TEERMAN

The Primal of Life and Death / Blood and Bone Married name: Queen Penellaphe “Poppy” Da’Neer

Click here to see a full-size image of Poppy by Romanna Boch.

Oh, what can I say about dear Poppy? Barely an adult, yet poised to change the kingdoms forever. She has featured prominently in my visions for some time, but her future, more than most, is mutable.

Hair: The color of ruby-hued wine and falls to the middle of her back.

Eyes: Green like spring grass—turn molten silver after her Culling.

Body type: Slightly shorter than average height and voluptuously curvy.

Facial features: Oval face with angular cheekbones. Full, bow-shaped lips the color of berries. Strong brow. Nose dips at the bridge and slightly turns up at the tip.

Distinguishing features: Some freckles across her nose to her eyes.

Pronounced scar that is a jagged streak of pale pink starting at the hairline and slicing across her temple, narrowly missing her left eye before ending at her nose. She has another, shorter scar running across her forehead and through her eyebrow and a scar on her inner thigh, multiple on her right forearm, and some on her stomach—jagged tears. More scars mar her legs

—a prominent one on her inner knee—and there’s one on the side of her waist. The healed wound on her thigh is from a Craven bite, not claws.

Other: Her paramour thinks she tastes like honeydew.

Personality: Smart-mouthed, brave. Terrible liar. Kind. Revels in revenge. Not one to wallow in past choices. Impulsive. Reckless with her safety. Stubborn. Competitive. Deflects a lot.

Habits/Mannerisms/Strengths/Weaknesses: Wrinkles her nose when thinking something she doesn’t want to share. Regularly sneaks out at night. Wears a wolven-bone and bloodstone dagger strapped to her thigh. Suffers from nightmares but usually unable to sleep once the sun is up. Rarely sick and heals fast. Gets seasick. Hates snakes.

Background: Born on an unknown date in April, she chose the twentieth day as her birthday. Was attacked by Craven when she was six, almost killing her and purportedly killing her parents. The Queen of Solis took her in after the attack and cared for her as if she were her own child, telling her that she survived because she had been touched by the gods.

Forced to don the veil of the Maiden at age eight.

Family: Initially raised by Coralena † (a Handmaiden, thought to be a Revenant) and Leopold † (a viktor). She is actually the biological daughter of Queen Isbeth † (a demis) and Ires (a god) and descended from Nyktos (a Primal of Death) and his Consort, Seraphena Mierel (the true Primal of Life).

What emotions taste/feel like to her:

AMUSEMENT = sugary

ANGER = hot and acidic but can be icy

ANGUISH = tart and tangy, sometimes almost bitter APPROVAL = buttery cake

ATTRACTION and AROUSAL = spicy and smoky CONCERN = too-thick cream

CONDESCENSION = scalds throat and stings eyes CONFLICT = tart and lemony

CONFUSION = tart and lemony CONTRITION = vanilla CURIOSITY = spring-fresh lemon DESIRE = spicy and smoky DESPERATION = burns

DETERMINATION = salty and nutty, sometimes oaky like whiskey DISLIKE = sour

DISTRUST = bitter EMBARRASSMENT = very sweet EMPATHY = warm

EXCITEMENT = bubbly water or champagne

EXHAUSTION = gritty FEAR = acrid like bitter melon FRUSTRATION = prickly

FURY = hot and acidic but can be icy GUILT = sour

HATRED = hot and acidic but can be icy

HELPLESSNESS = bitter, similar to anguish or like hot, choking smoke HORROR = bitter

IRRITATION = acidic

LOVE = chocolate and berries LUST = spicy, smoky, and warm

PAIN = physical feels hot, emotional feels cold PANIC = bitter

PRIDE = like empathy but richer and warmer cinnamon RAGE = hot and acidic, can be icy

RELIEF = earthy, woodsy, and refreshing RESOLVE = salty and nutty

SADNESS = tart and tangy SHAME = sour and itchy/confining SHOCK = icy, cool, and slippery

SINCERITY = warm and comforting vanilla SORROW = heavy and bitter

STRESS = like too-thick, heavy cream SURPRISE = cool

TERROR = feels similar to pain

UNCERTAINTY/UNEASE = tart and lemony but biting at times WONDER = bubbly and sugary

WORRY = too-thick cream

This extraordinary woman with a weakness for cheese and strawberries started her life as a sheltered and sequestered Maiden. The title meant she was supposedly Chosen by the gods and was thus hidden behind a veil while merely a child, bound to rules that gave her no say in matters of her life. Until she meets Hawke Flynn, a.k.a Prince Casteel “Cas” Hawkethrone Da’Neer.

Once he enters her life, eventually sparking a love she fears will never be reciprocated, she vows never to hide herself again—even when she’s

more afraid of herself than anything.

With everything she has ever been taught or believed unraveling as a series of sinister lies, her powers growing, the love between her and Cas getting stronger by the day, and the truths of her heritage coming to light in pieces at every turn, Poppy learns to compartmentalize, process, and accept in record time. But she still struggles with the big truths—that Isbeth, a demis, is her mother, and that she—Poppy—is a god, a Primal born of mortal flesh, the Primal of Blood and Bone, and the true Primal of Life and Death.

