A Burning in the Bones (Waxways #3)

Epilogue

Now… tell me, why is it a monster?”

Ren waited for her class to respond. Each one of them had finished their drawings and were now studying them with new eyes. She quietly sipped her tea as she circled the room. The class sizes were naturally small at their school. Due to a lack of students, they’d been forced to merge the freshman through senior age groups. It required some serious educational differentiation—adding layers to certain assignments to challenge the older students—but most of the students were so relieved to be alive and practicing magic in a safe place that they rarely complained about having to work with each other.

Naturally, Theo had pressed her into this role. She’d started out tutoring Josey to fulfill her promise to Ava. Then she’d added a few extra sessions for Winnie, who gravitated to Ren every time they were in the same room. It took her a month of working with the two students to realize that she liked teaching. The only thing better than knowing the correct answer, it turned out, was sharing that correct answer with everyone else. And as pleasurable as the basics had been, she found that diving into theoretical magic, pushing the boundaries of deeper concepts, actually suited her skill set best. That realization had somehow led to this moment: a younger boy politely knocking on the door to the classroom and calling her by a title she’d never envisioned for herself.

“Headmistress Monroe?”

Gods, it sounds more pompous every time I hear it.

“Yes?”

“It’s Mr. Brood. He’s waiting for you at the front of the school.”

Ren nodded once before letting her eyes sweep back over the students. She felt that small thrill of power that every teacher feels. Their fates in the palm of her hand.

“Very well. Class will be dismissed early today.”

There was a raucous cheer that she stifled with one raised finger.

“However. You will write a full page answering this concept. You are to provide at least three examples backing whatever theory you propose. And Lawrence, please for the love of all that is good in this world, do not copy Hanna’s work this time. Changing a few words does not suddenly make the essay yours. Have these on my desk by tomorrow morning. Understood?”

There was a chorus of murmurs and agreement and maybe one or two groans. Ren was going to follow them out before remembering she had an easier method. She reached across her bond. It was like knocking on a door that always opened. Reality briefly flickered and she was outside with Theo in the blink of an eye. He smiled at her. Their bond had continued growing. The powers waiting between them were more powerful, more accessible. It didn’t hurt that every time she ported, his hand was there waiting for hers.

“They’re already here?” she asked.

He nodded. “Just arrived. We’ve sent word to the chosen representatives.”

“To the wards, you mean?”

Theo scowled. “Ren, we agreed….”

She reached for his tie, tugged him downward, offering the lightest kiss on the lips.

“Only joking. Come on. Let’s go look official.”

Her fingers laced easily with his. Matching bracelets, woven using the same thread and decorated with two halves of the same stone, dangled on both of their wrists. These were the traditional wedding bands worn by people in the Lower Quarter. Her mother’s dragon bracelet had just been a fancier version. Ren had elected to keep her own last name, but she did not mind the idea that everywhere Theo Brood went, anyone who set eyes on him would know that he belonged to someone—and that someone was her.

Five years had passed since their arrival in Meredream. A span of time that was marked by both good and bad. It turned out that a pristine city that was the last safe harbor for magic was not immune to crime. People still stole from each other. There were still drunken arguments that turned into drunken fights. Even the occasional duel that went way too far. It did not help that their population was so dreadfully small. Like a country town where everyone vaguely knew everyone’s business—and thus mistakes or quarrels felt magnified. The only counter to that problem was the small, but steady trickle that continued flowing from Kathor to Meredream.

At first, it had mostly been parents eager to reunite with children who’d been immune to the plague. Then there was a wave of folks who were smart enough to understand that a brand-new city would be full of opportunities. Certainly, there was more room to grow than in an older city that was more established. Over half the cottages remained empty, but Ren held to the hope that other residents would come. The world would continue to find its balance.

Balance. That might as well be the word of the day.

Ren and Theo aimed for the front gates. The familiar gargoyle was perched in the distance. Hunched on his favorite rampart. There were people bustling up and down the streets, their baskets full of this vegetable or that fruit. Harvesting the city’s food supply had turned out to be such a massive percentage of Meredream’s required work that it was the only task every citizen was conscripted to perform. All of them took shifts. Even the livestone creatures helped, because feeding the city was currently a bigger priority than defending it from outsiders.

After all, the only threat to Meredream was Kathor.

Everyone had feared an attack in the first year. What if the Makers changed their minds? What if they decided to march an army of ten thousand right up to the gates? Or even fifty thousand? The wizards had survived the first battle, but those kinds of numbers could sway the odds beyond anything they could hope to survive. All it would take was one distrustful generation and the wrong dictator to set the gears of war into motion again. Today was a step in the other direction. A move to solidify their fledgling peace.

