Wish upon the Stars chapter 1040

We headed to the terminal to make our way to the back palace. Instead of heading to the same place as the sword dance symposium though, we made our way through the hallways until we got to an unassuming looking stairway. “You’ll be going up there,” my mom said gently. “There’s a staging area, and then you’ll emerge for the coronation when they call you. Aiden should be up there waiting for you.”

I gave her a hug. “Alright, wish me luck,” I said in a determined voice. “Though I guess the hard part is over.”

My dad nodded. “Probably, there have only been like, three assassinations during coronations in WCP history.” My mom glared at him, slapping him on the shoulder, and he coughed in embarrassment. “I mean…none. There have been no assassinations during coronations. Nothing like that has ever happened before and definitely won’t happen now.”

My mother rolled her eyes. “Uncle Moon is here, as is my dad, and the entire council. No one is going to try anything. It would be suicide.”

I chuckled, rolling my eyes at my dad. “I know he’s just trying to help. Callie is coming up with me, by the way. If anyone has a problem with that…they can shut up about it.” I sort of lost steam as I went on that one, but neither of them seemed bothered. My mom just nodded, and Callie walked gracefully over to loop her arm in mine.

She looked…breathtaking. She’d traded her normal gown for a fancier long sleeved velvet dress of dark blue with silver accents. Black patterns flowed across the surface, taking the shape of feathers that sort of blended the dress with her wings and hair to create a harmonious whole that amplified her presence as an archangel. She smirked as she saw me looking her over. “You like?” she flipped her hair dramatically. “Bethy made it for me herself.”

“Looking good,” I complimented her as we ascended the stairs. “Better than me anyway.”

She rolled her eyes, but didn’t bother responding. When we reached the top, I knocked on the door, and it was flung open quickly. A harried looking woman with long silver hair pulled up in a bun jerked us inside. “You’re here! Thank the gods, it’s almost time, get into position. Aiden, are you finished getting dressed yet?” Her dark violet skin set off her swirling silver eyes, flecks of purple dancing within the irises. Silver horns glinted nearly under her hairline.

“So…you’re Davina?” I asked as she dragged my predecessor over to stand with us.

“Hmm?” she said, glancing up distractedly. “Oh, yes, that’s me. Nice to meet you dear. I apologize for my husband.” She glared up at Aiden, who actually wilted a bit. “I’ve heard he’s been an abysmal guide for your situation. I swear, I love the man but he’s the most irresponsible being I’ve ever met. It’s no wonder he and my father get on.”

I tried to remember her dad’s name, and after I did…I swallowed. Azazel. I’d subconsciously associated the name with the demonic because of its history, but I had forgotten the princes of the devil race were ACTUAL demons. In the same way Zeke was Janus, Azazel had inherited the reputation and mantle of the being on which I’d based my final demon. I was really hoping he didn’t mind a little homage.

She smiled down at my arm wrapped in Callie’s. “Well, that’s one way you’re similar. Aiden refused to let them exclude me either. We’d just been married at his coronation, and he marched me up in front of the whole faction and told them they’d better treat me with respect or he’d light them on fire and roast marshmallows for us on the flames.” She shot him a fond look. “I didn’t need him fighting my battles for me, of course. But it was cute that he tried.”

“Damn it woman,” he complained as he adjusted his tunic. “Can you avoid humanizing me in front of the children. I’m trying to maintain an image. Oh, speaking of which, you’ll need this.” He turned and walked over to a polished wood cabinet. The room we were in was old and cramped, full of natural wood furniture and lots of boxes. One of them, which he flipped open, was a hat box. And inside it was…

“Oh gods, there’s an ACTUAL crown?” I moaned, burying my masked face in my hands.

He snickered. “That was my reaction too. It’s ceremonial, and only needed for the coronation. Unfortunately, that’s the only good news. It’s EXTREMELY uncomfortable. Like…abnormally so. I can’t describe it, really. It’s like an itch mixed with a burn mixed with a throb. Combined with a seething headache.”

“Why?” I asked in disbelief. 

“No idea,” he shrugged. “Maybe it’s symbolic. Not my monkeys, not my circus. At least not anymore.” There was a rap at the door behind us, and he sighed. “Damn. I don’t want to do this part.” He snapped the box closed, and I shot him a look. He shrugged. “Not time yet, just wanted to get in your head a little.”

I stared at him in annoyance. “Some day, not too far in the future. We will be the same rank. And on that day, I will find you, and I will punch you in the throat.”

He burst out laughing. “Did you hear Davi? That was so CUTE. He thinks he’s threats.”

His wife sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. “Honestly Aiden, I can’t take you anywhere.” Despite her tone, I saw a warm smile on her lips, and her gaze was soft and happy. It was nice to see that being Wishmaster didn’t have to be hard on a marriage, even when someone like Aiden was one of the parties involved.

