We held each other’s gaze for a full minute, peering through the visin’s display into one another’s eyes. It was romantic. I wanted to somehow slither through the screen and kiss him.
I eventually said, “It’s nice talking to you like this. We’ve been at odds, and it sucks. I wish we could be a team in this terrible time.”
“We are,” he said. “You and me, king and queen for life. We’re the best team in Geniverd.”
I chuckled. “Yeah, and we’re trapped in separate apartments for the next forty-eight hours. The world will be on fire by then.”
“I’ve started to put the fire out,” he said with a cocky smile. “I sent a delegation to Nurlie to try to calm the rebellion. There will be a meeting held later today between all parties to come to an agreement. If the fighting continues, we’ll use force.”
“Force … What do you mean?”
“The underwater weapons system,” he said. “It’s been dormant for hundreds of years. The clans have been at peace, so there hasn’t been a need for it. But it’s still there, waiting to be used. We have enough firepower to wipe out Nurlie, Surrvul—every continent except Gaard if we need to.”
I was appalled. I had known there were weapons, but I hadn’t known how powerful they were. Torio had planned to give me a tutorial but had never gotten around to it, because we had been so busy.
Zawne saw my shock. “What did you expect?” he asked. “Did you think the rulers of the world wouldn’t have a fail-safe, a means to maintain power? People may have forgotten because generations have come and gone, but the Crown still has the power to wipe out ninety-five percent of Geniverd with the push of a button. We’ve come this far because of war. From the ashes of destruction, we built this peaceful civilization. I promise you, Kaelyn, there will not be an invasion of the capital.”
“What about Decens-Lenitas?” I asked, frantically making up excuses. “What about the public? They would surely hate us for the next forty years if we unleashed weapons.”
Zawne shook his head. “The public are not the ones in power; we are. In times of trouble, we must maintain our image before the other clan heads to keep their respect. That’s what Decens-Lenitas is all about, Kaelyn, respecting the monarchy, the upper class, the system, obeying the orders of those in power. And do not be mistaken, even though we have councillors and you-know-who pulling the strings, we are the ones who rule the world. Our word is law. The people must obey.”
“I don’t care,” I said. “I couldn’t wipe out millions of human souls. Not ever. When did Decens-Lenitas become a means for retaining power within the upper echelon of society? Does it mean nothing for the rest of our people, for the ninety-nine percent who are at our mercy? It’s not fair, Zawne. We can’t butcher our own subjects just to save face with a handful of spoiled nobility.”
“Would you prefer a long and bloody war?” Zawne asked. “The alternatives are worse, Kaelyn, much worse.”
“I … I won’t let it come to that,” I insisted. “I refuse to resort to weapons! I will stop this before it goes too far.”
“How?” Zawne asked. “We can’t even leave our living quarters! We still don’t know who’s in charge of VBione Corp. We can’t even catch the elusive Gurnot who’s been torching our residences. There are almost no retreats left in Surrvul or Shondur for the wealthy to take vacations.” Zawne snarled and furrowed his eyebrows in frustration. “It doesn’t even matter. I just want to be with you, Kaelyn. We should be solving this mess together.”
“I know,” I said.
It was weird. As the apocalypse bloomed on the horizon, Zawne and I were finally coming into our own as a couple. The fights were behind us, the secrets, the betrayals. If only we could survive the next week. If only …
A message popped up in the corner of my screen. It was from Raad. While Zawne went on boasting about his love for me, I opened the message and read it.
Kaelyn, triangulated origin of signal. Boss of VBione Corp is Emell—Lordin’s mother. En route to make arrest. Seek ex-queen for answers. Remember the story Mama told us when we were young, about the king and his mistress. Don’t tell anyone. Trust no one.
It took longer than I would have liked to get off the call with Zawne after reading Raad’s message. Zawne kept babbling on about our union and our future together, which was sweet, but I had priorities. I had a mystery to solve. A whole new set of clues and misshaped puzzle pieces had fallen into my lap.
I sent a discreet message to the ex-queen, requesting a secret meeting in the evening, somewhere on VondRust grounds. I would have to be sneaky to get out of my quarantine and past the Protectors. I figured if I could do that, then I could sneak into Zawne’s private apartment and spend the night with him, feel his strong, calloused hands, full lips, tight abs … Yeah, that was a good idea.
But first I had to get to Shiol. I had to start asking the important questions. Lordin, Emell, VBione Corp, KS3, Nurlie rebels, Gurnots, Surrvul’s greed—was it all connected?
I lay back and closed my eyes. Before I knew it, I was standing in the spatial void with Riedel and Hanchell glittering before me.
“What gives?” I said. I was in no mood to screw around.
“What gives with what?” Riedel asked, his blob of light fluctuating. I had the sense he was being purposely coy.
“Oh,” I said, rubbing my chin sarcastically. “I don’t know. Maybe the fact that because of your recommendations regarding VBione Corp, and against my better judgment, the kingdom is now on the brink of war. Not to mention the thousands of people dying as we
