Page 78 of The Dragon Queen
“The matters of the living are not urgent to the dead.” She left the throne and approached the end of the rise before she stepped down and drew closer, her long train following behind. “But make your plea, Queen Eldinar.”
Queen Eldinar was a beautiful queen and a fearsome warrior, but she seemed far less intimidating when faced with a god, with a being both immortal and insurmountably powerful. She pressed her lips tightly together before she made her case. “Talon Rothschild has been taken by Bahamut?—”
“I’m aware of his fate,” she said. “A fate he chose.”
Despite Riviana’s hostility, Queen Eldinar retained her composure, even though she seemed like someone who’d never been interrupted in her life. “Khazmuda, the dragon who Talon has fused with, can still feel him. While the fuse may be broken, their souls remain attached to each other.”
Riviana stared at Queen Eldinar, her thick, long red hair around her like a curtain. Last time I saw her, her hair reached her shoulders, but now it was like a long train of red beauty. Her beauty was unquestioned, and so was the intelligence behind her eyes.
“Bahamut has made numerous attempts to seize Talon’s soul for consumption, but Khazmuda has kept his hold.”
“Why do you tell me this?” She remained on the second step, keeping a slight height advantage over the Queen of Riviana Star.
“Because as long as Talon has a soul, he can be saved.”
Her bright-green eyes latched on to the queen’s and burned. “You know there’s no way to travel to Bahamut’s lands and return, Queen Eldinar. I’m sorry that I need to remind you of this.”
“I can’t travel there and return—but you can.”
I watched the two monarchs go back and forth, my palms sweaty even though it was cool in the castle. My heart still had its irregular beat, a beat that shook my ribs. When I blinked, another woman appeared, a brunette in a blue dress, standing ten feet behind Riviana. She wore a pained expression, like she had dire news for the god that ruled over the Realm of Caelum.
Riviana stared her down. “You expect me to travel to the underworld for a single man?”
“He’s not just any man.” I finally found my words, desperate to change her attitude. “He saved Riviana Star and protected the Realm of Caelum. He took up his sword and was prepared to lay down his life to protect this place. Without him, your throne would be occupied by the God of the Underworld himself.”
Riviana shifted her gaze to me and studied me.
So did the brunette who stood behind her. She stared, a haze of moisture in her eyes.
I felt weak under their stares, like I floated above the ground rather than stood firmly upon it. “He doesn’t deserve this…please.”
Riviana continued to stare me down. “If he were there by force rather than choice, this would be a different conversation. I thanked him for his service with a gift that meant a great deal to him.”
I remembered what he’d told me. “That his unborn child had been a daughter—Lena.”
The brunette inhaled a breath so deep it was visible in her chest. The moisture in her eyes reflected the gold color in the room, the colored glass of all the windows.
“While that meant a great deal to him, he needs more,” I said. “Please…”
“I’ve never interfered with the affairs of the dead,” Riviana said. “And I won’t start now.”
“Please.” I thought the word came from me—but it came from another. The woman stepped forward and came to Riviana’s side, keeping a respectable distance of a few feet. “We can’t be judged for the decisions we make in our grief. It was a mistake, and his soul shouldn’t pay be the cost of that mistake. I begged him to leave…but the wind was stronger than my voice.”
My lungs needed more air. My body needed more strength. My world had already crumbled into pieces, but now it came apart even further. Without hearing her name or knowing her voice, I knew who she was.
Her eyes remained locked on Riviana. “Please, my lord.Please…” Tears streaked down her cheeks.
Riviana looked away, appearing unmoved. “On this side of the veil, I’m immortal. And immortality was granted to me to protect the souls that have passed into the Realm of Caelum. It’s a position I take seriously. If I were to pass into Bahamut’s lands, not only would I lose my invincibility, but also my immortality. Traveling to the underworld doesn’t only put my life at risk—but every soul that lives here.” She looked at the woman beside her. “Regardless of how great a man Talon Rothschild was, he’s not worth the souls of so many. And I think he would agree.”
A knife pierced my heart and cleaved it in two.
The brunette inhaled a deep breath as more tears cascaded down her face.
I didn’t know how to convince a god to do my bidding, so I remained quiet.
Queen Eldinar spoke again. “Is there a way you can help us enter the underworld? A way for us to come and go?”
Riviana turned her fierce stare upon the queen. “Yes, it’s possible. But I won’t do it.”