Soleis lifted his head from the bedroll when Lola opened the flap to the tent. He sat up with a smile at the sight of her. The moon was behind her back, and her face was in shadows, but he could picture every detail. Her dimple when she grinned. Her flashing green eyes.

“How tired are you?” he asked.

“That depends,” she giggled. “What do you have in mind to keep me awake?”

“Come with me. I want to show you something.” He threw off the covers and ushered her outside.

The lovers took a moonlit stroll to the distant end of the beach away from the modest tent city. The sky was a pincushion of lights. There were so many stars, it was dizzying to look up. The ocean reflected the moon, and high tide kissed the shore. Fluorescent algae turned the waters a glow-in-the-dark shade of green. It was beyond enchanting.

Lola laughed as she tumbled to the sand and sat with legs akimbo. She stared out at the serene seascape, and he stared at her. A buzzing worry gnawed at him. He hadn’t given up his goal to separate himself to keep her safe, but if her stubbornness gave them stolen moments like this together, he wanted to make the most of it.

“Do you love it?” he asked.

Lola batted her eyelashes at him with a playful smile. “I love you.”

“I know.” Soleis grinned and reclined on his arms.

“That’s not usually how people respond to that!” she laughed.

“Oh, but you know, too.”

“Sometimes a girl needs to hear it.”

She laid her head on his chest. She curled into him, intertwining their legs. He relished the feel of her. He wished they could extend the night forever. Saying goodbye would shatter his soul.

Sighing, he closed his eyes and tried not to think of it. They had known each other for such a short period of time, but the possibilities of being life-mates circled and trammeled through his thoughts. Ironic, that he would find the one woman meant to be his, only to lose her.

“I love you, Lola Cambridge…” he said after a while. “But, have you ever thought what happens after this? We’re not the same, you know. We won’t grow old together. We can’t live in the same world without giving up something of ourselves.”

“Gaining some things, too.” She smoothed a hand over his chest, lingering over his beating heart. Her hair tickled his nose. Her scent tugged lazy spirals of desire in his core. He silenced his lust and simply held her.

“Is it fair to say, ‘I love you,’ when it means so little, in the grand scheme of things?” he whispered with regret.

“It depends on the scheme. I’ve never really thought of love as something happening at the opportune moment. My parents taught me love is a wrecking ball. I guess we’ve gotten better than I expected. What’s the best we can hope for?” she asked lightly.

He shrugged. “We win this war. We save the world. You go home to find someone whose love is more than empty words. Preferably someone uninteresting and terrible in bed.”

“And, what about you?” she snickered.

“There’s no one else for me, Lola. If all goes well, I will return to the life I knew before I met you. I’ll travel the realms, helping people wherever I can be of service. It was exciting work. It was fulfilling.”

“It’ll never be the same after this, just like my life won’t be the same.” She cracked another smile. “Uninteresting and terrible in bed would’ve been perfectly okay if I hadn’t met you. You’re the escape I couldn’t find, Soleis, Son of Arken. I don’t have wings without you.”

With a tiny moan of satisfaction, she snuggled in his arms. He wanted to let her words lull him the way they seemed to lull her. However, the sound of the waves and the heat of the night conspired to remind him they were in a world where her lovely complacency was a weakness. Soleis stroked her hair out of her face to make eye contact.

“We both know there’s no future in which we end up together,” he murmured.

“We have tonight. I don’t want to talk about tomorrow.”

“But, we have to talk about it,” he urged. “Your life is in danger every second you remain here. There’s no way I can protect you from what’s ahead unless we’re apart.”

Lola sighed in exasperation. “Sweetheart, it’s so beautiful out. Let’s not fight.”

“Wha—? No, there’s nothing to fight about,” he said with a tense laugh. “Listen, I just think you should give me the ring and return to the—”

“Goddamn it, Soleis!” She pushed away from him. “Have a little faith in me! We have Thol and the rebels. We have Flev in the Fire Realm, preparing the dragons. Our only chance of defeating Belzaan is sticking together. Everyone else is accepting the risks. Why can’t you let me?”

