Page 93 of Kingdom of Aramis

“We do?” I ask, and my heart races. What have I done wrong that could warrant a visit from the shifter deity?

“You’ve done nothing wrong. In fact, you’ve completely met my expectations. I’m so proud of you. You’re already doing exactly what I hoped you’d do.”

I frown, annoyed that she’s pulling my thoughts straight from my mind. “So why are you here?” I ask bluntly.

She sighs heavily, and I see the heavy weight of responsibility in her eyes. My tail slowly flicks back and forth, keeping me on the surface as I wait for her answer. I kind of wish I could get out, but I don’t know how to shift back, and if I could work it out, I’d be naked from the waist down. That isn’t really how I want to have a heavy conversation with a goddess.

“First, I have to give you a little bit of backstory. When my sister goddesses and I created humans and all the supernatural races, we didn’t want to rule over you like tyrants. We were lonely and wanted to have purpose in our never-ending existence. You were our beloved children, and we were thrilled when we saw you not only survive, but thrive. We allowed our creations autonomy to grow, asking for nothing in return. We gave our creations the freedom of choice, of self-regulation,hoping against all odds that they would coexist peacefully, and for a while, you did, but jealousy is an insidious power, and it easily corrupts. Humans hated that the supernatural races were more powerful than them and had longer lives, but then we gave humans the ability to procreate easily, unlike supernatural races. We thought it would create balance, but I guess we were delusional. War came, and so many people died, but we were powerless to do anything because we had given the freedom of choice and never forced obedience. That’s when we came up with the idea of selecting a human every forty years to rule over the supernatural races if the humans gave up their fighting. Eryx had her doubts, but it was surprisingly effective, and the kingdoms were at peace once more.”

I scoff. “The chance for one human to rule every forty years was enough to stop a war?” I always had my doubts about that being the whole truth.

She shrugs. “The humans were losing badly. Supernaturals were stronger and had abilities that even human weapons couldn’t match. Eventually, they would have been wiped out, and their leadership knew this, but humans are stubborn as a whole and were willing to die on the hill for their cause. This gave them an excuse to back down without losing face.”

Ah, okay, this makes a lot more sense, but it’s been conveniently spun so that humans don’t look bad. That is unsurprising.

“And for hundreds of years, it has worked fairly effectively, but once again, humans are no longer happy. Like you said, it’s only one human in each of the kingdoms who gets a chance to become more, and they are no longer happy with the status quo. They have forgotten how decimated their population became after the great war because their ability to procreate repopulated their numbers very quickly, and so once again, there are rumblings of war—not to mention a small portion ofthe supernatural population resent that a human is gifted with powers to rule over them. Things are changing, Colbie, and I’m not sure if there is anything I or my sisters can do to stop it this time around.”

“But what can I do? Hell, I’ve been queen for less than a week. I’m hardly qualified to stop a revolution. Surely it would have been better to leave Lucas in charge if war is coming.” I didn’t think my heart could beat any faster, but it does, and my body tightens with tension.

“Lucas was a kind and just king, but he wasn’t able to unite the shifters like I hoped. You can do this. You’ve already made decisions that align with my goals. Inviting the mer, fairies, and equine shifters to join the council is the first step in repairing the relationships that have troubled the shifters for years. It’s also why I gifted you with two more mates—mer and fairy shifters. You have already found your mer mate, and your fairy one will appear soon.”

“And Nox is an equine shifter?” I ask the question that has been on my mind since I realized he was one of my mates, and we assumed I am able to shift into the same form as him.

“Yes. You will need to find him as soon as possible. You have forces working against you from both the humans and the shifters, and I can’t physically interfere. Both of them have their own agendas, but for now, they are united in their quest to see you remain uncrowned. It is why I gifted you a fully formed bond group instead of marking random people. They would have been picked off one at a time until none remained for you to choose from, thus causing you to be uncrowned. You won’t have access to your full range of gifts until that crown is on your head. I can’t change that. You are in danger, Colbie. The faction of unrest will do what they can to kill you before you can be crowned in the hopes that they can then control the magic. For now, it isin limbo. Lucas no longer wields it, and neither can you. That crown and the book in the vault are the keys to the rebels’ goals.”

