Eos was standing in the doorway between the hall and this enchanted room, looking at us with glazed eyes and an uncertain smile as if she knew what was happening but refused to acknowledge it.
"Y-you're coming back, right?" she asked, stepping inside to close the door behind her. "It's just a quick trip beyond the castle walls with Willow and Piper, right? To introduce them to the subjects of the Golden Region before the weddings tomorrow."
My heart suddenly turned to stone in my chest.
Eos had changed into another person in these past weeks after the Crown Trials. Her gloomy expressions and hostile scowls had turned into careful smiles — sometimes even amused chuckles.
She'd used to hate this place and its walls. She'd felt alone and abandoned until Piper, and I came to care for her like sisters.
We were about to take that away from her. We were about to abandon her like the queen did — she'd be alone again. I couldn't believe how stupid and selfish it was of me to have forgotten that.
"How did you get in here, Eos?" Art whispered, his eyes wide and frozen.
I blinked when Art addressed the issue I'd failed to consider.
It shouldn't be possible for people to access this room while it was in use without permission. That was another reason this plan was so great. King Alaric and Tarkan couldn't burst in here while the room was tethered to Art's heart.
"T-the door was slightly ajar. I happened to hear voices when I passed, so I—"
"You can't be here, Eos," Caiden said, stepping toward her to guide her out again.
She elegantly spun out of his grip and backed away from him. "Then tell me," she said, steadfast. "Where are you going? And when will you be back?"
Caiden clenched his teeth so hard I could see his jaw-muscles bulge. Eos was his sister, but it would be dangerous for her and us if she knew about our mission.
"You're not coming back, are you?" she whispered, stepping back again when Caiden remained silent. Then she turned her head for her eyes to catch mine.
My heart jumped to my throat, my ears throbbing as my blood rushed past them.
"Will," she said, clenching her fists. "Tell me it's not true. Tell me that you're coming back."
"It's not that easy, Eos," I said, my body itching to abandon my position and wrap my arms around her. "We have to go."
Her fallen tear was like a blunt blade carving my aching heart with guilt.
"Then take me with you," Eos suddenly said, stepping toward us to join our group.
I swallowed the urge to gasp and suppressed the smile tugging my lips. Could we do that? Could we bring Eos?
She was still young, but she wasn't First-blood like Faye. She could manipulate light. Alia could too, but having two light manipulators may not be entirely dumb.
"It's too dangerous," Caiden said, grabbing Eos' arm before she could reach us. "We don't know what could be waiting for us out there, and too much of our plan is still uncertain. I will not drag you into this mess if it can be avoided."
"I'm not a kid anymore, Atlas!" Eos shouted, wrenching her arm out of Caiden's hands. "I'm an Iridis like you, and I'm not scared of the world outside this castle."
"It is not about being scared, Eos. You are still my little sister, and I cannot bring myself to risk your life like that. I will not allow it."
Eos' brow furrowed, and her lip curled back. "And where was that sense of brotherly protection all these years?" she shouted. "You have been so busy with your royal duties and satisfying Father's demands that you've hardly seen me all these years. None of you have seen me, and I refuse to return to that life. So I'm going with you, or I'll alert the entire castle of your escape."
Tears were now springing from her eyes.
I was about to open my mouth and step forward to utter my opinion when Art beat me to it.
"Fine," Art said, grumbling as he stepped forward to grab Eos' hand. "We'll be right back. Wait for us here."
"Uncle!" Caiden exclaimed when a smile spread on Eos' flustered face.
"She's coming with us, Atlas, and that's final. Wait for us here."
Then they disappeared, leaving behind a strong wave of wind we all had to shield our eyes from.
"Cursed blood!" Caiden hissed, throwing his fist against the cave wall so hard blue blood trickled down his bruised knuckles.
"Caiden," I said, carefully stepping closer to him to lay my hand on his shoulder. "Maybe it's best—"
"What is he thinking? She's sixteen. She just received her powers last year. It's too dangerous."
Clenching my teeth, I grabbed Caiden's cheeks to force him to look at me.
"Your sister is not weak, Caiden," I said as his startled eyes shifted between mine. "She has been alone all these years, fighting hard for you all to see her. She is not weak, and she will not be a liability. Please see that."
