The Shadow Kingdom

Chapter 29i

"So can all aircasters fly?" Adrian and I sit in the backyard of our newly acquired base of operations in Europe. Chateau Elena has an enormous stone deck layered with brightly polished quartzite tiles. There is a lovely outdoor fireplace in the middle of the deck with sofas and chairs surrounding it. In the garden, there is an impressive fountain comparable to that of St. Peter's Square.

There are no outer walls like the ones at Seven Hills. Between the edge of the estate and the tree line, there are several hundred meters of perfectly trimmed grass. That was the reason why it was so difficult for Prometheus to regain control of this place. The flat field was practically a shooting gallery for Diana.

"Can all waterweavers create ice sculptures shaped like swans?" I grin. "It took me sixty years to master that ability. Even now, I'm still not quite superman." Adrian kisses my hair as we watch the sunset.

I lie on the sofa in between Adrian's legs. His arms are around my waist, and I rest my head against his chest. "What exactly is a cambion?" I ask. "I remember seeing a specimen in the basement."

"Do you remember what I said about angels and demons?" I nod. "House Claudius once discovered a way to temporarily summon demons and imbue spellbinders with the essence of the demon. The process creates cambions, half-demons. Cambions have dramatically augmented spellbinder powers, and their blood can temporarily do the same for other spellbinders. Today, they're virtually extinct. The specimen that House Ashcroft was studying was a cadaver."

"What about angels then? What would a half-angel be like?"

"Half-angels are called nephilim. They are even more rare than cambions. In order for the imbuement process to work, one has to summon an angel or demon that is willing to cooperate with the process. Demons are much easier to appease than angels because when they share their essence with a spellbinder, they experience all the things that the spellbinder experiences. For them, it is a reprieve after living their entire lives in hell, literally. Angels however, are not so easy to please. To the best of my knowledge, a nephilim has never actually existed."

"Are all angels good and all demons evil?"

Adrian grins. "No, the world isn't that simple. I've never met an angel or a demon, but I imagine they're capable of good and evil just as we are."

I shift onto my side and wrap an arm around Adrian's neck. "What exactly were they planning to do with your blood? You said to Nathaniel that you knew."

Adrian tightens his grip on my waist. "House Ashcroft wasn't just going to keep harvesting my blood forever. They were experimenting with it, trying to create a synthetic version. That way they could break House Shang's monopoly – its greatest source of power."

"And you knew that they were doing this even before you allowed Selena to kidnap you?" Adrian closes his eyes and nods. "I spoke to William earlier." He can tell by my tone that this will not be a light conversation.

"What did you two talk about?"

"He said he didn't send those men who tried to kill me. He said that he didn't know I existed until we met at the Obsidian Castle. And he even said that his original intention was to accept me into his house, that he had no intention of harming me."

"And what do you think?" Adrian speaks with his princely calmness as though we are having a discussion on physics.

"He is a conquered king, sitting in a dungeon. He has nothing to gain by lying. And also... Selena spoke to me in the courtyard during my moment of defeat. She could have easily killed me before you intervened, but she didn't. She asked me why I betrayed her. I saw the look in her eyes; she genuinely thought that I was the one who started this war. And William said the same thing."