“The magic to change humans to shifters?” I ask, and she nods.

“Yes. If they can change humans without them becoming feral, then they can create their own army to defeat the shifters. They can also fix the feral shifters they already have in their ranks,” she admits, and my jaw drops as she confesses the truth about feral shifters.

“They can be fixed?” I ask, my tone hard, and she nods sadly.

“Yes. The crown magic can fix a feral shifter, but it was decided long ago not to allow it so shifters didn’t go around biting unwilling humans, and humans didn’t go looking to be bit for the chance of possessing magic. It was a harsh but necessary decision to make execution the punishment to discourage these actions.”

My anger recedes as I acknowledge the truth of her words, even if I don’t like it.

Her eyes soften in sympathy, and she leans forward, resting her forearms on her knees. “I know this is difficult for you to wrap your head around, but I need you to seal the mating bonds as soon as possible. I have gifted you the most powerful form I could and gave you exceptional mates and the ability to share their forms, because you are my final human queen. You will no longer rule for only forty years. From now on, the reign of shifters will be the responsibility of your bloodline. Your first born child will be the heir to the kingdom, and once you decide to step aside, they will take over. After the rebel faction has been dealt with, humans will be given the choice to receive a bite from a shifter if they so wish it. We were wrong in creating two species that differ so drastically, but any human wishing to remain will also be granted their wish.”

“Is this only happening here in Aramis or everywhere?” I ask, a thought niggling at me that I can’t quite grasp hold of.

Her expression turns cold. “What my sisters choose to do with their kingdoms is up to them. All I can do is ensure peace here in Aramis, although I will tell you the other kingdoms have their own struggles. The rebels seem to have infiltrated all four kingdoms and stirred up a revolution. Only the King of the Chaos Kingdom has been successful in retaining complete control, but he doesn’t have humans to contend with. Although we have allowed our creations autonomy, to outright flaunt our directives has done nothing to endear us toward their agenda. We have never asked for anything but peace between the races and given them everything, and now they will know what comes from flouting our wishes.”

“Extermination of a species? Surely that isn’t the answer!” I argue, and she shakes her head.

“No, not extermination. Any human who wishes to remain so will have their wishes adhered to, but how many do you think that will be? Maybe the older generations. Becoming a shifter will not make them younger, but how many young ones will remain as such? As the ruler, you will oversee everyone, humans and shifters alike. I’m pretty sure their leadership didn’t see this coming, and they will pay for their envy in ways they never saw coming.”

Fuck, the goddess is sneaky. I need to make sure I never get on her bad side.

She tilts her head to the side like she is listening, and the anger drifts away. She smiles then stands, smoothing her dress down. “Well, I have to be going. This won’t be the last you see of me. I expect you and I will get to know each other well over the coming years, but for now, seal those mating bonds and find those children. Cut the rebels off at the knees. Without access tothe crown and spell book, they are just creating a bigger problem for themselves.”

“I won’t execute any of the ferals,” I warn her. “Especially if they have been changed against their will.”

She nods, looking pleased. “Of course you won’t, but your fairy mate will be able to help you discern who did or didn’t volunteer to be changed. Those rebels will need to be punished, but I will leave it to you to decide what that punishment will be.”

My fairy mate? Violet didn’t mention fairies have the ability to read minds.

“How do I seal the mating bonds? In my hydra form? That seems like it could be difficult.”

Her smile turns mischievous, and her eyes sparkle with mirth. “Well, I mean you could shift into hydra form—you’ll find you have eight heads now—and bite them all at once. A hydra bite will transfer your regenerative properties to them. Do you fancy having a nine-way orgy.”