"Will," he whispered, bringing his hands to grab my shoulders. "I never meant for her to—"
"I know," I said, sniffling to keep the tears at bay. "You've had a lot on your plate as Heliac's crown prince, and I doubt Eos blames you, but that doesn't change the fact that she is scared — not about the world outside the castle walls, but to be alone again."
Caiden's hands moved to my face, his thumb gently stroking my heated cheeks. Then he sighed. "Okay," he said. "I trust you."
I smiled, satisfied with his words moments before Art and Eos appeared in the cave again, Art carrying Eos' bag over his shoulder with a tired expression on his face.
Eos had changed her clothes, and instead of her beautiful dress, she wore a dull pair of pants and a thick shirt hidden behind a hooded cloak.
"Teenagers," Art grumbled when he dropped the bag next to the others.
Eos was muttering some unrecognizable words with her arms crossed and brows lowered.
"What happened?" I asked, letting go of Caiden to join the others by the secret exit.
"Uncle Arthur wouldn't let me bring what I needed," Eos muttered, her shoulders raised to her ears.
I crooked my brow. Her bag was already packed to the brim. What more could she possibly need?
"Makeup is not a necessity, Eos," Art said before Eos could answer my questioning expression.
Eos rolled her eyes. "I'm a woman in development. I have yet to find my identity, and makeup is part of that step."
Alia sighed deeply, rubbing the bridge of her nose.
Perhaps it wasn't the greatest idea to bring Eos along after all...
"Listen, Eos," Art said, fastening his cloak around his neck. "I have only allowed you to come with us because I believe you could benefit from this experience, but I need you to follow directions. Otherwise, I will have to leave you with the nearest family I trust."
I swallowed silently. Art wasn't messing around, and Eos knew that based on her stiffened posture and empty stare.
"Y-yes, Uncle. Sorry," she said, clenching the edge of her cloak.
"Good. Put on your cloaks, and let's get moving before Calix can alert my brother of our treachery. We have a long journey ahead of us."
We all nodded and went to grab our cloaks before Alia climbed down the hatch as the first of us.
"Is that where we're going?" Eos whispered behind me, pointing at the dark hole Alia had just disappeared into.
I nodded and crooked my head sideways as Eos' face drained of color. "What is it?" I asked when her hand desperately grabbed mine to squeeze the life out of it.
"I-it's kind of dark down there, isn't it?"
Her hand trembled wildly as if a cold wind was biting her exposed skin. Her eyes remained wide, fear jumping from her lashes as her brow glistened in the dim light from the cave windows.
"Afraid of the dark?" I asked, recalling how Tristan used to climb into my bed when lightning tore the night sky open and broke the light bulbs in his nightlight.
The dark was scary. Our minds tended to spin irrational tales of beasts hiding in the shadows or rogue animals attacking from the dark corners of our eyes.
In our homes and behind isolated walls, that fear was irrational. But down there, and between the trees in the forest that awaited us, was the unknown. Only the spirits would know what awaited us.
Even my body shuddered uncontrollably at the terrifying thought.
"I'm not exactly scared of the dark, but I— Um...."
"It's not too late to change your mind if you want to stay here," I whispered when she pulled herself closer to me and wrapped her entire arm around mine.
She shook her head.
I hadn't anticipated her to admit defeat already, but I needed her to know that the option was still there.
"It's safe," Alia shouted from the bottom of the seemingly bottomless darkness. Then spheres of light — like those Adriel had created when we first met — floated in the air next to the rusty ladder.
Piper crawled down next, the metal squeaking every time she took a step. The sound sent waves of doubt skipping down my spine.
That place was as old as the castle. What if it collapsed on top of us? We didn't have an Earth Iridis with us to save us.
"Are you ready?" I whispered to Eos as Piper vocally signaled her safe descent.
Eos hesitantly forced her feet to move as we approached the opening. "I'll be right behind you, and remember what power you wield. If you get scared, chase the shadows away with your light."
She nodded reluctantly without taking her eyes off the hole. Silently, I guided her hands to the ladder and ignored the hushed hiss as her hands touched the worn metal.
I didn't breathe until I heard Piper's voice.
"She's down."