“Open the gates!” Theo called.

The two of them took their places with the rest of the party. Ren eyed the waiting ranks. The five official volunteers stood at the front. All of them had agreed to leave Meredream for Kathor. It turned out that some of the passive magic systems in the city had started failing. The Makers’ dream of being a society that didn’t rely on any magic hadn’t accounted for just how much of Kathor relied on spellwork that was woven into every facet. The failed magic was causing enough disruption that Kathor’s leaders had reached out to Meredream—hoping for an exchange. A sign of good faith.

Five wizards would travel to the city. They would spend the next year working for the citizens who had once tried to kill them. Fixing what was broken. Repairing magic wherever they went. Restoring what had been lost—in more ways than one. In exchange, Kathor would send five of their own people to Meredream. Historically, this would have been called an exchange of wards. After some of the larger-scale wars, the losing side would send their young princes or princesses to the victor. It was an incentive for the new vassal kingdom to obey the edicts of the treaty. If they stepped out of line or outright rebelled, the ward they’d entrusted to their enemy would be executed. If they obeyed, however, then the ward would be fed and kept in good condition for as long as they lived there.

Which was precisely why Theo didn’t like using the term “ward.” There was a whisper of threat behind the word. Instead, he wanted to treat them like scholars. A chance to learn from each other and build bonds between once warring kingdoms.

The first volunteer had been Avid Shiverian. A perfect fit. She knew more about passive magic systems than any of them. Beside her were two of their younger wizards. Their parents waited patiently behind them. Both children had family they hadn’t seen in five years. Siblings who’d remained in Kathor for one reason or another. Ren knew those reunions would be sweet and long overdue. While the children weren’t as skilled in magic, there were plenty of basic tasks they could complete while they were there. The fourth volunteer was a middle-aged woman named Maya Ruminas. She’d served as a structural engineer for House Proctor and would likely have the widest understanding of the various problems they’d face as they made repairs. Last was Redding. The pioneer had returned to Meredream, but he’d found the town too quiet for his liking. He’d asked if his time in Kathor would allow him the freedom to roam the countryside on his days off. Both sides had agreed that would be just fine.

Behind the main group, Ren saw all the other town officials had gathered as witnesses. All of them had stepped up into more official roles over the years. Her eyes were drawn to the woman standing like a bookend on the opposite side. A nest of curls framed a skeptical expression. Nevelyn Tin’Vori caught Ren staring and made a face at her. It took effort to not laugh. Aside from Theo, Nevelyn was her best friend by far. She worked at the school some with the little ones, but most of her focus was on acting like a mother hen for Josey. Every time Ren saw her—or Theo for that matter—she felt like she was witnessing a miracle all over again.

Finally, the gates finished their grinding movement. A matching group to theirs waited outside. One woman detached from the others. There was an emblem on her cloak that was new. It had been on the last few missives as well. A lion at the center surrounded by swords waiting to be unsheathed. The lion’s claws gripped a flag with the smaller emblem of a crown. An emphasis, Ren thought, on the idea that Kathor’s strength now rested in what it could physically do. Her stomach churned uncomfortably at the sight of it—but the face above that emblem was smiling.

“Hello. Thank you for inviting us. I would love for you to meet your new recruits.”

Introductions were made. The woman, it turned out, was the actual grand emissary. She’d traveled all this way to make sure that the meeting went well. Ren liked her. She had her misgivings about all of this, but they were growing quieter with each passing minute. Their five wizards eventually went forward. There was no trap waiting for them. No ambush sprang out from the woods. Instead, the emissary chatted amicably. Her excitement was clear—which meant Kathor was truly desperate to have their services. A promising start.

Ren joined Theo in welcoming the five recruits sent from Kathor. Theo had walked her through their decision-making. First, all of the recruits were young—between sixteen and twenty. That idea had come from Nevelyn, who thought the younger generation would be more open-minded about magic. If they could plant a seed that wizards weren’t some distant evil growing behind the gates of Meredream—it would go a long way to building a future together.

The second request was that each recruit be an artisan of a specific trade. Ren spotted the girl who was the blacksmith. She could tell just by the muscled forearms. The others ranged from bakers to butchers—and again there was purpose behind each selection. Theo had wanted them to learn valuable skills from every recruit who came.

