It’s amazing how fast things can move back into “normalcy.” Or whatever passed for it. I’d argue that from the minute I’d arrived at the Loft, nothing had been, or would ever be, the same again.
I was fine with that.
“Cake, Riley?”
From the Loft’s kitchen, Ari lifted the platter of cheesecake up to show me. It looked positively decadent, covered in chocolate bits, chocolate syrup, and mixed in with lots of cocoa powder. Most surprisingly of all, Collette had been the one to bake it. In the week following the battle against the titan—between all the healing sessions, going back and forth to the Dead City to speak with other paranormals, and calling in the Charmsmaster to relocate the Loft back to the center of Cliffside’s downtown—Collette had cultivated her inner baker and showered us with enough goodies to make every Outcast a diabetic.
I patted my stomach. “I think I’ll pass. I’m already stuffed full of those tarts.”
“She’ll take one,” Jasper said. “Don’t give me that look,” he said as I poked him in the chest. It was the best I could do, curled against him in one of the living room’s armchairs. “I’m getting one, and I know for a fact the second I do you’ll try to mooch off me. I’m simply preventing World War Three.”
“This man knows what’s up,” Leon rumbled.
I sank back against Jasper as Ari cut more slices. Some of the other Outcasts had gone to bed, leaving only Ari, Leon, and even Sawyer, though he was lost in his smartphone, to hang out as the clock ticked closer to midnight. I knew they would all be up again soon. The others were almost here, after all.
“Here you go.” Ari handed Jasper and me each a slice.
“What gives, hers is bigger than mine,” Jasper said.
“No cake for you,” I said, pulling my slice closer and taking a big bite. Ari chuckled and settled into the couch beside Leon.
We were silent as we ate, and even after we’d finished, each of us was lost in our own contemplation. My parents and the Order had managed to save Ari, Leon, and the others who’d followed Onora’s false trail before any of them got seriously hurt. In a way, I felt lucky. Onora had split her forces to break us apart, which had made it easier for us to take her down. Not that anything about taking her down had been easy.
I lay my head back against Jasper’s chest and scanned the rest of the Loft’s downstairs. Ari had called on Owen the Charmsmaster the day after my official recognition as queen. It’d taken some powerful magic but eventually Sienna, Collette, Sawyer, and he had managed to transport the Loft right smack in the middle of Cliffside’s most fashionable district, slyly slotting itself in a row of townhouses off Windsor Ave. Now we were only a block from one of the entrances to the Dead City. Eventually, I knew, I’d have to leave my comfy setting here and move down there on a more permanent basis. But the Dead City didn’t have Lucinda’s hot tub, and I needed all the relaxation I could get before things grew crazy again.
From the corner of my eye, I saw the flicker of movement outside the Loft’s broad bay windows; the flash of a creature passing across the streetlamp’s light.
An alarm went off on Ari’s watch, making me jump.
“It’s almost time,” she said.
Jasper squeezed my hand as he pushed us both up. “Ari and I will get the rest of the Outcasts. Most of them are probably up already anyway.”
“Not Rodge,” Leon rumbled. “I’ll wake him up, don’t you worry.”
While they split, I ensured I looked as presentable as possible for our arriving guests. I smoothed out any wrinkles on the best shirt and pair of jeans I owned, then summoned my crown and made sure it was straight atop my head. I was still getting used to flaunting it whenever dealing with paranormals of any kind. It’d taken some heavy coaxing from Ari and the others, but I’d eventually agreed that it was propriety, not vanity, that made me wear it. I’d gone through hell to prove I was queen. Now that I was, I’d need to keep proving it.
“They here?” Adam joined me and peeked through the front window. “I see…something. They can’t ever be obvious about anything, can they? Makes me nervous.”
“They’re the Horde,” I said. “Subtlety and shadows are what they do best.”
He grinned. “I guess that’s true.”
