After listening to the tragic love story of Remnant's parents last night I realized that there was one major difference between me and the god of death. I glanced down at the stern warrior face of my soulmate, taking in the way the cosmos shimmered off every part of her exposed pale skin and the way the white sands rose around her in silent beckoning—every part of this realm silently whispered its devotion to her.
Just like my fucking heart and for that alone, I would have burned down every world to get to her—I still would.
Rules be damned.
But not Shea, his dedicated love for his soulmate was obvious but his ultimate immortal self had no concept of time. For him, thousands of years was a blink, barely worth sacrificing a world for—obviously I fucking disagreed.
Eve was goddess damn virtuous for accepting it.
The death god’s nostrils flared and I could hear Kade laugh darkly behind us. “I should not have to explain myself to you, shifter king.” He looked at Remnant imploringly, “but I will for you daughter. I cannot enter the Vagari because it will put your mother’s soul at risk if I were to linger too long. It will change her and I will not allow that to happen.”
Glancing over at his mate, his eyes softened when she looked up at him with a sad smile while the shadows swirled around her and Riella in a dazzling display of fireworks, butterflies, and pixies.
The control of Eve’s power was simply beautiful and gentle. It was hard to believe that she was once the hardened warrior leader of the shadow fae…one of the heroines of the Blood Wars that delivered the god of death on the doors of the Sanguine.
“But I can assist you…” his eyes narrowed on me, “all of you.” Then turning sharply, he whistled into the swirling galactic sky.
“Oh this is going to be good,” Kade snickered and Remnant glanced at me sharply before setting her eyes on the horizon.
Like fucking bait we waited and my fangs slowly descended, to prepare for whatever fucked up way Shea was using to earn his daughter's graces in own his favor.
I snorted inwardly, as if that would ever happen.
The haunting white sands rose slowly, arching over the widening silver path without a granule dropping on its reflective surface. From it descended two flickering lights, floating down from the sands like hot ash sparking from a fire, burning bright before darkening and sizzling upon the silver surface. Smoke rose from the burned embers, swirling and morphing into the outline of two very large beasts.
My nostrils flared at the scent and instinctively I edged even closer to my soulmate,
“Oooo what is that!” Riella’s excited voice reached me before her running legs did, and I swooped down, catching her before she ran straight into danger.
“You must be more cautious my cub, not everything here is safe or kind. You must be more aware, Riella,” I growled down at her.
When her lip trembled up at me from behind my leg where I placed her I immediately regretted my scolding. “I just wanted to see.” Those big swirling green and gold eyes undid me.
Fuck.
“I know,” I said gently, “and you can, from here, where I can protect you. Understand?”
She sniffed and nodded, “Okay. But what are they?”
I didn’t need to look back up to see the beasts walking towards us, their scent was strong enough. “They are called cù sìth.”
"It cannot be," Remnant whispered.
Reaching out I placed a supportive hand on my soulmate's shoulder, feeling her heart race rapidly, smelling the radiating sadness and shock like a sharp bite on my tongue.
"There is a special place in Sheol for honorable beasts," Shea explained, "especially ones honored by my goddess daughter. Your prayer was heard, chickadee.”
"These are your cù-sìth little umbra,"I hummed, watching the two great black hounds of death stand towering over us and I squeezed her shoulder in support, attempting to ease her racing heart. Remnant’s hand shook when she placed it over mine, her grip just as tight.
Releasing the now wary Riella from behind me, I gently placed my hand on her back to push her forward. Remnant looked down at our daughter with tears in her eyes. "The cù sìth are the great death hounds of Faerie daughter, and these two were once my friends."
“What happened to them?” Riella whispered, her brow furrowing intently as if she was seeing or hearing something from the great beasts.
Remnant glanced at me worriedly before answering her. “They died, little one. They were killed by the Sanguine.”
Riella leaned in and rested her head on my soulmate's hip soberly but her eyes wide with wonderment. "That is sad. But she is beautiful and I think happy now. Isn't she, mother? And her baby—so cute."
"Yes," Remnant whispered, squeezing Riella's hand and stepping away from us towards the deadly beasts.