Final farewells were made. Other wizards stood on the ramparts and waved down to the five who’d been chosen to leave. Ren could tell there was a communal sense of hope and dread in the air. That same mixture, in fact, was thrumming across her bond from Theo. This could be everything. Or it could go terribly wrong. Their duty was to make sure this side of the equation worked. And so, Ren and Theo swept forward to welcome their new recruits.

The first matter of business: a tour of the city. The curiosity on the recruits’ faces was evident. Ren was sure this felt like walking right into a myth from a storybook. The fabled city where all the world’s wizards lived. They asked questions about the cottages and all the crops they saw. The blacksmith was the only one who didn’t speak, though Ren noticed the girl darting nervous glances at her every now and again. The group walked until they reached the crystal-blue lake at the very heart of Meredream. Sunlight angled from the distant mountains and across the water. It was a lovely day. One of those rare times in spring where it feels like summer in the sun and winter in the shade.

When they’d first arrived, the lake had been set apart. Completely on its own. The only small change that had been made since then came from Theodore Crane. The boy had a talent with stone. While most of his training for House Brood had been with livestone in mind, he’d quickly found that the citizens of Meredream would pay him for a different sort of work. Not livestone, but statues that honored their lost loved ones. Now his work could be seen along the trail that circled the lake. There were full statues and smaller busts, depending on the requests that had been made. All of them a nod to someone who’d been lost on the journey to Meredream.

Theo deliberately picked up the chatting when the recruits reached the section that had become hallowed ground for Ren. He could no doubt sense that she didn’t want to talk, not on this section of the lake. Her only commission stood to the right. Sunlight shone down on four faces: Timmons, Avy, Cora, and Clyde. Every time she passed the statues, she would whisper a quiet promise. Her mother’s words remained true. There was still pain in their absence. Gaps that nothing could ever fill. And while those feelings would never fully fade, it also felt as if there was an understanding between them. A wordless reply in their blank stares that said simply: Keep going. Her mother had been right. It was past time to see what Ren Monroe could grow out of the ashes of all she’d burned.

The group paused naturally at the very tip of the lake. There was a bridge that spanned one of the larger streams and standing on it was the city’s most famous statue: Mercy Whitaker. Crane had carved the familiar medical kit at her hip, as well as the thick gloves she always wore. This version of Mercy was looking eternally up at an unseen foe, forever determined to win a fight she’d already won for all of them. Theo caught Ren’s eye. It appeared he’d reached the end of his speeches and stories. It was time to show the recruits to their cottages. Ren was about to announce that when the blacksmith girl finally spoke. She blurted her question out.

“Hey. Can you show us magic?”

Ren blinked. To her surprise, all the other recruits were nodding. Theo grinned at Ren as if he’d somehow been in on this. It was clear from the girl’s expression, though, that she was hungry to witness something that hadn’t happened in Kathor in nearly half a decade. Ren glanced around, wondering what the best first spell to show them would be, when her eyes found the lake again. As they’d circled, their angle to the water—and to the sun—had changed. The light was stretching from the opposite side of the lake to where they were standing. Like a bridge.

Ren grinned. “Come with me.”

Theo figured out what she was doing a few seconds later. Ren felt a curious mixture of emotions across their bond. Tiny threads of grief as he remembered the moment that this echoed out from. The people who had been there to witness the magic, but who were no longer with them. The grief, however, was quickly overwhelmed by a joy that was as bright as the waiting sunlight. For the first time, Ren realized that was the moment he’d fallen in love with her for good. She could sense the truth of it across their bond. It might have taken Ren longer, but here they were, all these years later, alive and in love and standing on the cusp of another new world.

She performed the steps of the spell. A visual ripple raced across the water. The golden road tightened and straightened. It had looked fickle before. Something they had to pretend was a road, but her binding spell solidified every particle into a single entity. Ren carefully anchored it to the other side and the only thing missing in this moment was Timmons’s hand on her shoulder.

The recruits let out predictable gasps. Even if they’d grown up around magic, none of them would have ever seen a bridge made of sunlight. Ren delighted in their reactions. This was one of the things she loved most in the world: these moments where a wizard could do the unthinkable. She held the spell tight in her grasp before locking eyes with the blacksmith.

“What are you waiting for? Go ahead.”

The girl had been too shy to ask as many questions as the others, but that didn’t mean she lacked in bravery. All of them watched her walk to the edge of the lake. She cast one more glance back over her shoulder at Ren, making sure this wasn’t a trick or a joke, and when Ren nodded—the girl stepped out. She looked surprised when the bridge held, but her next step was more certain. And the next and the next. Ren and Theo shared a smile as the other recruits followed her across that sunlit bridge. This was magic. Breathless, impossible magic.