Chapter 23 Skye
SKYE
The emergency Council session happens two days after Ambrose wakes, and I can already tell it's going to be a nightmare.
My projection appears in the Council chamber while I stay safely at Phoenix Sanctuary, my mates surrounding me in my office.
Stellan's hand rests on my shoulder, his fire warm and grounding.
Jade is pressed against my other side, his essence sipping at my anxiety before it can spiral.
Harlow, Rumi, and Ambrose form a protective circle around me, ready to intervene if this goes badly.
Ambrose still looks older than he should.
The cost of his contracts is written in the new lines on his face, the slight tremor in his hands, the way he moves like his body aches in places it didn't before.
But he insisted on being here, insisted on supporting me even though he should still be in bed recovering.
I love him for it. And I hate that I need him here.
The Council chamber is chaos before anyone even speaks.
Members are shouting over each other, some demanding investigations into the attacks, others insisting the reforms created instability that justifies rolling everything back.
Fear and anger permeate the chamber like smoke after a fire, bitterness working through my essence.
They're scared. All of them. Even the ones who support us are wondering if we've pushed too hard, too fast.
Eugene looks exhausted when he finally calls for order. His air essence amplifies his voice until it's almost painful. "Silence! We will conduct this session with order and decorum!"
The shouting dies down to angry muttering. I take a steadying breath, my mates' support anchoring me.
"Praestes Bardot," Eugene addresses me formally, which is never a good sign.
"The Council demands answers. Dmitri's followers launched coordinated attacks on thirteen reformed academies.
Eight students dead. Twelve faculty members murdered.
Dozens more injured. This violence followed directly from the reforms you championed. How do you respond?"
The accusation is clear. This is my fault. The deaths are on me because I dared to change the system.
My power rises instinctively, pink essence making my projection glow brighter.
"I respond that Dmitri's followers murdered those people, not the reforms. We didn't create violence by freeing students to be themselves.
Dmitri created violence by building a system so oppressive that his loyalists would rather kill children than see it change. "
Councilwoman Petra stands abruptly. She's one of Dmitri's staunchest supporters, an earth elemental who's benefited enormously from the current system.
Her power and position are entirely dependent on maintaining the status quo.
"Those students would still be alive if you hadn't incited rebellion!
If you hadn't declared yourself Praestes and undermined Council authority! This blood is on your hands!"
Heat blazes off Stellan, rage burning on my behalf. Jade snarls with protective fury. But I keep my voice steady, channeling Mother Nature's authority.
"Those students died because Dmitri's followers chose murder over adaptation. Because they valued their power more than children's lives. Don't you dare put that on me."
"And Phoenix Sanctuary?" Another Council member, one I don't recognize, leans forward with suspicion in his eyes. "Somehow your academy was untouched while others burned. How convenient that the Praestes's own institution suffered no casualties."
The implication hits like a punch to the gut. They think I protected Phoenix Sanctuary at the expense of the others. That I let students die elsewhere while keeping my own people safe.
"Phoenix Sanctuary was attacked," I correct him, forcing my voice to stay calm.
"Thirty-two of Dmitri's loyalists breached our perimeter.
We successfully defended ourselves without casualties on either side because we were prepared, because our students have been training, because we didn't suppress their essences into uselessness. "
"And because your mate nearly killed himself writing contracts to protect you," Petra sneers. "We've heard about the Crossroads Keeper's prices. How convenient that he was willing to sacrifice his own life for your academy but not for anyone else's."
Ambrose flinches beside me. The guilt he's been carrying since he woke up surges fresh and painful. Before I can respond, his voice cuts through the chamber.
"I was unconscious." Ambrose steps into view beside my projection, his Crossroads Keeper power making his words carry weight.
"The contracts I wrote for Phoenix Sanctuary's defense drained me so completely that I didn't wake for three days.
By the time I regained consciousness, the attacks on the other academies had already happened.
If I could have protected them, I would have.
But I'm not omnipotent. I can't be everywhere at once, and my power has limits even I don't fully understand. "
The chamber goes quiet. Ambrose's honesty, the raw admission of his own limitations, seems to take some of the anger out of the room.
Then Councilman Aldric stands. The ancient spirit elemental commands respect even from Dmitri's supporters, and the remaining muttering dies when he speaks.
"The Praestes is correct. The violence came from those who refused to accept that Mother Nature's gift is more diverse than we've allowed.
Blaming the reforms is like blaming freedom for making slaves want to escape.
" His gaze sweeps the chamber. "We can either accept that change is inevitable and work to make it peaceful, or we can resist and watch more people die. Those are our only options."
Several Council members who'd been wavering visibly shift in their seats. Aldric's support carries weight.
But Petra isn't done. "And what about the attacks on Council members? Three of us have received death threats since voting to remove Dmitri. Our families are in danger because we followed your lead!"
That hits differently. Fear spikes through the chamber, sharp enough that I taste it. They're not just worried about students anymore. They're worried about themselves.
"I'll assign protection," I say immediately. "Phoenix Sanctuary has skilled defenders who can guard Council members and their families until the threat is neutralized."
"We don't want protection from rejects!" Petra snaps. "We want the Council to actually control the situation instead of letting a child play at being Praestes!"
The insult lands hard, not just calling me a child, but implying I'm not really the Praestes. That Mother Nature made a mistake choosing me.
My mates' fury crackles against my awareness. Ambrose's contracts activate reflexively, green light flickering around him. But I hold up my hand, stopping him. This is my fight.
"I am the third Praestes, chosen by Mother Nature herself.
