"The Mare Praesidio have made their way through Chondatha and Holstone?!" I gasped and Xanthe nodded solemnly.
"And my Revenant has been rather oppressive, as well." Xanthe nodded, gesturing to the third set of chains trapping her onto the chaise.
"Yes... So I've heard." I muttered, shaking my head, "What should we do--? What can we do?"
"...Prepare for the worst... I don't know if I can be of much assistance should the time come that we need a Mistress of Whispers to fend off the Mare Praesidio." She sighed and I nodded.
"I understand... Will you be safe in here?" I asked and Xanthe scoffed.
"If the Mare Praesidio can break protection spells, then no, but otherwise, no harm should come to me." She told me and I let out a heavy sigh.
"Okay... Good to know. But I do have one more question..." I started and Xanthe cocked a brow at me, "What have you found on The Book of Monsters?"
"Nothing... That's the problem. I remember seeing all of these chapters but now they're all gone. Even if I flip through the pages, I'll notice that a chapter will be skipped every so often and... I still can't find the chapter with Azamas or... Your mother, for that fact." She told me and I scratched my head.
"Azure is in The Book of Beasts?" I asked and she nodded.
"Towards the end, albeit, are all of the more... Common Gods and Patron Gods." Xanthe confessed and I shook my head.
And a weird thought hit me...
"What if the reason why they're not in the book is that they're walking among us?" I asked and Xanthe cocked a brow.
"Are you suggesting that The Book of Beasts is an ethereal plane?" She questioned and I shrugged.
"Maybe it's like a door... Or a window, maybe. We can see The Gods but they can't see us and maybe they can exit through it." I offered and Xanthe tapped her chin.
"It's a possibility..." She muttered, "A very likely one... It explains a lot, but why would they be in The World?"
"For me," I suggested and Xanthe's head cocked to the side.
"Hmm... I should consider this with my contacts. Leave me." She demanded, getting to her feet and dragging herself and her chains to her vanity.
"Good afternoon, Xanthe." I nodded at her and took my leave.
I need a break anyway.
. . .
I lit a couple of candles in my quarters and flopped onto the bed.
I have had a busy day.
I first had to talk with Dallin regarding him and the other courtesans. Next, I had to speak to Serana about rallying the troops on the borders because I know Athena won't do it.
I spoke with Xanthe, as you know. But then I got stuck in a rather undesired conversation between Vinca, Cyrus and Zaria, for some reason. Then, it drew the attention of Lord Ramses and Mistress Waylinn and they discussed some trivial politics with me for what had to be three hours.
And now here I am, finally able to let loose... Until I heard a tapping.
"Hmm?" I mumbled, glancing around the room and I heard it again... From the balcony?
I got to my feet and a pebble hit the glass before me, making no more than a shrill 'ding'.
I opened the balcony doors and spotted Athena on the other side of the railing, clinging tightly to it.
"Athena!?" I gasped as she tumbled over the railing, landing at my feet and panting, "What are you doing!? Are you okay!?"
She got to her feet and nodded, dusting herself off before speaking, "Elia... I... I love you and I made a mistake. So, uh..."
I blushed at her statement and nodded, "Yes?"
"I'm never letting you go." She declared, gripping my shoulders and staring desperately into my eyes.
"That sounds... Very possessive." I chuckled and Athena let out a sigh.
"Is it?" She grumbled, "I was working on this whole speech on the, uh... Climb up here but I nearly slipped and I lost everything..."
I chuckled again and placed my hands on her jaw, bringing her lips to mine and savouring the feel of her just being here, for me.
"Well, I must say, no one has ever scaled a three-storey building for me," I smirked and she shrugged.
"All in a day's work... Though I did just ask Lady Hortensia below if I could use her balcony... She was very confused." Athena laughed dryly, scratching the back of her neck and I glanced over the railing to see Hortensia's balcony, not twenty feet below.
"Ah, the things we do for the people we love." I grinned and she nodded, taking my hands in hers.
