Page 5 of The Horned King
Exiting the cart, I nearly trip over my feet at the sight before me. I've never seen anything like it.
Blue as far as the eye can see. In the sky and on what should be the ground. It's almost impossible to know where the water ends and the sky begins. It's so beautiful. The scent of salt and something I can't even name because it's so unfamiliar fills me. I may never leave. That disturbing thought comes and goes so quickly that I'm unsure where it came from.
The sound I had heard was the movement of the ocean on the shore. The beautiful, violent crashing and retreating is something I could watch for hours. Rainbows dance across the surface where the sunlight hits the water.
Han whinnies beside me, and this time, I understand the sentiment completely. It's otherworldly here. How can a place so beautiful be filled with such wickedness?
"It's lovely, isn't it?" a voice startles me from my reverie, and I spin to face them, fearing the man we've traveled all this way to see will catch me in this bewildered state. Thankfully, the person before me doesn't seem to be the king. "Avolire Castle is notorious for its beauty, but its likeness can never quite be captured on paper. You are Ambassador Aistin, yes?" He reaches out a hand, the colorful rings adorning his fingers contrasting the deep amber of his skin.
I take his hand in my gloved one to shake. "Hi, yes, please call me Elva. And you are?"
He gifts me a warm smile, his golden brown irises nearly glowing red with the bright sun reflecting in them. Certainly not the king. He seems far too pleasant.
"I am Shan, advisor to His Royal Majesty." He drops my hand and gestures for me to follow him. "I apologize that he is not available to greet you, but I'm sure you know running a nation is very time-consuming."
Walking side by side, I nod. "Yes, I understand. In our letters, I was made aware that I would not be seeing much of the king in my time here. Only during our scheduled meetings." My gratitude for that fact does not need to be said aloud.
He begins telling me what to expect while I'm visiting. Where I can tour, who will accompany me, and when I should be ready to meet the king. I take it all in while staring wordlessly at the dominating structure before me.
Avolire is enormous, with countless spires twirling up as if trying to dance with the clouds above. The gray of the walls is given warmth from the sun and the sand around it, turning what should be a terrifying fortress into a stunning array of colors. The glass on each window has been transformed into artwork depicting the sun, the moon, and the stars.
Back home, everything is created to be more functional than beautiful. This tapestry of a building would never be allowed to be built. Far too superfluous. But I cannot deny its allure. Powerful, intimidating, and yet so inviting. The castle itself feels like a Syren's song, calling travelers to enter with no hope of ever returning.
"I've never seen anything like this," I say aloud to no one in particular.
With a chuckle, Shan nods, "Yes, it's quite the sight. Took decades for the Zalig of yesteryear to create. There are theories that even the Fae assisted them."
I barely manage to hold in a gasp, staring wide-eyed at the thing before us.
"The Fae? Really?"
From the corner of my eye, I see his head nod, marveling at the castle, too. "There are books in the king's private library that suggest it, though no one would say it outright for fear of the Fae coming back to claim it as their own."
At a second glance, I believe him. There's almost no way something so beautiful could have been created by human hands alone, even with magic. It's too ethereal, too magnificent.
He allows me to marvel at the wonder before me, standing in silence with Han and me. I can only imagine the view of the ocean from those windows.
Just then, the large steel doors swing open, and a towering, incredibly muscular man storms through them. Dressed in black fighting leathers and boots, he has a team of no less than seven armed guards behind him in similar attire. Seeing us at the bottom of the stairway, he pauses, and his eyes meet mine.
Eyes so steely silver they reflect in the light and nearly blend into the whites.
The longest eyelashes I've ever seen on a man.
Full lips curled into a smirk on one side, almost hidden beneath a jet-black, immaculately groomed beard.
One of his black slashes of a brow with a scar running through it is lifted in what might be humor, though it's impossible to tell with the flatness of his eyes.
He's beautiful. Too beautiful. Dangerously beautiful.
He takes the stairs two at a time before standing before me, his guards a semi-circle behind him, stopping in perfect time. His skin reflects the sun's rays, the proof of long days under its light evident in his deeply tanned olive skin.
"You're early. And you're at the wrong entrance." Before I have a chance to clarify, he continues speaking, though clearly it's directed at the man beside me. "She's much prettier than the ones the Ordinance usually sends. I might actually try this one." His eyes slowly traverse my frame, and I have to clench every muscle in my body to not flinch at his perusal. What the fuck is happening right now? Who is this man? "Though her clothes are terrible. Take her around to the servants' entrance and find her something more... tantalizing. Let's see what's hidden beneath these shapeless drapes." He gestures toward my clothing with disdain.
He thinks I'm a whore. I might laugh if the idea wasn't so ludicrous. Sex workers are professionals at seduction, utterly sure in the way they walk and command attention. If I wasn't so shocked, I might be flattered at the idea that he thinks I could be skilled at being sensual. Though I doubt I look the part right now with my mouth hanging agape, unable to so much as breathe, lest I choke on it.
Shan coughs out, "Your majesty, you misunderstand. She's not... from the Ordinance." Your Majesty? You've got to be fucking kidding me.
"Then who is she?"