Regius Read online

  Regius

  Part two in the Zinc Chronicles

  By Nas Peters

  For J.J.

  Copyright Nastasia Peters

  Edited by Amber Godfrey

  Cover by naspeters.com

  Smashwords Edition

  Zincuniverse.com

  The characters herein belong to the author. Any resemblance to real or fictional people is strictly part of your imagination.

  This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  * * * * Notes the end of a scene

  ~~~~~~~~ Notes the start of a flashback

  Altors = Guardian

  Regius = Royal

  Pallium = Veiled one

  Chapter 1

  Galax Kaminski

  The far off sound of footsteps resonating through the long, brick filled alley had Galax's heart racing, but even if this meant the Altor soldiers were closing in on him, he had his fear under control. Cypress had his men working twice as hard, which Galax couldn't fault him. Were he in the District Leader's position, he too would be extra cautious over his territory after a Regius attack.

  Galax allowed an annoyed growl to escape his throat when the alley turned out to be a cul-de-sac. There were so many of those in Cobalt City, it shouldn't have surprised him that he'd ended up trapped in one. Either he climbed upwards and risked being spotted by other soldiers, or he broke into the house in front of him. Gritting his teeth, he grabbed the doorknob and could not silence the nagging thought of having had to use his strength more often than usual as he crushed the lock with only his hand. Flux would not be pleased with how he was behaving at the moment.

  Stepping into the small house, Galax gently closed the door behind him all the while scanning the room he found himself in. He noticed a small kitchen in the right corner, a fireplace that served as stove to the left and beside it was a round table where the owners of the house most likely ate their dinner. It had a pile of laundry on it and he noticed that the fire was toned down, nearly dying out.

  He moved silently after seeing the small bed on the opposite side of the room with the child sleeping in it. Civilians. He could only count that as a good thing.

  Crouching before the fireplace, he grabbed one of the coals that had rolled out of the fireplace and rubbed it between his hands until they were completely black. His blood didn't allow him to dye his hair successfully, but he could dirty it up and disguise it for at least a little while. Running his hands through his hair, he was glad to see that they were darkening, but he didn't stop there, continuing to smear some coal dust on his face in hope that the royal mark wouldn't be as visible.

  His heart jumped into his throat when the child turned, letting out some sleepy noises and most likely having sensed his presence, but far too deep in slumber to wake. Knowing he had been in the house too long already, Galax stood and picked the neatly folded cloak, likely belonging to the child's father, off the table and wrapped it around his shoulders and neck, hiding the lower part of his face. With all these changes, hopefully the soldiers roaming the Cobalt City streets like hawks would mistake him for a Pallium or a Ranger and not feel the need to turn on their Altor vision to do a check up on the color of his heart.

  Who was he kidding; they were probably all constantly sporting the vision at the moment. Cypress would have ordered it. Again, Galax couldn't fault the man; he would have done the same thing. But at least he could hope that the attire would have them do a double take, giving him a head start.

  Before leaving through the opposite window to a new alley and hopefully not another cul-de-sac, Galax took one of the chairs from around the table and moved it towards the front door so he could shove it under the handle and have it behave as a make shift lock. You never knew in cities as large as Cobalt. After all, he had broken in.

  Silently opening, climbing and closing the small window, Galax breathed in the warm night air while looking left and right to make sure no Altor soldiers were around. So far, so good. When he started walking, he cringed at the sound of the small heels beneath his shoes echoing. The cringe was replaced with a grimace as he lifted his leg and used his Regius strength to tear them off. At the rate he was going, he would soon forget logic and use his strength on everything he could. The many years Flux spent teaching himself control and breathing methods to tone down his violent reactions would go straight out the window.

  While that thought would have halted him before, he only walked faster now, successfully pushing the idea to the back of his mind. He would give in to the nature of the Regius if it could save Solenum.

