The Crown of Gilded Bones (Blood and Ash 3)

“Was?” King Valyn asked quietly.

The knot of heartache lodged in my throat like it always did when I thought of Vikter. “He was killed by the Descenters in the Rite attack. A lot of people died that night—innocent people.”

“I’m sorry to hear that.” Empathy flowed from him. “And to know that those who support Atlantia were the cause.”

“Thank you,” I murmured.

He stared at me for a long moment and then said, “The Unseen were an ancient brotherhood that originated at least a thousand years ago or so, after several generations of Atlantians were born, and other bloodlines took root. Roughly around the time the…” He drew in a deep breath. “Around the time the deities began to interact more with the mortals who lived in lands far from Atlantia’s original borders. The ancients began fearing that the Atlantians and the other bloodlines were not entirely supportive of their decisions regarding mortals.”

“And what kind of decisions were they making?” I asked, half-afraid of the answer based on what I’d already been told.

“The deities wanted to bring all the lands, the seas, and the islands together under one kingdom,” King Valyn said. That didn’t sound all that bad—for a brief moment. “It didn’t matter that some of those lands already had rulers. They believed they could improve the lives of others as they did with the lands just beyond the Skotos Mountains that had already been occupied by mortals. Many Atlantians and other bloodlines didn’t agree with them, believing it was best to keep focus and energy on Atlantian lives. The deities feared there would be an uprising, so they created the Unseen to serve as a…network of spies and soldiers, designed to crush any type of rebellion before it started. That was done by keeping the Unseen members’ identities hidden. That way, they could move undetected among the people of Atlantia like spies. And when it came time for them to be seen and heard, they wore masks carved to resemble the wolven.”

“In a way, they were mimicking what Nyktos had done,” Kieran added as he wiped the back of his hand across his face. “It was obviously a fairly lame attempt, but whatever.”

“How did the wolven feel about that?” I wondered aloud.

“I don’t think it bothered them at the time,” Casteel’s father answered as Jasper prowled around us, constantly searching for signs of intruders. “Both the Unseen and the wolven had the same goals then: protect the deities. Or at least that was what the wolven believed.”

Had the same goals then. It was obvious that those goals had splintered and changed.

“The Unseen were nothing like the wolven. They were more like a group of extremists,” Casteel said. “They would attack anyone they believed was a threat to the deities, even if the person was simply raising questions or disagreed with what the deities wanted.”

“That reminds me of the Ascended.” My bare toes curled against the stone. “You couldn’t question anything. If you did, you were seen as a Descenter, and that didn’t end well for you. But if the Unseen were designed to protect the deities, then why would they come after me?”

“Because that was how they started. It wasn’t how they ended.” His gaze briefly met mine. “The Unseen swore an oath to the Crown and to the kingdom but not the heads those crowns sat upon. Eventually, they turned on the deities. What caused it is still unclear, but they began to believe that some of the deities’ choices regarding the mortals were no longer in the best interests of Atlantia.”

Immediately, I thought of Alastir and Jansen. That was what both had claimed. That what they’d done was in the best interest of their kingdom.

“So they were disbanded,” King Valyn continued. “Or at least that’s what everyone has believed for at least a thousand years.”

“You really believe Alastir was involved with them?” Casteel asked with a sneer. “A group of men who feel emasculated by the fact that the actual Guardians of Atlantia are all female, so they desperately cling to their special, secret group?”

“Alastir said he belonged to a brotherhood of sorts,” I reminded Casteel. “He called himself a Protector of Atlantia.”

“I had no knowledge of Alastir’s involvement in any of this before the attack at the Chambers,” his father said. “But after seeing those masks at the ruins, I began to wonder if it was the Unseen. If they have returned, and if they are behind much more.”

I thought of what Kieran had shared with me before. Casteel was thinking along the same lines. “You’re talking about the destroyed crops, fires, and vandalism?”

His father’s lips were pressed into a hard line as he nodded.

“We don’t think they’ve been active this entire time,” Hisa said. “Or if they have been practicing, they weren’t acting upon any perceived notions of oaths. That’s changed, however. And it changed before news of the Prince’s…” She trailed off, her brow pinching as she appeared to search for how to phrase what she wanted to say next. “It changed before news of our Prince’s entanglement with you.”