Her journey has been harrowing, to say the least, and I’ve recorded as much as I can—both things that have come to pass and those I’ve seen via my gift. The bottom line, however? Her future, only some of which was foretold, is still very much hers to write…

POPPY’S JOURNEY TO DATE:

Born of the demis, Isbeth, and the god, Ires, Penellaphe is raised by Revenant Handmaiden Coralena Balfour and her viktor husband, Leopold.

Cora and Leo attempt to flee with Poppy—only age six at the time—and her brother, Ian—Cora and Leo’s biological son—to remove them from Isbeth’s influence, stopping at an inn in Lockswood for the night. While there, a supposed friend, a wolven by the name of Alastir Davenwell, believing Poppy to be a threat to Atlantia, betrays them, paving the way for Prince Malik Elian Da’Neer to destroy her. The Dark One considers her the harbinger of death and destruction set to lay waste to both kingdoms as the prophecy foretold. But when Malik sees the Consort—Poppy’s ancestor, Seraphena—in her eyes, he hesitates to kill her, already struggling with the idea of taking a child’s life. He eventually returns her to Carsodonia, but before then, given the deaths at the inn, the Craven follow the blood trail and eventually attack, causing even more destruction.

Unlike most who suffer a cursed turning or death after being bitten, Poppy survives the Craven attack at the inn, lending credence to the story she is told about being Chosen by the gods. The truth there is that Atlantians cannot be turned if bitten. And she is so much more than that. She is a god. A Primal. Though that is something she does not discover for a while.

For the majority of her life, Poppy believes the Craven killed her parents in Lockswood that night. Which actually isn’t true. Isbeth killed Cora sometime later by forcing her to drink draken blood, and Leo was likely sent to Mount Lotho to await his viktor rebirth.

However, now orphaned and returned to the capital, the Queen eventually sends Penellaphe to Castle Teerman, where they shroud her under the veil of the Maiden and sequester her, awaiting her nineteenth birthday and the first Ascension since the War of Two Kings—something she is told will heal the Kingdom of Solis. All of that is also a lie. And even more unfortunate, during her time in Masadonia, Poppy is subjected to the tyrannical rule and cruel abuse of Duke Dorian Teerman as his wife, Duchess Jacinda, turns a blind eye.

Afraid of her Ascension and deeply craving freedom and the right to choose, Poppy secretly hopes she’ll be found unworthy by the gods.

With her only outlets being honing her fighting skills and sneaking out to help her trainer and friend, Vikter—also a viktor—assist in the passing of the cursed by using her gifts and thinking happy memories to ease their suffering, she longs for something more.

Not long before her Ascension, Poppy sneaks out to the Red Pearl—a house of ill-repute—to experience life for a few hours. And, with the help of yours truly in the disguise of a working lady at the pub—I never said I didn’t interfere!—finds herself in the rooms of Elemental Atlantian Prince Casteel Hawkethrone Da’Neer, who is posing as “Hawke” at the time. They kiss, and things for the couple are set in motion…both those of the Fates and the plans Prince Casteel has.

Still posing as Hawke, Cas insinuates himself as a guard at the castle and eventually works his way into the inner circle to be one of Poppy’s personal guards.

That was something I found incredibly clever. Though when I foresaw it happening, I still wondered about his motives.

Poppy begins to question the natural order of things as time passes and wonders if she can change them, especially as her gifts continue to grow

and evolve. Originally, it was only sensing the pain of others, but that quickly morphed into being able to sense all emotions by tasting their unique signatures on her tongue, and an ability to ease others as she does with the cursed. Given that empathy is one of her greatest traits, she hopes to one day use her gifts to help people.

From the moment she entered my radar, I admired that.

When she leaves Masadonia for Carsodonia, accompanied by Hawke, Kieran—whom she discovers is a wolven—and their other allies, an entire world opens to her. She sees and experiences things she’s never had a chance to before and decides she won’t return to a life with no freedom. She vows not to Ascend, realizing her two choices are to run or to talk to the Queen. But danger surrounds her, and so many things are not as they seem.

She soon learns the true history of Solis and the reality regarding the vampry and the Atlantians, and it shakes her, but she’s made of stronger stuff. Still, those who see her as the enemy do not relent, and she’s eventually wounded to near the point of death. She may have died if not for Hawke’s Atlantian blood and its healing properties. But amidst the excitement of the attack and the subsequent fallout, a big secret is revealed: Hawke is really the Prince of Atlantia, whom she has been brought up to believe is the Dark One.

Cue gasps. I mean, I knew this, but can you imagine what it was like for her to discover that little tidbit?

Conflicted and torn between her feelings of betrayal and what she feels for Hawke, whom she now knows is a Prince, Poppy decides to make a run for it. However, she doesn’t get far, and her lust ultimately wins out in the end—I mean, doesn’t it usually? But even with that and realizing she loves him, she knows she cannot trust him—or at least she shouldn’t. And his dark side, while exciting and something that calls to her need for vengeance and meshes with her propensity to kill without hesitation at times, is a bit disturbing.

