She was moved beyond words as she embraced him. His wing-locks wept. She was damp beneath her back as well.
“The gates of rapture,” she said.
“What?”
“It was something I read in one of Beatrice’s collections, something like, ‘Approach the gates of rapture with wonder, Lay down the past, Then fall.’” She chuckled. “I fell hard.”
“Me, too.”
Only the deepest, most unexpected changes
Can conquer great evil.
—Collected Proverbs, Beatrice of Fourth
Chapter 20
The following morning, Endelle stared at James. She sat on her purple couch, her heart now pounding in her chest. “We’re that close?”
“Yes,” he said. “Very nearly home on this one.”
“You really believe that, don’t you? That the war against Greaves could be over soon?”
“Yes.”
She couldn’t believe it.
Thorne had come to her suite a few hours ago to report that obsidian flame had successfully stopped the torching of the colonies. His account had been extraordinary. Adding to the fact that shortly afterward the triad had healed Casimir after Julianna blasted open his stomach, and Endelle couldn’t believe her f**king ears.
Grace’s return had done this, had created some kind of magical effect on Second Earth. She didn’t know how else to think of such a wonderful string of wins for her side.
And now this. James wanted to get Leto ascended within the next couple of hours, because soon afterward Alison would open the portal to Third as had been prophesied from the beginning of her ascension.
“But we have to act quickly,” James said. “Greaves is getting very discouraged by all his setbacks, and he’s spoiling for war. Wake your people up, then let’s get both Alison and Leto over to White Lake. It’s time to move things along.”
She rose to her feet and called out, “Carla?”
A slight pause, then the security audio system came on. “Yes, Madame Endelle?”
“I need all the WhatBees here to my palace, ceremonial dress, their brehs included. Make sure that Alison wears flight gear and obsidian flame as well. Got it?”
“Yes, Madame Endelle.”
* * *
Leto slung his purple cape over his shoulder. Warrior formality demanded that he wear a traditional brass breastplate over a short black leather tunic. On the breastplate was the emblem of the Warriors of the Blood—a silver sword crowned with a green laurel wreath. He had always thought the emblem simple and quite beautiful, even powerful.
He sat down in the chair near his twig bed and buckled on a sleeker, more formal version of battle sandals.
“You show a lot of thigh in that tunic,” Grace said, but she was smiling.
He worked on the last buckle, looking up at her as he gave a final tug. She stood near the entrance to the bathroom, brushing a long curl around her finger, then letting it fall.
“You like?” he asked.
“Can’t you tell?”
“Oh, I can tell. Your scent has this room clouded, and I’m not blocking any of your physical sensations.” He could feel her ni**les pushing against her bra. He took a couple of deep breaths because he was so close to throwing her back on the bed and taking care of business … again. But with five minutes left before they were both expected at the palace, he’d run out of time. “You look beautiful, by the way.”
“Thank you.” She glanced down at her flight suit. “But I feel underdressed for the occasion.”
“Carla was adamant,” he said, rising to his feet and turning toward her. “Endelle wanted Alison and obsidian flame ready to mount wings if necessary.”
“I know, but still. This is your ascension ceremony.”
“Sort of an ascension. I wouldn’t worry about it.” He put his hands on her arms. “And in case you haven’t noticed, I’m not complaining about the flight suit at all. It fits your curves perfectly.” He drew her close, then ran his hands from her waist over the curve of her bottom.
She laughed. “Now your scent is filling the room.”
He released her because he was feeling way too much. “Are you ready to go?”
She folded her brush away and nodded.
He put his hands on her arms once more and thought the thought.
* * *
Grace arrived at the landing platform in the palace and was immediately overwhelmed by the sight of all the warriors dressed in the same garb as Leto. They were gathered in small knots, just talking, but they were a massive physical presence given their height and general physique.
She had known these men for a long time, some of them her entire life—like Marcus and of course Leto. Others had come later: Kerrick, Luken, Santiago, Medichi, and Zacharius. Jean-Pierre was the youngest, having ascended out of France during the revolution years.
And Thorne was one of the men as well.
They looked magnificent, all powerful, muscular warriors, the shortest six-five.
James appeared in the doorway and called out, “Ah, the man of the hour. Leto.”
So, this was to be an ascension ceremony attended by a Sixth ascender. That was a surprise. His appearance brought a knot to Grace’s stomach. Something was going on, something big.
He waved everyone forward. “The ladies are in the central rotunda, and we’ll have the ceremony in there. If you’ll come with me.”
James led the way. Casimir, as Leto’s Guardian of Ascension, was already present and stood near Endelle. The warriors who were bonded joined their brehs. Luken, Zach, and Santiago stuck together, the last bastion of bachelorhood in their small group.
Moving to stand near the terrace, James waved Grace and Leto forward. She stood off to Leto’s right, a foot back as was the usual position for those supporting the ascendate.
James took his place in front of the terrace.
In a typical ascension ceremony, the officiate would offer thoughts on service to the dimension, usually reading from a book. In this case, James began very differently as he addressed Leto outright.
“Your ascension, Leto, as I’m sure you’ve noticed, is very different from the usual process since you’ve not been called as an ascender. You’d normally be called by the appearance of dreams detailing the new world and longings for a different life. The only aspect that resembles a typical ascension is that you’ve developed the ability to morph like a Third Earth warrior. Would you agree that all of this is true?”
“Yes, absolutely.”
James drew a deep breath. “That’s because you’re not officially ascending to Third Earth.”