Page 349 of A Flame of the Phoenix

“Then…?” he prompted. “When the day comes that the lands are healed and we rule as normal, what do you dream of, my love?”

Tauria sighed, easing into him more. “A family, eventually.”

Nik’s spirit soared. He shifted smoothly until she was under him against the pristine grass. Tauria laughed, trying to playfully resist his allurement.

“I saideventually.” Her smile brightened his world.

“Consider me very eager to practice until the time is right for both of us.”

Though he wanted to take her here, Nik settled beside her. They watched the cloudless open sky with the freedom to paint their future on the canvas. So Nik did. With his hand in Tauria’s forever, he knew their dreams were safe now.

CHAPTER NINETY-TWO

Faythe

They arrived on their horses just in time to watch the sun break over the horizon and spill over the city of Ellium from atop the hills. Faythe pulled her horse to a stop, needing a moment to take in the breathtaking sight of her kingdom alive against the rays.

“Do you think we should repair the inner wall?” Faythe asked, her voice reduced from the array of emotions that swarmed her.

She was home.

Without fear or wariness or uncertainty…Faythe Ashfyre had fought to come home.

“Whatever you desire. This kingdom is yours now,” Reylan said fondly from atop his horse beside her.

“As my consort and leading general, I’d very much like your opinion.”

Reylan cast a side-smile at her. She imagined him in royal finery, with a crown atop his head, but she had to expel it sinceshe risked her emotions spilling down her face at how wonderful it was.

“We might have won our war, but in generations to come, there will be others. I don’t view the wall as separation—it’s security. They’ve long been a statement of Rhyenelle, and High Farrow was the first to follow our example and create their singular wall to have a stronghold in the face of an attack. It served well for them in this age, something that was built long ago. So for our future generations, I would rebuild it.”

Faythe appreciated his insight. With Reylan by her side, the burden of a crown didn’t weigh so heavy. “I agree,” she said.

The red-peaked mountains shimmered under the sun’s first light, as if awakening to greet the dawn. Shadows retreated down their jagged slopes, and a piercing cry split the tranquil stillness. Faythe looked up, her breath catching.

The Firebirds from Salenhaven soared triumphantly across the peaks, their wings ablaze with every color of a living flame—crimson, gold, and searing white. The air seemed to ripple in their wake. Their cries filled the air, a song of victory; of life undimmed by time or distance. For a moment, they drifted above the mountains, turning in perfect harmony, and the sunlight transformed their feathers into a blazing display that could have outshone the sun itself.

It was a sight so achingly perfect that she clutched her chest, unable to draw a full breath. The ache was bittersweet—half-awe, half-longing. She knew they would return to Salenhaven. Their home was far beyond these mountains. And yet her heart rebelled against the inevitable. What she wouldn’t give for them to stay—for their fire to light these peaks forever.

Faythe waved back at two riders in particular. They were mere flickers of movement from this distance, but Faythe grinned wide at Liva and Samara riding together. Part of her envied their freedom for adventure as they would be flyingto Salenhaven with Rhiannon and the others. But Faythe was determined to see the western continent herself someday. Maybe even farther, as she couldn’t erase the stunning concept of Embercrest, which hatched new Firebirds and trained new riders.

She was too aware of the egg in her satchel. Maybe it was selfish, but she couldn’t give it to Rhiannon to take to Embercrest, where it would await a claiming. It was a piece of Atherius she would keep close, even if it would never hatch for her.

Izaiah and Tynan caught up to them as they’d fallen behind on their horses. They could have flown to Rhyenelle from High Farrow and saved the weeks of travel, but she thought everyone was enjoying the mundane tempo of time. Embracing every moment, especially together.

“Now that’s a sight I never thought we’d see,” Izaiah marveled at the score of Firebirds.

Kyleer wasn’t with them, but he would return soon. He’d taken off when they left High Farrow, in search of Zaiana. The dark fae had even left Tynan behind without a single word of explanation or goodbye. But they all knew her reasoning. She was grieving deeply for someone none of them could show sympathy for. Faythe understood her need for solitude. Kyleer wouldn’t give up trying to reach her, however.

When they passed the outer-city wall, citizens emerged from their broken homes. Despite the wreckage, they were smiling. Children ran and people gathered on both sides of the pathway. Faythe smiled back at them, feeling their welcome, their acceptance of her.

She heard mutters of “Phoenix Queen”and whispers of her name.

After a moment, when the crowds grew thicker, reaching hands she wanted to touch, Faythe dismounted. She retrievedthe egg from her satchel, wanting to share the precious gift with her people.

Faythe Ashfyre was the Phoenix Queen, and she would raise this kingdom from its ashes.

Her fingers skimmed so many, and she felt love in every spark. The walk to the castle seemed so much shorter while she lost herself in this moment, reuniting with her people and pleading her devotion to them as much as they did for her.

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