Tale of the Heart Queen

In the present day, Rion’s army arrives at Alluvion, having tracked Lor to the Crystal Palace. King Cyan immediately blames Lor for endangering his kingdom and, ignoring her pleas, prepares to hand her over. He seizes the ark of Alluvion from her. Lor tries to explain that Rion is abusive and planning a larger conquest, but Cyan’s advisor, Linden, urges him not to trust her.

From the plaza below, Rion demands that Cyan surrender Lor. Believing he has no other choice to protect his people, Cyan begins to drag her away. In a desperate act, Lor unleashes a massive blast of crimson magic, destroying the balcony they stand on and causing everyone to plummet to the ground below.

Lor survives the fall and feels a surge of guilt for the destruction she has caused and the innocent people she may have harmed. Amid the dust and wreckage, she sees that Cyan is unconscious but still alive. She quickly finds the guard who was holding the ark, cuts it from his tunic, and secures it in a makeshift sling. She plans to deliver the ark, rescue Nadir, and then head south to Aphelion to find her siblings. As she sees the ruined facade of the palace, she feels like a destructive force, just like her grandmother. Spotting Rion’s soldiers searching the rubble, she flees across an open beach toward the Sinen River.

In the Evanescence, Zerra tells Nadir that his mate, Lor, killed him in a fit of rage after believing he had betrayed her. Nadir’s memories are hazy, but he doesn’t believe Zerra’s account, certain that if Lor were free, she would have sought her siblings; she wouldn’t have gone after his father. Zerra shows him three arks she has collected and announces that he is now her fiancé. Repulsed, Nadir rejects her advances. When he tries to break out by hurling a chair at a window, it ricochets and knocks him down. Zerra cryptically tells him that destroying her palace requires a “sacrifice.” She reveals that the mate bond is a blessing she bestows—as the citizens of Ouranos have always believed—but “the dominion of fate” (160). She admits she fabricated her role in bestowing mate bonds to gain the people’s worship. She threatens Nadir that he will eventually forget Lor and become one of her mindless servants before having him dragged back to his room.

Lor runs across a vast, sun-scorched beach, growing exhausted and dehydrated. She soon spots two of Rion’s soldiers in pursuit. Deciding against using her magic, which would act as a beacon, she pushes onward and reaches the Sinen River. She swims across the channel as one guard follows her and the other runs back for reinforcements. The pursuing soldier is a poor swimmer, allowing Lor to gain a significant lead and disappear into the forest on the opposite bank. After drinking from a stream and attempting to mask her trail, she calls out for Zerra to take the ark and return Nadir, but she receives no answer. Suddenly, the northern lights flare across the daytime sky, signaling that Rion is close and actively using his magic to hunt her.

In the Aurora, 286 years ago, the court gathers for Nadir’s blessing ceremony three weeks after his birth. Rion feels no affection for his son and remains resentful that his father, King Garnet, is still alive. During the ceremony, Rion hears a disembodied voice from the Artefact known as the Torch, which identifies itself as King Herric. Herric reveals he guided Rion to his journals via dreams and instructs him to use the virulence in his ring to control the Torch’s magic. Rion successfully channels his power into the Artefact, wresting control of it. He then directs a ribbon of the Torch’s magic at the infant Nadir, causing the baby to scream in agony. The act terrifies Meora, who instinctively shields their son. Rion realizes he has discovered a way to manipulate the Artefacts and finally seize the crown.

In the present, Aphelion is in chaos, with riots breaking out as Gabriel’s warder brothers hunt for the escaped Atlas. The true king, Tyr, remains in a catatonic state, unable to rule. The heads of the districts argue over who should lead, especially since the Mirror Artefact remained silent before Tyr. Gabriel knows the Mirror chose someone else long ago. Hylene expertly diffuses a tense council meeting by inviting the bickering leaders for drinks and entertainment. She has formed a quiet bond with Tyr and gently leads him to his chambers to rest. Alone with Hylene, Gabriel feels a reluctant but undeniable attraction to her.

