Page 49 of Shadowbound

“Hmm…” I frown thoughtfully. “Well, maybe he thought that last line meant immortality.”

“No man or woman is meant to live forever,” Sylvanna says gravely. “Eventually we all fade.”

“Not the GodKing,” I tell her. “He’s over a century old and still strong.”

“I see.” She nods. “It sounds like he’s had more than his time. That’s bad for the natural balance of Solaris. When a ruler gets too old to rule effectively, he can drag his whole country down with him.”

I’m not sure what to say to that. I have always been loyal to my liege lord—it’s never really occurred to me that he might be overstaying his time as our ruler. But that’s not what I’m concerned about right now.

“It sounds like The Heart of the Eclipse will solve a lot of problems—both here and in Solaris, “I say. “If we can retrieve it.”

I no longer think The Heart will wipe out all of Nocturna, but I have to be honest—I no longer want it to. I’ve met enough people here to know they’re not the enemy of Solaris. They’re just different from us and why should that be a crime?

“I agree.” Sylvanna nods. “The question is, can we get to it before Kraven realizes what we’re after?”

“I don’t know—can we? Where is it?” I ask.

“In the Queen’s private collection,” Sylvanna tells me. “She told me the cantrip to get in before I left—I was her closest friend. As long as she hasn’t changed it, I can get us into the collection.”

I’ve seen Sylvanna’s collection—she showed it to me once I was Bound to her and I marveled at the many glass cases filled with magical artifacts. I wonder if the Queen’s collection is anything like it. I guess that I’ll find out.

“Are you sure Kraven won’t know what we’re doing?” I ask.

Sylvanna shakes her head confidently.

“He doesn’t even know it’s here. I brought it for the Queen to study and she locked it away long before he started to worm his way into the Inner Court.”

“Good. I don’t trust that fucker,” I growl. Not after what he tried to do to my Mistress. I wish I could hold her and comfort her some more—I have a feeling that the old wound of his betrayal is still bleeding inside her. But I know how strong she is and how she doesn’t like to show weakness, even to me. The fact that she let herself cry when she was with me tells me how close we’re getting.

For a moment I let myself wonder what might happen if I didn’t go back to Solaris at all. What if I just stayed here in Nocturna with her?

But I know I can’t break my oath to the GodKing. I must try to get The Heart of the Eclipse and use it to right the wrongs in both kingdoms. He’ll probably be upset when it doesn’t destroy Nocturna as he hoped, but I’ll do my best to explain the prophecy to him.

And in the meantime, I’ll stay by my Lady’s side and keep her safe. I’m not going anywhere as long as that slimy bastard Kraven is slinking around!

With that promise fixed firmly in my heart, I sit with Sylvanna and together we begin to plan.

25

Sylvanna

Unfortunately, we have to get through an uncomfortable State Dinner before Alaric and I can put our plans into action. It’s held in the Main Banqueting Hall and we’re seated at a table long enough to hold a hundred guests. Most of the Court is there and Kraven has somehow contrived to have us seated so that I’m directly across from him.

The Queen, the Glass of Distraction still clutched in her bony hand, is seated at the head of the table, of course. She barely picks at her food, spending much more time peering at her “stories” than eating any of the delicious dishes that appear before us and then are whisked away by magic. I can see why she’s gotten so thin—emaciated enough that her once-lovely face looks like a skull.

I’ll free you of this addiction, my Queen! I promise her silently as I watch her from my seat at her left hand. The Heart of the Eclipse is strong enough to nullify the power of any other magical object or artifact. Once I get it and find the way to activate it, I’ll strip away the Glass of Distraction’s power and influence completely and set my friend free again.

The only problem is, I’m still not quite sure how to activate it. I went to great lengths to get it in the first place, in order to free my own mother of her magical addiction to the Mask of Many Faces…only to be unable to get it to work before she plunged from the top of the tower to her death.

But I’m not giving up. I’ll find a way once I get it in my hand—I know I will.

During all of dinner, Alaric stands behind my chair, gripping the back of it and glaring at Kraven. Now that he knows what my ex-Blood-partner did to me, he hates him even more. I can feel that the Holy Fire is dangerously high within him. Indeed, if it wasn’t for the Collar I put on him and all the training I put him through, we’d have an explosion and a two-meter-wide hole right here in the middle of the Banqueting Hall!

Kraven, for his part, doesn’t seem outwardly bothered by my Paladin’s glaring. He ignores him and makes small talk with the Queen, which is like talking to himself, since she barely answers.

The rest of the Court dines in uneasy silence. It’s clear they see what’s going on—how one man has taken over the whole country and is ruining it and running it into the ground. Yet they all lack the backbone to stand up to him—to stop the evil acts he is committing so shamelessly right in front of them.

Cowards! I have a moment of pure disdain for all of them. But can I really blame them when I also ran away? I don’t know—I only know that tonight, when everyone else is in bed, I’ll be holding The Heart of the Eclipse in my hand and doing my best to right these wrongs before it’s too late.

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