As I’ve said before, someone’s shadow self is not the be-all, end-all of whether a person is good or not. It’s who they are in their hearts and souls that determines whether they can be trusted.

When it’s revealed that she’s not entirely mortal and Casteel tells her that they are headed to Atlantia to be married, she refuses. She firmly believes that she’s not safe with him and his people and has no doubt she’ll eventually be ransomed. So, she makes a plan to escape and find her

brother. If what she’s been told about the Ascended is true, then Ian may be a monster, which means she’ll have to kill him. But she won’t know until she finds him.

Once again, she doesn’t get far. Casteel and Kieran stop her, and Cas gives her an ultimatum: Fight me and win, and I’ll set you free.

Unfortunately, before she can do more than make Casteel bleed, the Craven attack.

With the dastardly creatures taken care of, they settle in for the night, and Casteel reveals more information. The Ascended had no intention of following through with Poppy’s Ascension. It would taint her coveted blood, which they need for their nefarious plans. And Ian most likely is not her biological brother. He also tells her what the Ascended did to him, a story that horrifies her, and explains his motivations for wanting to marry her: to prevent war, save his brother, Malik, and solve scarcity issues regarding food and land for his people, while allowing her to be free. Win- win. She realizes that his plan has merit and is likely the safest course of action. Plus, there’s that little matter of her attraction to him. We must not forget that.

When Alastir—whom she only knows as a trusted wolven ally—shares information about his daughter and assures her he’ll help in whatever way he can if she feels she’s being forced, her comfort level rises. But when she learns that Casteel is to become King, she wonders if she’s really important to him despite everything that’s happened or if she’s just another pawn in the long game.

Doubts swirling, her gifts and senses continue to grow and heighten. She begins feeling shocks when she touches both Kieran and Casteel. In discussing the different Atlantian bloodlines, Cas reveals that he believes Poppy is descended from the Empath warrior line, and Alastir imparts later that they were sometimes called Soul Eaters.

When the Ascended finally track her down and attack, taking a child hostage, she surrenders herself to save the innocents and asks to be taken to her Queen. Lord Chaney has other plans, however. He confirms that she has Atlantian blood and attacks, full of bloodlust. Luckily, Casteel comes to the rescue and gives her his blood again to help her heal. The closeness and his essence in her help their relationship grow, and Cas finally asks her to pretend. I’m Hawke, and you’re Poppy. No past, no future.

She does, giving herself to him and reveling in it.

As their journey to Casteel’s home continues, despite the danger and hardships, Poppy soaks in all she can about Atlantian culture and the pasts of those she’s coming to care about. She learns about Kieran’s bond with Casteel and that he once loved and lost, as well as about Casteel’s brother Malik, and Shea. And then she finds out about the Joining from Alastir.

When they reach Spessa’s End, Poppy meets even more of those close to Casteel and Kieran and displays her burgeoning powers by healing Beckett—a young wolven—after an accident.

While she still wonders if Cas will cast her aside once he’s accomplished what he wants, she realizes she’s done denying herself and gives herself to Casteel once more without reservation. He’s the first thing she has chosen for herself, and she’s unwilling to let that go. However, while she loves him, that doesn’t mean he loves her.

They go through with the wedding and seemingly receive Nyktos’s blessing on the union, but Poppy wonders if it’s more of an omen.

It’s revealed that Poppy is related to the Queen, and that Ileana isn’t actually Ascended—something that explains some things Poppy always wondered about. And during another fight, Poppy’s gifts morph further, allowing her to project overwhelming fear to assist in victory, somehow also calling to the wolven without meaning to while in distress.

I wouldn’t mind a wolven coming to me. But I guarantee there would be no distress involved.

As they deal with continued threats, more signs of the gods’ acceptance appear—Nyktos’s blessing at the wedding, Aios saving Poppy from walking off a cliff, the voices in her dreams with advice and warnings— Casteel tells her that he thinks they like her. But that doesn’t mean everyone does. A bunch of the citizens of Atlantia attack, attempting to stone her, insisting that she’s a Soul Eater and has tainted both the Prince and the kingdom. Poppy’s gifts flare to life once more in defense, reflecting their hatred back on them threefold, killing them all in the process. And where her blood falls…blood trees appear, a sign of her connection to the gods.

As if there was any doubt.

The attack also strengthens her tether to the wolven, summoning them en masse once more and urging them to protect her. When the Queen and King arrive, Queen Eloana reveals that Poppy is the last descendant of the most ancient ones and carries the blood of Nyktos within her. She then relinquishes her crown and declares that Poppy is Atlantia’s new Queen.

With the wolven continuing to act out of character, Poppy is told that she severed their bonds to their Atlantians without meaning to and that they feel her Primal notam. She remembers Kieran telling her about the kiyou wolves and how deity blood would usurp any claim to the throne an Atlantian may have. Is she a deity?

