A Pirate for the Dead Goddess (Legends of Rahasia Book 2)

Chapter Eighteen

-ODE NGAYOH, LUCKY'S GODDESS-

Broken and aged as she was, Ode Ngayoh returns for the first time in seventeen years to the palace of the Rahasian Empire, standing tall with carvings of marble eyes and golden pillars, of towering stone monoliths and rows of ancient Diviner texts and a prodigal army of magical warfare and bronze plates. Ode Ngayoh, a strong 35 if she were mortal...

But the Divine Wars aged her past her prime, using her notorious blood magic to summon wraiths, slicing into her own skin to use the undead to defeat Cato, Kane's treacherous brother, the war god who'd stolen his eyes. She'd given so much of herself to win the Divine Wars, to prove herself necessary, and to redefine her womanhood.

Ode Ngayoh, First Woman General and Champion of Rahasia. Goddess of death. All earth-toned skin and eyes of blood moon and black. A lioness mane of tight curls framing a face that roars in defiance of all men, white shot through like thunderbolts. Wrinkles at the corners of her eyes, laugh lines near her smile. Even limping from countless lacerations gained from fighting a cursed serpent, she's strong. A roll to her hips, cords of muscle around her neck and shoulders. Leather sandals strapped up her thigh, and her father's armor, the armor of the Cleaver of Men, on her breastplate.

A living legend, carrying her husband, the shriveled god of life, like a child in her arms. A collection of obsidian skin, of the dehydrated shell of an old man rapidly aging, regaining all the thousand-thousand years he'd lived past with eternal youth.

She makes her way, limping and bleeding gold and red with her husband in her arms, towards the Emperor and his court. The mortals, aghast, stare in awe at the legendary woman.

Emperor Elio, the ruler who owns the sun. Tattoos all over his body, faded golden tattoos that once allowed him to harness fire and fury in his brash youth. Hair cut close, though there's been further growth beneath his golden imperial crown. Wearing simple şalvar and a swan gray tunic and growing out a thick black beard so he looks more his age at 38.

At his side, his husband, Consort Ryu. A lithe dancer's body, looking in his late twenties even if he just trails his husband at 36. Known informally as the most beautiful man in the Empire. His skin isn't left unmarked. Brands of roses, all over his body, from when others tortured him for being a boy-loving bastard. Pressed burning metal brands into his flesh, forced him down on the floor and dehumanized him. But now Ryu has the last laugh.

He's the second most powerful person in the entire kingdom, to his husband. His husband, Elio, who added a tattoo of a rose on his neck so that beloved Ryu wouldn't feel so alone. His joon-am, the love of his life and soul.

Consort Ryu's arms are draped in golden bangles, wearing black robes that drape elegantly off his skinny frame. His sandals are flat against the ground, tapering off at his bird-thin bones, the red beads around his neck and ankles. A tiny crown of roses woven around his hair, soft black framing his golden skin. Honeyed eyes, his pretty heritage from an Okami concubine mother. They're discussing the protection of Akuan sovereignty when Elio stops speaking entirely. Consort Ryu's gaze follows his husband's.

They struggle to find words, to draw breath.

Instantly, they fall to their knees, heads bowed in prayer.

"Enough of that," Ode gasps, waving away their piety. "Someone take Kane's weight from me. I haven't rested since my mother-in-law escaped captivity."

Elio claps his hands, and his warriors, dressed in shining armor with the brand of Ryu's rose and Kane's eye, rush forwards to carry the broken god of life.