Page 43 of Imbalance
"Good morning!" Safiya's voice echoed through the temple, and I turned to watch the queen waltz in, followed by a far grumpier Cyrus. I felt a bit awkward, considering last night, but I tried not to let it bother me, standing with the seer as Cyrus and Safiya greeted their son but completely ignored my other mates.Rude.
"Ama," Cyrus offered me a head nod, and I felt my eyes narrow slightly. I didn't think the man felt bad at all for what had occurred last night, but he was going to when my mates absolutely destroyed whatever he had planned.
Honestly, I had zero doubt my men would be perfectly capable of handling this, but on the off chance that something happened, I wasn't going to actually stay here. I would just have to find a tactful way to leave...my chest squeezed, wondering what would happen with Jace.
I had agreed to these terms so quickly, but if we didn't win, and I escaped and left, what would that mean for Jace and me? I shook my head, not wanting to entertain that thought process. Instead, I wanted to focus on getting this started quickly and ending it equally as fast.
"Now that we are all here," the seer smiled serenely, "let's do this blessing, shall we?"
As she turned towards the altar, my gaze followed my men, who were spreading out around the room, eyeing the distance between me and Jace, as well as how close the king and queen had come.
"Are you positive that it is necessary, Seer?" Cyrus' voice rang out, and Pelia turned back, her face devoid of expression. "We should just move forward with the fight. There is no need to have the devil's blessing when he has so clearly put Ama in our son's path. This is simply a formality."
This was getting ridiculous. I opened my mouth to say something, but the seer placed a hand on my shoulder and walked forward, putting herself between me and everyone else. Her voice was clear, even, and patient, like she was talking to a child.
"Cyrus, after my family was blessed by the devil himself, we made sure to find a family worthy of keeping the Kingdom of Impurus safe. To create a place where hybrids could grow and prosper, as well as develop past the archaic notions and biases that had plagued their lives for so long.
"While we have come far," she continued evenly, "you and your queen have allowed animosity to continue to brew and grow, creating an enemy of people you haven't come in contact with. Ever. I haven't interfered up until this point, and I hold myself partially responsible for your inability to see the blessing the fates have placed before us all.”
Pelia turned towards me, offering a smile before urging me forward to stand next to her. She continued, "The time for keeping out of this, Cyrus, has long passed. The fates have granted me a vision, and if the House of Runes is allowed to take over the Kingdom of Pura, they will come for us next. Ama here is the answer to saving our kingdom, and exiling her mates will only force the devil's hand, I fear. Even worse, your kingdom will be in danger because of you and your pride. You do your kingdom a disservice by seeing these other men as competition to Jace rather than an asset in dealing with the problems of the realm. The realm you put at risk every moment that you hold Ama, her men, and your own son back."
My mouth popped open at her words, and I shut it again, swallowing uncomfortably. I wasn’t exactly sure how to handle the massive responsibility she seemed to have just thrown on my shoulders.
Pelia sighed, "With that being said, if you feel the need to test one another, then I believe a blessing is required to ensure that all of you come away from this as the fates intended. So, do we understand one another, Cyrus?"
The king's jaw clenched, but he nodded sharply. Well then, maybe I wouldn't have to escape if this all ended poorly. It seemed like the seer was more than on my side. Then again, the fight wasn't cancelled, and if any of my men were fatally injured...nope, I couldn't and wouldn't go there. I could handle a lot, but not that. Not today.
That seemed to be enough to get everyone moving, and when Pelia brought us to the front of the room, I stood next to her as she muttered something under her breath that seemed to be a chant mixed with grumbling about how ridiculous this was. That was a sentiment the queen clearly shared, but it didn't stop the process, and all seven men lined up to receive a blessing. I frowned, wondering if this actually had anything to do with the fight because whoever was fighting on Jace's side wasn't here to be blessed.
Almost as if hearing my thoughts, Pelia turned to me and took the ashes of the lavender herbs she'd been working and smeared them across my forehead. Her words were quiet and muttered under her breath. Despite the silence in the temple, it was impossible to make out what she was saying or to focus on it, which made me all the more curious. Maybe I could ask her one day what her rituals and visions from the fates included.
It had to suck getting random visions from some primordial creature.
As she walked back to the altar, her voice rose, and I realized she was chanting in a language I didn't recognize, her arms reaching up before she lit a candle that sat centered on the surface. My eyes fluttered shut as a strange warmth infused my body, a wave of hot wind that didn’t feel natural in the least brushing over me, and a mouthwatering scent causing my knees to nearly give out. I thought I heard someone whisper something in my ear, but before I could focus, I found myself waking up in Finias' arms, his expression alarmed.
"You okay?" he whispered, and I nodded slowly.
"The devil's blessing affects her more than others," Pelia said, not looking concerned in the least.
I swallowed, feeling a bit dizzy, but stood up, holding her gaze as she offered me a simple shoulder squeeze and looked at the others, "You’d better finish this ridiculous fight you have planned. Ama and the rest of you have big things coming your way—things that will make this fight seem like child's play."
"Because it is," the queen scoffed, making me nearly laugh.
"Sweetheart," Cyrus huffed out as Safiya came over, hooked elbows with me, and led me from the temple, her gaze focused on the field ahead.
"You will stand over here with me," she insisted and smiled. "Once all this insanity is done, we can start talking about plans for the wedding."
Devildamnit, she looked so excited. I offered an awkward smile as I briefly wondered how she would feel about wedding planning if I insisted on including all my other mates. Or if my mates, let's say, slaughtered some fairly intimidating hybrids who were crossing the field from the castle towards us.
"Son," Cyrus looked far too excited, "who do you plan to fight?"
Jace's smile lit up as he looked directly at Adrien, "The Wraith prince."
My eyes widened as Adrien got a ridiculously cocky smirk on his face but nodded, walking over to me, despite the queen standing right there. The others were being paired up, but I was completely distracted by the man currently grabbing my face and pressing a light kiss to it.Shit.
I mean, Adrien wasn't against public displays of affection, but holy crap, in front of the queen—who was determined I would be marrying her son? Although, to her credit, she just scoffed, which Adrien ignored.
"Adrien," I hesitated.
