Elian's POV
*****
[Fruitcake? Oh, thank the goddess!]
Those words, being the first thing Elian heard, just about tripled the anxiety he woke up with. He gasped, eyes widening like he just got the universe's deepest secret downloaded into his mind.
He kinda did.
He was still sitting at Kyren's dining table but his chair scraped on the marble floor, spoon falling as he stumbled back. His fingers gripped the table hard, cold sweat dripping down his forehead.
"Elian?" Lucian grabbed him first, shaking him gently. "Are you okay? You… you just spaced out in the middle of our conversation and…"
The Alpha Prince's words faded away. Elian took in several shallow breaths, his perception of reality completely distorted. The evening sunlight spilling from the dining room's rectangular windows seemed… wrong.
All of Solara seemed wrong.
[Your consciousness was pulled. I picked up traces of divine energy but—]
