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stone, so to speak. It’s fluid, subjective. If you go there angry, you can draw some very bad things to you. The land itself can become scary if you put that kind of emotion into it.” Adonis stepped back. “So, if you don’t want to terrify your princess, take a deep breath, and reach for your happy place.” He demonstrated, chest rising and falling as he mimed a deep breath.
     
    Saamal held his hands to his sides, resisting the urge to snatch the vial from Adonis and shake the incubus until his hazel eyes rattled like marbles in his skull. “Happy place. Understood.”
     
    “There’s one more thing.” Adonis pressed his lips together, observing Saamal for a moment as if the god wouldn’t like what he had to say next.
     
    Saamal rubbed a hand over his face. “Yes, Adonis?”
     
    “You told me that you gave up half your power to this woman. Now you’re going to the astral plane, a realm where reality has less to do with what you see and feel than what you’re thinking and feeling.”
     
    “And?”
     
    The incubus’ eyes glowed red. “Remember who you are now. You are going to the astral plane to win the affections of the woman you would have as your bride. You desire to win her heart, to wake her up. Regardless of how you feel on the astral plane, however powerful and invincible you may feel, after you come back to the physical plane, you will be as you are now.” He face grew serious, all traces of humor gone. “The consequences of your actions on the astral plane will follow you here.”
     
    “What are you talking about?” Saamal tried to keep his frustration in check, tried to remind himself that Adonis was only being cautious. He eyed the vial, already imagining himself on the astral plane, meeting Aiyana, speaking with her. He might be on the cusp of breaking a curse that had lasted over a century, why was the incubus dragging his feet now? The urge to throttle Adonis grew.
     
    “He’s saying you’re going to feel like your old powerful self once you’re with the girl on the astral plane,” Etienne growled. “He’s warning you not to let the power go to your head and make you into the arrogant bastard that betrothed yourself to a child in order to get more power in the first place.”
     
    The words lacked venom, but even without it, the sentiment was surprising coming from Etienne. Saamal blinked at him for a moment, reevaluating the mercurial werewolf. “Duly noted.”
     
    The incubus finally gave up the vial and Saamal quickly uncorked it and drank it. The elixir was as thick as honey, and bittersweet. It slid down his throat, and everywhere it passed, Saamal’s muscles relaxed. A warm, buzzing sensation filled him and his eyelids drooped.
     
    “I’m certain I told you to lie down,” Adonis muttered.
     
    The demon’s voice sounded far away. Saamal didn’t argue as he and Etienne grabbed him by the shoulders, catching him as his knees buckled. He felt himself being eased down to the floor, but by the time the cold stone was against his back, he was far from caring.
     
    Darkness closed over him. A feeling of weightlessness overcame him and he experienced a strange sensation of rising without moving. He drifted with the feeling, lost in the sensation until he became aware that he was no longer lying on the castle floor. With a jolt, Saamal opened his eyes.
     

Chapter Three
     

     
    “Who knows what sort of creatures are lurking out there.”
     
    Aiyana stood at the end of the secret tunnel that led from inside the curtain walls of the castle out into the forest beyond. The trees and brush were overgrown, hiding the entrance and keeping its secret, though she could see the moonlight peeking through the canopy. She gripped the torch more tightly in her hand. If she was going to enter the forest, she would have to abandon her torch here. The moon would be her only light, since fire was too likely to draw attention. She’d never been outside the castle walls, didn’t know