“Because you don’t know the risks! There’s no way to defeat Belzaan without sacrifice!” he shouted.

Lola trembled at his outburst. Her eyes darted toward the tent city, and Soleis looked away, chagrined. Suddenly, he couldn’t see the beauty of the night. He rose from their bed of sand and dusted himself off, though she remained unmoved.

“I’m sorry; I didn’t mean to yell. I just wanted to show you the stars and spend a romantic moment alone with you on the beach, but I guess...I guess I screwed that up royally. So, anyway…Did you make a wish, at least?” He tried to smile as he extended a hand to help her to her feet.

“Tell me. What is there to sacrifice?” Lola pressed.

Shaking his head, he threw up his hands and let them fall. “Us, Lola,” he lied. “To defeat Belzaan, we have to make a lover’s sacrifice and give up our relationship. If you won’t leave, then please…please try to understand when I have to.”

* * *

Soleis didn’t intend to return to the Realm of Dreams when he fell asleep that night. It was something beyond his control, as most travels were while sleeping. He opened his eyes and grimaced at the sight of a familiar mountainside. The sky was cloudy and grey to match his mood. He looked around for the elemental, knowing she was waiting for him.

“I didn’t want to come, you know. You can’t say people only show up here when they need you because I don’t need you.” He kicked at the ground.

Soleis wanted to be back in the lumpy bedroll with his arms around Lola, with her scent filling his nostrils and her skin cooling his. He wanted to wipe the tears she had cried to sleep. She had clung to him as if a centimeter of distance was too much. Now, he was realms away.

Grumbling to himself, he sat down and ripped a wildflower from the dirt. He slowly tore away the petals, one by one, until he heard her footsteps whispering through the grass like wind. “Come out, Sylph,” he called out.

“More and more like your father,” chortled a disembodied voice.

Soleis glanced behind him, but no one was there. To his surprise, a feathery piece of grey cloud floated apart from the rest and descended to him. Foggy water molecules coalesced into old woman shape. She was soft and round with stooped shoulders and wrinkles, but her grey eyes were younger than his. She chuckled at his disorientation; however, he wasn’t receptive to her merriment.

“Why am I here?” he muttered, scowling.

“You tell me.”

“Enough with the circular logic. I get it. I’m supposed to be here because I need you. But, I can’t think of a single thing I want from you. So, if you have a burning desire to give me some advice, then spit it out. I have more pressing things to attend to in the real world.”

Ainley smoothed her face at his rudeness. Soleis clamped his lips shut. It was just that he couldn’t tell if she was friend or foe, and he tired of the mystery. The old woman sat next to him with a grunt and sigh, as if her old bones ached. He didn’t believe the act for one second.

“You want to know more about the lover’s sacrifice. I won’t take up too much of your time,” she said. Belying the statement, she wasted minutes finger-combing her hair and gathering the locks in a braid.

Soleis covered his mouth, bemused. “Whenever you’re ready,” he said.

Ainley patiently finished grooming herself before waving a stiff-knuckled hand to change the scene. “I can show you better than I can tell you,” she replied as they left the mountain. With hardly a ripple, they were in his father’s keep.

Soleis wanted to hold onto his ire, but nostalgia made him pleased to see the familiar walls. The place made him miss his mother and father. He turned and gazed down the corridor outside the hall of treasure. Someone brushed past, heading the opposite direction. It was Sengenis disappearing into the master suite. Soleis stared after him curiously.

“Go ahead. Have a look,” Ainley whispered.

He followed the youthful ghost of his great-grandfather through the door and came upon the man pacing the balcony outside the window. The tropic night wind stirred candles in the room. There was the unmistakable ambiance of romance in air. As Soleis ambled to the open window, he realized Sengenis wasn’t alone. There was a woman with him.

“Some things I don’t need to see, Ainely,” he said wryly.

The Sylph rolled her eyes. “Keep watching. I assure you, this isn’t the good part.”

“What am I watching for?”

“How your kin rose to power. This is the Woman of Light. Sengenis met her long ago in a dream. He thought she could not exist, but she proved him wrong. She became real for him and taught him everything she knew.”

