Chapter Ninety-One

REMI'S POV

“Long time no see, Keiran.”

I’ve never been active in battle, but the air in the room is like that of war. 

The air in Keiran’s study is suffocating, thick with tension. I feel it pressing against my chest, my lungs struggling to expand as I take in the chaotic scene unfolding before me. I can feel the pulse of anxiety racing through my veins, the panic creeping up from my stomach. 

Despite the shift in the air. The presence of the stranger, and Xaden, the King in the room is silent. Thinking carefully. 

Keiran stands at the map table, his fingers moving over the terrain in front of him, his expression distant, as if his mind is miles away from us all. He looks exhausted, but there’s an edge to him—a dangerous, sharp energy—that hasn’t left. Not even for a second.

I can’t look away from him. He’s still so intimidating, so powerful, and yet, the cracks are there. I see them. He’s holding it all together with an iron fist, but underneath, he’s unraveling. There’s something else in his eyes now. Something darker.

Kallias is leaning against the wall, his arms crossed, his jaw set in that way that tells me he’s bracing for something. His eyes flick between Keiran and his brother, but they stay locked on the map, a silent observer of the mess Keiran has made. I can’t help but wonder what’s going through his mind. How long has he been waiting for this? And what does it mean for him, for all of us?

Rhodes stands near the door, still as a statue, but I can feel his tension too. His usual calm demeanor is absent, replaced by something more restless. He’s watching everything unfold, but I can tell he’s waiting for something. Waiting for the next move, the next disaster to unfold.

The air seems to get heavier, as though the room itself is collapsing around us. Keiran raises his head then, his eyes locking onto mine. For a brief moment, I see something in him I’ve never seen before—fear. Real, unfiltered fear. And it sends a chill down my spine.

I don’t know how to respond. I don’t know how to help. The twins, Xaden, and I, of us know our King He doesn’t know what to do.

But then he turns to Xaden’s half brother, the stranger in the room, and he is every inch the composed King. 

The figure steps forward, and I feel the world shift around me. I know that voice. I know that presence. And when I see him, my heart stops.

It’s him. Raelisar.

Xaden’s half-brother. The one I’ve never truly understood, the one who’s always lurked in the shadows. His ice-white hair falls longer than Xaden’s, but his eyes are red like Xaden’s, no, they’re all black, like Xaden’s get when he’s fully lost control. There’s a power in him that’s almost unbearable, but it doesn’t feel like a power he owns. It feels like something he’s borrowed. Something he’s stolen.

I glance at Xaden, hoping for a reaction, some sign of recognition or familiarity. But he’s stone. He gives nothing away. He doesn’t even look at me. And that coldness hits me harder than I ever expected. Less than twenty four hours ago he took my virginity and told me he loved me, now he acts like we’re stranger in front of his monster of a half-brother. 

Unless…the coldness is an attempt to protect me. 

Raelisar steps into the room, his movements silent, like a predator. His eyes sweep the room, lingering on each of us, on Rhodes sharpening his blade in the corner, before finally landing on Keiran.

Keiran’s expression hardens. “What the hell do you want, Raelisar?”

Raelisar’s smile is thin, predatory. “I want what’s mine,” he says. “And I know what you want, too.”

My pulse races. I can feel the tension in the room spike as everyone braces for what comes next.

Raelisar eyes Xaden. “You’ll give it to me, won’t you? Both of you.”

Keiran takes a step forward, his body tensed, ready for a fight. “What do you want in exchange for my pearl?” 

Raelisar’s eyes darken, his lips curling into a wicked smile. “Your pearl?” He flicks the object in his hand, then smiles back at us. It reminds me of a snake. “What makes you think this is yours to claim?” 

Silently, cautiously, I retreat towards the member of the group furthest from Raelisar. Rhodes doesn’t say a thing as I settle in the back with him. Nor does he flinch when my hand instinctively reaches out and touches his arm, barely grazing it as he sharpens his steel. 

Kallias speaks for all of us. The hatred in his voice is clear. “The King asked what you wanted in exchange for it, Raelisar.” 

“Fine, we’ll get straight to business,” Raelisar says, making the pearl disappear behind his long fingernails once again. “I am in possession of one of the pearls, the other is harbored by the King of Fifth Isle you all so miserably failed to kill. Not very good at seeing disillisions, are you now?” 

Rhodes, from beneath my hand, growls. 

I’ve never heard such a sound. 

“Get to the point, pretty boy,” he snarls. 