The air instantly became thick and clammy as soon as I descended below the surface. It smelled like damp metal pipes eroding after years of wear and moist soil with all it entailed.
I fought the impulse to pinch my nose when my feet hit the ground. I would get used to the smell eventually... hopefully.
Caiden was next until only Art remained.
"Catch," Art said before a dark bag landed in Caiden's arms.
Art didn't climb down the ladder like the rest of us but jumped as he closed the hatch behind him. The hairs on my nape rose alongside the sinking feeling in my stomach. Then a strong wind caught Art's dropping body, and he landed as elegantly as a cat.
"Let's go," Art said, grabbing the bag from Caiden before he walked past us to continue further into the dark corridor. "Alia. Would you be kind to light the way?"
Alia nodded and moved her sun spheres to float a few yards ahead of us.
Twin-spiders hung from the ceiling, their elegant spiderwebs making the entire ceiling appear grayish-white in Alia's light.
"What is this place exactly, Master Arthur?" Piper asked, wrinkling her nose at the sight of the countless spiders above us. "Is this even safe?"
I flinched when pebbles loosened from the wall behind us. I looked back, expecting to see a monster, but there was only darkness.
"They are safe. Alaric and I used these tunnels to sneak out of the castle when we were younger."
"Father used to sneak out?" Caiden asked.
I think that came as a shock to all of us. King Alaric always seemed so serious, as if he would never break a single law unless it could solve a life-threatening situation.
"Yes. Your father and I were quite the rebels in our younger days, which is also among the reasons why we are heading to the Inferno Realm."
"Why are we going to the Inferno Realm?" Eos asked, rushing to my side, searching for answers.
I sighed. It wasn't Eos' fault for asking. She was only curious, which was reasonable, but it was getting tiresome to repeat the same story over and over again.
"Tomorrow," I said, forcing a smile upon my lips. "I'll tell you tomorrow."
An expression of disappointment painted creased strokes of sadness across her face.
"Why don't I tell you a bit about our mission, Eos," Piper said, saving me from a conversation I didn't have the energy to have.
"Are you okay?"
Caiden's warmth felt comforting beside me.
"Yeah," I said, sighing deeply. "It's just been a long day. I hadn't expected to be on the run before tomorrow."
The walk felt long, and with every step, I wondered if the next second would be the moment Tarkan escaped his restraints. I barely even noticed how far we'd gone until I felt the night air caress my warm skin.
The starry night was beautiful and peaceful as if this night was no different than any other night that had passed so far.
I adjusted the straps of my bag and shook off the sleep in the corner of my eye to push forward. It wasn't now that I would allow myself to be overwhelmed by the limits of my human body, not when we were this close.
The streets were empty and abandoned, the silence only interrupted by wilted leaves scattering across the hardened ground, caught in the gentle wind.
Darkness veiled the windows of the surrounding houses, leaving no waking eye in sight, which was a fortunate case for us. We could sneak through the city without worrying about being detected.
None of us dared speak a word. I hardly dared to breathe or step forward without tiptoeing, but we couldn't afford to slow down. The moon was high, and in a few hours, the earliest workers would rise with the first light of the sun.
My breath hitched when the silent night was interrupted by a loud clang of a giant bell.
I looked back to see the bell ringing, alerting the entire city that something was wrong.
"They know," Art said, pushing Eos forward.
Flickering lights suddenly emerged in the windows, the bell slowly awakening the sleeping people of the Golden Region.
Nerves skipped on the top of my skin, playfully igniting sparks of anxiety and fear.
"We have to go now," Art whispered loudly, suddenly grabbing my frozen body to pull me forward with the others. "Alia. I know you're tired, but I need you to push an illusion over us until we reach the first line of trees."
Alia nodded, forcing her heavy eyes open before she unfolded her hands and made a gesture that none of us could see creating anything.
To us, everything was normal. We were still running through the streets, scarcely escaping the emerging lights from the windows. However, to everyone else, these streets were as empty as the night.
The bell rang again, and I forced myself to keep looking ahead, so I didn't fall behind.
Tarkan was back there, standing by his father's side as they surveyed the closest part of town, noticing every tremble in the ground and every move of stones within the proximity.
We would be long gone once their troops finally got here. And when they did, it would be to look for traitors betraying this world and its values.
It would be to look for us.