The clock struck twelve right as Jasper led the remaining Outcasts down the stairs. Sienna gave me a sleepy smile and, behind her, Hayes shot me a thumbs up. I wished that Iris could be here, but she and my parents were still cleaning up the fallout of our battle. I’d see them all at the ceremony in a couple days.
Taking a deep breath, I turned and walked out the front door.
The night enveloped my skin in humid warmth. The sounds of Cliffside radiated over the tops of buildings and intermingled with the light from the row of streetlamps running up and down our street.
I’d just stepped onto the sidewalk—the Outcasts fanning out behind me—when the air grew heavy.
“Look,” Collette whispered.
A streetlamp at the end of the street went out, followed by the next, and the next, moving toward us. Within seconds, we’d been surrounded by a permeating darkness so thick it was nearly palpable. Knowing it wouldn’t be rude to do so, I summoned a few balls of fire to hover overhead. The flames illuminated Uko standing before me.
“Elemental Queen,” he hissed. “It isss good to see you.”
He dropped briefly to one knee, and a wave of relief so strong I nearly toppled over swept through me. The allegiance of the Horde had been my final, lingering worry and he’d dispelled it in an instant. “Rise, Uko. And thank you.”
“It is you we have to thank,” Uko said. “All of us.”
He gestured behind him. A multitude of eyes appeared in the thick shadows across the street. An undercurrent of murmurs and whispering trickled from the black depths.
“We have come to pay our respectsss to you, our new queen, and to a fallen one,” Uko said. “She was one of yoursss. And she was one of ours.”
I nodded. “I speak for all the Outcasts when I thank you. Kaia was…we all miss her. A lot. She’d love to know you saw her as one of your own.”
“Yesss,” Uko said. “She never fully belonged in either of our worlds, but in the end she was part of both.” Uko stared up through the veil of darkness they’d cast. I imagined him looking at the stars, and how often, if at all, the Horde got the chance to see them. “She isss in that far off place we will all journey to one day. Ssshe feels no more pain.”
The rest of the Horde began a strange chant. It wasn’t whispers or murmurs, but rather a song with no melody; haunting notes of life and death, love and loss, and all things in between. It was as sweet as the first meeting of a friend, and as bitter as the goodbye of a loved one.
Tears were rolling down my cheeks when the song finally ended. I resisted wiping them away.
“We will leave you now,” Uko said. “As new queen, I’m sssure you have much to do.”
With a final short bow, he began fading into the shadows.
“I asked the Deathless and the Pack—what remains of them—to come talk with me,” I said.
Uko paused. “An interesssting move for one who was plagued by them for ssso long.”
“That’s why I did it. I can’t move forward with a new rule while holding grudges against the old. The Horde was part of the old Conclave. I was wondering if you wanted to be part of whatever new thing we build?”
The whispering in the shadows grew. Uko cocked his head to listen. At last he said, “We of the Horde will take that offer.”
I couldn’t resist smiling. “Glad to hear it.”
“You have indeed grown ssstronger, Riley. Taking this throne doesss not magically fix your problems, but your adversities have prepared you to face them. I do not lie when I say I have hope for the future.”
With a final half bow he sank into the shadows. A moment later the presence of the Horde eased, and the street was light again.
I sat up in my bed. I still lay on top of the covers where Jasper and I had cuddled for a bit before I’d apparently passed out from exhaustion. Jasper was gone. I rubbed my eyes sleepily and looked at the clock. I’d barely gotten three hours of sleep. Yet something had tugged me awake.
I slid to the edge of the mattress and closed my eyes, probing for what it was. I found the source a moment later and moved swiftly out of my room and down the quiet, darkened hallway to the vacant living room. I cast a small fireball in my palm and watched the shadows bend around it.
The light seemed drawn into the onyx stone hanging over the fireplace. The stone radiated a cold power, but for the first time I could remember it was blank. That wasn’t what had brought me here.
“Come on out, Pockrus.”