The hum in her blood from her magic ramps up, and Cas reveals that she has started to glow when she uses her power. Not a lot, but like spun silver. She then learns about the eather—the Primal essence of the gods.

Additional threats surface, and the Unseen attack, taking her prisoner.

During the battle, she hears the voice of who she believes is the silver- haired goddess from her dreams and sees skeletal hands emerging from the earth.

While in the dungeon, she’s reunited with an old acquaintance— Commander Jansen—learns about shadowshade and the bones of the Ancients, and sees a rare changeling who can take the form of another person. She also learns that Alastir betrayed her, and that Beckett, the wolven she healed, is dead. It makes her sad. In addition, she’s made aware of the gods and deities, the Shadowlands, and Iliseeum as a whole. She also learns that all entombed where she’s being kept were deities that became monsters because the Elemental Atlantians rose against them. Those holding her insist that she’s dangerous and must be stopped because she has entered her Culling and will start showing the same chaotic tendencies as those before her.

And then she finds out about Malec, and Alastir tells her that O’Meer is her father. She also hears the prophecy for the first time, is told that she is the one her namesake warned about, and realizes that Alastir was behind the attack at Lockswood when she was a child.

So much to take in, in such a short time.

When Alastir tells her that he’d rather go to war than have her unleashed on his people and spirits her away to Irelone to be given to the Ascended, she worries it’s the end. But Valyn, Casteel, Kieran, Jasper, Delano, Emil, and Naill come to save her.

During the battle following her rescue, she opens her senses and unleashes her power, prepared to end everyone, but stops herself at the last minute, insisting she’s not a monster. But she does stop Casteel from delivering the killing blow to Jansen, following through with her promise to kill him.

Honestly, I would have done the same.

In the melee, she’s shot with a crossbow bolt, and as she lay wounded and bleeding out, a storm rages, deforming the trees around her. Blood trees sprout, starting with gold buds that unfurl to reveal blood-red leaves, and the roots gather around her like a shield. When Kieran rips the bolt free, she realizes she’s dying and that Cas plans to Ascend her.

Luckily, Casteel brings her back. During her Ascension, she has another vision of a woman with pale, moonlight-colored hair who looks like her.

The female cries a blood-red tear and speaks to Poppy before disappearing.

When Poppy wakes, she’s starving and pounces on Kieran but is quickly redirected to Casteel. Her need for blood quickly turns sexual, and things get hot and heavy—yes, I saw this in my visions. No, I don’t feel guilty for being a voyeur. It was a pivotal moment. Because, afterward, Cas tells her that he loves her, and she says it to him, as well—for the first time.

Needing additional information, Poppy asks many, many questions and finds out that the bond between Kieran and Cas really is broken, that what Alastir said is wrong, and that Cas drained every drop of blood from her to Ascend her because she did, indeed, die. He says she no longer feels mortal to him, nor does she smell that way to Kieran. Instead, they tell her she feels like final and absolute power.

Wondering if Ian might be like her, stronger but not actually Ascended, she sets off, seeing the mist thinning for her and the golden trees of Aios now blood-red.

When they arrive at Saion’s Cove, the older citizens bow to Poppy and call her Meyaah Liessa—my Queen—and she discovers that she can communicate telepathically with the wolven. She then exacts her revenge on Alastir, vowing never to think about him again.

Everything that has happened in such a short time becomes overwhelming for Poppy—can you blame her?—and she shows the emotion she always tries so hard to hide. Cas is there to comfort her, and they relax by reading some of my steamiest diary entries.

I always hoped someone would come across those journals someday.

Poppy and Cas discuss her claim to the throne, and Cas admits that he will support her if she wants the Crown but says that if she doesn’t, they’ll have to leave Atlantia. She finds herself torn.

When she’s suddenly summoned to help a child, she learns that her powers have evolved even more, allowing her to not only heal but also

bring someone back to life. And when she finds out that Nyktos and his Consort had two children, their names and genders unknown, it gets her thinking.

Especially when she’s later told that not even the children of deities had abilities that manifested as strongly as hers. Not even the most powerful Elemental can do what she can. When the Queen reveals that Poppy has some of the same powers as Malec, she starts to wonder if the Duchess was right. However, she also learns that Malec cannot be her father since Eloana insists she entombed him before Poppy was conceived. The only thing they can deduce for sure is that, somehow, she is Nyktos’s descendant. Poppy can’t help but worry that her mother was an Atlantian held by the Blood Crown and forced into pregnancy.

It comes to light that Eloana, Valyn, and the Elders—it was not unanimous with us—have already decided on war and plan to burn Carsodonia to the ground, and she knows that only she and Cas can stop it. But only if they’re King and Queen. Coming to terms with the fact that not everyone will accept her, Poppy makes her decision.

Suddenly, Ian arrives and summons them to Oak Ambler. She finally sees him and knows she may have to make a tough choice soon: ending him if the brother she knows is gone. In addition, she recognizes that it may be a trap, even though the Queen promised not to harm them if they kept the Atlantian armies at bay.

When the Unseen attack again with no intention of leaving her alive, she unleashes her power once more, remarking that any who try to stop her from taking the crown will fail.

