Flames of Ember

52| Emergence of the Sun.

* AMBER ERIN ANDERSON *

"Tell me you're joking right now," I said, after hearing everything from Ember. He remained quiet, which only proved that whatever he just said was all true and he'd done it.

Ember had revealed his true identity to the world.

And now he was scrutinising the structure of my leftover pizza.

"What is this piece of creation—"

"So, you're telling me," I cut him off, ignoring how he was holding the pepperonis one by one, spreading them in his palm and arranging them in an orderly sequence. "Vivianne snitched on you because your friend Ilayna, a Gifted Ezèrian, refused to heal her father and then, when Vivianne found out that Ilayna is becoming Ira's knight"— I threw my hands in the air in confusion. —"which literally doesn't make any sense at all, she basically ordered you to reveal Ilayna's identity to the court and when you refused to do that, she goes bonkers and breaks off the deal," I summarised what he said, my head spiralling with questions. It had been barely a week since I left and this much had already happened?

Ember nodded, picking up one of the pepperonis and examining it cautiously, eyebrows frowned deeply. I sighed, shaking my head. "And after that, you came up with your mega plan and just decided to drop your identity to the whole court, on the day of your wedding, when the entire country was watching you,"

He made no comment, only took the peparonis and placed them back in the pizza, in the exact way it was before he took them.

"My father wanted to send me to the gods right then and there but thanks to my Protection Spell, I was unharmed," he said, his voice cool, casual, nonchalant, as if he just didn't declare the fact that his own father wanted to murder him. "His army and him must be looking for me right now and knowing my father and his skills, he would have found me by now if I didn't decide to come here,"

"This is all so messed up," I finally said, letting out a sigh. "You pretty much declared to all of Elysia that king Edric, who has been an anti-Ezèrian all his life, has a son who's an Ezèrian himself. The price of your stunt is going to be big, the kingdom is going to be in a mayhem, Ember."

"I know," he said, looking down on his lap, his laced fingers as he played with the rings. "But I didn't know what else to do. I couldn't put anymore lives in danger for me and time was running out, I didn't have any resources or anyone that I could rely on, without risking their lives. I had to do something because there was no way I would wed Vivianne. Even though, the chance of my Protection Spell breaking because of the amalgamation was low, there was still a chance, wasn't there? And I couldn't take that."

The rational part of me was relieved that he didn't marry Vivianne but another stupid part of wished there was another reason he didn't want to marry Vivianne.

"Revealing my identity cost me my life but it was also the beginning of a new me," Ember said and I realised how his voice changed when he said that, how it was replaced with enormous confidence. "The kingdom is going to see my father and me in a new light, in a new perspective -- and by the gods, the Eirlys Empire might even call in for a war for lying to them but in all sense, I am ready for anything," he then looked at me, his eyes softening. "I am ready for anything if you are by my side."

"I will fight the wars, I will rebuild Elysia, I will face my father, I will fight the ones who want me dead, I will defy my fate, I will do it all if I have you by my side -- because you're reason I have reached this far," he never looked away when he said all that things, never blinked, never diverted his attention and I was suddenly lost for words.

This shouldn't have made me so surprised -- Ember was like this -- he would always say things out of the pocket, he would always say the most heartfelt things randomly and have no clue about what it did to me but this was different, this felt so different. This had me swallowing, had my heart going racing quick, had me forget my surroundings and had me lost in his grey eyes, had me looking at his soft lips and how they were moving and forming words that I wasn't quite able to hear at all?