" My pink essence expands until it fills the entire chamber, making every Council member feel the weight of what I am.
"And I will not apologize for freeing Magila from cages they didn't deserve to be in.
Yes, there's violence. Yes, there's chaos.
That's what happens when you dismantle oppression.
The oppressors fight back. But the alternative is letting Dmitri's system continue, letting more students have their essence stripped, letting more unusual Magila be eliminated for the crime of existing. "
I let that hang in the air for a moment, then continue with less heat.
"But Councilwoman Petra raises a valid concern.
We need better coordination, better protection for everyone targeted by Dmitri's loyalists.
I propose we create a joint task force. Council members and Phoenix Sanctuary defenders working together to protect everyone at risk.
Show the public that we're unified, that the reforms and the Council aren't enemies. "
Eugene seizes on that immediately. "An excellent suggestion. I motion we vote on establishing this joint protection task force."
The vote passes, though not by as wide a margin as I'd like. Forty-nine in favor, thirty-seven against, fourteen abstentions. But it's something. A compromise that protects people while also forcing the Council and reformed academies to work together.
The session drags on for hours after that. We debate new security protocols, discuss how to handle the captured attackers from Phoenix Sanctuary's defense, argue about whether to accelerate or slow down the reform process. Every decision is a battle. Every compromise feels like giving up ground.
Councilwoman Terra, the water elemental who supported us during the first vote, proposes sending Council observers to each reformed academy. "To ensure standards are being maintained and students are actually being protected, not just radicalized."
The refusal rises in my throat. The implication that we're radicalizing students instead of educating them is insulting. But the mood in the chamber is palpable, fear driving even our allies to seek reassurance.
"Agreed," I say, swallowing my pride. "We welcome Council observers. Let them see firsthand what we're actually doing. Let them report back that our students are learning control, not rebellion."
More debates. More compromises. More of my Praestes energy draining away as I fight to hold onto everything we've built.
By the time Eugene finally calls an end to the session, I'm exhausted in ways I didn't know were possible. My projection flickers as I struggle to maintain it.
"This session is adjourned. The joint task force will be assembled within the week.
Council observers will be dispatched to reformed academies within the month.
And..." Eugene pauses, looking directly at my projection.
"Praestes Bardot, the Council formally requests that you attend the next session in person.
Virtual appearances are acceptable for emergencies, but your continued absence raises questions about your commitment to working with this body. "
It's a trap and I know it. Leaving Phoenix Sanctuary means leaving my mates vulnerable, leaving our students without their Praestes protection. But refusing will make me look like I'm hiding something.
"I'll consider it," I say carefully. "The safety of Phoenix Sanctuary must remain my priority, but I understand the Council's concerns."
The moment my projection ends, I collapse back in my chair. The exhaustion hits all at once, my power flickering like a candle in a storm. I've been fully engaged for hours, and the drain is worse than anything I've experienced before.
Stellan catches me before I hit the floor, his fire wrapping around me, warming me back to stability. "You did great. You held your ground."
"I compromised on everything." The words drag out of me, weak and bitter. "Council observers. Joint task forces. In-person appearances. Every time I think we've won, they find new ways to claw back control."
"That's politics." Ambrose's voice is gentle despite his own exhaustion. "You didn't lose today, Skye. You survived. Sometimes that's all you can do."
Jade curls into my lap, his demon form still manifested, his purr vibrating through both of us. "The Council can send all the observers they want. Once they see what Phoenix Sanctuary actually is, they'll understand we're not the enemy."
"Or they'll find excuses to shut us down." Harlow's death-sight flickers, showing him futures I can't see. "There are timelines where the observers help us. And timelines where they destroy everything."
"Then we make sure we end up in the right timeline." Rumi's divine essence spreads over all of us, his balance power easing the anxiety that's been coiling tighter since the session started. "We've beaten worse odds than this."
Their determination bleeds into me, mixing with my exhaustion. They believe in me. Believe in us. Believe that we can actually change the world.
I want to share their confidence. But the weight of twenty dead students and faculty presses down on me, the knowledge that more attacks are coming, that Dmitri's followers won't stop until we're destroyed or they are.
"We need to talk about Liz," I say quietly, changing the subject to something that's been nagging at me since her apology at the ceremony. "Harlow, you said there were futures where she helps us and futures where she destroys everything. What did you see?"
Harlow's expression grows troubled. "The timelines involving her are... unstable. Shifting constantly. Like she hasn't decided yet which path to take. Or like someone else is influencing her decisions."
"Dmitri." Stellan's fire flickers with anger. "She's his daughter. He could be using her to spy on us, to find our weaknesses."
"Or she could genuinely want to change," Rumi counters. "People do change. Even people from terrible families."
"We watch her," I decide. "Carefully. Give her the chance to prove herself, but don't trust her with anything sensitive. If she's genuine, she'll understand the caution. If she's not..."
"Then we deal with her," Jade finishes, his voice making the words sound more threatening.
Agreement trickles through the bond from all of them. We have too many enemies to take chances with potential threats inside our walls.
That night, all six of us collapse in our shared bed. I'm too drained to do anything except lie there, surrounded by the people I love, trying to convince myself that we're going to survive this.
"This is just the beginning, isn't it?" Stellan whispers into the darkness. "Dmitri's not going to stop. His followers will keep attacking. The Council will keep questioning. The violence will keep escalating until one side breaks."
No one answers. We all know he's right.
We've won battles, survived political attacks, defended our sanctuary. Exposed corruption. Changed the entire structure of Magila society.
But the war is far from over.
And I'm starting to wonder if we're strong enough to see it through to the end.