“No, you don’t get to let go. You said I saved you. I… there must be some way to save you,” he sobbed, his voice shaky and tearful. He looked down at her and steadied his mind. Reaching out to try and sense her. He pushed himself harder and harder. A devastating pain began shooting through his head in protest, but he ignored it and forced himself to keep searching.
Fear and anguish threatened to consume him, and then he felt it. A faint and cooling ember of life was still there. He could feel death’s cold shadows reaching for it. Wyatt poured every piece of his essence into one thought: BURN!
He could see the ember react. It flickered with a soft, orange glow. Wyatt’s mind began to buckle under the demands of his focus, but he refused to concede. He sent one final surge of energy into the struggling flame. In an instant, it burst and exploded into a raging fire. Wyatt let himself collapse into Nev and sighed with relief as he heard her begin wheezing and coughing. He rested his throbbing head against her for a moment before helping them both sit up.
Nev looked up at Wyatt and blinked. “Wyatt?” she gasped, her voice raspy and weak.
“Thought you found a loophole to my promise, didn’t you?” he teased, laughing and wincing in pain.
Nev grinned and wrapped her arms around him tightly. Tears quickly running down her cheeks.
“Ow… laughing… mistake. You’d think I would remember that,” Wyatt said, rubbing his temples with his fingers.
Nev quickly pulled a leaf from his pouch and placed it gently in Wyatt’s mouth. She looked at him with bewilderment and adoration. “Hi, handsome. You saved me… again,” Nev stammered, kissing him softly.
He felt the intensity of the throbbing sensation in his head begin to retreat. “What can I say? I’m quite the dashing hero,” he grinned.
“You are, indeed,” she agreed, kissing his forehead. “Although, does that make me a helpless damsel in distress?” Nev questioned, raising an eyebrow.
“You? Umm… no. You may be a princess, but you are definitely not a helpless damsel. I mean, have you seen how amazing you are?” Wyatt asked, kissing her playfully on the nose.
“Why don’t you tell me exactly what you find amazing about me?” Nev suggested, winking at Wyatt.
“Well, let me tell you. Hmm… on second thought, maybe it is better that I show you,” Wyatt answered. He then pulled her close and kissed her passionately.
Nev eagerly kissed him back before giggling.
“See, there’s one. Your giggle is amazing. You know, I think it might take a lifetime to list all the things I find amazing about you. I would want to be thorough, of course,” Wyatt said, smiling at her.
“Very sensible. A whole lifetime is quite a while, though,” Nev noted, smiling sweetly.
“Yeah, it is. I suppose a guy should marry a girl that he planned to spend a whole lifetime with,” Wyatt surmised, gazing at Nev.
“‘Suppose he should’ or ‘should?’” Nev asked as she playfully twirled a loose curl of his hair.
“Yes,” Wyatt grinned broadly.
Suddenly, they were interrupted by banging on the throne room door and coughing and moaning coming from General Razine. “So, princess… which do you prefer?” Wyatt questioned, pulling Nev to her feet.
Nev cocked her head to the side, awaiting her choices.
Wyatt glanced at the room around them before turning his attention fully back on Nev. “I told you I would always try to give you a choice. So, castle or cave?” he asked, holding his hand with the obsidian ring up and smiling.
Nev knew her preference instantly. Grinning, she leaned closed to him and whispered, “Hmm… I believe Razine can handle things here. So, do you think you could make the mushrooms glow purple this time?”
“For you, my lady? Of course. After all, you are most definitely worth it,” Wyatt replied. Quickly he clasped Nev’s hands in his and smiled before they both disappeared in a swirl of purple smoke.
Chapter 45
The throne room door swung open, and enforcers came pouring through. They did not even notice that the required stationed attendant was missing. General Razine heard the sudden commotion and pulled himself to his feet. He’d witnessed but been unable to speak during the confrontation between the Oracle and the lost heiress. He was now working through the ramifications of all of it in his mind.
His head swirled, and for the first time, in a very long time, his mind felt clear. The fog that had clouded his thoughts was finally gone, and he stared at the men now filling the throne room. He studied the room for a moment before one of the enforcers interrupted him.
“Your orders, sir? We found the emperor’s body. Is the one responsible for his death still here?” the heavily armored man with black hair and green eyes asked.
“The Oracle was the one responsible and the real threat. And he is… he is gone,” Razine clarified, still trying to get his bearings.
“What of the lost heiress? Should she still be deemed a threat? Should we continue to send men to look for her?” questioned the enforcer.
Razine looked around the room and replied flatly, “No. That threat never existed.”
“Then what are your orders, sir?” the enforcer asked.
“Secure the palace, halt all tests for Unmarked, and release any women still confined. Also, allow the few remaining untrained Tinkerers to return to their homes. They were no more responsible than the women were. Then bring me some red wine and all the most recent reports,” Razine ordered as he rubbed his temples.
The enforcer saluted and then asked, “Anything else?”
“Yes, hunt down and kill any remaining prowlers,” Razine instructed with a grin.
The enforcer saluted and said without hesitation, “Yes, sir!”
Razine appreciated the enforcer’s enthusiasm when given such a daunting and dangerous task. Deciding he might need someone like that in the coming days, the general inquired, “Oh, and what is your name, son?”
“Liam, sir,” the enforcer quickly responded.
Razine nodded.
