Total pages in book: 362
Estimated words: 347293 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1736(@200wpm)___ 1389(@250wpm)___ 1158(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 347293 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1736(@200wpm)___ 1389(@250wpm)___ 1158(@300wpm)
“He has grown about two inches in the last couple of weeks.” Ash loosely crossed his arms. “He’s at the age where he’ll hit his first growth spurt. In a few months, he’ll be almost twice the size he is now.”
My eyes widened. “I’m not sure I can still call you Reaver-butt when you’re nearly as tall as me.”
Reaver ducked his head and pressed it against my leg. Figuring that meant he wanted attention, I reached down and ran my hand between the bumps. He purred, stretching his neck.
“When will he have another growth spurt?” I asked.
“Another will occur in a few years. He’ll be larger than Odin by then,” he said, speaking of the warhorse that often resided within the cuff Ash wore on his upper arm.
Which made me think about the fact that neither Bele nor I had one yet. Apparently, ours would appear out of thin air when we were ready.
Whatever.
“Did Aios come by?” he asked, coming to stand on the other side of Reaver.
“She did.” Leaning against the railing, I crossed my arms. “She said Theon needed to speak with you.”
“He did.” One of the shorter strands of hair slipped from the knot at the nape of his neck to kiss his jaw. “No ships have been spotted beyond ours. If another Court outside Vathi was planning to launch a sizable attack against the Shadowlands, bringing with them gods that are unable to shadowstep from Court to Court, we’d be able to see them from the cliffs in the Bonelands.”
Vathi, the Court jointly ruled by Attes and Kyn, was across the Black Bay. If Kyn wanted to move his armies toward the Shadowlands as he had before, he wouldn’t have to go into the open seas. He’d simply need to cross the bay.
“The Shadowlands is uniquely positioned, even more so than Vathi. To cross the Lassa Sea, traveling from the Shadowlands to the Bonelands is only a day trip by ship, and the Primal mist that prevents mortals from traveling too far east also cloaks our movements. The same cannot be said for Vathi,” Ash said.
The mist would kill any mortal, so I guessed it was a good thing no mortals called the Bonelands home. “But doesn’t Lotho share the same land mass as both the Shadowlands and Vathi? They could travel by foot.”
“The canyon between Vathi and Lotho makes it difficult but not impossible,” Ash said. “Several Courts share the same land. Kithreia—Maia’s Court—is joined, and a narrow land bridge connects it to the Court of Sirta, but moving forces this way would be unlikely at the moment.”
“Why?” I asked, genuinely curious. Considering that I was the Queen, I needed to get familiar with Iliseeum’s layout.
“Besides the fact that it would take longer to travel by land than it does by ship, none of the Courts will want another’s army moving through their lands. Doing so would be considered a political move,” Ash explained. “Permission must be granted. So, Embris would have to approve Maia’s forces traveling through Lotho, just as Maia would have to give permission for Bele to move Sirta’s armies through Maia’s Court.”
“Is Sirta still a mess?” I asked.
“Yes, but that’s no different than when Hanan ruled. Very few who call Sirta home actually served him. His Court had mostly become a haven for thieves and raiders.”
I laughed. “I’m sorry. None of that is funny. It’s just ironic that the Court of the Hunt and Divine Justice has become an asylum for injustice.”
“Not that I want to make it seem like Hanan wasn’t responsible for his actions, but it’s partly due to Kolis. The moment he stole those embers from my father, a different kind of rot invaded the Courts,” he reminded me. “Twisting what us Primals were meant to stand for.”
Us.
Hearing that gave me a start. I didn’t think it would ever not do that. I reached down to pet Reaver. “Speaking of other Primals, I made an oath to Aios.”
“You did?”
“You might be mad.”
Interest sparked in his eyes as he rose. Not judgment or anger. “I doubt that.”
“Well…” My lips pursed. “It was kind of reckless.”
“Did you forget?” Sunlight slid over his cheekbone. “I enjoy the reckless side of your nature.”
My lips twitched. “I haven’t forgotten, but I also know that doesn’t hold true all the time.” I clasped the railing. “I promised her that Kyn would be punished for what he did to her and Ector. To the Shadowlands.”
He tilted his head. “Why would I be mad about that?”
I lifted a shoulder. “Because the first thing I did as Queen was to make an oath to potentially kill another Primal. One who is the twin of another, who is our ally. And I did it without conferring with you first.”
Ash stared at me as if I’d sprouted an extra mouth. Then he chuckled.