As a Council Elder, I am lucky enough to be in attendance before the crowning and discuss several things with Poppy: her night at the Red Pearl, her lineage, and her need to go to Iliseeum. I also get to announce the happy new couple—the King and Queen who will usher in a whole new era. They are the King of Blood and Ash and the Queen of Flesh and Fire.

Poppy and Cas ask Kieran to be their Advisor, and thinking back on the discussion she had with me and the other facts she knows, she comes to the conclusion that Nyktos’s guards are the draken.

She and her most trusted venture through the mists near the Mountains of Nyktos and into Dalos, coming face-to-face with the draken and the King of Gods. She then learns about the Consort and her beginnings, reminded

again that gods should not be born in the mortal realm…yet there she stands.

After telling Nyktos about the Revenants, he remarks that they are abominations and apologizes for what Poppy will have to face in the coming days. He then reminds her that she was born of flesh with the fire of the gods in her blood, tells her that she is the bringer of life and death, calls her the Queen of Flesh and Fire, who is due more than one crown and kingdom, and reiterates that she’s always had the power within her.

Boarding a ship for their next destination, Poppy and Cas grow closer, exploring more of their desires—with a little help from page two hundred and thirty-eight of my journal. Mmm, yes. That was a good one.

In Oak Ambler, Poppy sees a large cat in a cage and has a flashback to the one she saw as a child. Her power hums in her chest, and it forces the feline to shift into a man. She promises that she will be back for him and wonders if it could be Malec. When she asks about it, she’s told that Malec wasn’t that kind of deity. Besides, he is supposedly entombed. The cave cat cannot be him.

When brought before Queen Ileana, Poppy vows that the Blood Crown will never lay a hand on her husband again and is finally able to at least see and hug her good friend. Tawny was her companion and confidante for most of her life as the Maiden, and the one person she was able to talk to who knew her without the veil. She’s missed her.

In her tête-à-tête with Ileana, many machinations are revealed. The Blood Queen tells them that she always planned for Poppy to become Queen of Atlantia, but that she assumed it would be with Malik as her King. She also says she’d rather see the whole kingdom burn than hand over a single acre of land.

Then she drops the biggest bombshell of all and tells Poppy she’s her mother, that her real name is Isbeth, that Cora didn’t agree with her plans and thus tried to spirit Poppy away, and that while Coralena survived the attack at Lockswood, she did not survive the Queen’s wrath.

It’s also revealed that Malec is a god. Poppy suddenly remembers what Nyktos said to her. She asks about it, and Isbeth confirms that everything she did, she did for revenge. In a petty snit, she has Ian killed, and Poppy’s ancient instincts take over, activating her powers. They fight like gods, and Isbeth ends up killing Lyra, Kieran’s friend and lover.

Poppy eventually falls unconscious and later wakes to find that Casteel handed himself over to the Blood Crown. In her rage, she summons another storm. A female Revenant approaches and tells her to quit what she’s doing, threatening to stop her if she does not. When Poppy finally stands down, she finds that Tawny has been wounded by shadowstone—something Poppy is unable to heal, even with her newly acquired powers.

Through the process of elimination and some deduction, Poppy realizes that the Consort must be her grandmother, and that Isbeth’s vendetta is utterly personal. Eloana took Isbeth’s son, so Isbeth took Casteel. And despite Malec being entombed, Isbeth and Malec must be her parents.

She decides to summon the draken and do whatever is necessary to bring Casteel home. When she and Kieran arrive in Iliseeum, she finds Nektas, Nyktos’s closest draken guard, in his god form. He tells her that Nyktos returned to sleep with his Consort. He then asks Poppy if she is willing to bear the weight of two Crowns and bring back what is theirs to protect and the thing that will allow the Consort to wake. Poppy finds out that is the missing draken—Nektas’s daughter, Jadis—and the Consort’s son, whom Poppy discovers is not Malec but rather his twin, Ires.

When the realization hits her that the caged cave cat was her father, she summons the draken and sets off for the mortal realm once more, visiting Tawny and reuniting with others. Returning to Oak Ambler, she meets with Jalara. She tells the King that she has a message for the Blood Queen and then beheads him, using him as the message. She then destroys the Queen’s knights, unleashes the draken, and tells the Revenant to deliver the full message to the Queen, reiterating that she is coming for Isbeth. Her last words ring in the air: “I am the Chosen, The One who is Blessed, and I carry the blood of the King of Gods in me. I am Liessa to the wolven, the second daughter, the true heir, owed the crowns for Atlantia and Solis. I am the Queen of Flesh and Fire, and the god’s guards ride with me. Tell the Blood Queen to prepare for war.”

As Poppy readies herself to rescue Cas and get her vengeance, her powers grow even more, making the trees shake and the weather rage. She takes out the Ascended stronghold at Massene and makes some connections.

Unable to eat or sleep, she keeps rehashing what went down at Oak Ambler and wonders if they have a traitor in their midst—someone other than Alastir.

