by Jaymin Eve
I was stronger than this though. I didn’t need Xander or his family. The girls were mine, and I counted myself lucky to have them. I crossed to the other side of the room, settling next to Callie.
“You okay?” she whispered to me.
I gave a quick head shake, but when she opened her mouth to ask more, I shook my head again. It was too soon for me to talk about it. I just wanted to focus on the plan.
“We’re heading out now,” Lexen said, stepping away from the Royale overlords. “Tristall tells me that the stream we’re searching for is just beyond this village. Overlords live closest to the energy. That stream is their connection to the network.”
“Great,” I told him. “Let’s get this show on the road. I have a life to get back to.”
Fuck. I was being a bitch because my heart ached. My soul hurt. My mind was tired.
I was tired.
“Sorry,” I mumbled. “Just impatient to figure out where this stone is.”
“We understand,” Emma soothed.
They definitely understood, only they were all waiting to enjoy their eternity of being all loved up with their mates. I was just waiting to be alone in my waters again. But, before that happened, I was ready to take Laous down. I might not be getting the fairy-tale ending, but I would make sure all my friends did. I’d be satisfied if that happened.
Xander was somber when he joined us, and it hurt me to see the pain in his expression. At least I would still have my freedom after this, while his life would forever be one of duty. I hated that for him. We both deserved more.
“My father is opening the portal for us,” he said, his right hand casually sliding into his pocket. “Are you all ready to dive back into the legreto?”
Everyone nodded.
“Let’s go, then.” Xander turned, striding away without looking back. I fell in behind the others, following them out of the huge living area and into another long hallway. This one was darker.
“Where did Dawn go?” I whispered to Maya, who was just in front of me.
Her long dark hair whipped around as she tilted her head toward me. “She had to go home. To Donovan.”
My teeth clinked together and I ground them. She’d said she only had an hour, and from what Xander told me, any disobedience….
I refused to even think about it. Unfortunately, Xander’s sister didn’t have the same option.
There had to be a way to help her, I might not be able to fix my situation, but someone had to fix hers. Surely having parents as powerful as hers…. It was better if they knew. Maybe this one time, politics would not win.
I would have told them right then and there, but I was scared that I might make the situation even worse for her. But I would not forget her need. Sooner or later, something had to change for her.
“Avalon….”
The way he said my name brought me back to reality. I stumbled forward, realizing everyone else had gone. Xander had come back for me. “I need to put the breathing chamber around your face again,” he said, watching me closely.
“Oh, right.” I stepped closer to him. “I was just thinking … about Dawn.”
That fire flared in his eyes again. “She’s never far from my mind lately. I’m going to exhaust every political channel I can to help her, and if all of that fails, well … I might just have to take my chances with the beast.”
“Your parents have to be able to do something!”
Xander shook his head. “Dawn thinks she’s strong enough to handle it and has made it very clear to me that she doesn’t want anyone choosing between protecting her and protecting our people. The only reason I know is because I randomly stopped by her pod. She thought I was on Earth.”
“Please tell me you smacked him in the mouth,” I said harshly.
A wry grin tipped up one corner of Xander’s lips. “Broke his nose and fractured his jaw in three places. He couldn’t eat or speak for weeks, even with accelerated healing.” Xander let out a dark laugh. “I was worried at first that he’d take it out on Dawn, but she said he barely even cared. Violence means nothing to him, it’s just a normal way of life. He believes that his strength gives him the right to control my sister, to use that against her. And because Dawn is refusing my help, I’m in a shitty position. I don’t want to be as bad as him, taking her choices away from her—she’s one of the strongest caraminas I know—but she shouldn’t have to handle this on her own.”
“I’ll help you.” The words burst from me, filled with fire and conviction. Just like Xander, I couldn’t let this go. “Let’s deal with the secret keeper stuff first, then we’ll figure out what to do for Dawn.”
Xander captured my hand. “It’s nice to have someone other than my brothers at my back.”
I knew he meant the overlords. They were so important to Xander, and it was nice to be grouped with them. Even though I wanted to be so much more.
“Despite everything, I’m always here for you, Xander,” I said honestly. “We’ll always be friends, have a bond. No one can take that away from us.”
He cupped my face. Our eyes met and held for many long seconds before the bubble formed around my head, cutting him off from view.
When my vision was fully obscured, I allowed a single tear to trail down my cheek before I sucked in some deep breaths and got myself under control. Xander led me until we were back in the water.
The world on this side of the overlord pod was colorful, like it had been built on the edge of a reef. There was an abundance of brightly colored creatures as well, and I could imagine swimming through this area for hours. In fact, there were a lot of Royales doing just that as we moved past. They all saluted Xander before going back to their frolicking. I noticed that not all of them used their tails; there were plenty of legs around, kicking in lazy motions.
Callie let out a huge sigh that drew my attention. “I swam with them,” she said, “Best. Day. Ever!”
I laughed, because she wasn’t usually the chirpy and cute type.
“The stream is this way.” Xander said, moving to the front of the group. “You’ll know it when you see it.”
We sure as hell did.
