The Demon King's Bride

Processional

Xanathal

Wedding Hall - Present

The minute his father mindlinked him to say that his bride was one of the gifted, Xanathal almost screamed in glee. It had been centuries since there had been another like him in any of the realms. Xanathal had been identified as one of the gifted before he had learned to walk. The training had been rigorous as he had aged, to be sure that he could control his abilities while fulfilling his role as the leader of the Dark Celestials.

As grateful as he was for his gifts, they had come at a price. He was completely and totally alone. There was no one who could understand the weight of his abilities and the responsibilities his position in life added to them. In the end, he had learned to isolate himself as fully as he could from others around him.

Now, he found himself not only with a mate as his intended bride, but one that was like him in many different ways. To learn that Phoenyx had been gifted with extra abilities to set her apart from the other beings in the supernatural world much like he had been was a relief. It gave Xanathal hope that this marriage would indeed be fruitful.

There were legends that said there would be gifted individuals born of each clan to help and maintain the balance among the veil. Their sole purpose would be to protect the delicate thread that separated the mortal and supernatural worlds. Admittedly, there would always be a few mortals that were brought across the line, their mates being creatures of the supernatural order, but never could the whole of their world be revealed to mortals at large.

To date, there had only been three recorded individuals among the gifted. There was Xanathal himself, a sorcerer of Fae blood by the name of Merlyn, and then a Light Celestial of unknown origin that was only referred to as A. No one had seen or heard of the Light Celestial in over three hundred years, their power having sparked out and burned with no trace. Merlyn, moved into the mortal world often, and most had not seen him in the last fifty years, but that was common with the sorcerer.

The lack of support had only served to reinforce Xanathal's loneliness. Now, turning to watch as his father escorted his new bride up the aisle, he could barely contain his excitement.

He was, of course, curious as to why his bride asked to be marked in the way of her people. Even more so when he had requested the same treatment in return. They'd been told she was wolfless, yet she had agreed to mark him back as long as he kept her separated from the other shifter's after the ceremony. Which begged the question, just what was his new bride hiding?

He could understand hiding the fact she was gifted, but if she had hidden that from all of the people in the shifter world, what else was she hiding? The hardest part had been hearing her plea that he not hate her. It made him wonder just what secrets his little mate was hiding. She appeared as no more than a slip of a girl, yet...the aura she exuded was one he could not fathom. How had no one in the shifter ranks noticed her aura? How had they not noticed the pure power radiating off her skin?

Then again, those things could be markers only he could see as her mate, but he sincerely doubted it. Unless...

Unless it was possible she was cloaking her aura. Hiding her presence from those around her. If that were the case, then the fact he was registering it at all meant it was only a fraction of her true power. The idea brought him pause.

If no one was aware of his bride's abilities, then even the council would be in the dark as to just what this female brought into the equation. Xanathal was quickly learning that nothing with his new bride was exactly as it seemed. The council had ruled for him to marry the girl, believing she was wolfless and unable to benefit her species. The intention was to tie him down, force him to focus on his throne and building a legacy. By tying him to one who was flawed and weak, that would have meant turning his resources inward to keep her protected for the whole of their marriage.

However, what if they had gotten it wrong. Xanathal was well versed in the politics of the supernatural realm. He was aware that several thought he flexed too much power in policing the veil and keeping their worlds hidden from the mortals. Some even complained that he was overstepping in policing those outside of his kind, so much so that complaints had been brought to the council on more than one occasion.

When his father had first returned with news of his nuptuals, that had been exactly what Xan had thought as well. At least until he had met his bride-to-be. Now, he was starting to believe that she was not what everyone believed her to be. If he was correct and if she held as much power as he surmised, the council may well regret the decision to bring this female into his orbit. More than that, marking her as his mate, they would have a hell of a time trying to separate him from her.

Xanathal had known that when she asked him to mark her, he would agree. Everything inside of him had constricted in sheer joyful bliss at her softly worded request. Mindlink or not, he had known she was hesitant to ask him. While such a bond was commonplace for her kind, it was a rarity among the others of the supernatural world unless they found their fated mate. In truth, Xan had considered marking her before her request, just so he could align himself with his mate and learn about her as rapidly as possible. The fact she had asked him to mark her, was troubling. Why would she go to that much trouble to ask?

Still, it had given him the opening that he needed. If he was right, then that meant when he marked her, the truth would be revealed. Now, he turned his head, hearing the music of the processional begin. His breath stilling in his throat as he watched the vision of amethyst glide down the aisle escorted by his father. All other thoughts left his mind, as he watched her progress with a mixture of awe and pride, knowing full well the course of his life was taking a drastic turn.