Dhara's life was turned upside down once before, and she had recovered nicely from it, thank you very much.
Then the king dies, which is enough cause for worry, and the reason for all the past upheaval in her life walks in through the front door wit...
Brynn and Dhara entered the library they'd arrived in yesterday, and found Prince Lucius seated behind the magnificent redwood table. Malachi was leaning against the fireplace, blissfully unlit, for it was past 9 in the morning and the heat Brynn had predicted was creeping up on them. Dhara wondered, spitefully, why Malachi seemed unable to sit anywhere and conjured a bean bag, which she promptly plopped down on.
"I doubt that His Highness can see you from that position," Malachi spoke. Dhara refused to fight it anymore; she let the feeling of his deep, rumbling voice wash over her.
She couldn't lie anymore: she had missed him. Maybe she had stopped pining – 10 years was a long time – but she had missed him. Staying friends with him, even pen pals, would have been too much for her to handle.
Is this what being Fated felt like?
"Dhara!" Brynn barked, seated in a high-backed chair. Dhara's gazed sharpened on her friend, who was smirking at her. She sized, then got up from her bean bag, which instantly transformed into a tall four-legged stool. She got up on it, sitting with her back straight. She had worn a pair of very loose cotton pants and a tight-fitting shirt; she thought it drew the eye to her curves. Sitting posture perfect drew the same eye to the curve of her waist and her full breasts.
She was going to make him pay. For what, she didn't know. But he was going to pay.
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Malachi was paying alright, paying very close attention to Dhara. She looked beautiful, as always, but now it seemed there was something extra. It seemed she was trying to get his attention, and he was all for it.
It was very distracting, though.
"Malachi?" Prince Lucius called uncertainly. He had been watching her adjust her seat on that stool. Damn.
"Your Highness."
"Do we need to call anyone else to this strategy session?"
"Not necessarily. Ahem, let us begin," Malachi said, striving for calm and steadiness. A small, satisfied smile briefly crossed Dhara's face.
Oh, it was on.
"Queen Edna's plans, or what we know of them, mainly involve finding a Creator-blessed mage to join forces with to take over the Southern continent, and, if possible, the world. Life magic has always been at odds with death magic, so how she hopes to achieve this merger, we don't know."
"This is little to go by, but I should be able to create a predictable pattern of future events, yet I can't see anything," Brynn said, her gaze fixed on something none of them could see. "It feels like something is blocking me."
Malachi focused on Brynn. "Like there is a damper on your abilities."
"Exactly like that."
The prince looked at them in turn, looking especially small behind the table. "What is it?"
"I wondered why I never sensed the conflict between King Dorian and the queen, and why I wasn't immediately aware that she had killed him. I had a hunch, but with my abilities, it should have been a certainty. I also didn't hear the zombies circling the house, and I lumped all three instances as the effects of finding my Fated."
"But now you think otherwise," Dhara said. Malachi nodded.
"Missing the men at your house was definitely because of the Fated bond, but how about before?"
"She found a way to silence your magic, or deaden it for a while," the prince said. Suddenly he gasped.
"Deaden your magic. Death magic. Which means life magic..."
"Amplifies. Gives more life," Dhara said. She sat still for a while, then got off her stool and went to Brynn, whose gaze was still unfocused. She looked trance-like, and that unnerved Dhara.
"Brynn? What's going on? You okay?"
"No," Brynn whispered. "She has a powerful seer with her and a traveler. I wonder why she needs a traveler when she can command portals." Her voice was low and steady as if she was trying to tell me something.
"I can link with her and see what she sees," Prince Lucius said. Brynn shook her head sharply.
"You can't, Your Highness," Forlorn said, appearing on Brynn's other side.
"Why not?" he pouted. Forlorn smiled, an almost motherly look on her face. It was still terrifying.
"A Seer and a traveler. Holy bones of the phoenix," Dhara started, glancing at Malachi in fear. "She's trying to see where we are. She's trying to come here."