“Why?” Soleis asked.

Ainley shushed him and pointed out the window. They watched Sengenis sweep the woman’s fingers to his lips. A shock of raven black hair fell over his smooth forehead as he did. He lacked the beard he had in middle-age, but he was still medium height and well-built. A handsome rogue who looked the perfect match for the heavenly beauty standing with him.

“I thought you’d never come,” the king pouted.

Girlish laughter filled the night. “I told myself to stay away this time, and, yet, here I am. It’s been over a hundred years, Sengenis. How long will we keep this up? I fear we’ll pay a terrible price for ignoring the laws of nature.” Sengenis nuzzled her neck, and she giggled, evading him.

“Pay? Mm, I owe you my life, enchantress. How much for a kiss?”

“I beg your pardon?” she feigned offense.

“Name any amount. I have riches, you know.”

“Aye, but not enough!” She howled in amusement and ran away.

Their game of chase took them to the edge of the balcony and back. The joyous girl spun beyond his reach, but there was nowhere left to run. With a gleeful squeal of surrender, she let him embrace her. Their lips met in a passionate display of affection. Sengenis finally let her go, eyes ablaze and the playfulness gone. There was only lust.

“But, I didn’t save your life,” his lover sobered. She tossed her lustrous hair as she averted her gaze, toying with the collar of her silver gown. “I merely did my duty by telling you which path would keep you safe. Now, how will you listen to me now when everything is a game with you? I’ve let things get too familiar.”

Sengenis chuckled dismissively while caressing her slender, bare shoulders. “Perhaps we remember it differently, but I’ll never forget why I fell in you. It was the first time you appeared to me in a dream.”

“You’re impossible,” she smiled.

Soleis quietly asked his guide, “Who is she?”

The woman’s porcelain skin radiated a soft white glow. He was mesmerized by her, and he could understand why his great-grandfather had been so enamored. Long white hair floated around her face, lifted by a breeze Soleis couldn’t feel. With every graceful move, her gossamer edges grew hazy. She was oddly…familiar. Soleis shot a look at the Sylph standing beside him and gasped.

It was her! In awe, he jerked his attention back to the couple on the balcony. The ancient elemental whispered along with the younger version of herself. “There isn’t enough gold in all the worlds to pay the price for our forbidden love,” she said to the king.

“And, who forbids it?” Sengenis asked softly. “Do you fear the heavens will come down, the earth will shatter, just because we’ve kissed? No one can tell you not to love me. It’s only your heart that rebels against the notion of belonging to someone the way you belong to me.”

“You’re an adorable fool,” the otherworldly Sylph laughed.

Soleis looked elsewhere as their petting session heated up. Color suffused his cheeks. Sengenis and young Ainley sounded very much in love and unconcerned with who knew it. But, why was she showing him this now?

“Why do you think I’m bound to your family?” the woman asked his great-grandfather. “Fate created me and fate can take me away. Without my oracle gifts, your lineage will be blind to the perils ahead. Are you willing to sacrifice that for more nights of bliss?”

“We’ve passed the point of bliss. We’re in love. You worry our closeness will blunt the impact of your advice. However, what if we were both able to bend the future? Wouldn’t you be less afraid to surrender to me if you knew I could take care of myself?”

“I don’t bend anything. I only see. And, what I see coming of this union is nothing good. We must restore the natural order. The way you need me calls me to you every single night, and there are other places I should be, people I should help.”

Sengenis heedlessly ushered her into the bed chamber. Ainley’s half-hearted protests faded as he stretched her lithe body in bed. “I’m serious,” he pressed in a sensual murmur. “What if we both had powers? What if you could teach me to see ahead and deflect whatever fate has in store? The way you protect me, I could protect you.”

“I’m an elemental, Sengenis. I work no spells.”

“You’re intimately familiar with all the power words of all the realms. Knowing no other magic, that’s enough. But, you do know more. Allow yourself to feel more comfortable with our love. Teach me. I’ll never choose another. You and I can find a world to live out our lives together.”