  * * * *

  Why he hadn't gone to the Rangers Tavern instantly, Galax didn't know. He should have known he would find the obnoxious pirate there. Isa was either up in the sky, tossing back beer after beer in the tavern or, through recent discoveries, harassing his girlfriend. Isa didn't have the finesse to kidnap Solenum as expertly as it had been done, and while the pirate's devoted interested in Solis made him want to rearrange Isa's face, it also told him that he wouldn't harm her.

  Galax knew it had to have been Digitalis or Rhamnus who had taken Solenum. He knew why the Regius had taken her. They must have somehow found out what she meant to him and he could see the logic in Xania's move. Take Solenum and Galax will follow. For his sanity, he didn’t want to know what they would do to her. All he could do was do exactly what Xania wanted. But he would do so through some calculated moves and with the help of a power grander than any other known in Zinc. Vervaine.

  But to get to the Coliseum in the Meadows of Serenium, he couldn't take the boat like any normal person would. Flux must have noticed his and Solenum's lack of presence in the garage and warned Cypress about it. If he stepped into Cobalt's harbor, soldiers would take him down and drag him back to Pallium territory.

  His adoptive father may believe he and Solis had run off, ignoring his order of having to stay in the garage, but Galax had made sure to keep them in the loop by writing his sister a note. 'Solenum was kidnapped. I'm going after her', is all it said. No details or else they would be after him in a matter of seconds. He could have included them in the plan to get Solis back, but they would have kept him locked away for his own safety, fearing Xania and the Regius would get to him. He was not going to sit and wait around while the others tried to find his girlfriend. Or more accurately, he would not sit and listen to them say that Solenum was most likely already dead.

  Tucking the cloak more securely around his face, Galax stepped inside the Tavern and was instantly washed over by loud music with a dark melody. The place smelled like sweat, cigarettes and alcohol and due to the lack of space and the many people in it, he felt slightly suffocated. But the atmosphere was joyous. The Rangers were laughing, singing, conversing and arguing enthusiastically, most likely letting one another in on their recent adventures up in the sky.

  When Galax stepped into the light, several Rangers stopped in their doings and allowed themselves to scan him over. He knew those were the ones that had needed the trigger and had obtained the Altor vision. But even if his heart was blue and this was normally perceived as danger, these weren't Altors any longer. The Rangers were used to interacting with the Regius, so Galax could only breathe out a sigh of relief when they simply returned to their own business.

  He spotted a couple of crew member's belonging to Apnea and Juglan. While the captain himself was not present, he saw Dell McDuffy, Apnea's techie, playing darts w
ith other pirates. Guo Jivan, Apnea's mast monkey, was playing guitar up on the small wooden stage and then finally Galax's eyes landed on Isa. Juglan's first and heir to Apnea when the Captain deemed it time. If Juglan had chosen Isa, it meant that the pirate had leadership qualities that were worthy of the captain title, which was hard to get since Juglan's standards were high. It also meant that Isa had an I.Q. high enough to man a sky-ship. Galax knew he was forced to believe it as Juglan's word was law, but he couldn't quite picture Isa being that valuable. After all, their relationship was strained. Even if they'd known each other for years, they'd never gotten along because Isa always had the obnoxious tendency to remind Galax of his origin. And if it had been salvageable before, due to Isa's driven need to mess with his girlfriend, it definitely was not anymore.

  Marching over to the bar where Isa was buying another beer for a cute fellow Ranger, Galax made sure Isa couldn't swallow the last of his drink by grabbing the cup and forcefully planting it back down on the wooden bar. To say the pirate was surprised was an understatement, more so when Galax continued to grab the guy's wrist and used his strength to make sure Isa couldn't break free and was forced to wobble off of his stool and follow him out of the tavern. Galax found it slightly amusing that nobody was surprised Isa had seemingly gotten in trouble again.

