Hyacinth, Scarlet - Craving Owen [Tides of Love 2] (Siren Publishing LoveXtreme Forever ManLove)

by Hyacinth, Scarlet

  A fair amount of time had passed since he’d left the wizard in the royal quarters. With Kyllian taking so long to destroy the crystal, they’d feared someone would see the absence of the guards. So far, no one seemed to have discovered a thing.

  Truth be told, Alcharr couldn’t say he didn’t understand it. Most of the guards now focused on the ceremony, especially with the unexpected guests who’d arrived. Alcharr nearly had a heart attack when he realized Hash’s father had joined the party.

  But the elder dragon’s presence was the least of their problems now. Alcharr wished he could go check up on Kyllian. He never should have let the wizard go alone. Doubt assaulted him, and Alcharr struggled to push it away. He had to believe Kyllian could handle it. Until then, he needed to buy some time.

  “What do we do?” Valderr asked, as if guessing his thoughts.

  “We need to delay things somehow.” He gave his brother a speculative glance. Valderr had been very brave. Alcharr hated putting the spotlight on him, but at this point, only something related to one of the people to be married could stop the wedding. “Could you feign illness?”

  Valderr nodded and actually smiled. “It won’t be very hard. I think I’m going to be sick anyway.”

  Indeed, Valderr’s coloring rivaled the marble white of his wedding garb. In fact, he seemed even paler, because the traditional outfit boasted golden thread entwined through the material.

  “All right. Here we go.”

  Valderr sat on the bed, curled into a tight ball with his wings around him and closed his eyes. Alcharr admitted he looked pretty convincing. Just in time, too, because a knock sounded at the door.

  “Enter,” Alcharr said.

  It turned out to be Yane’s mother, the queen. “Is everything all right?” she asked. “We’re waiting for Valderr downstairs.”

  The fact that she had come herself instead of merely sending a servant spoke volumes of their impatience.

  “He feels a bit sick,” Alcharr said. He didn’t even have to fake his concern. It was quite genuine, given the current circumstances.

  “Sick?” the queen repeated. “Oh, no. Should we get the healer?”

  Alcharr gave his brother a look. “Maybe just a cup of tea and a few minutes. It’s the nerves. He is very young and he doesn’t even know Yanentah.”

  “Completely understandable,” the queen replied, although Alcharr detected annoyance in her voice. “I will send a remedy up and explain the situation.”

  She departed in a wave of woodsy perfume. Alcharr sat next to his brother on the bed and caressed Valderr’s hair. “So tell me,” he whispered, “what about you and that Dorien character?”

  “Dorien is nice,” Valderr murmured back, “but he’s only a friend. I…I don’t think I would be ready for more, even if we weren’t in this situation.”

  Alcharr nodded and lay down next to his brother. He covered Valderr with his wing, just like he used to when his sibling had been only a nestling. They cuddled together, finding comfort in each other’s presence. So much had changed since then. He had failed Valderr in so many ways. His young sibling should have never been forced to face this evil, especially after the trauma he’d been through. Alcharr wondered if he’d ever come up with the courage to tell his brother it was their father who’d orchestrated the kidnapping.

  A few moments later, a servant knocked at the door and, upon being bid to enter, brought them the required remedy. As soon as she left, Alcharr sniffed the tea. It seemed to be harmless enough, but he didn’t risk it. He threw it out in nearby potted plant, just in case his father had decided to begin his little plan early.

  Unfortunately, they could not delay the wedding further. Half an hour or so later, he and Valderr left the room and headed toward the main hall. Yane and Valderr would come inside through two separate entrances and meet at the center, where their parents would be waiting. As there were two races involved, both kings would be required to give their blessing. At the same time, Ciera and Dorien would be joining the first pair. Basically, Ciera would be coming in with Valderr and Dorien with Yane through the two opposite doors, and they would stop in the middle, in front of their parents. It was quite an irony, given the attraction existing between Valderr and Dorien. Essentially, Valderr would be meeting the other man in the middle, as if to mock the fact that they could never be together. Alcharr couldn’t even imagine how his brother felt.

