper for good measure.

"I love you, Kyron."

No sooner do we pull apart and Greer moves to my other side. "At your command, Your Majesties."

Ulric and Terro line up next to Greer and Raelle. Ashavee, in her animal form, looks around the legs of Ulric's horse and tips her head, a subtle gesture of submission.

"Spare no one who means us harm. If they want a war, we will bring the end to each and every one of them," I say.

Terro nods in agreement. "May the Statera burn bright in every Pilrian this night."

Ulric pumps his fist in the air and shouts, "We fight for our land! We die for our freedom!"

I'm not the only one who recognizes the words from Lucent's battle cry. As one, we finish the final line to include our entire kingdom.

"May Pliris prevail, may Pliris prevail."

We charge toward the capitol, with all eyes focused on the battle ahead. My heart races like the hooves of our horses. Adrenaline pumps through my veins. The fire and shadows flowing through every cell of my body consumes me, ready to enact vengeance.

We race through the small canyon in the mountains that surround Stigian. Horseshoes kick up dust and clank against stone. Every sound echoes off the high rocks, setting my nerves on edge. I spur Samson on, eager to return to the open and get my first glance of the city in days.

The canyon gives way to the barren land that sits outside Stigian's wall. My heart plummets to my stomach, and I pull on Samson's reins, bringing us all to a stop. The wall is demolished—holes blasted into the thick stone. Spirals of smoke spin toward the sky, dulling the pinks and purples normally shading the clouds just before dusk. The magnificent buildings that loomed over the city are in shambles. That is all except one. The sanctuary still stands untouched. The Allaji would never destroy the holy place and risk the wrath of the Statera. But the rest of Pliris' capital is gone.

"We have to get inside the sanctuary. If there is a chance that anyone is alive, that is where we will find them," Raelle says, staring at the destruction.

I can't find my voice. It is lodged in my chest, blocked by the anger and sadness raging inside me. It is one thing to face soldiers on the battlefield, and another to attack innocent people going about their day in a busy city. This was a coward's tactic that no doubt took hundreds of lives.

"Yeah," I manage in a raspy tone. "Everyone stay together. There's no reason to add to the dead if we can help it."

Self-preservation wants me to turn us around and keep safe those I still have with me, but duty urges me forward. I lead us into the open mouth of the beast, prepared to take the risk of it swallowing all of us whole.