Still imprisoned in the Evanescence, Nadir has learned from Zerra that she sent Lor to retrieve the ark from Alluvion. During another tense dinner, Zerra shows him a vision in her hand mirror: Lor is running for her life through a forest, bloodied and terrified, as Rion hunts her down. Lor is calling for Zerra’s help. Nadir begs Zerra to intervene, but she only laughs, enjoying the spectacle. Enraged, Nadir attacks the goddess, but she effortlessly overpowers him. As her servants drag him away, Zerra ominously calls him “Herric,” and tells him he can leave his room when he learns to behave.

Running through the forest, Lor realizes she cannot outrun Rion and his soldiers. With Zerra ignoring her pleas, she devises a desperate plan: She will let herself be captured, forcing Zerra to intervene to prevent Rion from getting the ark. She purposefully makes a sound to give away her position, and the soldiers quickly surround and capture her. Rion appears, using his dark magic to suppress hers. He taunts her, admitting he underestimated her power before. As a guard approaches with a new, specially fortified magic-dampening collar, Lor dissolves into white smoke, summoned away at the last possible second.

Lor materializes in the Evanescence. After a tense exchange, she gives Zerra the ark of Alluvion and demands Nadir’s return. Zerra breaks her promise, revealing that Lor must now retrieve the ark from Aphelion. During the argument, Zerra calls Nadir “Herric,” confirming Lor’s suspicion that the goddess intends to keep Nadir as a replacement for her lost lover. Enraged, Lor unleashes her magic, overpowering Zerra’s attempt to suppress it and shattering the room. She is whisked away in a cloud of smoke and reappears in a forest on Ouranos. Amidst the debris from Zerra’s destroyed room, she discovers four arks: The Alluvion ark she herself had just delivered, plus three Zerra had previously collected—those of The Woodlands, Celestria, and Tor. Realizing she is now being hunted by both Rion and Zerra, she resolves to find her siblings in Aphelion.

Nadir has been destroying his prison room in a desperate fury for days. Suddenly, he sees a flash of red lightning in the sky outside his window and recognizes it as Lor’s magic. Recalling Zerra’s comment about sacrifice, he begins punching the window and smearing his own blood across it. The surface cracks. He continues to beat against the glass with his body until it shatters. Zerra’s servants, Tia and Diana, rush in to stop him, but he leaps through the opening. His magic and wings fail, and he plummets from the sky, his fall cushioned by a large bush. He finds himself in an eerily perfect, artificial-looking garden.

In the garden, Nadir meets Greye, a former queen of Tor, who mistakes him for his father, Rion. She leads him through a gathering of Ouranos’s past rulers to his ancestors. There, he is recognized by his grandfather, King Garnet. Garnet pulls Nadir aside, and Nadir recounts everything that has happened. Garnet expresses deep regret for Rion’s dark nature and says he believes Rion forced his descension by manipulating the Torch, though he admits he does not fully understand what occurred. He explains that Rion used a strange dark magic with the help of a mysterious voice inside the Artefact. After Greye confirms Lor has not appeared in the garden, Garnet shows Nadir a cave that serves as an exit back to Ouranos. After a heartfelt goodbye, Nadir steps through.

Decades have passed since Rion became king. He visits a secret underground cavern where he experiments with virulence. His research into Herric’s journals has revealed that virulence can reshape matter according to the user’s thoughts. To test this, Rion uses his magic on a female sprite named Lily. He grotesquely transforms her into a monstrous, demon-like creature, which he names an “ozziller.” Pleased with the horrifying result, he exits the cavern, sealing it behind him with a wall of magic and leaving the ozziller with the terrified low fae workers. The sounds of screams and ripping flesh follow him to the surface.

Exhausted and alone in a forest, Lor hears Nadir’s voice in her mind. They call out to each other and run through the rain until they finally reunite in an emotional embrace. After they reaffirm their love and trust, they are overcome with passion and have sex against a tree during a thunderstorm. As they do, Nadir’s magic instinctively helps Lor to soothe and control her own chaotic magic, allowing their powers to meld together beautifully instead of destructively.

Lor and Nadir find shelter at an inn in a small village. Lacking money, Nadir uses a display of his royal magic to convince the innkeeper to give them a room, food, and clothes. They bathe together, rediscovering each other after their traumatic separation. They agree their next destination must be Aphelion to find their siblings, though Nadir worries his father will anticipate this and search for Lor there. They make love again, reaffirming their bond and promising to never be separated again, before falling asleep wrapped in each other’s arms.