As the days pass, Poppy and Kieran grow closer in their shared grief over Cas’s imprisonment, and Poppy uncovers something interesting: There is a record of a Rite at the time of the gods, and second and third children in the history books have no death dates. This leads her to the conclusion that the Rite existed before the Ascended but was eventually lost to time until it was bastardized and taken up again by the vamprys.

In talking with Reaver, one of the draken who answered her summons, she finds out they are bonded to her like the wolven, but it’s slightly different. They can’t communicate with her like the wolven can, but they will answer her call. He says it’s always been that way with Primals and tells her she’s not wise.

Reaver clearly has no filter, and I’m not sure Poppy caught that nonchalant drop of her true state—that she’s a Primal.

Reaver then tells her that a god can kill another, and that she—Poppy— is the first female descendant of the Primal of Life, the most powerful being ever known. He says she will become stronger than even her father, Ires, in time.

When she asks for more information about the Consort, whom she now believes is her grandmother, she is told that speaking the Consort’s name is forbidden.

Just as things appear to be coming along, albeit shockingly with all the revelations, Isbeth sends a gift. It turns out to be Casteel’s ring finger, complete with his wedding band. Poppy absolutely loses it and has to be calmed.

Deciding that she can’t—and won’t—wait to go after Cas, she makes plans to leave as soon as possible. Kieran insists on going with her, and she tells him that Reaver needs to come, as well.

That night, she dream walks—also called soul walking, where heartmated souls can find each other, even in dreams—and finds Casteel. Once they reunite, sparks fly as usual with the two of them, and he tells her to find him, bolstering her resolve.

Before she can even make another decision, an unnatural storm rolls in, killing all but three of the draken with her. She realizes it has to be Vessa, the strange woman they locked up when she went a little mad. Poppy ultimately kills her, but not before Vessa insists that Poppy will not harness the fire of the gods and bring war, then claims to serve the True Crown of the Realms. Whatever that means.

Sadly, I found out not too long after…

Reaver then explains how Nyktos is not the Primal of Life as everyone assumes. But Kolis was. He also explains how Kolis was entombed after the war between the Primals and gods and then subsequently erased from history. Reaver also tells her how the Revenants were Kolis’s pet project and explains how mortals were created, going on to further explain why the third sons and daughters are special.

Because Poppy could not bring back the draken who died despite her best efforts, she realizes that she cannot bring back the wolven, either, as they are also of two worlds. This leads to the conclusion that the only way to save Kieran should he be hurt and ensure his continued safety is for Cas, him, and her to complete the Joining, making all of them nearly immortal.

Once they reach Oak Ambler, they encounter a group of citizens trying to leave, most of them grieving lost children who were taken from them.

Poppy tells them to go to Massene where it’s safe, then calls to the soldiers, telling them that she’s not the harbinger but carries the blood of the King of Gods in her. She also asserts that the Ascended are their enemy, not her.

Thinking about the storm Vessa conjured and realizing the Blood Crown knows how to use Primal magic, she wonders if the magic Isbeth used was Malec’s or Kolis’s and whether Malec is the great conspirator from the prophecy.

She inquires about the children and is taken to the tombs, finding seventy-one bodies from the last two Rites. She orders Reaver to burn the Temple to the ground, including the Priests within, and then heals who she can. Unfortunately, they lose five wolven and close to one hundred Atlantian soldiers along the way.

Poppy is suddenly inspired to use magic to locate Cas and find a way to him and gathers what she needs for a locator spell. Before she can set off, Tawny arrives—though Poppy comes to find she is much changed. It’s still her friend, but she looks and feels very different. Tawny tells Poppy that she saw Vikter in a dream that wasn’t a dream, and he told her that Poppy is a god, and that Isbeth’s plan is to remake the realms with Poppy’s help.

Wondering about Vikter—she saw him die, after all—Poppy finds out that he is a viktor, learns what that means, and figures that he must have determined what he was and possibly who he was supposed to protect and sought out Cora before Poppy was even born.

Going over the prophecy, which they still don’t know in its entirety or understand, she wonders who the first daughter is since Poppy is always referred to as the second. She can guess that Malik is likely the once- promised King mentioned.

Poppy learns that the Consort was born in Lasania and was a mortal Princess and the true heir to the throne before coming into her power. But she was born with an ember of pure Primal power—unlike the third sons and daughters. Combined with the knowledge that the Consort’s name cannot be spoken by a Primal without making stars fall from the sky and mountains crumble into the sea, she wonders even more about herself and her ancestor.

A large group of soldiers approaches, and a battle ensues. She, Kieran, and Reaver are taken hostage, and she wakes to the Queen’s Revenant Handmaiden, who says her name is Millie. She agrees to a deal to save Kieran and Reaver. Two days later, Poppy wakes in her old bedroom at Wayfair with Kieran, learning that Reaver is in a chamber below her.

The two of them discuss the knights in the castle and the extremely odd two people they met—Callum and Millie—and Poppy tries to reach out to Delano telepathically. Seems their plan to come in waves has been thwarted, though she discovers that Whitebridge and New Haven are now under Atlantian control, and Three Rivers is soon to follow.

