Page 8 of Into the Dawn
Ronan glanced at his brother, who shot him a perplexed look in return. Even as they wondered what in all the worlds the god was talking about, the sound of thunder boomed overhead. Rays of sunlight had been shining through the canopy moments ago, but now, the pale pink sky had transformed into a blanket of dark crimson clouds despite the time of day.
They hadn’t noticed the change since the Sun God was emanating enough light to chase away the shadows. Ronan wasn’t sure why the god needed them, but he and his brother were willing to try to do whatever was needed to help.
“I am not the one who needs assistance,” Silas corrected. “It is your mate who needs your help.”
Ronan felt his mind go blank at hearing that. “Our mate is dead.”
His chilling words were punctuated with another rumble of thunder.
“Nay, I mean your true mate. We have located your true mate on another world. However, we are not able to bring her here like we did with Allie and Raven,” Silas explained, mentioning the two females who had previously been brought to Arcadia from a distant planet.
Finding their fated mate had always been a fantasy of theirs, but Ronan and Dominic never thought they would actually be lucky enough to meet her. Finding one’s true mate was nearly impossible. While they hadn’t been fated to be together, Imra had grown up with them. She had been their best friend and confidant, so when she had come of age, it had felt natural for her to become their chosen mate.
They had always figured their chance at happiness had died along with Imra and their brother, Eron. While they still missed them and mourned their loss, discovering that their true mate really existed was a dream come true. A part of Ronan felt conflicted. He felt a little guilty about being happy to hear they had a true mate. It was a dream he wished they could have shared with Eron, although it didn’t diminish what they’d had with Imra.
Another part of him felt remorseful that they hadn’t waited for the true mate. Would she be upset that they had claimed a mate before her? Would she also feel the pain of knowing she’d had a third mate that she would never get to meet?
But the most important question he had at the moment was how they were supposed to meet her if she was from another world?
“If you agree, I will send both of you to her world instead,” Silas explained, answering his unspoken question. He paused, then said, “Your mate is dying. Although the journey to Earth will not be easy, it is the only way to save her life.”
Alarm surged through Ronan, making his heart pound faster than when he was in the heat of battle. “What is wrong with her?”
“She is in the advanced stages of a painful disease. Right now, she is just waiting to die. That is why we cannot bring her here to Arcadia without your help. By the time we discovered where she was, it was already too late. She would not survive the trip in her current condition. If you choose to save her—”
“We do,” Ronan blurted out. He didn’t even bother glancing at his brother to confirm that. “Of course, we will.”
“Tell us how to save her,” Dominic demanded.
Silas held out a hand, and an object appeared on his palm. When he flicked the top up and held it out, Ronan saw it wasa tiny flask covered in small, shiny gems with a strange glowing silver liquid inside.
“You need to add a few drops of your blood to this tonic for it to work. Once you arrive at your destination, you have to make her drink it. There is strong magic in it, so do not feed it to her all at once. Her system cannot handle the overload. Give it to her a little at a time over three risings until it is gone.”
Without hesitation, Dominic pulled out a knife and scored a small cut across his palm. He held his closed fist over the flask, letting droplets of his blood fall into the silver liquid. Ronan accepted the knife from his brother, then repeated the process, adding his own blood to the tonic.
“How is this supposed to work?” he asked. “Earth is halfway across the universe, is it not?”
“I will use the storm to send you there.” Silas flashed them a grin. “This will be my first attempt at doing so, but my mate has assured me this will work. Allie and Raven have said riding the lightning was not very pleasant. You will just have to deal with it since it is the only way to send you there.”
Ronan swallowed hard as he shoved the flask into his vest for safekeeping. Riding lightning sounded completely crazy, but that was nothing new. Most magic didn’t make sense to him. “How long will we be on Earth?”
“That is unknown. It could be days, weeks, or months. It just depends on when the next storm is.” Silas clasped his hands together. “So, are you ready to go?”
“Now?” Dominic’s eyes widened. “We are leaving right now?”
“Aye, as soon as the storm begins.”
“But there are things we need to take care of here first,” Ronan protested. “Our brothers are—”
“Are fine for now. Your father and his team are on their way to fetch them now,” Silas explained. “Although, they should not have been out there alone in the first place. They need morediscipline. If you spoil them anymore, they will end up being useless. They have the ability to make great contributions to your kingdom if you let them instead of coddling them. That is evident by the various experiments they are working on.”
“What experiments?” Dominic asked, then he hunched his broad shoulders a little when Silas shot him a critical stare.
“Exactly. You still see them as younglings, when you were already doing warrior training at their age. I know you want to protect your brothers, but you are stifling their potential.”
That was definitely something they would have to reevaluate, Ronan admitted. They were so worried about something happening to the trio that they never considered it would end up hurting them.
“Now, there are a few modifications we need to make before you can go.”
