Page 101 of The Serpent Prince

“Aren’t there monarchs of this realm?” Imani furrowed her brow in confusion. She thought all three realms had monarchs.

“The Wardens of the Night are our monarchs, but as I said before, this realm is in crisis. Our monarchs have been missing for some time.”

“Missing? Not dead then?”

“Not dead,” he replied with an edge to his voice.

“How would you know if they’re missing?”

“Besides the fact that I’ve seen one of them with my own eyes, no others have come forward with the power of a monarch to claim their rightful place as ruler of the Eldheim Kingdom—or the Under, as you call it—thus we can only assume both monarchs still live.”

“Unless …. unless the new monarchs simply don’t want to rule and are in hiding,” Imani said. Either way, it seemed the Under was without leadership. She continued, “Who rules this place then?”

“Someone who doesn’t deserve it,” he snarled before turning to look back at the prince. Kiran stepped back, lowering his wand as he watched on, pacing. Stalking back and forth, watching. Assessing.

Then, with a flash, a loud crack sounded, drips of darkness and magic bursting onto the ground from the shadowed shield. Angrier than she’d ever seen him, Kiran’s eyes were wild as magic poured out of him, intent on achieving his goal.

“Is that who Kiran wants to see? Who he wants something from?”

He gave her a curious look then smirked. “He’s lying to you about so many things.”

“I am well aware of this fact.”

“Indeed.” He paused.

Another boom of Kiran’s magic shook the ground and barrier, his face twisted in cold fury.

She frowned, flinging her own darkness into the shield, then turned to face the death angel, who spoke.

“I will answer two more of your questions if you’ll comply with one request. Then we’ll go and deal with your impatient prince.”

Imani didn’t hesitate. She opened her arms and held them out. “What breed am I? And what type of magic do I possess from this realm?”

“You’re a high-bred Eldritch elf, and you possess what we call doraca magic—or death magic.”

Doraca. Imani had dozens more questions, but that word rang in her head. She felt a slight sting of betrayal remembering that Zadie had said this word earlier. She knew and could have told Imani. But she and Zadie had no true loyalty to each other. Zadie worked for Kiran, after all.

Another crack spider-webbed across the dome of the shield. Kiran was getting closer. He was ruthless. Unrelenting.

The death angel didn’t seem too concerned. “Like your realm, Eldheim has been growing wild with instability, especially without our monarchs,” he commented, glancing around as if taking in the day. “The Fabric’s instability and ‘Fabric Events,’ as you call them, have been preventing souls from passing over as they should, and it’s wreaking havoc on the delicate balance we maintain between worlds. Without the monarchs, no one is working on a solution, and people are defying death.”

Imani’s heart stuttered. She blinked in shock that such a thing was even possible. “That’s … that’s impossible. No one escapes the Under.”

“Many have and will.”

“But how?”

“In several ways. Breeds from the Under are slipping into the Mesial and Upper realms. Souls stuck in the mortal and immortal realms are remaining there instead of moving through the cycle as they should. And what’s even more concerning, we’re seeing new, dangerous magic pushing lifespans beyond the natural timeline.”

It had never occurred to her that the problems with their Fabric would seep into the other realms, but she shouldn’t have been surprised. Everything used to be interconnected, and technically, it still was in many ways. More ways than she’d realized.

“What’s to be done to fix the Fabric here?” Her voice was steady, but she was shaking with animosity at Kiran getting closer. She needed answers. “You must be working on a solution.”

“We need our monarchs back in place before that can happen, and I intend to return them to their thrones.” The death angel had been slowly making his way to Imani, and he was directly in front of her now. He crowded her with a hungry look. “The first potential options to be found in a decade, and I now have you both in my possession.”

Backing away, Imani held up her wand. “What do you mean? Why has Kiran brought me here?”

Imani struggled, but the death angel grabbed her and held her firm, continuing. “Our current usurper rules alone, but without the horde, his power is constantly in question.”