POV: NYX
Timeline: Immediately after
Location: Tidelands – War Room
---
I am going to drown someone.
Multiple someones.
Slowly.
"The Shadow Court," I say, pacing the war room. "In my realm. Manipulating my—" I stop myself. "—Kaelis. For weeks."
"They're good," Ravion admits. "The best at what they do. Psychological warfare is their specialty."
"I don't care how good they are." My hands clench. "They hurt him. Made him doubt himself. Nearly drove him away."
Water starts rising around me, responding to my fury.
"Someone is dying for this."
"Get in line," Ravion says darkly. "They've been infiltrating Kieran's dreams too. Making him paranoid. Weakening the twin bond."
The four of us are in my war room—me, Ravion, and both princes.
Kaelis is still shaking slightly.
Kieran hasn't let go of his hand.
---
"How do we fight mind magic?" Kieran asks. "If they can get in our heads—"
"Wards," I say. "Mental shields. Protection spells."
"I can construct shadow barriers," Ravion adds. "They won't stop everything, but they'll muffle the manipulation. Make it harder for them to get through."
"What about that woman?" Kaelis asks. "Mira. She was here. In the Tidelands. How did she get past your defenses?"
Good question.
Infuriating question.
"She shouldn't have been able to," I admit. "My wards are designed to keep out hostile magic. Unless—"
Understanding hits.
"Unless she was invited."
"Who would invite her?"
"Someone she manipulated. Made them think she belonged here." I think back over the past few days. "The guards at the entrance. They let her through. They wouldn't have unless they believed she was supposed to be here."
"Mind magic," Ravion confirms. "She didn't break through your wards. She made someone think she had permission."
---
"Then we change the wards," I decide. "Make them responsive only to me. No exceptions. No one enters without my explicit permission."
"Same in Nocterra," Ravion agrees.
"What about when we're together?" Kieran asks. "Like now. Both of us in one place. Isn't that dangerous?"
"It's also the safest," I counter. "Together, you can support each other. Verify reality. Check if something is manipulation or truth."
"Plus," Ravion adds, "they're trying to separate you. Doing the opposite of what they want is tactically sound."
"So we stay together," Kaelis says.
"As much as possible," I agree.
"But we can't stay in the same place forever," Kieran points out. "Eventually we'll have to go back to our own realms."
"Then we create a communication protocol," Ravion says. "Daily check-ins. Code words to verify identity. Questions only you two would know the answers to."
"Twin questions," I suggest. "Things only you can verify with each other."
Kaelis and Kieran look at each other.
"That could work," Kieran says slowly.
"We'd know immediately if something was wrong," Kaelis adds.
"Every morning," I say firmly. "And every night. No exceptions."
"Agreed," they say together.
---
"Good." I turn to Ravion. "We need to coordinate defenses. Share information. If Isolde is using the Shadow Court—"
"Then she's more desperate than we thought," Ravion finishes. "The Shadow Court is expensive. And dangerous. Even for the person who hires them."
"What do you mean?" Kaelis asks.
"The Shadow Court doesn't care about loyalty," I explain. "They're mercenaries. They'll work for anyone who pays. But they're also unpredictable. Unstable. They might follow Isolde's orders. Or they might decide to pursue their own agenda."
"Which means this situation could get worse," Ravion says grimly.
"Worse how?" Kieran asks.
"The Shadow Court likes chaos," I say. "They might not stop at separating you. They might try to turn you against each other. Against us. Against yourselves."
Silence.
Then Kaelis says, "So what do we do?"
---
"We fight back," Ravion says simply.
"How?"
"By being smarter. Faster. More ruthless."
His eyes glow red.
"Isolde wants to play mind games? Fine. We'll show her what happens when you mess with our family."
The word hangs in the air.
Family.
That's what we are.
And family protects each other.
---
"We need a plan," I say.
"Agreed," Ravion says.
We spend the next hour strategizing:
Mental wards — both realms will have enhanced protection
Communication protocols — daily check-ins with verification
Training — both princes will learn to recognize manipulation
Counter-intelligence — feeding false information to Isolde
Alliance solidified — Nocterra and Tidelands officially united
"This will work," Ravion says finally. "We protect them. We counter-attack. And we make Isolde regret targeting our family."
"Agreed." I look at both princes. "But you two need to promise something."
"What?" they ask together.
"If something feels wrong—even slightly off—you tell us immediately. No hiding. No 'protecting' us. No thinking you're being brave by handling it alone."
I make eye contact with Kaelis specifically.
"Promise."
"I promise," Kaelis says.
"Me too," Kieran adds.
"Good." I feel some of the tension ease. "Then we have a plan."
"And a defense," Ravion adds.
"And each other," Kieran says, squeezing Kaelis' hand.
"Together," Kaelis agrees.
---
We're ready.
Let the Shadow Court come.
Let Isolde try again.
This time, we'll be ready.
And this time, we fight back.