The Monster and His Queen

Chapter 28

"Who are you?" Elaria asked in the vision.

"I AM THE KEEPER. I RECORD. I REMEMBER. I PRESERVE."

"What do you want from me?"

"NOTHING. EVERYTHING. I WANT TO RECORD YOUR STORY, PRIESTESS DAUGHTER. YOUR CHOICE. YOUR BOND. YOUR TRANSFORMATION." The figure leaned forward slightly. "YOU ARE BECOMING SOMETHING NEW. SOMETHING THAT HASN'T EXISTED IN MILLENNIA. I WISH TO DOCUMENT IT."

"Just watch? That's all?"

"OBSERVATION CHANGES THE OBSERVED. MY WATCHING WILL AFFECT YOUR PATH. BUT I WILL NOT INTERFERE DIRECTLY. I AM MERELY... INTERESTED."

"That's not comforting."

"IT'S NOT MEANT TO BE. IT'S SIMPLY THE TRUTH." The Keeper stood, and Elaria caught a glimpse of countless eyes, countless forms, all shifting and changing. "BE WARNED, CHILD. YOUR OATH TODAY HAS CONSEQUENCES. YOU'VE BOUND YOURSELF TO PEACE. BUT PEACE IS FRAGILE. AND THERE ARE THOSE WHO WILL TEST YOUR COMMITMENT."

"Who?"

"THOSE WHO BENEFIT FROM CHAOS. THOSE WHO FEED ON WAR. THEY WILL COME FOR YOU. FOR YOUR BOND. FOR EVERYTHING YOU'VE BUILT." The Keeper's voice softened slightly. "BUT YOU ARE STRONGER THAN YOU KNOW. AND YOU ARE NOT ALONE."

The vision faded, leaving Elaria gasping in her bed. Beside her, Draven woke immediately, sensing her distress through the bond.

"Another one?" he asked.

"The Keeper. It says it wants to record our story."

"Great. We have a void entity stalker now. That's not creepy at all."

Despite herself, Elaria laughed. "At least this one doesn't seem hostile."

"Yet. None of them seem hostile until they try to possess you or tear open reality."

They lay together in the darkness, both too alert to sleep now.

"Draven?" Elaria said softly. "Do you ever regret it? Bonding with me? Everything that's come with it?"

"Never. Not once." He pulled her closer. "You're the only good thing that's ever happened to me. Everything else—the void magic, the brothers, the constant threats—I'd face it all again for you."

"Even almost dying?"

"Especially almost dying. Because you saved me. You risked everything for me. No one's ever done that before."

"Get used to it. I plan to keep doing it."

"Stubborn woman."

"You married me. Too late for complaints now."

Morning brought new problems. Zevran and his brothers had been questioned through the night, and their testimony revealed something disturbing.

"They were contacted by someone in the Eastern Cities," Captain Ryver reported. "Someone offered them gold and magical weapons if they'd kill Draven on the road."

"Who?" Elaria demanded.

"They don't know. All communication was through intermediaries." Ryver's expression was grim. "But whoever it was knew your route, knew when you'd be vulnerable."

"A spy in our group?" Draven suggested.

"Or in the court. Someone who knew our plans before we left." Amariel looked troubled. "This conspiracy runs deeper than we thought."

Council Leader Talira was called in, and she was visibly angry when told about the plot. "If someone in our cities is involved, I want them found. This kind of treachery will not be tolerated."

"We need to flush them out," Elaria said. "Set a trap."

"What kind of trap?" Draven asked.

Elaria's eyes glinted with determination. "We announce that we're traveling back tomorrow with critical intelligence about void activity. Make it sound like we've discovered something huge. Then we see who tries to stop us."

"Using yourself as bait. Again." Draven's tone suggested he didn't like it.

"Do you have a better idea?"

He didn't.

The announcement was made publicly that afternoon. Princess Elaria and Prince Draven would depart the Eastern Cities the next morning, carrying important information about void entity movements back to their kingdoms.

That night, Elaria sat in their quarters, waiting. Draven paced beside the window, his shadows on high alert.

"They'll come," Elaria said confidently. "Whoever's behind this can't risk us leaving with information that might expose them."

"And when they do?"

"We capture them. Make them talk."

Hours passed. Midnight came and went. Elaria was beginning to think their trap had failed when she felt it—a disturbance in the void connection.

"Someone's opening a portal," she warned. "Small one. Inside the building."

Draven's shadows exploded outward as a tear in reality opened in the corner of their room. A figure stepped through—cloaked, masked, impossible to identify.

"Don't move," the figure said, and the voice was female. "I'm not here to hurt you. I'm here to warn you."

"Warn us about what?" Elaria asked, ready to defend herself if needed.

"The conspiracy isn't what you think. It's not about power or territory or political gain." The woman pulled back her hood slightly, though the mask still hid her face. "It's about you specifically. About what you're becoming."

"Who are you?"

"Someone who's been where you are. Someone who was turned into a weapon and barely survived." The woman's hands shook slightly. "They're going to try to use you to open permanent gates to the void. Multiple gates, all across the kingdoms. They want to flood this world with void creatures."

"Who is 'they'?" Draven demanded.

"A cult. They call themselves the Void Seekers. They've existed for centuries, always working in shadows, always trying to merge our world with the void." The woman looked at Elaria directly. "And you're the key to their plan. A priestess daughter bonded to void-born, with power over both realms. They'll never stop coming for you."

"Then we'll keep stopping them," Elaria said.

"You don't understand. They have members everywhere. In your courts, your cities, your armies. Some you trust. Some you love." The woman backed toward the portal. "Trust no one. Question everything. And whatever you do, don't let them separate you from your bond. Together, you're strong. Apart, you're vulnerable."

"Wait!" Elaria called out. "Tell us more. Tell us who to look for."

But the woman stepped through the portal and it sealed behind her.

Elaria and Draven looked at each other.

"A cult trying to merge worlds," Draven said slowly. "That's significantly worse than anything we've faced so far."

"And they have people everywhere. People we trust." Elaria felt cold dread settle in her stomach. "We can't know who's loyal and who's a cultist."

"So we trust each other. And maybe Amariel. Captain Ryver. Martha." Draven pulled her close. "Everyone else is suspect until proven otherwise."

Before Elaria could respond, someone knocked urgently on their door.

Captain Ryver's voice called through. "Your Highnesses! You need to come quickly. There's been a murder in the Council Hall. And they're saying you're responsible!"