Total pages in book: 136
Estimated words: 128087 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 640(@200wpm)___ 512(@250wpm)___ 427(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 128087 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 640(@200wpm)___ 512(@250wpm)___ 427(@300wpm)
The Treasure of the Gods did not disappoint. Gossip was right about one thing. The new Titan of the South was as gorgeous and striking as had been stated, with his long chestnut waves and oversized emerald robe infused with angelic magic that prevented it from dragging over the ground.
“Yes, he will officially be my lord at eve’s moon. Have you come to interrupt that, brother? I see you are without gifts.”
Zepharali smirked.
“Boraleashe.” Theodor blinked at his consort as though he’d said something rude.
Zepharali waved Theodor off. “It’s quite all right, Your Highness. I take no offense. I see that, even in love, the Lord of Winter is still cold as ice.”
“It’s worked thus far… Why change now?” Boraleashe shrugged.
Zepharali slung his long blond dreadlocks over his shoulder and pulled his robe tighter to combat the frigid winds.
“I’m afraid my brother’s skepticism is warranted. That is why I’m here.” Zepharali knew they could see the worry in his expression.
“A darkness has come to my Sun World. This entity is powerful and stealthy.”
Zepharali relayed as many details as possible, but he had little information except… “It’s stronger than any adversary I’ve—we—have faced in battle. They’ve been able to blend into the shadows at dusk, then disappear before my suns breathe on the sky.”
Boraleashe nodded.
“Is the darkness hostile?” Theodor asked.
“Not hostile, at least not yet, Your Highness. But its presence has been felt by our high priestess, and my oracles see strife and death coming.”
Zepharali’s sword, Sun Strike, crackled with energy, responding to his distress.
“Whatever or whomever this is, they have the ability to deflect my heat rays…which should be impossible.”
Boraleashe hummed in thought. “So you need my frost.”
“Precisely. I fear this thing may be from one of the dark realms, possibly even royalty.”
“We will return with you.” Theodor placed his large hand at the base of Boraleashe’s spine.
“And so will I,” Notalus added.
“I think I can manage with Boraleashe and his king’s assistance.” Zepharali clasped Notalus’ shoulder. “Continue to enjoy your calmer days, brother. Your son is a capable king and powerful enough to fulfill his duties as the Titan of the South Wind.”
“That he is.” Notalus smiled proudly at his son. “And know I am only a breath away if you need me.”
“I am most regretful of the timing, lords, but my people are afraid. A curfew has been put in place—much to everyone’s dismay—to ensure their safety.”
“Nothing else needs to be said,” Boraleashe stated with certainty. “We leave before the sun rises.”
That was within hours.
Notalus hugged his son. “I’m sorry about the postponement of your vows, Theodor. But you never know when a king’s duties will arise.”
“Thank you, Father. But the ceremony was just a formality. The Winter Lord is already mine.”
Boraleashe pulled Theodor to the side, and Zepharali led Fire Breath toward the Keep’s stables to give his brother some privacy.
One Day Before….
Lazaar Chazin
“Protect our lord! Get him to the tunnels!” Lazaar’s guardian, Oleksandr, barked orders at his people gathering weapons and getting into fighting formations Lazaar had never seen.
He was gripped hard behind his neck and held down by five men who’d been his closest confidants, ones he called friends. They had him bowed over so far his head was practically between his knees.
“I cannot close the portal! Hold your battle positions!” Oleksandr ran beside him while yelling commands Lazaar didn’t understand.
Yet he’d reigned over this world for almost one thousand years.
“You all have been trained for this day! Make haste!”
Trained…when?
Lazaar had never trained for anything besides his studies and mastering his magic abilities in the Shadow Realm.
“Let me up!” he insisted, pulling at the restraints on his arms and shoulders.
Heat blasted his face. Actual flames were being hurled by hideous creatures. An army that had somehow entered his peaceful world through a hole in the sky.
Hellfire thrown by demons rained down around them.
Lazaar had been taught that demonic beings were evil and confined to the Underworld.
An ear-deafening explosion that ripped through his world made him slam his hands over his ears. It struck hard enough to sear his lavish land to ruins.
This attack must be the will of the gods.
Lazaar had favor with them and hoped they’d show mercy.
He’d been chosen at birth to be a leader of these humble people when he came of age.
He was their lord and loved them as much as they loved him and his humility and need to provide.
The elders told him stories of how he’d been born with a power inside him his people revered. His mother had died giving birth to him, and his father had died days later of heartbreak.
Lazaar had been given these gifts by the gods as an apology for being born and then orphaned. And he’d used his abilities to live and love the people of this tiny, barren realm Oleksandr called Earth.
“What’s happening, Olek?”