Daybreak

DAYBREAK IMMORTALS DESCENDING #3 IRIS FOXGLOVE DAYBREAK (IMMORTALS DESCENDING BOOK THREE) Cillian Aislinn is elated when he receives an invitation to dance for a renowned patron of the arts, Lady Thora, in a beautiful lakeside manor in the hills of Kallistos. But all is not as it seems at Cladach Manor. By the time Cillian discovers the horrifying truth hiding behind a glamour of luxury, it will be too late. Cursed to suffer an immortal existence without the comfort of restful sleep, Cillian becomes the leader of a nomadic troupe of dancers, seeking what joy he can in the art that he once loved. When a series of prophetic dreams lead Cillian to a forest in search of a way to banish his curse, he encounters Astra, the god of dreams, who reveals who Lady Thora really is: the corrupted former god of art, now a spirit of decay whose influence is beginning to spread into Astra’s realm. A child when he was summoned to the Dreamer’s Throne, Astra has spent centuries asleep, weaving dreams in the safety of a realm he can control. But when Pallas’s ire threatens his dreamers, Astra is forced to brave the waking world. With Cillian as his guide, he must find a way to defeat Pallas before her malevolence snuffs out all inspiration and art. As they travel across Iperios, Cillian and Astra also navigate the growing attraction between them. Despite his centuries as a god, Astra knows little about mortal life, and Cillian’s curse has kept him in a state of numb exhaustion. As they awaken to their mutual desire, they learn the truth of who Cillian is and why Pallas is so determined to destroy him. Featuring a very tired immortal without a natural alignment, a brat of a dream god who has forgotten how to be human, an evil spirit with a grudge, and a wild dash across Iperios to restore the balance between art, inspiration, and dreams. Copyright © 2023 by Iris Foxglove All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review. Editor: Alicia Z. Ramos Cover Art: Black Jazz Designs Poem Freydis Moon (used with permission) No Oath, No Spell lyrics by Murder by Death Art: Dancing With the Stars by @Natendo_Art on Twitter (commission, used with permission) Created with Vellum We won’t be broken There’s no curse we haven’t spoken There is no oath, there is no spell That could deliver us, make us well Murder by Death No Oath, No Spell Iris would like to dedicate this book to her mom, who always encouraged her to follow her dreams, while chasing away the bad ones. Thanks Mama, for everything, always <3 The forsythia is in bloom! We’d like to thank our editor, Alicia Z. Ramos, our cover designer, Garrett Leigh at Black Jazz Designs, our PA Kim Licki, and Freydis Moon for the poem that accompanies this novel. Thanks also to Night, for “null-aligned” as a title for Cillian’s lack of natural alignment. Thank you also to our first readers; Justy and Rinnie Lazarowski. We appreciate you! Thanks to Natendo_Art on Twitter for the beautiful scene of Astra and Cillian dancing in the dreamscape that appears in this novel. Thank you also to our patrons for your generous support! A NOTE TO READERS Please be advised that the biological kink imperative/natural power exchange dynamic in this title is not intended to be a factual representation of BDSM as practiced by consenting adults in real life, nor should it be considered a guide to any activity contained herein. The biokink dynamics depicted in this story are fictional, and are not meant to be realistic outside of the fantasy setting in which they appear. Content Warnings for this title include: depictions/discussions of insomnia, mild references to substance abuse, mild references to torture/violence, grief/loss, minor character death, mild body horror, horror/dream gothic imagery and graphic on page sexual situations and kink. This title is intended for adults. Thank you for reading! CONTENTS Part I Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Part II Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Chapter 14 Chapter 15 Part III Chapter 16 Chapter 17 Chapter 18 Epilogue Also by Iris Foxglove About the Author DAYBREAK the waking hours are a waste why tear through the fabric between when and how when you are here when i am strung in the pitch where light ignites at your fingertips where color bends to your bidding where reality shifts for your smile i will wrap myself in the satin backdrop of your mind richly spun and woven with ease my feet on floorboards shaped like starlight oh, how fortunate oh, how stunning oh, how nightmarish from the mouth of a waking hour envious of what you’ve made jealous of what i’ve found freydís ☽ PART I The Moon CHAPTER ONE Cillian Aislinn was a sensation. When he danced, the audience would fall silent as if spelled … and then some would weep, some would laugh, but by the end, all would applaud so loudly it sounded like a thunderstorm breaking overhead. One woman swore that when he danced the “Weaver’s Veil,” she felt again as she had the day she married her true love. One man declared it was his son’s untimely death by drowning that he felt like a newly woken ache, and another spoke to any who would listen about how Cillian’s dance made them remember the first time they saw the sea—the wonder and the beauty of it, so great that they cried from sheer delight and awe. Cillian never knew what strange magic gave him the ability to pull so much emotion from those who watched him dance, but he couldn’t say he was sorry about