curve of her back ended in a long, delicate neck, and a face framed by dark hair swept up her head into a small mountain of curls. Her large eyes shone from a heart-shaped face, deceptively young for a demonlord reputed to be many centuries old. When she turned those eyes upon him they glowed blue, but he wasn’t sure if it was magic or just the light from the setting sun.
She leaned casually on the stonework, gazing at the world spread out before her. On the other side was a vast stretch of land, so vast that Duncan could not see its end. He realized with a surprise that they were in the spire, so high that looking down gave him vertigo, though he had no fear of heights. The immense lands of Lilyth fell away from the city and downward, continuing the pyramidal slope until it hit a vast flat plain that continued for as far as the eye could see. He had not recalled climbing stairs of any type, yet the vista spread outside the arch was a silent testament to the fact that he was indeed overlooking her lands from a vantage high above the ground proper.
He bowed and said, “My lady.” A calmness had descended over him, so unlike his near frenzied state inside Bara’cor. Another byproduct of Lilyth’s power? he wondered. Perhaps, yet his purpose had not wavered, and in a voice laced with deadly intensity he asked, “Where is she?”
Lilyth looked at him, her gaze casually straying from the red gold sky to appraise him through half-lidded eyes. “Welcome to Arcadia, Lore Father, home of the Aeris. We meet at the moment when small actions have great meaning.”
Her voice was filled with a kind of melancholy, as if the simple words of welcome had drained from her any interest she might have had for discourse. He found himself moved to sadness, though he did not know why.
She traced a single finger on the rough stone of the sill upon which she sat, then rose slowly, moving away from the arched window. Her blue skin caught the light in such a way that it seemed almost iridescent, changing from its deep blue to a color tinged with an almost aqua green. She smiled softly, revealing perfect white teeth, and said, “We are both blacksmiths, you and I.”
Duncan moved closer to the window and the spot she’d just vacated, his eyes searching the verdant landscape. Her unwillingness to be straightforward irked him, but not so much that he wasn’t willing to be pleasant. “How so?”
“We shape that which needs shaping.” She paused as some children ran across her path, her face still set with that same soft smile that hinted of sadness, though the sight of the children brought a glimmer of something happier. “We forge flesh, readying it for battle.”
Duncan scoffed, not taking his eyes from the world of Arcadia stretched out before him. “I don’t care. Do what you will with Edyn, but return me my wife. It is only for her that I bargained. I have no interest in your war.”
“Really?”
The shock of the voice coming from so close behind his ear caused him to spin in surprise. Lilyth stood there, silently regarding him with eyes so deep blue they called to one’s mind the sky at sunset. He found himself unable to speak, his mind able to focus only on her proximity. It took more than a moment for him to gather his wits. Yet it was not desire that muddled his thoughts, rather her closeness felt like a violation.
Lilyth smiled and said, “Even now my world infuses you with health, sharpens your thoughts, lends you fortitude. You see my beneficence, and know of the war between us and Sovereign, a war you’ve made clear you don’t care about. Tell me, what will he do, Lore Father?”
When Duncan didn’t respond she continued, “Sovereign will kill every last man, woman, and child on Arcadia and Edyn. When our worlds die, where will you and your family hide?” She said this casually, her eyes moving over his tall form in a way that made his skin crawl.
He gathered his composure and replied, “And your answer is
She leaned casually on the stonework, gazing at the world spread out before her. On the other side was a vast stretch of land, so vast that Duncan could not see its end. He realized with a surprise that they were in the spire, so high that looking down gave him vertigo, though he had no fear of heights. The immense lands of Lilyth fell away from the city and downward, continuing the pyramidal slope until it hit a vast flat plain that continued for as far as the eye could see. He had not recalled climbing stairs of any type, yet the vista spread outside the arch was a silent testament to the fact that he was indeed overlooking her lands from a vantage high above the ground proper.
He bowed and said, “My lady.” A calmness had descended over him, so unlike his near frenzied state inside Bara’cor. Another byproduct of Lilyth’s power? he wondered. Perhaps, yet his purpose had not wavered, and in a voice laced with deadly intensity he asked, “Where is she?”
Lilyth looked at him, her gaze casually straying from the red gold sky to appraise him through half-lidded eyes. “Welcome to Arcadia, Lore Father, home of the Aeris. We meet at the moment when small actions have great meaning.”
Her voice was filled with a kind of melancholy, as if the simple words of welcome had drained from her any interest she might have had for discourse. He found himself moved to sadness, though he did not know why.
She traced a single finger on the rough stone of the sill upon which she sat, then rose slowly, moving away from the arched window. Her blue skin caught the light in such a way that it seemed almost iridescent, changing from its deep blue to a color tinged with an almost aqua green. She smiled softly, revealing perfect white teeth, and said, “We are both blacksmiths, you and I.”
Duncan moved closer to the window and the spot she’d just vacated, his eyes searching the verdant landscape. Her unwillingness to be straightforward irked him, but not so much that he wasn’t willing to be pleasant. “How so?”
“We shape that which needs shaping.” She paused as some children ran across her path, her face still set with that same soft smile that hinted of sadness, though the sight of the children brought a glimmer of something happier. “We forge flesh, readying it for battle.”
Duncan scoffed, not taking his eyes from the world of Arcadia stretched out before him. “I don’t care. Do what you will with Edyn, but return me my wife. It is only for her that I bargained. I have no interest in your war.”
“Really?”
The shock of the voice coming from so close behind his ear caused him to spin in surprise. Lilyth stood there, silently regarding him with eyes so deep blue they called to one’s mind the sky at sunset. He found himself unable to speak, his mind able to focus only on her proximity. It took more than a moment for him to gather his wits. Yet it was not desire that muddled his thoughts, rather her closeness felt like a violation.
Lilyth smiled and said, “Even now my world infuses you with health, sharpens your thoughts, lends you fortitude. You see my beneficence, and know of the war between us and Sovereign, a war you’ve made clear you don’t care about. Tell me, what will he do, Lore Father?”
When Duncan didn’t respond she continued, “Sovereign will kill every last man, woman, and child on Arcadia and Edyn. When our worlds die, where will you and your family hide?” She said this casually, her eyes moving over his tall form in a way that made his skin crawl.
He gathered his composure and replied, “And your answer is
Similar Books