Brought before the Queen, Poppy wonders how people would feel if they knew the truth about Isbeth and asks how Malik can stand being around her. She then shatters his mental shields and feels the truth of the matter. Isbeth has him removed and lets Poppy name her terms, which she then laughs at.

The Blood Queen allows Poppy to see Cas but won’t let anybody else near him. When Poppy finally reaches him, he’s in bloodlust and looks to be in really bad shape. She’s able to heal him and bring him back from the brink, but he needs more than that. She demands food and water for him, and Isbeth scoffs once again.

Poppy and Isbeth then talk about the lies and the ultimate responsibility for all that has been done. She finally asks how the Queen captured Ires and is told that he came over two hundred years ago, looking for his twin, Malec. She adds that the one who came with him—whom we now know was Jadis—could sense Malec’s blood. Isbeth then insinuates the draken was dealt with.

When Poppy inquires about her conception, Isbeth says it wasn’t forced, but then adds an “either time” and goes on to say she wanted a strong child, and Ires was full of lust and hatred. He even tried to kill her afterward— something Isbeth seems to find perverse pleasure in.

She also reveals that she knew what Poppy would become and that Malec wasn’t dead, even though their heartmate bond broke when Eloana entombed him.

With no time to spare, Poppy reaches out to Kieran and says they need to get Cas and leave immediately. She hates the idea of leaving her father behind, but she has no choice.

After a discussion with Malik and thinking back on what she felt when she shattered his shields, Poppy realizes that Millie is the reason he stays. Later, she finds out Malik and Millie are heartmates.

But it’s complicated.

Now knowing that Isbeth wants to see the kingdoms burn and blames Nyktos for refusing to answer Malec’s call for a heartmate trial, Poppy comes to understand that eradicating all Atlantians is the only justice that will satisfy Isbeth.

After being escorted back to her room, Poppy summons the Primal mist.

Using it to escape, she meets up with Kieran and Reaver, and they battle their way through the castle. Kieran is wounded, and she cannot completely heal him. She later discovers that the weapon was cursed. When they reach Cas, they find he’s in even worse shape than before and are told that Callum is the cause. She vows to see the bastard dead, and Reaver acknowledges.

She’s able to bring Cas back to himself somewhat, and they reunite.

In just the way I hoped they would. No voyeur shame, remember?

When Cas relives his time in the dungeon, he tells Poppy about his interactions with Millie and what he came to realize: Millie is Poppy’s full- blooded sister. The first daughter. Poppy also learns that Callum showed Isbeth how to make Revenants, and Malik mentions something Reaver said a while back. That Poppy is a Primal. The draken then confirms that she is a Primal born of mortal flesh. The first since the Primal God of Life.

Malik goes on to share how Preela, his bonded wolven, was killed.

Later, Poppy learns that she was killed in front of Malik and her bones were used to create weapons—one of which Poppy carries on her at all times— the bloodstone and wolven-bone dagger Vikter gave to her on her sixteenth birthday.

Reunited, Poppy and Cas discuss her being the harbinger, her Culling, the prophecy, and the Joining. She then talks through everything she learned with the generals and uncovers information about Malec. As it turns out, he’s buried in the northeast corner of the Blood Forest near some ruins and was entombed in a casket covered in deity bones.

She also learns that I helped Eloana entomb Malec. Yes, I did.

They decide that Malec and Ires will be returned to Nyktos and the Consort once everything is over, and Poppy leaves to spend some time with Tawny and talk to Kieran about the Joining. During their discussion, Poppy feels things from Kieran and discovers there’s love there. She then realizes she also loves him. It’s not the same as what she feels for Cas, but it’s enough for both of them to make the kind of promise the Joining requires.

They set off to find Malec and encounter some hardships along the way

—what else is new?—Craven and Gyrms, both of which they thankfully defeat.

When they return, Poppy, Cas, and Kieran partake in the Joining— which did turn sexual…something I wholeheartedly approved of—and end up with synced breaths and heartbeats and shared feelings. Unfortunately, it doesn’t remove the curse from Kieran as they hoped it would.

Poppy dreams of the woman with the silver hair again and sees someone she feels could be Vikter. She wakes in Cas’s arms with Kieran lying close. After making sure their armies are ready, they set off to meet with the Queen.

It’s here where the actual events vary a little from my Seer visions. I was nearly as shocked by the final outcome as those in attendance.

When they reach the Queen, Poppy delivers an ultimatum that they remove the curse from Kieran before she brings Malec out. Callum does, and they deliver the Queen’s heartmate to her, despite Millie’s warnings to Poppy that something doesn’t feel right.

Thinking Isbeth would bring Malec back, everyone watches raptly, ready to act if needed. And this is where it gets weird. Isbeth shocks them all by apologizing and plunging a shadowstone dagger into her lover’s heart

—the one thing that can kill a god. She rambles on about someone waiting for the sacrifice. The balance the Arae always insist on. The one born of mortal flesh on the verge of becoming a great Primal power. And Callum reveals that as long as both Poppy and Millie share the blood of the Primal

and are loved, he will be restored. He adds that Isbeth just needed someone of his bloodline to set things in motion.

