Chapter 198 - Chaos In Lykos

Chapter 198 - Chaos In Lykos
KIERAN
I stepped out, closing the door behind me. “The people of Lykos are losing it,” Cassius rushed. He stood in front of me, his usually polished composure cracked by urgency. His dark coat was dusted with ash, his hair slightly disheveled as though he’d come straight from chaos. Faint but relentless, the roar of hundreds of angry voices echoed through the palace corridors.
“They’re protesting… all of them… shouting in the streets, demanding peace. The guards are trying to contain them, but it’s spreading fast.”
My brow furrowed. “How bad?”
The two of us walked briskly down the long, dim corridor. Our boots echoed against the marble floors as we passed the tall arched windows, the glow of firelight flickering faintly through the glass. The roar of distant voices grew louder with every step.
Cassius gave a humorless laugh. “Bad enough the gates might not hold till dawn. They’ve had enough of the spirit beasts, enough of losing their homes and livestock, and now they’re blaming the witches for it all.”
He moved toward the window, brushing aside the curtain. They were carrying torches when it’s not dark yet, and now the air outside was thick with smoke and fury. “You can hear them even from here,” Cassius muttered. “It’s like the whole town came alive just to burn itself down.”
“Let’s go,” I said, his tone clipped but steady. “I want to see how far this has gone.”

“We can’t go down yet, we can watch from the balcony,” Cassius suggested. We went to watch from the balcony, Amelia was already there, her pale gown rippling in the wind, her expression tight with unease. “What is going on?” she asked as we approached, her voice barely audible over the uproar below.
Cassius gave her a grim nod. “Exactly what you think it is. The people are done waiting for the King’s promises. They want action.”
She turned her head toward him sharply. “Action?”
“Them fighting the spirit beast will cause more blood flow. A mere sword can’t kill them,” I said darkly, stepping up to the balcony. My eyes scanned the sea of people below. Guards lined the front gate, shields raised, forming a tense barrier between the palace and the crowd.
“Liora’s sword can,” Amelia said, looking at the both of us as we stayed quiet. “There are many of them and only one man and one sword can’t kill all of them, the best thing is to return them back to where they came from,” Cassius explained.  
“Where’s Alistair?” I asked.
“Inside,” Cassius replied. “He called for an emergency council.”
As if on cue, the tall doors of the other balcony opened again, and out stepped King Alistair, pale but composed, followed by a cluster of court members, nobles, advisers, priests. Their gold-threaded robes gleamed under the light of the chandeliers, a sharp contrast to the chaos raging below.
Alistair’s gaze swept over the shouting mass, his jaw set.
“What’s their demand?” one of the advisers asked shakily.
Cassius leaned closer to me and whispered, “The usual, less death, more justice. But now they’ve added a name.”
My eyes narrowed. “Whose?”
“Eloise,” Cassius said flatly. “They want her and her family questioned. The word is spreading that she’s behind the spirit beasts because her daughter Adeline through a ritual that is forbidden in Lykos.”
My face hardened. “Lykosians are fond of believing in the rumors they forge by themselves.”
Below, a man stepped onto a barrel in the middle of the crowd, a commoner in torn clothes. He cupped his hands and shouted with the kind of rage that comes from desperation.
“We lose more every week!” he cried, his voice cutting through the noise. “Our crops, our animals, our families! And what does the crown do? NOTHING!”
A wave of agreement rippled through the crowd. Another voice joined in from the side, louder, more furious.
“The beasts roam free while they hide behind their walls! While they feast and drink and watch us die!”
The crowd roared again, stamping their feet, shaking makeshift banners, “No more death! End the curse!”
A third man, older, his face scarred, shouted from the front lines, “The witches are the cause of this! They call the beasts with their dark rituals! Drive them out of Lykos before we all perish!”
Cheers of agreement followed, and the chant changed:
“Out with the witches! Out with the witches!”
Amelia flinched, glancing toward the King. Alistair’s knuckles whitened on the railing.
Then, a fourth voice, trembling but strong, shouted from the crowd: “They should find the Duchess Eloise, and end it! If she can perform a forbidden ritual to her daughter from the dead, she can send the beasts back where they came from!”
The words sent a ripple of murmurs through the court. Heads turned toward each other, suspicion sparking in the air.
Alistair’s expression darkened. He straightened, turning to one of his advisers. “Summon the guard. Search for Duchess Eloise before dawn. Make sure she’s found.”
My expression remained darkened. “Sending more guards to search won’t help, Alistair,” I muttered. 
Cassius met my gaze. “Alistair would never be good even though he tries to change. The people won’t take that.”
“Eloise's forbidden resurrection ritual has nothing to do with the beasts,” I said, bittered.
Alistair’s voice dropped, quiet but firm. “We have heard your cry, people of Lykos, we will ensure to find Eloise and put an end to the beast.”
I stared at him for a long moment, something unreadable flickering in my eyes, disappointment, fury, maybe something deeper. Then I turned sharply on my heel, tired of watching, I walked away, my cloak sweeping behind me. 
Cassius hesitated, watching me go, then looked back at the furious crowd below, they won’t back down, not this time. “This is going to cause a war,” he muttered under his breath.
Amelia crossed her arms tightly over her chest, her gaze still fixed on the torches blazing below. “No,” she whispered. “Not another war.”
I moved quickly through the corridor, my steps echoing dully against the stone until I reached my chamber door. The noise from the protest below had grown louder, an angry sea of voices crashing against the palace walls.
I pushed the door open.
Adeline was already dressed, though her hair was still unbound, tumbling down her back in loose waves. She stood by the tall window, her hands pressed lightly against the glass as she watched the chaos below. 
“Adeline,” I called softly.
She turned to me, her voice trembling. “Is this ever going to be over?”
I crossed the room to her, glancing briefly out the window. The sight below was grim, guards struggling to hold the line. I clenched my jaw and met her eyes.
“There’s no time,” I said. “We have to leave.”
“But… the sun isn’t down yet,” she said.
I didn’t answer. Instead, I took her hand firmly.
“Your—”
I pulled her gently but urgently toward the door. “Now,” I said, my tone low but unyielding.