Beyond the Rabbit Hole

Revelations

Their Mouths hung open. His posture, his tone—even if they weren't staring directly at his soul, Alyss and Morgyn would be certain of the sincerity of Isaaik's request.

"You want us to. . . save your world?" Morgyn muttered.

"What does that even mean?" Alyss shook her head. "Out of all the things you could have said, you picked the most confusing."

"Have you heard of the Eyes of God?" Isaaik crossed his arms.

"We have," Morgyn narrowed his eyes.

Alyss nodded.

"Good," Isaaik sighed. "That saves me time. The legends are true. I've witnessed Rosalia's ability firsthand many times. It's the only higher power I believe in—if you can even call it that," he scoffed.

Alyss and Morgyn remained silent.

"Twenty-seven years ago, shortly after my arrival in Meliades, Rosalia told me of a vision she had. She cannot remember any faces from it, nor voices—a unique occurrence for her prophecies, but she remembers the words spoken as if they were carved into her memory. 'Take whatever you want. Destroy whatever you want. I'll tell you whatever you want. Just make it all end.' Following these words, a new scene flashed in her eyes: of the land reduced to a lifeless wasteland. Kahth, Meliades, Autumnrock, Oxoktitlan—no land or kingdom was spared from annihilation."

"I don't understand." Alyss shook her head. "If your goal is to save the world, why lead it into chaos?"

"Even a despot like the emperor wouldn't wish such a fate upon the land. Even the most brutal of the nobility would tremble at the thought of standing in the presence of the Dread Queen, the only existence that could possibly cause that devastation on such a catastrophic scale." Isaaik took a deep breath. "No. . . whoever betrayed humanity is hiding somewhere in the empire. My plan was to lead the Eerie kingdom, Herongrand, and Meliades into a three-way war with the intention of uniting the southern kingdoms against a common foe and dismantling the empire piece by piece. The chaos will show the true colors of every man and woman in power. And those who seek to profit from the bloodshed will be the first to fall. The Blood Moon Inquisition will ensure that. Then, they will deal with whoever else is working against peace, and anyone who remains neutral."

"What you're talking about is a massacre!" Morgyn's face reddened. "How many lives would you ruin for just an attempt to prevent a future you don't even know is coming? What if the prophecy was for thousands of years in the future? I can't understand you at all."

"As far as Rosalia and I are aware, the Eyes of God can only see the future within the holder's lifetime." Isaaik shrugged. "It couldn't be helped. The Eyes of God have never once been wrong before. . ." Isaaik smirked and looked into Morgyn's eyes. ". . . until now. The battle that transpired tonight—I was supposed to have fourteen more months to prepare for it. And I was certainly supposed to win." A menacing laugh escaped his lips. "You two have changed the rules. And I fully intend to make use of this power. I have nothing left to lose, and there isn't any fate or future to hold us back now. Together, we will put an end to this prophecy and put my enemies in the ground."

"We'll have no part in any plan like your last one." Alyss grit her teeth.

"I'll devise something less gory, then." Isaaik waved his hand. "Bring the Raskell when you're ready to talk about stopping the Blood Moon. I take it he already knows your secret?"

"Most of it, yes." Morgyn sighed.

"And Lady Mantin?" Isaaik asked.

"No." Alyss asserted. "We haven't told her, nor do we have any intention of telling her. We never wanted anyone to know at all."