Weight of the World

Chapter Seventy-Eight

—Avalon—

Everything was set. There were no more preparations to make, no more time to practice. The pieces were on the board. All that was left was to move them. It was the last day of the Astral moon. Avalon had been properly readied with all manner of relicts, concoctions, and holy artifacts that would amplify the already incredible power that Avalon held. The Conduit was properly rested and ready. The Cup of Life rested upon the holy altar. His Umbra were in place.

All was ready.

The King of Bones took a deep breath. This would work. How many times had he been over the specifics, with Freya, with Teryn, with Reva, with the Triad, with Le'Mon and Tedaram, and the myriad of sorcerers at his command? They had accounted for every variable and adjusted accordingly. The Conduit understood the stakes. Teryn and Baloren wanted their daughter back—

The thought unexpectedly twisted his gut. Though outwardly, he showed nothing, that did not change the guilt churning within. All of this would not be possible without Teryn Ralia. She had been his missing piece. In the millennia he had been planning for his wife's resurrection, he had always remained uncertain of his chances of success, but then, Teryn Ralia had come to Saad'yna and when he laid out his plans for the resurrection, she had calmly and assuredly found every conceivable flaw and fixed them until, for the first time, the King of Bones actually believed it was possible.

But he had kept something from her. He had deliberately lied. Such a thing had never bothered him before, but something about the former Queen Mother resonated within him. She was worthy of true respect. A born leader. A sincere woman. Alfheim had been lucky to have her, and her family even more so to have someone like her looking out for them. Never before had he cared if he lied. She deserved the truth. But if she knew the truth, then she wouldn't have helped. He couldn't tell her that it wouldn't be her daughter that emerged from the Ascension, but his Aer'Avyn instead.

This was his only chance.

The Conduit had informed him of Orianna Tor'Varyan's soul in the Grave. She was not alive, not in any true sense. Merely, her aether had remained tangled together, which was a boon for him and the Conduit. Freya would not need to piece her soul back together bit by bit. She would just need to reach in and pluck her soul from the Grave before adding in the final piece. Though Kellaran had destroyed the Sanctuary, his wife's aether still drifted throughout the worlds, he was certain of it. It wouldn't be easy, but he would have her back, and that thought allowed him to push his guilt aside to get ready for the ritual.

"We're almost ready to begin," Le'Mon nodded at his side.

His closest advisors were with him. The thought gave him strength as he stepped up upon the crystal dais that had been set for him.

"Just a little longer, my love," the King of Bones promised quietly.

*************

Lulu watched as others hurried into their positions. It seemed everyone here had a part to play. Naturally, Lulu had been left out of the affair, the King of Bones only agreeing to her freedom so long as she remained under the watchful eye of Taras Evv'Arrtan. He stood with her now, on one of the balconies of the palace so that she could see this famous ritual but not close enough to interfere.

The man—well, vampire—at her side had been an unexpected surprise. Though she hadn't known what became of him after his coven was destroyed, she had thought of him from time to time. Never had she imagined that he would become an Umbra.