“But, we aren’t the same.”

“Do you love me any less for it?” Sengenis asked.

Soleis stepped away as the conversation continued in the room behind him. He didn’t have to hear more. He understood. It was like what he told Lola on the beach. Her desire to be with him made her negligent of the consequences. To an extent, the same applied to him. However, ignoring reality hadn’t worked out for Ainley and Sengenis, and it wouldn’t work out for Lola and him.

“I should’ve left her when I had the chance,” Soleis whispered.

Ainley put a hand on his shoulder. “How could you, when she wouldn’t let you go?” she asked. Her voice sounded far younger. When he glanced back, he wasn’t surprised to see she wasn’t the old woman anymore. Soleis emitted a dry laugh.

“Is this the real you?”

She smiled shyly. “I take whatever shape others find most comfortable. You’ve seen me now.”

“What do I do, Sylph?” he sighed. “From what I can gather, you made Sengenis into the nearly indestructible force he is today. How did you exile him? How did you weaken him?”

“I removed his heart, his mind and his essence. He only retained one part. The Essence of the Dragon is what he uses to absorb the lives of those poor souls in the Sea Realm. He keeps it in a wading pool in the dungeon beneath his castle complex. The Heart of the Dragon, I gave to Imyr, who in turn gave it to your father.”

“Who gave it to me, and I gave it back to Sengenis,” Soleis said glumly.

“Yes. He now has the Heart and the Essence, but I still have the Mind. With both the Essence and the whole Heart of the Dragon, he’ll be strong enough to invade the Fire Realm.”

“And, the lover’s sacrifice? Was it when you stopped loving him?”

“Of course, not,” she laughed. It was a sad laugh. “I never stopped loving him, Soleis. It hurts to see what Sengenis has become, but I know that my sacrifice wasn’t in vain. You see, the same way he gave up his life, I gave up mine. Unlike him, I can never take physical shape again.”

“So, she really must die.” The words stole his breath.

“I should’ve killed him when I had the chance. I know. Will you make the same mistake I made?”

“Yes,” he said without hesitation. Ainley comfortingly rubbed his back.

“You won’t. It’s not in you. When the time comes, you’ll do what you have to do, Soleis. I wish I could tell you it’ll be painless or easy, but it won’t be. It’ll just be the right thing to do.”

* * *

Soleis refused to accept it.

Something the elemental had said in the dream stuck with him when he opened his eyes. The Mad King needed both the Essence and the Heart. Both.

He eased from the covers, careful not to wake Lola. For precious seconds, he gazed upon her face. She looked at peace. What if he succeeded with the wild plan taking shape in his thoughts? What if he could keep her alive? They would find a world where they could live out their lives together. Suddenly, he saw a way made for them to have a future, and it energized him.

Soleis left the tent and navigated the sprawling refugee camp. Nothing stirred, although there was a lamp lit in Thol’s tent. He ran the other direction. All he had to do was get to the castle complex. He had a vague idea of how to reach the dungeon where the wading pool filled with the Essence of the Dragon was unguarded. He remembered it from his brief foray in that underworld—a shallow, inground reservoir filled with a viscous black liquid.

By any means necessary, Soleis would destroy it. Maybe the act wouldn’t defeat Sengenis, but it would keep the Mad King in the same half-life he currently experienced. It would buy them time to find a way to subdue him for good.

Soleis felt buoyed by the prospect. The rebels could defeat the president’s armies before they ever reached the dragons. A political coup would put a new leader in power. Certainly, the people of this realm would be grateful for the vaccine Lola had told him about.

It might take decades—centuries—but order would be restored. Because the elemental had given away a secret that Soleis was sure she hadn’t intended to give away. “The Essence and the Heart,” he whispered to himself.

He stealthily cleared the forest, sprinting the mile to the other side of the island where he could transform without getting caught. He considered leaving a message to keep Lola from worrying, but she would only use the ring to get to him. Better to put distance between them before she awakened. With any luck, she would asleep long enough for him to get there and back.

A flash of light and a shockwave rustled through the trees. Soleis took flight. This was something he had to do alone.