Chapter 14: A King in Chains

EVINE

The forest stretched on as far as the eye could see. Evine saw all of Imarnia as she glided above the treetops. In her wake was a trail of Wizard Hunters, led by the infamous Jora Zayn.

Every small village or city they came upon was left in ruin. Like the Kingdom of Vallas, Imarnia would succumb to their brutal will.

Evine looked far ahead at the smoke rising from Gabriel’s castle. In his zeal to please her, her thrall wanted nothing more than to rain destruction down upon his capital.

And why wouldn’t she allow that? Queen Adria’s destruction of Vallas was more of a test to see if the Royals would do her bidding. But she was pleased. More than pleased.

Evine knew Gabriel would do whatever she asked. It was in his blood. After all, he was the same sad man who had believed Evine was his real mate over three hundred years ago.

Even after she murdered his mother and faked her own death, the King of Imarnia still couldn’t break his steadfast devotion.

Gabriel was her puppet—a destructive plaything that never said no and couldn’t be stopped. Not by any mortal, at least.

The Slifers had turned out to be an unfortunate pain in the ass. But when he asked to invade Imarnia alone, Gabriel’s fiery eyes spoke volumes to Evine.

He was ready to take on his Slifer mate and make her pay for all she had done to Uzier’s plans. Evine fully expected to see that little bitch Lydia curled up on the floor at Gabriel’s feet. The king had nearly bested his mate in Ulu, and there would be no escaping him now.

Evine basked in the cool evening breeze. She could feel the last of the sun’s rays dying beneath the horizon. Soon it would be night. The time when she felt most alive.

But something wasn’t right...

The city was no doubt in ruins. Smoke was still rising from small fires that burned in the city center. And while she could see the castle had taken significant damage, she could sense that it was empty inside.

Evine

I see your trail of destruction...

Evine

Well done my pet…

Evine

Tell me how badly you beat that poor Slifer girl…

Evine

Gabriel? It is my command that you answer me!

Something was wrong. Gabriel would never ignore her communication. None of her thralls could.

Unless…

Evine sped up her approach to the castle, fearing the worst.

LYDIA

Lydia watched the unconscious man lying in a heap on the ground. For the first time since they’d reunited, he was finally peaceful.

Her eyes searched every inch of his face. It had been so long since she’d had the chance to take in the rugged beauty that was King Gabriel James Imarnia. He’d tried to kill her and nearly succeeded.

But now that she saw him removed from Evine’s control, she remembered all the things she missed about him.

If only she could break the connection to that evil witch! Lydia touched the jade-green gem with her finger. It was smooth and polished. But inside this seemingly innocuous jewel was a connective force driving Gabriel’s madness.

“Not to be the bearer of bad news,” Elise said, “but something is flying right toward us.”

The Wind Slifer was staring out the window where the others quickly joined her.

A speck tore over the tops of the trees. Whoever—or whatever—it was seemed to be heading right toward the castle.

“What is that?” asked Dorian.

“That, my boy,” Lucius said grimly, “is our worst nightmare.”

Lydia pressed her way to the front of the group and looked hard at the approaching figure. Even though she couldn’t say for sure, it felt like Evine’s energy.

“We need to get out of here,” Lydia said. “And not just because of her.”

Her eyes turned toward the man on the ground. The others nodded in agreement. If he were to wake up before they could adequately restrain him, things would go from bad to worse.

“Well, I guess that’s where I come in,” Lucius groaned. “Everyone gather together, and I’ll teleport us to safety. As usual.”

Most of the group made their way toward Gabriel’s unconscious body. Lis and Aero stayed a few steps behind, looking at one another nervously.

“What’s wrong?” Lydia asked.

“If we all leave, then Imarnia will have no one left to protect it,” Lis said, worried.

Lydia understood their worries, but it didn’t seem like they had many other options. “What else would you suggest?” she asked.

Aero placed an arm around Lis and pulled her closer.

“She’s right, Lis,” he said. “Staying behind would be to sign our own death warrant.”