  The entire setup made it very easy for their father—or rather, the crystal-controlling Amadeus—to attack the two couples. Alcharr had done his best to keep an eye on the man, but he had a feeling he knew when Amadeus would strike. At the very moment when the binding would be made, the two couples would drink from the goblet symbolizing their joint union. Everything inside Alcharr screamed that the goblet in question would be the weapon of choice.

  When they reached the main hall, Alcharr hugged his brother and went to join his father. He didn’t meet Amadeus’s eyes, afraid his own gaze. If push came to shove, if Kyllian didn’t come through for them until the moment of the union, Alcharr fully intended to stop the wedding. He and Yane had come up with a Plan B when they’d realized Kyllian was having trouble with his part. Alcharr looked at the chandelier dangling from the ceiling. It was held up by thick vines that would be vulnerable to a blade. He rechecked his pockets and ensured the fact that he had the throwing knives they’d managed to acquire with Dorien’s help. It would not be easy, but it might be the only solution to their predicament.

  Finally, the doors opened and the two couples walked inside the hall. In spite of himself, Alcharr couldn’t help but think Yane looked very dashing in his traditional wedding garb. The four met at the center and were steps away from reaching the waiting royals. Alcharr prepared his knives and took a few steps back, ready to go through with Plan B.

  And then, a heavy explosion shook the palace. Day turned into night and the vines above withered. The chandelier came crashing down with a deafening thud. Screams sounded in the hall as a thick, dark power swept over them all. Alcharr’s father let out a cry and collapsed to the floor, seizing like a man possessed. His skin had gone pasty and his eyes rolled in his head. Alcharr hastened to his side and did his best to keep Amadeus from hurting himself during his fit. In the general confusion, Alcharr lost sight of his brother and lover. He forced himself not to panic and focused on keeping his father alive. Thankfully, Amadeus was a fighter, and Alcharr managed to stabilize the man’s condition. He blinked blearily, moaning, “Son…What’s going on?”

  Alcharr would have loved to have all the answers. Clearly, Kyllian had succeeded in his task, and the destruction of the crystal was creating a powerful whiplash. He couldn’t say he felt surprised. Such an accumulation of energy would not simply disappear into thin air. According to Kyllian, some of it would seep into the astral realm, but that didn’t mean it would not leave any effects.

  However, something else happened that Alcharr could not explain. In a strange development, a heavy wind started, shattering the windows. Alcharr looked up and caught sight of a dark storm gathering.

  Concerned, he tried to find his loved ones. Thankfully, they soon appeared by his side. Both couples seemed unscathed, if a bit shaken. “What’s happening?” Valderr asked.

  It was the dryad king who provided the answer. “It’s the crystal,” he replied, seemingly talking to himself rather than to Valderr. “Something’s happened to it.” As if his own words had snapped him out of his trance, he shouted, “Guards! Follow me.”

  Alcharr cursed as he realized Enyas intended to investigate the crystal. They would surely find Kyllian, and that couldn’t end well. Before he could say anything, his father spoke. “Son, help me up.” Alcharr obeyed, his heart falling at the sight of Amadeus’s wings. They looked almost withered, the feathers falling in a sad display. Amadeus paid it no heed. He placed himself in front of the dryad king, blocking the man’s path. “Your Majesty, listen to me. That crystal you speak of is evil.”

  “What? Wh
at are you talking about? How do you even know about it?”

  “I was possessed by it. I…only remember bits and pieces, but…it’s a necromantic crystal. It’s killing your land.”

  The queen snorted. “What nonsense. This is dryad business. Please don’t interfere.”

  “Mother, he is right,” Yane piped up. “Can’t you see it?”

  Tarah looked surprised, but instead of questioning Yane’s knowledge of the crystal, she looked around the room. She was a dryad. How could she not feel the death that lingered after its destruction? Even Alcharr sensed it, even if he didn’t have a dryad’s affinity to earth and living creatures.

  Tarah gulped, her eyes fixing on the shattered chandelier. Ogash’dral appeared by their side, looking completely unruffled. “I do believe the young man is correct,” the dragon said. “Only magic that’s against life can stop shape-shifters from taking their second form.”

