𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐎 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐃𝐀𝐑𝐊// 𝐒𝐨𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐥𝐨 𝐑𝐨𝐲𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐲 𝐀𝐔

𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝟑// 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐇𝐚𝐧𝐝

Nico startled awake to a familiar room. He remembered he was back at the Shade palace. Will stirred in his embrace, his head nestled in the crook of Nico's neck. Nico tightened his arms around the prince protectively, remembering the previous night's events.

The thought of Will being assassinated, of his bright life being snuffed out, sent Nico's heart thudding in his chest. Will could have died, and Nico wouldn't have been there to protect him.

If the assassins had succeeded...

Will stirred, interrupting Nico's thoughts. Bright blue eyes blinked up at him. Nico smiled, impulsively pressing a kiss to Will's jaw.

Will was safe, and that was all that mattered.

Someone knocked on the door. Nico disentangled himself from Will's arms, ignoring his protests, and rushed out of the room to answer. "Hello?"

Annabeth Jackson smiled at him. "Do you know where the prince is?"

Nico hesitated, then said, "He wanted someone to guard him, so I let him sleep in here with me."

"Oh. Well, tell him to get ready. There's going to be a meeting in twenty minutes."

"About what?"

"We have information about the assassins."

☀️☀️☀️

Nico took in the Shade council room. Nothing much had changed, save that Hazel Levesque now sat at the head of the table, in place of Abaddon.

The Aureole King and Queen were at their son's side in a heartbeat, asking him if he had been harmed, looking over him for injuries. Will pulled away and waved them off, claiming he was fine and that he had been guarded during the night. He sat across from Nico, his parents on his left and Fletcher on his right. Seeing the Head Healer set Nico on edge; he still remembered his threats.

"Thank you for attending. There is much to discuss." Queen Levesque clasped her hands. "The guards managed to capture two assassins and interrogate them. We managed to get information concerning their motives."

"Why did they attack?" King Solace asked, his voice barely above a whisper.

Queen Levesque turned to her General. Reyna leaned forward and said, "The assassins are part of a group called The Black Hand. They were King Abaddon's most loyal soldiers. When Queen Levesque became queen, they branched off from the Shade military. Now they want Abaddon back on the throne."

"But he'd dead!" General Jackson exclaimed, green eyes wide in shock. "And he was a horrible king!"

"The assassins claimed that they have the power to ressurect the dead."

Nico scoffed. "Only the most skilled of Shade sorcerers have that power. The only sorcerer with that kind of power is Miss Blackstone."

While Aureoles revered their healers as powerful, Shades prized their sorcerers. Only recently had Lou Ellen Blackstone, Head Sorceress, been appointed to her position.

"Whatever power they may or may not possess, the Black Hand has proven to be a serious problem," General Ramirez-Arellano said.

"So how do we stop them?" Nico asked.

"We don't have enough information as of right now," Reyna admitted. "We will have to continue the interrogating until we can obtain what we need."

"Thank you for the intel, General," Queen Levesque said. She rose from her seat. "Until we have further information, this meeting is adjourned."

While the Shade Council stood up from the table and left, Queen Levesque asked the Aureoles to stay for a moment. Nico was almost tempted to eavesdrop, but decided against it and slipped out the door. He found General Ramirez-Arellano in the hall and walked up to her.

She turned and smiled at him. "How is everything at the Aureole Kingdom?"

"Good, I guess." He rubbed the back of his neck. "They made me a guard, but not everyone is accepting of me."

"Hmm." She shifted her weight. "Is the prince okay?"

"Yes. A bit shocked by last night's events, but he'll be okay. He's healing."

"Good." She smiled. "A certain healer told me that you two have taken a liking to each other."

He glared at her, but was unable to hide the color rushing to his face. She laughed and said, "I have a feeling King Solace is not aware that you're courting him?"

"He would not approve of it. I have a feeling he would rather eat hot coals than see me courting his son."

Reyna winced in sympathy. "Well, hopefully you can prove to him that you're a good man."

Before Nico could reply, the council doors opened, and the Aureoles walked out. He fell in step beside Will and whispered, "What did Queen Levesque want?"

"She said that we should go home as soon as possible, so we don't get caught in the crossfire between them and the Black Hand again." He paused, then whispered, "She reassured me that the interrogation methods they are now using are humane."

Nico smiled. "That's good to know."

"My father mentioned that he wants to give me a guard in case the Black Hand tries to harm me again." Will threaded his fingers through his hair and loosed a shaky breath. His hands trembled slightly. "I just hope that the guard turns out to be unnecessary."

Nico was tempted to pull Will close and comfort him with a kiss, but with King Solace to Will's right, there was no way that was happening. "When are we leaving?" he asked instead.

King Solace was the one to answer. "We are leaving as soon as possible. Go get ready."

Nico nodded, rushing away.