CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Bastion and James stood from the large mahogany conference table as we entered. My mate immediately crossed to me, gripping either side of my face to give me an affectionate kiss, seemingly ignoring Rory, who still had his arm on the small of my back.

"I missed you, baby," he whispered against my lips in that huskily desirable way before giving my cheek a peck and moving to the opposite side of Rory, his large hand encasing mine. That would certainly take some getting used to.

I tried to settle my rapidly beating heart so I could focus on James, who was approaching me carefully. I offered my other arm for a hug, but he only smiled in return, staying a few feet away. His eyes were flitting between the three of us and gradually filled with tears.

"Aria. My queen," he stated through a gravelly throat, dropping to one knee with his head bowed. "King Bastion, King Rory. It is an honor to serve under you as your court Oracle."

My heart stopped when he pulled his sleeve up, showing a tattoo of his own located on his right forearm, displaying what looked like a magnifying glass overlapping a full moon with the word 'Oracle' in the same foreign script as the others that I could inexplicably read. I glanced between my two loves, amazed to see that they both appeared perfectly fine with the new development.

"Please, James. You helped raise me; you shouldn't be bowing to me," I insisted, kneeling to assist him back to his feet.

He accepted, dusting his knees and flashing me that fatherly smile I adored. "Thanks, sweetie. I'm sorry for the waterworks; I'm just so glad to see you with King Bastion. I had prayed to the Moon Goddess for such a blessing for years, and she answered my prayers." My thoughts flashed with images of the black-haired beauty from my dream.

"Let's sit." Rory gave my free hand a swift kiss before walking ahead of me to the end of the table and pulling out a large leather chair. Bastion then led me to sit, burying his nose in my neck before taking a deep breath. He flashed me a dimply smile before taking a seat on my left with Rory at my right.

"Okay, spill it. I have no idea what's going on. Why do I have two partners? Why are they both kings? Why do you three have a royal seal?" My mind was in a flurry of questions, but James spoke before I could ask any more.

"Of course. I shall start with the prophecy. You've heard it many times, but I get the feeling that you will be much more accepting of it now." I nodded for him to continue. "It's been foreseen that a young Queen would emerge, one of both bloods who would offer peace to all species on Earth. She would take upon herself a King from each sibling as representatives, and her Kingdom would be built in paradise. She would face opposition from rulers who sought to destroy her new regime, and this hatred for peace would result in the freedom of the Dark King. The Dark King would challenge her for the throne, and through many sacrifices from the Opalescent, he would be defeated once and for all. Thus it has been told; thus it will come to be."

"Yeah, you left some of that out before, James. Like the two-king part. What the hell?" I growled in annoyance.

He appeared apologetic, nervously wringing his hands. "I apologize for any omissions I may have made, Queen. The gods can be difficult to please."

I scoffed. "That's an understatement. More like they're complete pains in the ass." Everyone in the room gasped.

"What?"

"You've met the gods? Personally?" James nearly shouted from across the table.

"Well, sort of. In my dreams. They met me in a forest. They called themselves Lysander and Luna."

This time Rory spoke. "You saw them? Their physical forms?" My brows furrowed.

"Yes, what's the big deal?"

"Baby, that's a huge deal. Even when the Moon Goddess spoke to me after I got my seal, she hid her appearance from me," Bastion explained with Rory nodding in agreement.

"Queen Aria, as far as the records are concerned, you are the only one to have seen the gods' physical forms. What a major blessing!"

I couldn't help but giggle at their words of awe. I didn't realize before how special it was for me to have seen them. I just figured they enjoyed showing themselves to screw with people.

"What did they say?" James asked excitedly.

I shrugged. "Basically that I'll make big decisions and run my own kingdom. Oh, and that they would see me again soon."

"Amazing. But why give you an Oracle if they can talk to you directly?" I thought for a moment on James' question.

"Maybe so people don't think I'm just making things up for power. I'm sure if I claimed all of this stuff without you to confirm it, most people would just think I was crazy."

"Yeah, I know the feeling," James mumbled dejectedly.

"Dad, I'm sorry for never taking the whole prophecy thing seriously before. The Moon Goddess has explained how important it was to have you feeding me details since I was young. She said I was too much of a stubborn asshole to have believed it right off the bat, you know, like Rory here." I snorted, my hand flying to my mouth.

"Did she really call you that?" I whispered with tears forming in my eyes from withholding my laughter.

He looked embarrassed, rubbing the back of his neck and glancing at the table. "Yeah, well, she gave me a bit of a hard time. You know, because of my hesitation to accept my seal."

This time Rory snorted. We heard a faint knock on the door. Rory reached forward to press a button inset into the table that I hadn't noticed before. The door clicked open, and Anthony walked in. I watched the wolves to see if they were affected by the stench, but there was oddly no reaction. Anthony gave me a seductive smile, crossing over to me gracefully. I spun my chair to follow him, and he knelt in front of me, taking my hand and pulling it to his lips.

"My Queen, the sweet Aria. It is my honor to serve as your General." I cocked my head.

"Can I see your seal?" His grin widened.

"As you wish, my Queen."

"Why do I already regret this?" General Anthony stood, grasping onto his pristine black button-up and untucking it from his pants. I fought the urge to turn away. Why was he so damn sexy at his age? He started revealing flawless ivory, stopping just above his hip bone to reveal another tattoo. His appeared to be a Coat of Arms, a moon with two intricate swords crossed over it and the word General underneath. I must've stared a little too long because I could feel a hand snake onto my knee and squeeze it.

"Excuse me, that'll be all, General," I choked out, turning back to the table and burying my face in my hands when I heard him chuckle.

"Wait!" I shouted abruptly, removing my hands and startling my staff. "If you all have seals already, why don't I?"

Everybody glanced around the room with knitted brows.

"Are you sure you don't, my Queen? Have you checked recently?" James asked innocently.

Rory coughed. "She doesn't have a seal."

James blushed, rubbing his neck. "Well, maybe the gods are waiting for a coronation of some sort. I'm not sure; they haven't revealed it to me." Just then, another thought popped into my head.

"Also, why are they Kings instead of Alpha and Sire?"

"That one, I know. The gods wanted to create a new system for rulership. They believe that using the old titles only encourages a split. Your kingdom, my Queen, will be the only to stand. Both Alpha and Sire will fall."

"Holy shit, Dad. That's huge. How will I tell Brett?"

A sad smile overtook James' face. "I am unsure how many will willingly join under your leadership, son. He may reject it entirely. You will just need to ask him yourself. I recommend everyone return to their homes for the time being. Gather some clothes and personal belongings that you don't wish to leave behind, and meet back at the ARIA."

"How about my mom?" I asked. The ranch couldn't be left unattended for too long.

Anthony crossed over to where she sat at the table, placing both hands on her shoulders and announcing, "You can stay where we stayed last night, my dear."