So, Malec wasn’t the True King of the Realms that everyone was talking about. And Poppy ended up being the bringer of death and destruction anyway since she brought Malec to Isbeth. Putting the prophecy puzzle pieces together, they establish that Isbeth is the harbinger, and Millie is the warning. Callum goes on to say that he needed to be strong so he could wake, and that Poppy’s Ascension freed him. He says that when Malec takes his final breath, he will be at full strength. When Poppy smells stale lilacs, she realizes who he is. It’s Kolis. The Primal who stole his twin brother’s power and Court and unbalanced the realms.

Millie tells Poppy that Malec is still alive and that things can be stopped. When she summons the draken and starts to use eather, they warn her that it will attract the dakkais. She pulls back but can’t sustain it. During her god battle with Isbeth, the dakkais attack, and many die. The Consort comes to her and tells her that it wasn’t supposed to be this way, and Poppy remembers what Reaver said about saying the Consort’s name.

She realizes the Consort is the true Primal of Life and screams her name, one she didn’t even know she knew, and is suddenly struck by lightning, becoming churning light and shadow with eather wings. Fangs appear, and her Culling comes to fruition.

Poppy goes Primal, and a great battle ensues. When she wakes later, she’s relieved to see all of her fallen friends alive and whole and learns that Reaver took Malec to Iliseeum, Millie ran off, and Malik followed.

Nektas tells everyone about Eythos and Kolis and relays the story of Sotoria. He goes on to say that the Consort’s Ascension was like a cosmic restart, and only if a female descendant was born and Ascended would the reboot happen again. Malec having a child upset the balance and created a loophole for what was done to Kolis to be undone. He says that Callum must be found and dealt with and reveals that Poppy is the Primal of Blood and Bone, the true Primal of Life and Death.

When Poppy tells Nektas that she knows where Ires is, he orders them to take him to the god and says they must also find Jadis so they can return to Iliseeum. Nyktos and the Consort no longer sleep, which means the other gods will wake.

The war has only begun.

In the tunnels under Wayfair, Kieran and Casteel are very overprotective, and Nektas makes fun of them for worrying over and safeguarding her, calling them adorable.

When the tunnels collapse, Cas and Kieran move to protect her, but they realize that she didn’t do it. It wasn’t any of them. It’s the gods.

Poppy gets excited that it could be Penellaphe, her namesake, and asks if she can meet her. Nektas tells her she’ll likely get to meet all of them when the time is right.

I cannot wait to see that.

The group finally reaches Ires, and Poppy isn’t sure what to say or do. She feels super uncomfortable at first and Cas calms her, as Nektas warns that he will be more animal than man.

Poppy touches her father, and he shifts. She talks to him and asks if he remembers her, telling him she’s his daughter. After Kieran gets Ires a banner to wear, the god finds his voice and reaches out to Poppy, telling her he knows who she is.

It was such a touching moment.

They all discuss Jadis, and Ires tells them he believes she’s somewhere in the Willow Plains.

All of a sudden, Poppy gets dizzy. When Nektas asks if she’s slept, she replies that she rested a little. He clarifies that he meant stasis, but she passes out before more can be said.

Kieran and Cas take her to a spare room in the castle and watch over her, telling her stories of their early time together.

When she finally wakes, she shakes the castle, burns a symbol for life and death into the floor, and opens eyes the pure silver of a Primal.

Poppy’s prophecy:

From the desperation of golden crowns and born of mortal flesh, a great primal power rises as the heir to the lands and seas, to the skies and all the realms. A shadow in the ember, a light in the flame, to become a fire in the flesh. When the stars fall from the night, the great mountains crumble into

the seas, and old bones raise their swords beside the gods, the false one will be stripped from glory until two born of the same misdeeds, born of the

same great and Primal power in the mortal realm. A first daughter, with blood full of fire, fated for the once-promised King. And the second

daughter, with blood full of ash and ice, the other half of the future King.

Together, they will remake the realms as they usher in the end. And so it will begin with the last Chosen blood spilled, the great conspirator birthed from the flesh and fire of the Primals will awaken as the Harbinger and the

Bringer of Death and Destruction to the lands gifted by the gods. Beware, for the end will come from the west to destroy the east and lay waste to all which lies between.

Things of note regarding  the prophecy:

• Alastir tells Poppy the prophecy was written in the bones of Poppy’s namesake.
• The first glimpse of the prophecy is only this: “With the last chosen blood spilled, the great conspirator birthed from the flesh and the fire of the Primals will awaken as the Harbinger and the Bringer of Death and Destruction to the lands gifted by the gods. Beware, for the end will come from the west to destroy the east and lay waste to all which lies between.”
• I introduce Cas as the King of Blood and Ash, and Poppy as the Queen of Flesh & Fire to the people.
• The Priestess called Poppy, “the one whose blood is full of ash and ice.”

THE BLOOD FOREST

Click here to see a full-size image of The Blood Forest by Jemlin C.