  "Hey!" The pirate tugged, but quickly realized Galax wasn't about to let go. "Wait till I tell your daddy about your lack of control." Galax rolled his eyes and tossed the guy out of the tavern, glad that the loudness of the music and overall noise of the place drowned out when the door shut behind him.

  "My behavior is none of your business." Galax growled.

  Isa wrinkled his nose, rubbing the wrist that was most likely aching. "What crawled up your ass?" He paused. "And what the fuck are you doing here? You never leave Pallium territory." Isa looked around them, the frown on his face deepening. "Where are your bodyguards?"

  The irritation, frustration, anger and worry that had settled inside of Galax ever since he'd found out Solenum had been kidnapped, momentarily broke free. Letting out a noise of rage, Galax gripped the pirate's collar and shoved him up against the wall that belonged to the tavern.

  "The sound of your voice is enough to make me want to kill, so if I were you, I'd start using it only when it is truly necessary."

  Although Galax could hear that Isa's heart beat had marginally quickened and that the pirate's blood was flowing faster due to slight fear, Isa made sure not to let his discomfort show on his face.

  "Ah, I see. You've finally figured out that taming the Regius within is impossible and since I'm the biggest pain in your backside, you went out of your way to find me so you could unleash the cruelty." The pirate grinned. "I'm touched, your highness. The lengths you've gone through to finally hurt me the way you've wanted for years is flattering."

  "Xania had Solenum kidnapped." Galax punched the wall beside Isa's head, swallowing down the pain with ease even though blood seeped out of his scratched knuckles. "I'm here because I need you to convince Juglan to ignore his truce and longtime friendship with my father and bring me to the Meadows of Serenium so I can have the Seer help me find her." Isa's eyes had widened at the news of Solenum's situation and the fear that had been pooling inside of the pirate's body before had been replaced with deep concern for Solis.

  The Ranger gulped. "I…yeah." He nodded his head frantically. "Of course. I'll do everything in my power." Galax breathed a sigh of relief at Isa's promise, suddenly a tad grateful for the pirate's deep interest in his girlfriend. Without it, Isa might not have helped. "Are you sure there is still time?" Isa edged.

  Galax pulled away from the wall, beginning to pace and trying to remember the breathing techniques Flux had taught him when he was but a child to tone down the rage that came with the blue blood.

  "All I know is that I am not going to sit and wait. Dead or alive, I will find her and I will bring her back to me." Galax directed his fear filled gaze to Isa. "If she is dead, I need to know."

  The pirate's eyebrows shot away into his hairline. "She is your light?" Isa was more resourceful than Galax had believed him to be.

  Galax halted in his pacing, giving the pirate a careful nod. "She is. And if she is dead, it means that I will follow." He paused. "Are you willing to carry some of the responsibility that may or may not be the death of the Regius heir? If it comes to that, you will be tried for treason not only by the Regius, but also the Palliums and the Altors."

  "Dead or alive," Isa placed a hand on Galax's shoulder, squeezing it. "I will help you find her."

  * * * *

  Chapter 2

  Calycanthus Esquivel

  "Keep talking to him, Dandi."

  Ivy? Opening my eyes, I hissed and quickly closed them again when all I could take in was a blinding light. I was about to panic, but then I felt soft hands pushing the hair out of my face and gently stroking my cheek.

  "Dandelion." I breathed in relief.

  "That's right, sweetheart. I'm right here. Everything is okay." Contrary to her words, her voice was concerned and triggered a shot of fear to rush through me. "No!" She pushed me back onto what I assumed was a bed when I tried to sit up. I opened my eyes again, this time prepared for the light. My vision was slightly blurry and everything was grey. But I could make out Dandelion and Ivy's figures looming over me and on the opposite end of the room I could make out Ilex and Iris.

  "What happened?" I croaked out, sitting up again, only slowly this time as Dandelion allowed it. "I-" Remembering some, I touched my neck and winced as I could feel the thin cut Rhamnus had made beneath my fingertips. "Did you use that stuff to force me to sleep again?" I asked, guessing this is why I felt so groggy. Despite that, I felt intensely healthy and well rested. Although the cut was sensitive, the rest of me had never felt this great before.