Raelisar laughs again. “Fine. I will hand over this pearl under three conditions, first, Keiran must absorb his White Pearl.” 

Keiran looks masterfully bored. “Done, next?”

“And second, you and Xaden will within the next year, agree to travel to me to the first Isle and slay the new dark creature being born from the land.” 

Rhodes, finally, stops sharpening his blade. 

“A new creature? Being born from the First Isle?” Keiran asks. “Are you sure?”

Raelisar shrugs. “If there isn’t one, we’ll just consider it a fun trip back to Xaden’s homeland.” 

Right, Xaden’s homeland. Where he was born. The original isle. 

“And third, my final condition is that before I hand over Keiran’s white pearl, the four of us will hunt down the King of Fifth Isle, and my half-brother here will absorb the Black Pearl.” 

Xaden stiffens, but doesn’t speak. I can see his eyes dart toward me, and I can feel the weight of the decision on his shoulders. It’s too much. But I’m not sure what he’ll do. I don’t know if he can even handle the darkness that the Pearl would bring.

Kallias steps forward then, his voice full of anger. “What the hell is your problem, Raelisar?” he demands, his fists clenched. “Xaden can hardly control himself as it is. You want him to absorb that? You’re a horrible brother.”

Raelisar turns to face Kallias, his lips curling into a mockery of a smile. “Isn’t it obvious?” he says, his voice cold. “He’s the only one who can handle it. It’s either him or someone else. Someone less capable. Do you want to know what’s being born in the Isle where he came from? Something darker than I’ve ever seen. And I’m not going to let it destroy everything.”

Keiran’s face hardens. “We’ll do it,” he says, his voice calm but resolute. “If it means saving everything, we’ll do it.”

I’m not sure I understand, but I don’t have time to ask. Raelisar’s eyes flicker to me, and I know what’s coming.

“No,” I say, my voice sharp. “Absolutely not.” I step forward, my voice trembling with the weight of my words. “He can’t absorb it. Not after everything he’s already gone through. He can barely control himself as it is. I won’t let it happen.”

“I agree with Remi,” Kallias steps beside me, his gaze unwavering. “I’ll do it,” he says, his voice firm. “I’ll absorb the Black Pearl.”

I look at him, horrified. “What?”

“I love you, Remi,” he says quietly, his eyes softening as he looks at me. Then they harden like stone at the two other brothers in the room. “I’ll do it for you, not him.”

Rhodes, who’s been silent the entire time, steps forward now. He glances at me, his eyes hard. “No,” he says firmly. “Absolutely fucking not, Kallias, I won’t let that happen.”

Suddenly, chaos erupts. Xaden and Keiran move in unison, attacking Raelisar with a force I can barely comprehend. The room goes wild with the violence of it, but it’s four against one. Raelisar is outnumbered.

I watch in horror as the Pearl is knocked from Raelisar’s hands, rolling across the floor like a marble. I reach for it instinctively, my breath quickening, but as I make my way toward it, the door slams shut behind me with a crash of dark thorns, trapping me inside.

The Pearl rolls into the hallway, and I don’t hesitate. I chase after it, my feet pounding against the floor.

Finally, I reach down, grabbing the Pearl just as it rolls into a corner. I hold it in my hand, but something feels off. I look at it closely, using my magic to sense its power.

And then, my heart sinks.

Raelisar lied about which pearl he was in possession of. 

This is the Black Pearl.

I look at it, horrified. I thought this whole time... I thought Xaden had the White Pearl. But it’s the Black one, the dark, corrupted one.

Before I can process what that means, the door swings open, and Vienna steps in, her eyes frantic. She feigns concern.

“What are you doing?” she asks, her voice too sweet. Too fake.

I can’t believe this. I know something’s wrong. I’m not sure what’s happening, but I know Vienna’s not here to help me.

I slip the Black Pearl into my pocket, hiding it from her view.

“I’ve been wandering around,” I say quickly, my voice steady despite the chaos in my chest. “Just checking on things. Keiran said to stay here and wait for him.”

Vienna gives me a look, but something in her eyes is off. I see through her act. She’s lying. But I don’t have much of a choice right now. She has a weapon.

“Come with me,” she says, her voice turning honey-sweet. “It’s safer that way.”

I want to refuse, I want to run, but I can’t. I’m trapped.

“I’ll go with you,” I say, my voice low.

She smiles, but it doesn’t reach her eyes.

And I know, in that moment, that this is the beginning of the end.