His ghostly visage flickered into view.
“Queen Riley,” he said, giving a sweeping bow. “As perceptive as ever.”
“Not that I’m complaining, but why didn’t you appear in my room?”
“Why, you’re queen now, free and truly. It wouldn’t be appropriate.”
“That never stopped you before.”
“Indeed.” Pockrus’ teeth practically glittered as he smiled. “I sense you have something you wish to say to me.”
“I do.” For the first time since I’d officially taken the throne, I allowed my frustration to take over. The shadows leapt away as my fire surged. Even Pockrus winced at the sudden display of power. “You knew attacking the titan with my inner magic would help it, didn’t you?” I said.
“I did.”
His easy admission threw me. “Why?”
“Isn’t it obvious?”
“If it was, I wouldn’t be asking you. Enough games, Pockrus.”
“You needed to defeat it when it was near its full power. You needed to prove to those around, and to yourself, of your might. You needed to vanquish Onora and that slumbering creature or you would have no chance at a peaceful rule. The mortal coil could sustain life, but you needed to jumpstart it, only to overcome it.”
“That’s…wow. That’s a terrible reason to awaken a monster that could have potentially destroyed the world.”
“It was the way things needed to be. Not just for you, but for another.”
Adam. I’d sensed that a camaraderie had begun to form between us since the fight. It was still as brittle as fresh ice but growing stronger every day.
“See,” Pockrus said. “You understand.”
“All that aside, you should have told me from the very beginning instead of keeping it a secret. How can I trust you if you won’t be honest with me?”
“What does your gut tell you?”
I cocked an eyebrow at him. “Really? My gut?”
“Yes, Queen Riley. Do not underestimate the judgement of a properly functioning digestive system. After all, it’s your judgement that many paranormals will live under from now on. You must be confident in your decision.”
That was just like Pockrus to speak nonsense and half-truths with kernels of actual truth sprinkled in. Like Uko had said, neither the crown or the throne had solved my problems. In fact, they might add more in the days to come. I had Jasper and Iris and the Outcasts for help, but having an ancient, undead advisor—even one who was helpful less than roughly half the time—could be invaluable.
“Stick around,” I said. “We still need to continue our training.”
Pockrus took a low bow. “As the queen wishes.”
I took a deep breath to calm my nerves. No one stood out here with me in the back room of the Dead City’s palace, and I was grateful for that. I didn’t want them to see me freaking out.
Just through that door was my future, and while I’d long ago accepted it, this was real. Really real. Solid, unwavering proof that I was who I was. No backing out now.
Who was I kidding? There’d been no backing out for a while now.
I steeled myself, stuck up my chin, and pushed the doors open.
Dozens of pairs of eyes turned on me as I entered. I’d prepared for the onslaught and didn’t falter as I strode across the hall toward the throne. Without turning my head, I could make out everyone who’d shown up to my unofficially-official coronation: my parents—my dad’s eyes shining with tears; Iris and Hayes, Iris giving me a secretive double thumbs up; Yu and a small number of the Pack beside a group of the Deathless, both factions for once not looking like they were going to come to blows at any second; a smear of shadows in the back where Uko lurked.
And, of course, all the Outcasts; Sawyer pulling at the collar of a suit Collette had made him wear, her looking stunning as always in a glittering dress; Leon towering over a small pool of water he’d carried in where Lucinda now sat; Sienna beaming at me and waving while Rodge yawned; Adam giving me an encouraging nod as I reached the first step up to my throne.
Where of course Jasper and Ari stood, each flanking a side. Jasper took my hand as I stepped up, his smile lighting me from the inside.
I turned when I reached the top. Then, making sure my crown was straight atop my head, sat on the throne. Warmth immediately filled me. My toes and fingers tingled. I gazed out at all those gathered as they slowly lowered into a bow. This would be who stood beside me, whatever may come. Together with them, I could hopefully create something better, for everyone.
Long live the queen.