  "Rhamnus triggered you, believing your Seer side would put you to sleep and make it easier for him to kidnap you." I blinked in surprise at the new voice, a voice that I hadn't expected to appear here in the Altor Coliseum.

  Nudging Dandelion aside, I looked around until my eyes landed on the grey figure of a man. "Aram?" I hadn't seen him since that day he'd left me with Acacia and Lupinus in the boarding house. What was he doing here?

  "I'll talk to him." He said to the other Altors present in the room, implying they should leave me and the Elder on our own. Ilex offered a reassuring smile before he closed the door. Feeling a tad concerned, I managed to sit up properly and offer Aram the attention he apparently needed out of me. He walked over to the window, closing the thin curtain so the sunlight streaming through wouldn't be so harsh.

  "Thank you." I murmured, nodding at him when he mutely asked if it was alright he sit on the edge of the bed.

  "After the attack, Ilex had everyone move to the Coliseum due to the influx of raids by the Regius." Aram grunted. "Stop blinking, it won't turn it off. You need to relax for your vision to return to normal."

  "But I am relaxed." I answered stubbornly, trying not to blink at all anymore.

  The Elder rolled his eyes. "You may feel that way because the trigger balanced out your inner system, making you feel as strong as you've ever felt before, but recent events still need to catch up with your brain. Your memory is battling to remember what exactly happened." He paused. "What do you remember?" I opened my mouth to speak, but fell silent when I realized I could not answer that question without putting some effort into it. "Take your time." Aram said. Nodding my head uncertainly, I tried to slow down my breathing and focus on what had happened before Rhamnus had nicked my skin.

  "I was sick." I murmured and when the Elder nodded, I allowed myself to dig deeper. "Ilex and Datura said I was delirious and stated I was part Seer."

  "Yet..." Aram trailed off, beckoning me to find the rest of that memory.

  I gulped. "Yet I became aggressive during the trigger, which is normal for an Altor soldier, but not for one that is part Seer." Thinking that over, I saw flashes of myself trying to
fight Rhamnus. But before that Datura was trying to hide me, or have me escape. "Rhamnus burst into the training room before I could leave through the underground tunnel." Looking around the room, I noticed that everything was made out of pale, large stones. It was cold. There was no heating system or fireplace to bring warmth, but someone had covered me with numerous blankets to prevent me from shivering or feeling uncomfortable.

  "You are in the Coliseum." Aram assured. "Juglan has been forced to use the liquid that puts one to sleep time after time over the past week."

  I frowned deeply. "Why?"

  "Because every time you woke, one of them was forced to give you an answer about what happened to Datura."

  No matter how many blankets there was, it couldn't stop the cold now. "Where is Datura?"

  "In the Valley of Death." He answered, leaving me confused as I didn't understand why they'd need to put me to sleep after having heard that. He was the Keeper of the Dead, it made sense that he was there. "He was dying slowly, and every time someone informed you of this, you turned aggressive once more." Aram explained.

  "But he's okay now, right?" I pressed, deciding that I couldn't sit here and have people tell me he was alright when I could simply walk out of here and find out for myself.

  "He should have died, Calycanthus." I ignored Aram's tone of discomfort entirely.

  "But he didn't." I remembered everything now. The sickness, the delirium, Datura trying to keep me safe, how I'd almost kissed him...

  "I have to go to him." Jumping out of the bed, I laughed when color returned to my vision and not even the memory of Rhamnus' face could kill my mood now. While my origin was still unclear, it was a sure thing that I was more Altor than Seer. And no matter what they said, it couldn't trump the fact that I was having no visions of the past or future. Close contact with people didn't threaten my health like it did Vervaine. Rhamnus may have cut me, but it wasn't much worse than a paper cut and it is that very cut that had ended my ill state. I felt better than ever, more so because Datura was alive and kicking and around another day to confuse the ever living sanity out of me with the mutual and inexplicably intense attraction we had towards one another. The only thing that could make my happy mood rocket even higher would be if Solenum were to walk into the Coliseum right now.