Chapter 169
The cabin feels stiflingly small as we sit around the table, the hum of the ship’s engine barely cutting through the heavy silence. Wake and I both lean forward, our eyes fixed on Khale.
He’s been quiet for too long, staring down at the map as though it holds the answers to questions none of us have asked yet. I’m not sure whether it’s the tension in his shoulders or the distant look in his eyes, but something about him tonight feels fragile—guilt-stricken.
“Khale,” I start carefully, “what happened? How did you end up… here?” I gesture vaguely, not just at the ship but at everything.
Khale’s jaw tightens. For a moment, I think he won’t answer. But then he exhales heavily, dragging a hand down his face. “I was born into Tangaroa’s royal line,” he says finally, his voice low but steady. “A line that used to be one of the largest in the Eternal Sunrise.”
I blink, not surprised so much by the information, but by the sadness in his tone. He continues before I can ask anything.
“After the Lost Clans departed, the remaining rulers of the Eternal Sunrise became paranoid. They began to distrust one another, alliances dissolved, and heirs became targets of their own families. For centuries, it became standard practice to hide the births of newborn heirs from their siblings. Mothers were separated from their children, who were raised as decoys or in isolation for their own protection.”
Cora’s voice cuts through the quiet. “Khale grew up in an orphanage,” she explains, her gaze softening as she looks at him. “He didn’t even know he was in line to be Tangaroa’s Heir.”
“And then what?” Wake asks, his voice even but probing.
Khale’s lips press into a thin line. “Then my father became Dawn King. He grew up in the same chaos as every Heir before him, but he survived it. He made it his mission to end the infighting. Against all odds, he reached adulthood—a feat in itself—and challenged those who sought to take his crown. Dozens stepped forward to oppose him. He faced them all in the arena and won.”
Wake sits back, his expression unreadable. “I don’t remember a time when the Eternal Sunrise was at war. No one in the Abyss did.”
Cora nods. “I’ve lived much longer than you, Wake, and I didn’t know about their civil war either. Not until I met Khale.”
Khale shrugs, his gaze fixed on the table. “The Sunrise is a self-contained Clan. Centuries of suspicion made us insular. My father’s reign was the first time in a thousand years that the Eternal Sunrise knew peace.”
Wake’s snort breaks the quiet. “And yet, a few decades of peace were all it took for them to rekindle their aggression and turn it outward.”
Khale’s jaw tightens. “That behavior is not representative of my people.” His voice hardens. “It’s the work of a monster.”
I sit up straighter, my curiosity piqued. “Who?”
Khale’s gaze lifts to meet mine, cold and sharp. “A coward named Raif. My uncle.”
Wake’s scowl deepens. “He staged a coup and killed your father?”
Khale hesitates, his expression darkening. “In a sense.” He pauses, as though choosing his words carefully. “Raif seduced my mother, convincing her that becoming Dawn King would make her husband’s eye wander. Unfortunately, he wasn’t entirely wrong.
My father struggled to balance his duties as king with his role as a husband, much less a father. Growing up, I often felt that if I weren’t being trained to be Heir, my father wouldn’t have acknowledged me at all. The Clan had his attention, not his family.”
Wake asks, “But the Sunrise prospered for it.”
He exhales sharply, his shoulders tensing. “Like most things, it didn’t last. When my father learned of the affair, he became irate, attacked my uncle. I believe it would have come down to either my father or his brother that night… if my mother hadn’t made the decision she had.”
A sharp gasp escapes me, and I cover my mouth with my hand. “Your own mother?”
Khale’s nod is curt. “She stabbed my father in the back, both figuratively and quite literally.”
“But…why?”
Khale shrugs. “She felt she didn’t have another choice. After all, it was only a matter of time before her pregnancy was discovered. I suppose she thought she needed to secure her own safety.”
“That’s horrible,” I say, my voice trembling.
“Unfortunately, it’s not a terribly uncommon story amongst the Clans,” Wake says, his tone grim.
Cora sighs. “Every Clan treats their lineage differently. Even so, over the last thousand years, peace has been… rare.”
I look back at Khale, my chest tightening. “I still can’t understand how your mother could put you in such a dangerous position. For all she knew, your uncle could have had you killed the moment your father was out of the way.”
Khale laughs bitterly, the sound devoid of humor. “That’s exactly what Raif wanted to do. But my mother intervened. Since I had to be raised in an orphanage, the two of us weren’t particularly close, but even she refused to have her own child’s blood on her hands. Instead, she leveraged her unborn children to barter for my exile.”
I glance at Wake, the familiar pieces clicking into place. “Because as long as you weren’t around to challenge your siblings after Raif eventually died, there’d be no Heir.”
Khale nods solemnly. “Exactly.”
Wake’s brow furrows. “So the Eternal Sunrise has no Heir?”
“No,” Cora answers quietly. “And that’s just how Raif wants it. Without an Heir, the next highest seat of power is Dawn King, and that’s a title he won by blood, if not by birthright.”
I sigh, rubbing my temples. “So our next step is going back to the Enigma island, which we can’t get to without inciting civil unrest. Where do we go from here?”
Wake’s gaze shifts to Khale, his expression calculating. “We know exactly what needs to be done.”
Khale looks pensive, his jaw tightening. Then he nods slowly. “Yes. The Eternal Sunrise has been without an Heir for too long.”
Cora looks as if she’s about to be sick. Her knuckles whiten as she grips the edge of the table.
I glance around at them, my heart pounding. “What are we going to do?”
Wake’s voice is steady and resolute. “We need to ensure Khale wins back his throne.”
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