“Oh my God,” I breathed.
My eyes were watering again, and this time it had nothing to do with Xander. This was pure emotion; the beauty before me almost hurt my eyes. The stream ran like a rainbow through the water, swishing and turning, the colors so vibrant that I felt as if I could run my hands through them and they’d be stained in bright hues.
“Xander, why have you never brought us here?” Chase asked. He sounded as awed as I felt. I was sensing that House of Leights, with their tree gods, might be into the more spiritual side of life.
“Because it’s sacred, and we are not allowed here except with express permission from the overlord,” Xander told him.
No one argued. When a firm hand pressed against my spine, ushering me forward, I sucked in a deep breath. “What should I do?” I whispered.
Xander’s palm was warm as it caressed my back. “Go,” he whispered. “Swim. The legretos mix perfectly here, and the colors are brightest right in this spot. This is where you were born.”
There was no way in hell they got my mother under here without some sort of hardcore drugs. She was not big on sacrifice, that was for sure. I guessed duty forced her hand. No wonder she was so ready to bail on me when I was old enough to look after myself.
My stomach started to roll as I moved forward, gliding because I didn’t want to kick and disturb the amazing rainbow. I gave myself a quick pep talk. “It’s going to be fine, Ava. You got this. It’s just rainbow water, and you need this map to save the world. You’ve always wanted to save the world, remember. Like … a masked vigilante.”
“You’re going to be fine, Avalon.”
I snapped back to reality, letting out a groan as I realized they’d all heard me. I’d totally forgotten about that. “Right, I know that.”
One day I’d stop making a fool of myself in front of peopl
e I cared about.
The brightness started to overwhelm me when I got closer. I shut my eyes for a moment, moving toward the sacred waters.
I didn’t expect it to feel different, but it was icy cold, shocking me enough that my eyelids flew open. A kaleidoscope of bright colors filled my vision, and it took longer than I expected for my eyes to adjust. Reaching down, I lifted my shirt up to find just my normal tanned skin.
“Lift it higher, Ava!” Emma shouted, and I winced as her voice echoed around my bubble. I wasn’t the only one, either. “Oh, sorry,” she said at a much lower decibel. “I just thought I saw something on Ava’s back.”
Turning, I kept my back to them while I lifted my shirt all the way up and over my head. “Anything?” I asked.
There was an extended pause, and I was just pulling my shirt down again, planning to turn and make sure they hadn’t all been eaten by a meglam, when a warm body pressed against my spine, the heat very noticeable against the chill of the waters. “I got you, Avalon,” he whispered. And for that instant in time, I let myself believe that he did.
“What does the map look like?” I asked him.
His hand traced across my back, almost reverently. “There isn’t a map. It’s a circle of eight figures, and there are coordinates right in the center. Spread across the center of your back.”
“Eight,” Maya repeated. “That’s the eight of us. We’re joined, and only together will we find the stone. That’s what it means, right?”
“Are we all in the stream?” I asked.
“Yes,” Xander said. “When we moved closer to you, the coordinates appeared.”
Emma let out the hugest of joyful sighs. “God, that makes me so happy. I knew we were eternally bonded. The eight of us. We’re the best family anyone could wish for. I promise I will always have your backs. Always.”
“Same,” Callie said, quietly. “Now let’s go save our worlds.”
“Does everyone have the coordinates memorized?” Lexen reminded us of the reason I was in a freezing stream with my shirt over my head. “We can’t use the network to figure out where it is, so we’re going to have to do this the old-fashioned way.”
“Google!” Maya and Emma shouted at the same time.
“The first part is easy enough to remember,” Daniel said with a laugh. “I volunteer to remember the zero.”
Callie actually laughed out loud. “Always lazy at school, Dan. That’s the latitude,” she told him. “The equator is the center of the earth, so it’s always zero. The other coordinates are the important ones.”
“Definitely need Google for this,” Maya said. “Nobody knows coordinates off the top of their head.”
Xander gently pulled my shirt down and I turned to face them. “Got the numbers memorized?”
Lexen nodded. “Don’t worry, Daelighters have excellent memories. We won’t forget.”
Awesome. Time to go.
My emotions were mixed in that moment. Leaving House of Royale was hard. I’d only been here for such a short time. But it wasn’t as devastating as I expected, maybe because I had recently learned the most important lesson of all. Home was people, not places. It all made sense to me now.
Xander recruited some Royales to help us back to the round disc between the houses, and in no time at all we were standing on the edge of this water world, lacing up our shoes.
We weren’t the only ones on the disc either, preparing to cross to Earth.
The warriors had come.
17
We made our way through the crowds toward the center of the disc. There were two small groups waiting there, one with Lexen’s dad and sister, along with another dark-haired male who bore a scar down one side of his face. They were chatting with a pair of regal Daelighters. When Chase and Maya crossed straight to them, I figured they were Chase’s parents, the overlords of House of Leights.
Lettie and Tristall were also in that overlord group; they must have come up while we were in the sacred waters. Lettie had changed from her casual attire and now wore a floor-length dress of seaweed green, its lengths trailing across the ground behind her. The crown on her head was coral-like in structure. The protruding sections that weaved between her hair were in shades of purple and blue.