  “Whether that is true or not, we still have to investigate,” Enyas said. He went around Amadeus and headed out of the hall, ignoring all of the confused dryad nobles who stared after him. Alcharr hesitated before his father waved him off. “Go. Help your wizard.”

  Somehow, his father knew about Kyllian. Alcharr supposed the explanation could lie in the other man’s connection with the crystal. He didn’t wait around to ask. Instead, he rushed after the dryad king.

  To his surprise, Ogash’dral followed, as well as a group of other dragons. He offered Alcharr a dark grin. “Whatever King Enyas might say, this is an issue concerning the Imperium as well.”

  Alcharr couldn’t be sure this was supposed to be a good thing or a bad thing. Perhaps Alcharr could convince them to aid him with whatever happened next.

  Like he’d known it would happen, they went up to the second level at the palace and toward the royal quarters. The doors were wide open, and once inside, Alcharr spotted a passageway dug into the wall. He hastened inside, the dark magic getting more and more intense as he progressed.

  “You have a hand in this, don’t you?” the dragon leader commented idly as they ran. “That’s why your father said what he did.”

  “It’s a very long and complicated story,” Alcharr answered. He didn’t have the strength or the time to argue with the dragon.

  Thankfully, they reached their destination before Ogash’dral could argue with him further. The first thing he spotted was King Enyas and a group of soldiers standing in front of a wide chasm. At first, he felt puzzled, but he forgot all about it when he spotted a motionless body on the floor. Dread coursed through him as he recognized Kyllian. Spots danced in his vision as he made his way there. He ignored all the eyes he sensed on him and knelt next to the wizard.

  Kyllian didn’t move a muscle. Pieces of something that looked like shining black glass were embedded in his chest and thighs. Alcharr hastily pulled them out, hissing when the crystal made contact with his skin. He dropped it, and as soon as it hit the scorched-looking ground, it transformed into black ash, leaving behind a noxious fume.

  As Alcharr did so, Yane arrived as well and joined Alcharr next to Kyllian. “Do you believe us now?” Yane snarled at his father.

  King Enyas didn’t reply, but the dragon spoke again. “I do believe this is something a dryad in charge of his land couldn’t have missed. Isn’t that so, King Enyas?”

  The man didn’t even try to defend himself this time. “It was the only thing that protected us from the wyrms. What will we do now?”

  A gasp sounded from behind them. “How could you?” the queen said. “Do you not realize how much damage we ourselves did to our people, to our world?”

  It was the greatest sin a dryad could commit. Queen Tarah took out the ring that signified the bond between her and Enyas and threw it down into the ground. “You are not my husband,” she said. “I renege our union.”

  “You can’t break up with me.” The king laughed. “I’m your husband and your king.”

  “I would beg to differ, at least on one of those accounts,” Ogash’Dral stated. “In the name of the Imperium, I hereby place you under arrest for crimes against the planet.”

  King Enyas gaped. “You can’t do that.” He glared at the guards. “What are you doing, men? Seize them.”

  But the guards took position next to the queen, spines ramrod straight. “I’m afraid we can’t,” the man leading them replied.

  And so, in an unexpected turn of events, Ogash’Dral did turn out arresting Enyas, and a couple of the elder dragon’s companions escorted Enyas out of the passageway. The queen and several dryad guards went with them. But Alcharr registered this almost distantly, his mind still focused on Kyllian. Yane pressed his ear to the wizard’s chest and lifted his eyes. “He’s still alive, just barely.”

  “He must have used those self-destructive spells some wizards know,” Ogash’Dral noted. “At this point, he could be beyond aid.”

  The dragon’s nonchalant tone irritated Alcharr beyond belief. Suddenly, he remembered the pain he’d experienced earlier upon realizing the danger Hash and Sassaki were in. With the king arrested, the dryad kingdom would be more vulnerable than ever, and Tanarak and the people there lost to the wyrms. Alcharr could use the man’s aid.

  “You should know, Your Lordship, that even if Kyllian might be beyond aid, your son is not. He is in Tanarak as we speak, probably fighting the wyrms.”

  Even as Alcharr spoke, he felt overwhelmed with his own panic and terror. He didn’t even know whom he feared for to a greater extent. It was all too much.