Lis finally relented and joined the rest of the group. Tears were at the corners of her eyes as she made one of the hardest decisions of her life.

“Everyone ready?” Lucius asked. “Here we go!”

In a flash of light, they were back in the capital city of Ellesmere. Lucius was always fast and accurate—for the most part.

~Oof!~

The group let out a collective groan as they landed with a thud near the steps leading to the Congress of Magic.

Dorian stood up and began rubbing his ass, trying to take the sting out of it.

Lydia rolled over and looked up at the evening sky. Stars sparkled like diamonds on a blanket of dark velvet. It was beautiful and momentarily took away the pain of their ungraceful landing.

“Make way!” Marsie Maroo’s voice called out.

She rushed down the steps of Congress with guards close behind.

“It’s good to see you guys,” she said. “I was getting worried.”

Marsie stopped in her tracks as she saw King Gabriel lying on the ground.

“Holy hell,” Marsie stammered. “King Gabriel!”

Lucius viciously popped his back as he stood up.

“We were able to restrain him after some heavy fighting,” Lucius said. “What are you doing back from Vallas already?”

“I returned once Queen Adria and Vallas were under control,” Marsie replied. “And I’m glad that I did.”

Lydia picked herself up off the ground and was glad to see that Gabriel was still out of it. But she noticed a flutter of movement in his eyelids.

He wouldn’t be out for much longer.

“We need to get him locked up,” Lydia added, pointing to the king. “And fast!”

His fingers were beginning to move, and his breathing was less shallow than before.

Marsie jumped at the command and pulled a set of handcuffs from her belt. She clipped them around his wrists and made sure they were snug.

“Luckily, we didn’t need these charmed cuffs in Vallas,” Marsie said. “But I knew they would come in handy at some point!”

With a snap of her fingers, the guards surrounded King Gabriel and pulled him to his feet. His eyes shot open and his lips formed a snarl.

He struggled to break free and tried with all his might to conjure the shadow magic, but it was no use. The handcuffs worked to perfection, preventing him from using any of his overwhelming powers.

“Take him to the dungeons,” Marsie commanded.

They carried Gabriel down the streets as citizens stopped to watch.

Lydia’s heart ached for him. Even though he was still under mind control, it was unbearable to watch her mate paraded through the streets like a trophy. She wanted to follow after them and make sure that he was treated like the king he was.

Lucius stepped in front of her and held out his hands.

“Let them go,” he said calmly. “Once they lock him up, we’ll have more than enough opportunity to visit him.”

Lydia looked into her grandpa’s eyes and nodded sadly. He was right.

They had already been through so much; it wouldn’t do any good to continue watching her lover struggle and fight. After all, this man wasn’t truly her lover. Not while that jade-green gemstone was still affixed to his forehead.

“Plus,” Lucius added, “it looks like we’ve got some unexpected company...”

REDMOND

Redmond smiled at the gawking crowd gathered at the steps of Congress. It was nice to see so many friendly faces in one place.

His return to Vallas had been fraught with emotion. It was hard to forget what Queen Adria had done to the poor village of Ulu and many other settlements in the Kingdom of Vallas. But it was his duty to go back and reel in his mate from the control of Evine.

His team had found Queen Adria sitting on her throne. Her entire kingdom was in shambles, but that didn’t stop the Earth Slifer and his companions from finishing their mission.

The battle was hard. Aided by Evine’s dark powers, Queen Adria’s magic was more potent than ever. But Redmond reached deep inside and found the strength to stop her.

Finally, thankfully, they had brought Adria back to her right mind.

Lydia’s team clapped as Redmond arrived with General Malla. In between them was his beloved Queen Adria, delirious and faint.

“Gods,” Lydia shrieked. “Where’s the green gem?”

Redmond smiled proudly as he looked at the Fire Slifer.

“Crushed into a fine powder and scattered amongst the sands of the desert.”

Lydia’s eyes lit up like a beacon.

“There’s a way to destroy the gem?!” she cried, desperation in her voice. “Tell me! So I can end Evine’s control over my mate once and for all!”