"So... If you'll have me... May I make all of the things I did up to you?" She asked and I nodded as she tugged me inside and planted me on the side of the bed and kneeling before me, "I know the things I have said in the past were wrong... But I'm ready; I'm ready to become Head of House; I'm ready to be your Queen-Consort."
"Athena..." I smiled but she continued.
"Elia, no matter what I may say, or how I may act... I will always fight for you." She nodded, pressing a kiss to my knuckles.
"Would you take an arrow for me?" I smirked and she gave me a small smile in return.
"I would consume any poison, stand before any sword, or take any arrow, for you." She declared, moving a gloved hand and bringing it to her chest as if she was swearing an oath.
"Athena?" I wondered, pulling her to her feet and she let out a questioning hum, "Kiss me."
--ATHENA'S P.O.V.--
"You seem chipper," Darius stated, glancing up at me from his experiment and gazing at me from around the rim of his goggles.
"You're not going to ask why I'm in your tower?" I asked, raising a brow and he shrugged.
"I just assumed you wanted company or to tell me some good news but now that you've said that, it makes me think you want something from me." He grunted, resting his forceps on the table and crossing his arms.
"Do you still have those winter flowers you collected last year?" I asked and he rolled his eyes.
"I see where this is going." He groaned, disappearing into a storage room for a few seconds before returning with a bouquet of white flowers encased in a cube of ice.
"Well, I... How do I get them out of there?" I questioned and he glared at me.
"You won't be, I will. I don't trust you around fire." Darius muttered and I cocked a brow.
"Since when?" I gasped and he spared me a quick glance.
"Since the last time I let you use fire... Your parents had to pay for property damage to the Centyres." Darius groaned and I rolled my eyes.
"That was what? Sixteen years ago?" I growled and he rolled his eyes.
"Arsonists and pyromaniacs are one and the same, but I'd prefer to give fire to someone that is enthralled by it, not someone who thinks up everything they could burn with it." Darius sighed, and he lit a match before putting it onto a small metal contraption above the ice.
"...What's that going to--?" I started and the ice shattered, leaving behind a metal framework and a pristine bouquet of flowers, "Do...?"
"Now, please leave." He demanded and I patted him on the back before snatching up the flowers and exiting his apothecary.
It shouldn't take me too long to get back to Elia's quarters. I did tell her I'd be back before midday and despite the setback that was General Lucio, I should be able to be there on time.
I turned a corner and stopped in my tracks.
Is that--
"Azaelia?" I asked and the girl spun around, a giant grin on her lips.
"Captain!" She beamed and bounded up to me, encircling me in a strong hug, stronger than I thought Azaelia could do, "Sorry for disappearing on you. I've been busy with a, uh... Friend."
"Ah. All is well, Azaelia." I nodded with a weak smile.
I reached into the pocket of my garb and produced Darius' vial.
Should I...?
"What's that?" She asked, staring almost awkwardly at the bottle in my hands, "It looks dangerous..."
"Oh, it's just something a friend gave me... He said I should drink it if I needed to..." I confessed and she tilted her head to the side.
"Maybe you shouldn't... Y'know, it could be poison!" She suggested and I smirked.
"I don't think it's poison, Azaelia." I shrugged and she sighed.
"Isn't the first rule for guards is to 'be cautious'?" She asked and I shook my head.
Elia told me her theory last night so... What if it's true? What if what Xanthe said was true?
Thirty seconds of Seeing Beyond, eh?
I uncorked the bottle and dropped the contents into my eyes, my vision going blurry for a second before returning to normal... Though everything had a slight blue tint to it.
When I glanced around, Azaelia was gone...
The hallway seemed to warp and undulate for a few seconds before my eyes fully adjusted to the change and I was all alone.
I heard the sound of distant moaning but as I turned around, my vision started to clear and I felt a streak of agony course through my gut.
I let out a hiss, moving to clutch my stomach... But I instead found purchase on a steel blade.
My vision regulated and I spotted Azaelia before me, blood dripping from her nose and mouth and her eyes like tears.
"Azure sends her regards." She declared, her voice monotone as her eyes turned bloodshot, more crimson than anything and dark, shadowlike tendrils emerged from behind her.
Xanthe was right.