  He took Kyllian in his arms and started to head back the way they’d come. He was just exiting the passageway with Yane trailing behind him when he ran into Dorien and Valderr. His brother’s eyes widened. “What happened?”

  “The dragon says he cast a self-destructive spell to defeat the crystal,” Alcharr replied numbly.

  Valderr didn’t speak. What else was there to be said? Outside, the storm still raged, angry and uncontrollable. Much to Alcharr’s surprise, the queen appeared behind his brother. “It is all right,” she said. “We will bring healers. I shall not forget the sacrifice he has made to save our lands.”

  She led them out of the royal quarters and to Alcharr’s room. Once there, they placed Kyllian on the bed. Between Yane and Alcharr, they stripped Kyllian’s torn clothing. As promised, the queen ordered for a medic, but when the man arrived, he told them Kyllian suffered from an extreme form of magical depletion. He had fallen in a deep coma, and while the dryads could keep him stable, they could not bring him out of it.

  Alcharr felt emotional exhaustion crawl over him. He was torn between trying to aid Kyllian and running to Tanarak. There was just too much going on, and he had difficulties in processing it. He buried his face in his hands, his mind working in overdrive.

  Ogash’Dral chose this exact moment to make his appearance. “Do you intend to go to Tanarak?” he asked brusquely.

  Alcharr looked up at the elder dragon. “We can’t exactly leave him,” he growled.

  Silence fell over the room. At last, Valderr wrapped his arms around Alcharr and hugged him tight. “Go, brother,” he whispered. “I know you want to. Dorien and I will care for Kyllian. And Queen Tarah will help, I’m sure of it.”

  In the background, Alcharr heard Yane talk to his mother. “Can you do this for me, Mother? Can you care for him?”

  “I swear, Yanentah, that no harm will come to him. We’ll bring more healers. We’ll find a way.”

  Alcharr still wasn’t sure. He wanted to stay by his lover’s side, if only to hold Kyllian’s hand, but at the same time, he knew he could not help here. In Tanarak, however, he might be able to make a difference. He might manage to save a life.

  In his mind, he saw Kyllian’s image as he had been just a few hours before. This was bigger than all of them, and in spite of how much Alcharr would have liked to stay and care for Kyllian, he couldn’t be in two places at the same time.

  Taking a swift decision, he sobered and got up. He met Yane�
��s eyes and saw the same sad resolve in them. “We will go with you,” he told Ogash’Dral. “Now come, there’s not much time left.”

  Chapter Ten

  Sassaki had realized, of course, that their plan would not be without difficulties. He’d understood upon leaving Almareya that they might not even come back. He and Hash even considered the issues they would have in convincing the nymphs of Tanarak to trust them, and he’d acted accordingly. Instead of just bursting inside Tanarak, he and Hash sent a message to Lyole, Yane’s second-in-command, intending to have the nymph smooth up the situation for them.

  Lyole, however, met them outside Tanarak and proved to be skeptical as to the second part of their plan, actually talking to the other nymphs. He didn’t seem hostile toward Sassaki, but he did shake his head at them. “I can’t let you come inside the city. You’ll be lynched.”

  Sassaki felt frustrated. “Do you really think we’d come here just to play with you or waste your time? Don’t you even realize what risk we’re taking?”

  Hash squeezed Sassaki’s shoulder, offering silent support. It calmed Sassaki down a bit, even if the entire situation still made him edgy. “Look, Yane trusts you for a reason,” Hash told Lyole. “If we can’t talk to your people, you can. You need to be ready. Today, it is very possible that an extensive attack from the wyrms will reach Almareya. The enchantment that keeps them from shifting will fall.”

  Lyole paled visibly. “So it’s come to this then. I knew you were discussing it with Sassaki, but I never—”

  “It will happen.” Sassaki interrupted him. “I will try to buy some time or make my people understand, but it’s quite unlikely that I’ll manage to convince them.”

  Lyole gave him a stricken look. “You have my thanks,” he said weakly. He looked out into the dark sea that hid so many things. Taking a deep breath, he nodded, his voice turning level and calm. “We will be ready. You can count on us.”