She looked amazing. And intimidating.
And I still hated her.
Royale warriors stood close by, their spears and spikes held aloft, looking all kinds of scary. I wondered, for a moment, if Xander went against his mother, would she send those warriors after him? Would she force his compliance?
She seemed like the type of leader who would do anything to get her own way. Especially if she thought it was for the good of her people.
Daniel and Callie, holding hands, moved to take their place as the fourth overlord majors. Imperial warriors shifted closer to them as well, backing their leaders. This was the first time I’d seen a large group of Imperials, and I noted that all of them had their hair cropped or shaved just like Daniel’s. Even Callie’s hair was very short, stopping just below her ears. Maybe it was really hot down there … the underworld might have gotten its “fires of hell” myth from Overworld as well.
“We have the location,” Lexen said to his father, and we all pushed in closer to hear the conversation. “We’re ready to find the stone and put an end to all of this. Have we figured out how to remove the secret keepers’ link to it?”
Colita stepped away from the nearby group. “The council can do that,” she said, gesturing to the half a dozen other Daelighters she’d been standing with. “We have devised a plan that will break the bonds between the four and the stone. The moment you find it, you need to contact us. We’re teaming up with the humans. They’ve decided not to hide the starslight any longer. Instead the location will be known, and a human and Daelighter army will rotate in guarding it.”
“They’re going to actually tell humans?” Daniel said cynically. “Is that the best plan? Humans are not known for taking news about impending end-of-world disasters well.”
Colita shrugged. “The human government assures us that they can spin this information to keep the panic at a minimum. They’re not going to break the whole aliens-walk-among-you to them just yet. We all agree that humans—most of them anyway—are not ready for that information.”
I’d barely felt ready for it, and I’d lived with being “different” my entire life.
Lexen moved on, his eyes doing that flashing white lights thing. “What’s the plan for right now? Should we leave the secret keepers in Overworld until we clear Laous out of Astoria? I don’t want Emma or any of them in danger. They must be protected.”
Emma elbowed him in the ribs. “Stop trying to leave me behind. We’re a team. I’ve told you that a hundred times. The eight of us … we’re stronger together. It’s a fact.”
His fierce expression softened, and he nodded. “I agree with you now. I feel it as well—”
“Finally convinced your stubborn ass,” Emma cut in.
His chest rumbled. “Yes, you did. But I also know that if anything happens to you, I will not be able to control my Draygo side. I will destroy the worlds, Emma Walters. A missing starslight stone will be the least of the humans’ worries.”
Roland reached out to comfort his son. “Lex, we won’t let anything happen to Emma … to any of them. Our number-one priority is to keep all of you safe. You’re our future leaders after all.”
Lexen didn’t relax. If anything, there was an even more animalistic look on his face. He reached out and pulled Emma into his side, and she must have seen in him the same thing I had, because she didn’t fight him. He was on the edge of losing it; one more thing would push him over the edge. Not that any of us thought for a second he’d hurt Emma, but everyone else was fair game.
“So what is the best way for us to clear Laous and the Gonzo out of Astoria with minimum casualties?” Daniel asked.
Colita waved over the other councilmembers. “We’re coordinating with the human army,” she sai
d as the three males and three females joined us. “Any updates?” she asked them.
A dark-haired man answered: “They’re telling us that Laous has a lot of hostages. Pretty much the entire town has been taken. The army is surrounding Astoria, but they won’t enter until we give them the okay—apparently they have been tracking Gonzo for a long time, and they’re ready to take them down. They’re just waiting for us to come in from the inside.”
“They’re not in Daelight Crescent, right?” Emma choked out.
Roland shook his head. “No, I’ve got a barrier across the street. House of Darken powers it. So far it’s holding.
“What about our friends at the high school?” Emma continued, voice wavering. “Are there any casualties?”
Colita shook her head. “Not that we know of, but there was some resistance initially. I’m not sure what happened to those who fought back.”
Emma started to suck in deep gulping breaths, in and out, until her panic faded. As it did, anger took over. “We can’t wait another second. If he hasn’t yet, Laous will start killing them soon.”
“Does it have to be a war?” I suggested, for once not nervous to be voicing an opinion. Xander’s mother already hated me. How much further could I fall in her esteem? “What if we tried to make a deal with Laous? Get him away from all the innocent people by telling him that we’ll lead him to the stone? That he needs the eight of us to find it, so his best chance is to tag along with us?”
“You want to lead him straight to it?” Lettie asked. “How, pray tell, do you then plan on making sure he doesn’t get his hands on the stone? The aim from the very beginning has been to keep him as far as possible from it.”
I shook my head. “I’m not sure about you, but I’m not willing to let an entire town be slaughtered if there is something I can do to prevent it. We really don’t have a choice. And no one plans on letting him have the stone; we can fight him better when there are fewer casualties around. Fewer innocents he can use as leverage.”
“It makes sense.” Xander backed me up. “But we can’t forget that Laous has Rao. Maybe he’s already warned him.”
