The Ever King

Livia feels revulsion for the serpent-like ship and holds out hope that the Rave warriors might catch up with them, but Erik outmaneuvers them and directs the ship toward the Chasm’s torrential currents. As they are pulled under and to its center, Erik offers to hold Livia, but she refuses. When she lurches and nearly falls, she clings to him while he navigates the ship.

The ship follows a current beyond the Chasm and to the Ever Kingdom. Erik gives his scout Celine some of his blood in a vial so that she can use it to make a call, then whispers instructions. He then brings Livia to his quarters. There, he reveals that Livia was the one who called to him when she touched the Chasm; he explains that they have been bonded since they were children. They then argue over who began the war between their respective peoples. Erik states that Livia knows only an altered version of the facts; while he is well aware his father, Thorvald (the former king of Ever), had been the first to attack with his army, Erik also contends that Livia’s people had captured and tortured him for weeks. Livia accuses him of lying, but Erik states Stieg knew him because Stieg had guarded him while Erik was tortured as a child. Livia refuses to believe Erik, but privately, she begins to doubt. She tells him that he has disappointed her after the kindness that she showed him when they were children. Erik believes that when she came to him in his prison, she only sought to pity and tame him. Now, after promising to make her family suffer and then kill them, he leaves her to sleep.

Celine wakes Livia and informs her that the ship is traveling to the royal city. Livia must perform galley duties with a man named Sewell until their arrival. Livia protests, but Tait, Erik’s cousin, reminds Livia that she is Erik’s prize and plunder and is therefore at his mercy. Celine then forces Livia to wash and dress in borrowed clothing. As Livia watches Celine call forth water for her and learns that Celine’s full name is Celine Tidecaller, Livia asks if their last names are indicative of their powers. Celine confirms this and explains that the blood vial she used the day before was a message that she sent to announce their return. Satisfied, Celine brings Livia out to the rest of the ship.

Livia feels the resentment from the crewmembers, who fought in the war against her people. Celine brings her to the galleys, where Erik tells her to assist Sewell with cooking. As Livia appraises the kitchen galley, Sewell watches her try to steal a knife. He dissuades her and warns her against going back to the deck. As they prepare meals, Livia remarks that Sewell speaks in riddles and she can decipher only half of what he says. He notices the mark of the talisman on her arm and is visibly shaken by it. In a rare moment of clarity, he says that the talisman called her back to Erik. He warns her not to let others see it, and she promises to heed his warning.

For three days, Livia works with Sewell and finds that she feels safe in his company. On the third day, Sewell directs Livia to bring Erik his lunch. When Erik greets her with his nickname for her, “Songbird,” she responds in kind with “Serpent.” They bicker and banter, and Erik informs her that the ship will arrive at the royal city within two days. When she questions the ship’s speed, he tells her that they are taking the long route because the speed would otherwise discomfort earth fae. Livia asks about the mark on her arm, and Erik explains that the mark is the one from the House of Kings of the Ever kingdom; it was branded on him at birth. He tells her that the mantle also bears that mark; he came for the mantle because he has need of it. He then explains that the Ever kingdom is separated into five houses and that many of the sea fae have a song that is tangled with their magic. She shares her worries about how the nobles will react to her, and Erik tells her that he hopes to have them see her as something other than an earth fae. They argue over his fight with her father. Tait then enters Erik’s quarters to tell him that they have received a distress call from a community called Skondell.

Erik discovers that Lucien Skurk, a pirate who once duped him as a child, is the one pillaging Skondell, a community that harvests the highly addictive, painkilling lotus blossoms. He orders Celine and a crewmember named Stormbringer to bring on a torrential storm. They then attack Lucien’s ship. Erik sends Livia back with Sewell despite her protests.

As Erik attacks Lucien’s ship, Livia and Sewell try to take cover in the galley, but in the midst of the skirmish, one of the kitchen knives lodges itself in Sewell’s side. Though he tries to convince Livia to stay with him, she hurries to retrieve linens from above deck. Erik orders her back down, but she ignores him. When Celine finds her, she explains the situation. As Erik crashes the ship into Lucien’s, he screams at her to get below deck. When she yells back to inform him of Sewell’s injury and then does as he asks, she finds that part of her is worried about Erik’s safety.

Livia treats Sewell’s wound, and Celine arrives and weeps in fear when she sees his condition. With the fighting over, they bring Sewell to the king’s quarters and lay him on the bed. Celine forces Livia ashore, where she watches Erik drag a bloody Lucien around and make a show of torturing him. She realizes that Lucien targeted a small, defenseless farming village and finds that she, too, wants Lucien to suffer for the devastation that he has caused. Erik interrogates Lucien and gruesomely blinds him in one eye. Lucien admits to not knowing who financed the attack but that they had hoped the lotus could be used to fix the rotting lands. Erik then kills Lucien and has his body hung on a stake. As Erik goes to speak with the lord of Skondell, Livia is drawn to a weeping child in the scorched land. She uses her magic to reinvigorate a flower, but the act of doing so also shows her terrible visions of death and horrors; a byproduct of her earth-based power is the ability to see when the land has experienced awful histories. She feels dark magic in the earth, but when she opens her eyes, the flower has bloomed. Erik is then behind her, asking what she has done.