"So, my legacy is... King of the dwarves?" Keefe asked, trying for a smirk-but it looked to much like a grimace. "Gotta admit, I did not see that coming!"
Lady Gisela sighed loudly. "You really will make a joke out of anything, won't you?" Lady Gisela asked.
"Um, you just had King Enki shove me onto his throne and crown me-what else am I supposed to think?" Keefe argued. "Where is he, by the way? I feel like he owes me a bow- and an 'As you wish, King Keefe!'"
He tried to crane his neck to search the shadowy Grand Hall, but the pull of the altered magsidian must've been to strong to allow him the motion.
"The king left," Lady Gisela told Keefe. "Said something about not wanting to witness the further desecration of a royal relic and dived into the floor-and I suppose I can't blame him. It is a lovely throne. But I need the magsidian. And the ethertine in your crown. I had that made specially for you, by the way. Just for this. And it wasn't easy. It was even harder convincing King Enki to wear it as his own to keep anyone from getting to suspicious. But it was worth it- everything came together, despite the few hiccups we had along the way."
"Am I supposed to say thank you?" Keefe wondered.
"Yes, Keefe, you should. And someday you will. For now, you're welcome to keep hating me."
"Didn't realize I needed your permission for that, but okay. Great!"
Yet another sigh. "I resigned myself to the role of 'bad guy' many years ago, Keefe. It's unfair. And inaccurate. But if that's how you need to see me to process what's about to happen-so be it."
"Uh, it's not about what I need. Like... are you seeing this situation? You attacked all my friends. Left them all unconscious over there-"
"Not all of them," Lady Gisela corrected. "Sophie's still awake- for now. In case we need her."
"Need me for what?" Sophie asked.
"To ensure my son cooperates."
Ana groaned. "When is she going to be done with the threats?"
Jewel shushed her.
"Now that we understand each other," Lady Gisela said finally, "we should get started. The deal I made with King Enki only buys me so much of his patience."
"What'd you have to give him?" Keefe asked.
"Nothing you need to concern yourself with."
"Aw, come one- I'm curious! Like, what's the going price for ultimate betrayal these days? And was the 'ruining your son's life' part of the fee- or just a fun bonus?"
Lady Gisela loomed over Keefe. "For the last time, I'm not destroying anything. I'm allowing you to become something vital. And I need you to accept that, because the harder you fight what's about to happen, the more you'll suffer."
"That's riiiiiiiiiiiiight," Keefe said with a ton of smugness in his tone for someone currently trapped on a hunk of magsidian formerly known as King Enki's throne. "I'm supposed to- how do you put it? 'Embrace the change'? Yeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaah. Hate to break it to you, but... I'm not feeling very embrace-y. Thanks for playing, though!"
Lady Gisela shook her head, grabbing his chin and pinching it as she angled his face towards her. "This isn't a joke, Keefe. And it's time for you to stop thinking that you have any control over what's about to happen. You don't. And there's no getting out of this. And neither can you." She glanced over her shoulder at Tam.
YOU ARE READING
The Missing Prophecy (pjo/kotlc) book 3
Adventure(Takes place after all pjo books, during Legacy in kotlc) Nine-year- old Ana Jackson is on a mission to find the prophecy her mother got before she died. Ana's goal is to follow the clues her mother left and use the prophecy to defeat Echidna, and r...
