King of Battle and Blood

Isolde emerges after sundown and is greeted by Safira, Adrian’s favorite vassal. She treats Isolde with fake warmth, believing them to be equals, until Isolde reminds her that she is the Queen of Revekka. Sorin later asserts that Safira is jealous of Isolde’s bond with Adrian. As the journey continues, Adrian and Isolde continue riding together on the same horse, and he touches her intimately as he holds her. She falls asleep, and when she wakes later, she asks him about magic and about the witches who formerly lived in Revekka. Adrian explains that the magic of Cordova was once governed by the High Coven, a powerful group of witches who sought to ensure that the practice of magic was kept peaceful and in harmony with the earth. The leader of the High Coven wanted to further cultivate peace, so she sent a witch to each kingdom. However, Dragos wanted to use the witches as weapons, and when they refused, he ordered all witches and magic users to be killed. When Isolde asks who Adrian was during those times, he merely says that he was a different person.

When they make camp, Isolde sits near the fire with Sorin, Miha, and Isaac, the trio to whom she has grown closest. She asks them about bloodletting and bloodlust. Miha and Sorin explain that sharing blood between partners is the most intimate and trusting thing a couple can do for each other. They also explain that vampires become most bloodthirsty after sex, as it relates to the sensation of release. Adrian arrives and asks Isolde why she did not ask him about bloodletting. She does not yet want to let him feed on her, but Adrian senses that she will. She asks him to stop feeding from Safira, and he agrees. They have sex again.

The procession approaches the Red Palace, venturing deeper into Revekka beneath the blood-red sky. Isolde tries to distance herself from Adrian in order to make it easier for her to attempt to destroy him, but she still finds herself developing warm feelings for him. They reach Sadovea, the first village that Isolde has encountered in Revekka. Isolde asks Sorin if the villagers will be mortal or vampire, and Sorin tells her that most of the people in Revekka are mortal because Adrian only transforms those who have proven themselves worthy and useful. When they reach Sadovea, a man who appears to have been partially skinned alive runs screaming in front of the retinue. Adrian and Isolde realize that this village has been afflicted like the village of Vaida in Lara.

The group explores the village, searching for survivors. Isolde thinks that she sees a ginger-haired woman in a window, but the woman vanishes. Isolde then finds a young girl hiding in the house next to her dead family. Isolde tries to lure her out with promises to help her, but when the young girl grabs Isolde’s hand, she burns Isolde, and her face turns monstrous. Isolde screams and begins to fight the girl, whom Daroc then kills. Isolde asks Daroc what the girl was, but he doesn’t know; they will perform an autopsy on the girl’s body in the Red Palace. Adrian goes to Isolde and realizes that he cannot heal her hand because the injury was caused by magic. A healer tries to help her, but he cannot fully heal her either; the most effective healers are witches, and they have been driven to extinction.

The group arrives at the Red Palace, and Isolde watches as the citizens of the city of Cel Ceredi crowd the streets, waving and throwing flowers at the king and queen. Isolde asks Adrian if he was Revekkian before he was cursed. Adrian replies that he is Revekkian and does not believe himself to be cursed. When they enter the palace, Isolde meets Tanaka, Adrian’s viceroy. Adrian takes Isolde to her room and sends for the healer, Ana Maria, to look at her hand. Isolde does not want Adrian to leave her, and he implores her to recognize her feelings for him. She still refuses to do so, and he advises her to look inward to further understand herself and her desires. He tells her to stay in her room so that no other vampires turn her before he gets the chance. He then leaves.

Isolde is troubled by Adrian’s talk about turning her into a vampire. Still, she waits in her room until Ana Maria arrives. Ana is Adrian’s cousin; Adrian was the one to turn her. She uses medicinal herbs to dress Isolde’s wound. Ana is kind to Isolde and knows Adrian well, hinting at the depth of his affection for Isolde: something that Isolde does not understand. Violeta, a human lady-in-waiting, arrives to help Isolde bathe and dress. After Isolde’s bath, she is overwhelmed by the dresses that Adrian commissioned for her. When she is dressed, Ana escorts her to the welcome ball, telling her to dance with Adrian and stay close to him. When they enter the ballroom, Isolde sees Safira lurking near the dais where Adrian sits on the throne. Angry and jealous, Isolde grabs a mortal man to dance with. He introduces himself as Lothian, a librarian. Lothian is kind and offers to teach Isolde about the history of Revekka.

After their dance, a vampire named Noblesse Zakharov tries to force Isolde to dance with him. (“Noblesse” is a title meaning “of royal birth.”) Isolde stabs him, and then Adrian approaches and decapitates him, announcing that he will do the same to anyone else who attempts to accost or harm Isolde. He reminds them that Isolde is a warrior herself. Adrian is not upset about killing Zakharov, who had always been a problem anyway. When Zakharov’s father demands revenge, Adrian dismisses him. Adrian and Isolde dance and kiss passionately before Isolde returns to her room.

She bathes again and falls asleep in the tub, dreaming of being in a lake with Adrian and making love to him after telling him that she missed him. Adrian wakes her and carries her to bed. They nearly make love, but the tenderness of the act upsets Isolde and makes her feel as if she is betraying her people. She makes Adrian leave, effectively driving a wedge between them.