Chapter 13 #2
Soroush still hadn’t returned, and he wouldn’t—not until I left. Fine. I don’t need him. Guilia was a voracious reader, and I suspected she knew more than she let on.
Leaning closer, I lowered my voice. “Do you know anything that could give my husband and me an edge in Emberstone? Something Soroush wouldn’t share?”
Giulia moistened her lips. “Most of what might be helpful to you is in Emberstone, written in Old Ibarran. Some say the old gods in the Third Age devised the Skorn trial, but that’s all just myth as far as I’ve read.”
Curpiss. Old Ibarran. That was something I didn’t know how to read. My mother did, but she’d never taught me.
Moira frowned. “There’s an Old Ibarran?”
Giulia wrung her hands. “When the world flooded at the end of the Third Age and the people of the Old World came to Lirien by ship, they were a mix of cultures, languages, and races from a much larger continent. Old Ibarran was one of those languages.”
Moira’s eyes widened. I took for granted that my mother had educated me at home, teaching me the history of Lirien. Moira and Ciaran were lucky—at least their parents could afford tutors. Most Viori never had that luxury. “Was this before Vornfall?” she asked.
Giulia nodded. “Most of the Old World’s history was lost after the battle, entire continents and empires erased. Only scraps of the Old World remain, passed down as myths.”
“They’re not myths.” I crossed my arms. Giulia hailed from an Ambran background—she likely didn’t believe in the old gods. “Most of the old gods died in the final battle against the Oskir and dark forces of fae and monsters.”
I turned to Moira. “The surviving humans united under one common tongue and faith after Vornfall, with Solric, god of light, as the mightiest of the surviving gods. Ragnor Ederyn founded Lirien’s kingdom afterward, and was granted divine right.”
Giulia’s lips thinned, her eyes frosting with annoyance. “Then why don’t the gods have anything to do with us? Why abandon us when we fought for them? Really, Seren. You can pretend to be a scriptrix all you want, but you’re Vangar. Don’t confuse my pupils.”
I drew a slow breath. Because the gods no longer wanted to intervene directly. Because they gave their gifts to humans and the king then stole them from most people with the Bloodbinding. Moira should be taught this. Every Viori ought to know their history—it was what made our cause just.
But proving my knowledge wouldn’t win me an ally.
I pressed my lips together. “I’m not sure,” I said, my tone conciliatory. “It doesn’t make sense, does it? Maybe you could find out and tell me.”
After a moment, Giulia dipped her chin. “I’ll see what I can find out.”
“Thanks again,” I said, then offered her a smile before slipping away. My mouth could get me in more trouble. One of these days I’d fill in the blanks Moira’s educator refused to—or better yet, tell Ciaran to do it.
The repository encounter rattled me.
Every moment I waited, giving Seth more time to make his own moves. If I didn’t learn how to survive the Skorn, we’d be walking into a slaughter.
And if I swallowed my pride, maybe Darya had more information to share.
I wasn’t about to walk into Emberstone blind, and I wasn’t leaving my fate to chance. If I wanted to protect Rykr and myself, I needed a way to tip the scales in our favor—including learning if there was a way to break the bond that tied our pain, and our deaths, together.
Dusk bled into the sky as I headed back to my tent.
Rykr sat at the entrance, wrists resting on his knees, irons still locked around them. Red marks ringed the skin surrounding them. Underneath would be worse.
He looked exhausted.
“How’d it go?” Rykr asked as I reached him. I’d told him my plans before I left.
Not wanting to get into the obstacles I’d faced, I shrugged. “Fine. Got a few books. Since you can read, we should go through them tonight.”
I led him inside. “We don’t have to go to the festivities tonight. I can ask Tara to bring us food.”
Rykr lifted those piercing blue-green eyes toward me but when he blinked, it was as if he looked through me. Distant. Lost in thought.
“Rykr?” He didn’t seem well. Was it still the vuk’s bite—or the news about the king?
“Go without me. I have no appetite and want to be alone.”
His words shouldn’t bother me, but they did. He didn’t see us as allies or me as a friend to console him. Darya’s warning echoed in my mind—Seth would be watching. But I wouldn’t force him.
“You understand you won’t be able to wander without me—”
“Understood. I’m a prisoner until the Skorn. Until then, I’ll just enjoy the view of your ‘free’ people crucifying their enemies.” Bitterness laced every syllable.
Damn him.
I tried to remind myself that if the roles were reversed, I’d feel the same. But that didn’t make his contempt any easier to hear. Especially when I wasn’t sure if he was wrong.
When I didn’t answer, he stood and held out his wrists. “Any chance you’ll free me to be more comfortable while you’re gone?”
I pressed my lips tightly, the weight of the decision heavy on me. But trust wasn’t a luxury I could afford—not without proof he wouldn’t run.
“I can’t,” I said at last, keeping my voice steady. “Not yet. But I’ll find a way to make things easier for you if you give me time.”
“Right.” He shuffled toward the bedroll. “Your sister gave this to me.” Without warning, a dagger flew, burying itself in the post behind me with a soft thunk. My heart kicked hard in my chest. I forced myself not to flinch, meeting his gaze steadily, even as tension coiled tight in my shoulders.
“I figured you’d want it where you could see it. Don’t worry. I’m not planning to use it.” His words were calm, but the tension between us crackled.
Guilt twisted in my gut. I should let him out of the irons. Every time I saw the raw marks on his wrists, shame tightened its grip. But I didn’t just distrust him. I distrusted myself, too—my judgment was clouded where Rykr was concerned.
Before I could second-guess myself again, I left. I couldn’t afford to make another mistake, not with so many lives at stake. He didn’t deserve to be treated like a prisoner—not when he’d saved my life. But if I didn’t find a way forward soon, we’d both pay the price in Emberstone.