Lucia's Reign

Chapter 21

~Several Months Later~~Sera~

Holding my children is the best feeling I could ever ask for. One was expected, but two was even better. Both sons. To be honest, I am disappointed that I did not have a daughter, but that won't stop me. These two are the lights of my life, and I couldn't have asked for more.

Madhi comes into the room, followed by Des and Astrid.

"Are they really here?" Des asks quietly, afraid that if he spoke too loudly he'd wake them.

"They are," I said. "Would you like to hold one?"

To my surprise, Astrid swims in front of Des and takes the baby from me. She smiles brightly as she carefully holds them in her arms. She coos to the baby as it slowly wakes up. Madhi sits on the side of the bed and wraps an arm around my shoulders.

"Do you know what you're going to name them?" Des asks as he looks over Astrid's shoulder.

I give a small nod. "Navin is the eldest, and Cassian as the second eldest. Astrid's holding Navin."

It was Des's turn to nod as he looked back at us. "So Navin will be the Emperor of Matali?"

I look up at Madhi who looks down at me. "I think that is what we're planning. Of course, I also think we should leave the decision up to them once they're old enough," Madhi answers as he places his hand on my shoulder as I watch Cassian slowly come to life.

We named one for Matali and the other for Miromara just in case one decides to take the throne in Matali. Our next hope is to have a daughter. There will be many upset that our first born wasn't a daughter, but instead two sons.

Astrid continues to coo and baby talk Navin to all of our surprise. Maybe being married to Des has helped her change her ways, ever so slightly of course. She claims that she won't ever want children, but she may just change her mind.

I let out a yawn and Madhi takes Cassian from me. He kissed my temple and stays next to me. Labor was not fun, but I know I'll do it all again. Hopefully not too soon of course.

"Sera, you need to rest. I can take care of the babies," Madhi says as he swims to be in front of me.

"Are you sure?" I ask as I yawn again and feel my eye lids dropping. 

"I promise. Just rest."

It wasn't but a few minutes later that I was out completely with Des and Astrid in the room.

It was dark. A scream ripped through the air before I realized I was at the palazzo. I swim through the empty halls before I come across a room. Two toddler aged boys were huddling in the corner, a girl crouching in front of them, calming them.

The screams come again and I race through the halls to see another girl giving birth to her daughter. Above me stands the duca, arms outstretched waiting for something.

More images flash in and out before the battering comes at the door. The baby is nowhere to be found and the girl is slumped over from exhaustion. Whoever was on the other side was not a friend of these people.

I look back up at the duca, but he has closed and locked the door. He was just going to let these people die. As painful as it was to watch, Lucia stormed in with her armies, and I watched her raise her sword before the image fades and I wake.