“Should I go, too?” Esme asked, which caused both myself and Scylla to turn toward her. “If you could just forget I’m here, that would be fine with me.” I felt a smile playing on my lips at Esme’s sudden interest in the ceiling.
“I’ll go,” Scylla announced. “It would seem I am no longer needed. Zyion can anoint you and attend to your ascension. I need not burden him with my presence. After all, he will be the one at your side now. I didn’t mean to hurt him. Unfortunately, when the Fates choose a piece to move on the board they play upon, you can either do as they bid, or you suffer eternity at their hands. I knew when I began moving pieces at their behest, I’d lose more than myself along the way.”
“Yeah.” I wasn’t certain what to say to her. Scylla’s sacrifices caused both her and Zyion pain that couldn’t be eased. She’d done it to save the world, even though it had cost more than she could bear. “It couldn’t have been easy.”
“Thank you for trying to ease my pain.” Stepping closer to me, she pressed her forehead against mine. “Remember this, my darling. Just because you’re fighting against a tyrannical evil, it doesn’t mean you’re entirely good. There’s a thin line you cannot cross because there is no way back from it. That line is there to remind you of who you are, but more importantly, it will define who you are to become as queen.” In silence, I watched her fading away to nothing more than a shimmer, before vanishing.
“Where is Scylla?” Zyion entered the room, staring at me as the golden glow reflected in his turquoise stare.
“Gone,” I answered, noting the flinch of pain he released. “She said you could anoint me in oil since you’d be beside me now. I don’t know how to ease the pain of learning about her betrayal, Zyion. There’s really nothing that would remove that type of deeply sated pain either. But, for what it’s worth, I’m sorry for what it cost you to create me.” Unshed tears choked my words, but the angry glare simmering from him was enough to force them back.
“You’re a queen, Aria. Queens do not weep for slaves, or knights.” He used this thumb to wipe away the tear trailing down my cheek.
“Queens are not told what they can and cannot do, Zyion. I can cry if I want to cry, asshole.”
“You need not apologize for something you had no part in. I reacted badly, and for that, I am sorry.”
“Don’t apologize for your grief. There’s no time limit on how long one can feel endless agony from loss. Congratulations, Zyion. You’re human.” His eyebrow lifted as if he didn’t fully agree with the assessment. A smirk lifted my lips as I rolled my eyes. “Part human, then?” Just then, a loud rattle echoed throughout the exterior of the room.
“Times up, they’ve found us. Let’s go, Your Majesty.” Zyion jerked me toward him and then lifted his hand, allowing me to see the glittering gold oil sparkling on his thumb. “Do you promise to always put the needs of your people before your own? Nod, Aria.”
I nodded.
His thumb drew a cross over my forehead before he dipped it into the glass container for more of the oil.
“Will you always listen to the cry of the land and ensure it receives what it needs to thrive?”
I nodded, and this time, he ripped the front of my gown open and painted the symbol of the sun on my chest.
“Kneel,” he ordered, pushing me to my knees before him.
Zyion whispered something inaudible, and his turquoise-colored eyes sparkled with specks of gold. The same gold burned wispy lines under the flesh of his eyelids, webbing as it slid down his face, neck, and vanished beneath the long-sleeved shirt, which he’d replaced the other with. Power erupted around us so forcefully that my thoughts swam and lips parted. Esme released a soft gasp, and I wanted to tell her I was okay, but there was no way to form words around the magic. My dress turned to ashes against my flesh. In its place, a crimson dress with an ombre skirt the color of succulent tangerines covered my legs. Zyion clasped a gold necklace around my neck. On it, hung a medallion depicting the sun melded with a sunflower. Next, he knelt in front of me and slid golden arm cuffs that matched the necklace up my arms until they were secure around my biceps.
Still kneeling before him, I closed my eyes as he, at last, placed a citrine-studded crown on my head. When his fingers slipped beneath my chin, forcing my chin up, I didn’t resist him. Narrowed eyes held mine fleetingly before moving to the side of my face. Pushing my hair from my ear, he placed the matching earrings in each of my earlobes. The moment he rose and stepped back, he offered his hand, assisting me to my feet. Flicking his finger, a mirror appeared before me. Staring at my golden reflection, I peered at the crown which had rainbow prisms within the pure, polished citrus points pushing from a thin golden band.
“All hail the Sunfire Queen. Long may she reign.” His deep, soothing baritone flooded the chamber, then the sound of others echoing his words forced my chin to jerk toward the main entrance of the chamber. “Long may you reign, Your Majesty.”
“Long may she reign,” Esme whispered before kneeling at my feet. Zyion was next to take a knee, and then Eva.
“I’d summon the land, Your Majesty. The doors preventing your uncle from entering the city won’t hold for much longer,” Zyion offered.
Closing my eyes, I whispered to the land as he’d advised. Within moments, rumbling sounded from behind us. It forced me to turn, eyeing the plain throne that had appeared.
The throne, if you could even call it that, was a wooden chair with white cushions, which looked discolored. I cringed as I imagined dust filling the chamber as my ass touched the dingey thing. I inched closer, then carefully sat down, expecting the dust cloud to ensue. The moment I sat on the wide, off-white cushion, vines wrapped around my wrists, locking me into place. Panic rushed through me as it held me in place. More vines slithered around my ankles, which caused dread to trickle down my spine. A gentle whiff of suntan lotion, ocean breeze, and fresh-cut flowers wafted through the air around me. It reminded me of the one time I’d visited the inlet outside Haven Falls.