Page 119 of Courting War
War was a villain, and she would forever and always be. Her next sentence proved it. “Thanks for the fuck.”
The last words were unforgivably callous, but she needed him and Nefeli to believe them and convince herself of it, too.
“Stop this, Theodra, it is pathetic. Get dressed. The Pantheon has been assembled for your judgment. You’ve broken the Immortal Law.” Nefeli turned on Kellyn. “I would suggest you dress, too, unless you would like to die the way you came into the world.”
Theo pulled her shirt over her head and clumsily laced her corset before crawling over to her dress, which was in the pile of his clothing. To put it on, she had to nearly touch him. She took a moment to feel his closeness for maybe the last time, leaning into his protective embrace.
“Kel . . .” Her eyes bled, and her fingertips grazed his jaw. “I’m so sorry. I never meant—” she couldn’t say anymore. It would all be used in their trial.
He wrenched her in close, and his lips touched her ear as he whispered, “It will be okay, I promise.” It was an empty vow. He was a human and no match for the gods.
A jolt of confusion struck her stomach as they were pulled apart by magic and refracted to the Grand Ballroom in front of the gods and the audience of the Sacrifice. Theo fell hard to the floor, and in a heap, her hair dangled down her shoulders, love-tousled, and her clothing was in a similar state. It was more than clear what they had just been doing. She clutched her chest as if to protect herself.
They were utterly vulnerable and helpless, completely at the gods’ will.
Embarrassment mixed with fury coiled in her stomach, hardening into a dark resolve.
She placed a palm against the floor and sat up, raising her headhigh.
Trying not to make it obvious, Theo checked on Kellyn. She didn’t want to cause his death, and the only way he’d make it out of this alive was if he forsook her and declared that he never loved her.
His head was also held high, and he faced the gods with dignity and bravery.
Theo’s pinky twitched, slightly reaching out toward him. She wanted to comfort him, and she wanted comfort from him. But she couldn’t give it.
That way only held death.
Theo tipped her chin up and met the gods’ eyes with a glower. They towered above them on their thrones formed from magic, each throne flowing with its god’s tell-tale style. Andromache’s twisted from sun rays, Silas—Fire’s—was etched from flames, Havyn’s from darkness, Harvest’s from vines, and so on, and their expressions were as varied as their magic.
Havyn appeared bored; Trickery was jubilant, and Andromache somber. Her chest rose with tense breaths, her purple eyes a sea of devastation. She took a step toward her sister as if to comfort her but thought better of it a moment later.
Theo’s eyes flicked to the crowd, finding Cecile and Emmett standing amongst fellow champions. Laurel crowns blessed their heads, signifying that they had beat the Sacrifice successfully, and completed all five of their challenges. Theo’s chest warmed at this but was immediately replaced with fissures of fear.
The room smelled of rosemary, cozy winter fireplaces, and nutmeg, but the scent twisted and decayed in Theo’s nostrils, leaving only the smell of dead flesh. She didn’t know if it was real or simply the manifestation of her emotions.
“Welcome to your judgment.” Nefeli’s voice was quiet, but its menace carried throughout the whole room.
Magic circled Theo’s hands and dragged them back behind her, chains twisting around her wrists before flowing down and fixing themselves into the floor, binding her so she couldn’t move. The chains hummed with electricity, and Theo raised a brow.They were God Chains, designed to hold an immortal and tamper their magic.
It didn’t make sense. Theo was still human. She couldn’t magically break through her chains. Could she?
“Kellyn Ellis, Prince of Theoden, as of this moment, your Sacrifice Games are over. You will not get to finish your final challenge as you have broken the Immortal Law. You’re accused of falling in love with a god. You are accused of true love.” Nefeli rose slowly, tauntingly from her throne, her magic kissing her skin like glistening rain. “How do you plead?”
“Don’t answer that.” Theo’s eyes whirred to Kellyn, pulling at her chains with the movement.
“You won’t speak untilwerequest it.” A gag crawled over Theo’s mouth. It felt like walking face-first into a spider web. Haunting and disgusting. Gooseflesh rolled over her arms, and she shuddered.
“So, prince, how do you plead?”
But before Kellyn could answer, Havyn drawled, “Can he have truly fallen in love with a god when Theo’s been mortal the whole time?” At her name, the audience took in a collective breath.
Wait. Was Havyn trying to help? If Kellyn was convicted, he would die, and wasn’t that what she wanted? Didn’t Havyn wish to fulfill their deal?
“Hmmm,” Nefeli made the sound like she was irritated with being corrected. “We shall correct that problem then.” Nefeli waved her hand, and a crash of sensation swallowed Theo whole.
It felt like a thousand humming fireflies were flying under her skin, filling the chambers of her heart and swimming through her veins. Every nerve ending in her body sang and electrified. Theo’s strings of life knitted together, strengthening, and hardening into immortality. Theo’s magic surged but was trapped like a dragonfly in a jar. Trapped by the chains.
The raven torc around her neck fractured in two, drifted to the ground and crumbled like ash. Obsidian feathers circled her neck, morphing and forming a collar. The feathers crawled downher body like warrior paint, creating a shield—an impenetrable barrier—forming a stunning yet terrifying dress. Then just as it returned, the chains around her wrists bound her power.