We walked to the door, and threw it open. Below it, stretching out for a hundred feet at least, a large palatial staircase led down into a ballroom. The stairs were carpeted in deep purple, and the ballroom itself was made of black and white marble, with purple gold patterns hammered into the floor in dizzying swirls and designs. “Announcing!” boomed a voice from beside me. “His excellency, our chosen representative, the current incarnation of the unquestionable rule of our esteemed ancestor. Shane Wyndham. Also known as SOLOMON!”

I didn’t move, just leaning out to look at the herald and then my wife. He picked up my implication quickly, continuing his announcement to let everyone know who Callie was. Only then did I step out, Aiden and Davina beside me, and descend the stairs in my group of four.

When we reached the landing at the bottom, I realized that while we WERE in a ballroom, the height of the stairs had created a bit of an optical illusion. The ballroom itself wasn’t at the bottom of the steps, instead, there was a large marble platform, like a stage, and then below that the dance floor sat. The purple gold inlays were only on the stage, not the ballroom floor, so once I was on the level it made it easier to tell.

We took up positions center stage, and I looked out at the crowd around us. S-rankers, A-rankers, B-rankers, it was a diverse mix. I could see old friends, family, complete strangers, and even a few enemies. I ignored them. My eyes were drawn inexorably to an area near the back, where all my closest allies were standing. My mom and dad, eyes shining with pride, Zeke, his arm around Stella and his face softer than I’d ever seen it before. My sister, beaming proudly with tears in her eyes, her arm around a bawling Bethy and surprisingly teary eyed Gabe.

I could see crystals floating above the crowd too,. Blue diamond shaped stones surrounded by rings of shifting white power. I recognized them as a variation of the same technology used by Wilkie, my grandparents photographer, during our picture session. 

Swallowing, I turned my eyes to the immediate space in front of the stage. The council stood solemnly, staring up at me with regal authority. Desmond nodded lightly, and I turned to Aiden. The former Wishmaster was as serious and authoritative as I’d ever seen him. Apparently even he wasn’t willing to be an asshole during this.

“Shane Wyndham,” he intoned, voice carrying through the room as if echoing from a fathomless canyon. “You have been chosen. Measured. Tested. You have been selected, and surveyed. By the family, by myself, by the council, by the Ancestor. You have been found adequate. You have been accepted. And today, in front of our allies, and the universe itself, I stand ready to lay down my burden, so you might take up my mantle. How do you respond?”

This was ceremonial. I was supposed to say I accepted and move on. But…I didn’t want to. I didn’t want to leave it at that. I looked out over the crowd. “I have been tested,” I agreed. “I have been surveyed. And in that time, I have tested right back. I have weighed and measured. I have learned.”

I expected Aiden to interrupt or get impatient, but he just looked pensive. “And what, exactly, have you learned?”

“We are mighty,” I said firmly. “We are a behemoth. A titan among the stars. The family is and remains strong.” I saw pride and smugness on the more familiar faces. Unfortunately for them, I had to squash that. “But we are stagnant. We have grown complacent, and our enemies scratch at the gates, reveling in our decay. We need to change. Need to adapt. And I will bring that adaptation.

“You asked how I responded,” I continued, my eyes raking the hall. “I accept. And so to should you. Accept that I will bring change. That I will challenge the existing status quo. That I will make things different. Because only through transformation is growth possible.” My gaze locked on the council. “And only through growth can we survive.”

Aiden nodded sharply. “Your response is approved,” he said, his voice crushing down on the hall like a hammer of authority. “May the change you bring be as bold as your words today.” He lifted the box next, flipping it open.

Inside, a pitch black metal circle sat. Along the edges, the skull and lamp motif of the WCP, and on its brow, a single black metal skull, eyes set with the most vivid violet gems I had ever seen in my life. Lifting the crown free, Aiden let the box drop, ignoring the echo of clacking wood as he lifted the crown to my head. “With the passing of this totem,” he said quietly (though I somehow knew everyone in the room could hear him), I grant you my office. My authority. And my right to rule.”

He laid the crown on my skull, and I felt a surge of…heat? Cold? Electricity maybe. I also felt a shift in the air. The crown began to heat up, and the air around me began to swirl, slowly at first, then faster. I could feel the focus and attention, the mythology and renown being pulled in, siphoned from the crowd, from the air, from my own waiting reserves. Power unlike anything I had felt before, carried on the winds of royal authority, poured into me, filling me with strength and purpose.

For just that second, I could feel them. My people. My family. I could feel their hopes, their dreams, their wishes. Because that was part of this. Part of me. The Wishmaster was the MASTER of Wishes. Not just granting them, but understanding them. It was no wonder the old man had retired. I knew somehow that if I lifted the crown off, I would lose this connection, would lose the pressure of all these dreams and wishes. But without us here to provide a buffer, I didn’t think he ever would.

Finally, the power surge ended, and I quickly took off the crown, realizing my hands were shaking and my head was killing me. Aiden had been right. That HAD hurt, i just hadn’t noticed at first. As I opened my eyes, a familiar wave of violet flame consumed my vision, and I bore witness for the first time to what my power looked like after ascending to my office.