“No, Baby. Please,” I begged, holding his arm to stop him.
“You cannot wield that again. It might kill you,” Kingston protested.
To our surprise, Braxton grinned. “Right. But Raithian doesn’t know that.”
“Hello, loves,” Skylar greeted with a warm smile the moment we entered her forge.
Curiously enough, she was not working at the furnace, but sitting at her desk with Thea, her newest found sister, while the other women forged what looked like new weapons. They were always searching for new ways to perfect their craft.
“To what do I owe the pleasure of my queen and king’s visit today?” she asked, standing, and coming to our side to hug us.
Thea followed, bowing her head to me with a smile before warmly greeting Braxton and her friends.
“We need your help, Skylar,” Braxton began, “we have a very important project, and you are the only one who can make it happen.”
Her eyes widened with enthusiasm, and a sliver of amusement. “Ooh, that sounds exciting. Is it a secret project too? I love secret projects.”
Exchanging a glance with me, he nodded. “Very.”
“Done! You need not say more. I’m your gal. Except, that is going to cost you.”
“Skylar…”
“Larie…” both Kingston and Asher chided, standing next to Brax, but she dismissed them with a wave.
“Do not interfere. This is between the Dragon Master and me.”
“Sure, what can I do for you?” Braxton asked, both amused and a bit confused, like we all were.
A mischievous smile tilted her lips, and she leaned over the counter, motioning with a single finger for him to lean closer, like there was a huge secret she had to share.
“Will you please start calling me Larie?!” She smacked the counter dramatically, making Brax jump back from the start. “You keep using my full name even after I’ve told you many times that my friends call me Larie. It’s like you are my old man, scolding me for misbehaving!”
“Skylar!” Kingston immediately growled.
She gestured to him, giving my mate a pointed look. “See?”
Laughing, Braxton nodded. “I’m sorry. I will definitely call you Larie from now on.”
Chuckling, I shook my head. Kingston’s daughter was something else, and we loved her for that. She was a force to be reckoned with, for sure.
“Thank you.” She rubbed her hands enthusiastically. “Now, what kind of trouble are we getting into?”
“The kind that requires your specific brand of magic,” I answered, silently asking Quinn to hand Skylar the leather bag.
At this point, we didn’t even want Braxton to have to touch it. It was an unnecessary exertion of his power and now that we knew the fight was near, he needed to conserve as much energy as he could.
“Okay…” Her brow deeply furrowed with our cryptic response, until she began to pull the contents of the satchel and immediately froze. The blood drained from her face, and she glanced around to make sure no one had seen it. Gesturing for us to follow her, she urged us inside her forge.
“Wait here,” I asked our Elevated Warriors, who nodded, fanning along the entrance to the forge for privacy.
Braxton, Asher, Imogen, Kingston, Harper, and I entered after her.
Stopping by her desk, she placed the bag on top and sat down, motioning to the two chairs nearby so Braxton and I would do the same. “Is this what I think it is?”
“The Dragon Crown, yes.”
Nodding at my mate, her gaze returned to the bag, and she slowly pulled it out, gasping when the crystals ignited thanks to Braxton’s proximity.
His muscles swiftly tensed in response.
I immediately guided her hand away, letting her know to keep it far from him. Thankfully, she understood and dragged it to the other side of the desk until its eyes dimmed. Not feeling its influence fully, Braxton’s form finally relaxed.
It wasn’t enough as far as I was concerned, but I supposed it would do.
“My mom told me stories about it when I was a child,” Skylar whispered, turning it to appreciate it fully. “My line forged it, you know? Thousands and thousands of years ago. The first woman swordsmith made it for the king. It is how our mystical line began. How we discovered what we could do. We forged the Dragon Crown, imbuing it to protect and enhance its wearer, our beloved king.”
“That’s beautiful,” I offered, seeing her smile before she sobered.
“My family also placed the crystal in its eyes.” Her voice lowered and she leaned closer. “My mom told me to guard that secret with my life. She was not the one to do it for the Devenish Princess, but the secret was passed down to her before Mom died, and in turn to me…”
Braxton and I exchanged a glance. It made sense that Braxton’s parents had trusted her family with the secret since they needed their help. Could Skylar know about the power in the crystals too?
“This is the same type of crystal in your sword, isn’t it?”
Braxton nodded but didn’t offer anything further, probably wondering the same thing I was, and needing to uncover how much she knew.
A saddened breath expanded her chest, the seriousness of the situation falling on her shoulders.
“The Anima Crystallum…” Her fingers traced the edges of the eyes.
“Your mother told you about it?” Braxton asked, leaning closer, but she shook her head.
“My mother only said that a powerful stone had been divided and added to the crown, a sword, and a ring... Yet, the only stone like that in our history has been this one. Created by the Celestials for the chosen one and passed down to the next king over the centuries.” Her eyes lifted to my mate. “And you are the Devenish Prince, so it responds to you.”
“The Devenish King,” Kingston corrected, and she nodded.
“True… What do you need me to do, my king?”
“Well, we have three options,” Braxton began. “First, I was wondering if you could block the magic of the crystal.”
Blinking in shock, her attention returned to the crown, but she finally shook her head. “I’m sorry. My ability helps me infuse a purpose into things, but not take it away. Even if I wanted to, this is too powerful an amulet for me to influence it.”
“I understand,” Braxton sighed, and I placed my hand above his.
“I mean, it has been infused with the purest type of magic through generations,” she continued, explaining her limitation. “Each king has planted a seed of his supremacy before handing it down, and—”
“That is not the only kind of magic it possesses,” I interjected.
“What do you mean?”
“The souls of my family are trapped inside it,” Braxton confessed.
“Raithian stole his own father’s ability, his grandfather’s, and the Elders’, even his wife’s, and embedded it into the crystal, but as he did, their souls were imprisoned too,” I explained.
Stunned, she glanced from us to the crown, distress marring her features. “There are actual souls inside this… inside your sword?”
“Yes. There are,” my mate began. “You already know that Devenish magic is unlike any other kind, Larie. But what you don’t know is that it originates in our very soul, so when Raithian stole their ability, he also stole their souls…”