Chapter 33 Chains That Bind II
I moved. Faster than I should be able to. The child is pushing me. Giving me speed I did not have.
I caught Viktor's wrist. Twisted. Bone snapped. He screamed.
"You do not touch him. Ever." I drove my hand through his chest. Ripped out his heart. "Understood?"
He died staring at me. Shocked.
I dropped the heart. Ran to Kael. Started breaking his chains.
"Sera," he gasped. "Run. Save yourself. Save the baby."
"Not without you. Never without you." The chains would not break. Too strong. Too much magic.
Footsteps. Many of them. Coming fast.
Aldric appeared in the doorway. Nose healed. Expression dark. "You killed Viktor. That was stupid."
"He was going to kill Kael."
"And now I have to kill you both. You leave me no choice." He gestured. Twenty guards poured in. "I am sorry, Sera. I truly am. But you made your decision."
The guards raised crossbows. Aimed. Not at me. At Kael.
They would kill him while I watched. While I felt him die through the bond.
"No!" I threw everything I had. Every scrap of power. Every drop of magic.
Nothing happened. I was empty. Drained.
The child tried. God, it tried. Its magic flared. But too weak. Too young. Not enough.
The guards fired.
Then the wall exploded.
Stone and magic and roaring power. Rowan burst through with fifty half-bloods. Armed. Angry. Ready for war.
"Get away from my queen!" he shouted.
His people attacked. Overwhelming Aldric's guards. Overwhelming everything.
"Fall back!" Aldric ordered. "Retreat!"
They ran. Fast. Smart. Leaving us with Rowan's rebels.
"How did you find us?" I gasped.
"Lyra. She sent word. Said you walked into a trap." Rowan started breaking Kael's chains. "We rode hard. Almost did not make it."
The chains finally shattered. Kael fell. I caught him. He was heavy. Cold. Dying.
"We need a healer. Now."
"On it." Rowan gestured. Two half-bloods lifted Kael. Started carrying him out.
I followed. Legs shaking. Magic gone. The child is quiet now. Exhausted.
We made it outside. To horses. To freedom.
But I knew this was not over. Aldric was alive. The rebels were scattered but not defeated. The Purists still wanted us dead.
We had won the battle. Not the war.
"Sera." Kael's hand found mine. Weak. Shaking. "You saved me."
"You would have done the same."
"I love you. In case I die before I can say it again."
"You are not dying. I forbid it." I kissed him. Tasted blood. "You are mine. Death does not get to take you."
He almost smiled. Then, they passed out.
We rode hard for the palace. For safety. For healers.
I held Kael the entire way. Felt his heartbeat. Weak but present. Felt the bond. Damaged but intact.
Felt the child. Quiet. Resting. It had tried to save us. Had given everything it could.
And it was only six weeks old.
What would it be capable of when born?
What monster were we creating?
No. Not monster. Our child. Our future.
I had to believe that. Had to hold onto it. Because the alternative was madness.
We reached the palace as dawn broke. Healers took Kael. Started working. I refused to leave his side.
Lyra appeared. "Your Majesty. Thank the gods you are alive."
"Barely. How did you know?"
"Isabeau. She has spies everywhere. They sent word about the trap. About Aldric's alliance with the rebels." Lyra looked grim. "Your Majesty. We have a problem."
"Another one?"
"The other provinces heard about Viktor's death. They are calling it murder. Saying you executed a rebel leader during peace talks." She handed me a letter. "They are declaring full war. All seven provinces. United against you."
I read the letter. Read the demands. The threats. The promise of violence.
They would march on the capital. Burn it. Kill us. End our reign.
"When?" I asked.
"Two weeks. Maybe less. They are mobilizing now."
Two weeks. We had two weeks to prepare for civil war. To heal. To rally forces.
To preserve a kingdom that was collapsing.
And I was carrying a child whose power was hardly manageable.
That might die if I went into battle. That might doom us all.
"Then we prepare," I said. Voice hollow. "We gather every ally. Every soldier. Every person willing to fight for us."
"That might not be enough. Seven provinces. Tens of thousands of soldiers." Lyra's voice was gentle. "Your Majesty. You might want to consider—"
"No. We do not surrender. We do not run. We fight." I looked at Kael. Unconscious. Broken. "We have come too far. Sacrificed too much. I will not give up now."
"Even if it costs you everything?"
"Especially then."
Lyra bowed. Left.
I sat beside Kael's bed. Held his cold hand. Felt the child stirring inside me.
We had two weeks. Two weeks to prepare for war. To heal. To find a miracle.
Two weeks before everything ended.
Or began.
I did not know which. But I would face it beside him. With our impossible child. With whatever strength we had left.
Because we were Shadowborn and Draeven. Bonded by fate. Forged in blood.
And we did not break.
Not for assassins. Not for traitors. Not for war.
We bent. We survived. We endured.
And when the seven provinces came for us, they would learn what that meant.
They would discover it from the screams of those who misjudged us, as much as through blood and shadow.
because we had had enough mercy.
Done being kind.
Done pretending we were anything other than what we had become.
Monsters who loved each other.
And that was the most dangerous thing in the realm.
I just hoped we were ready for what that meant.