Chapter 36
CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX
DRYSTAN
I’ve found a boy. Street urchin, and deaf, but shows the signs.
Drystan – Between Threads
The twisting pressure of the jump eased as rays of sunshine exploded before my eyes. My consciousness ebbed as the expenditure of power hit me…from transporting two humans and a massive horse. I’d done it…
Where had I taken us?
Water sparkled in the distance, and the loamy scent of fresh-caught fish and decaying bait surged into my nostrils. My head lolled, and I leaned forward against Ezrich’s bleeding form as my vision receded.
Tempest stiffened. Her head jerked upright as a shadow formed overhead, and the reverberating beats of something large thudded against the ground. A heaviness fell on me, and darkness beckoned as my weight shifted to the side. My legs slid around Tempest’s waist as I began to fall.
Hands gripped my shoulders on the way down, and a fog clouded my vision before I yielded to the darkness.
A pounding headache drew me from sleep, and I blinked my eyes open to a dim room. I jerked upright. My heart hammered as I pulled my spectacles off the bedside stand and shoved them up my nose.
I scanned the unfamiliar room, slipping my legs off the edge of the downy bed, draped in a softly knit, navy blue quilt.
When was the last time I slept in a room this nice?
My pack and blade rested next to the black armoire in the corner.
My feet slipped into their boots, and I snatched my things before inching to the window, slowly drawing the curtain back.
Vivid green hills dotted with towering, cedar and willow trees rolled in the distance.
A large lake sat at the bottom of two, and a pasture of horses and goats connected to the stables in the rear.
I closed the curtain and quietly moved to the tall, mahogany door, a spike of fear coursing through me at the possibility it might be locked.
The golden metal handle twisted, and I blew out a breath. I slowly pulled the door open, its creak enough to whine through the handle I held. I paused, watching for shadows, before opening it enough to slip through.
I stepped into the brightly lit hall and jumped as three small forms barreled into me. My hand flew to my dagger, but I paused as my eyes landed on children. They shouted some words at me, smiles stretching across their clean faces, before racing down the hall.
Where the hell am I?
A shadow appeared at the end of the hall, and I flattened against the side of the wall, hidden behind the edge of an open door. Movement followed, and I heaved a sigh as Raek and Vulcan rounded the corner.
Vulcan snapped his scarred face in my direction before going still.
Nothing gets past him. I chuckled as I stepped into the light.
Vulcan’s shoulders relaxed, and I clocked the hand he dropped from Raek’s chest. The elf’s lips kicked up just enough to qualify as a small smile on the ex-War Slayer.
“Welcome to Votruvia,” he signed, striding forward. “Ezrich is in the healing quarters. You’re at Eghan House, Lord Astraeus’s home.”
Tempest stood ramrod straight in the pasture, the early summer sunshine highlighting the dappled gray spots on her flank. I wasn’t sure why I felt the need to check on her before finding Lyvia, but once I’d seen Ezrich alive and healing in the infirmary, I made my way to the stables.
Tiberius stood across from her in some apparent staring contest. Their ears were pinned back and heads high. She tracked me as I neared, and Tiberius finally turned a big head toward me.
I reached a hand forward and patted Tempest’s side, her demeanor softening just slightly.
Tiberius backed up a step, and I caught shadowed movement beyond the stables. Lyvia’s caeluma clomped through the grass, and I followed until a valley dotted with lacey flowers spread behind the building.
I paused, blinking at the sight.
Lord Astraeus’s blue coat was slung over a fence, and he lobbed a leather ball into the air. A spotted hound darted after it, and just as the pirate lord began to turn around, a small child leaped onto his back.
Red hair bounced as he reached back for the little girl’s legs and swung her around into his arms, spinning in a circle.
What the actual fuck?
Movement drew my eye to the bales of hay stacked against the stables. Lyvia’s eyes closed as she threw her head back in laughter. Her hands were wrapped around another small hound on her lap. My lips kicked up into a smile.
Gods, when was the last time I’d seen my friend this happy? Had I ever seen her look like that?
I stepped into the light, and the pirate lord whipped around to face me.
Lyvia sprang to her feet, the small pup bouncing off as she sprinted toward me.
A wave of unobstructed joy slammed into me, the emotions soaring down a mental connection that had, in some ways, always been there.
A connection that had formed through years of friendship, now solidified through powerful magic.
I sent my own relief at finding her alive and happy back down our Bellator bond, and she crashed into my chest.
Isla slipped her arm through mine and gave my bicep a squeeze.
Her nose crinkled as she grinned up at me, and I couldn’t help but smile back at the warmth she emanated.
We made our way to the dining room of Eghan House after a few long-awaited reunions.
Lyvia and the others had finished bringing me up to speed and… Holy fuck.
The Vael Lacrima had opened. The Embodied were coming for us. Lyvia had gone to Tynan’s Hell to bring back Astraeus, and the two seemed to have…bonded, to say the least.
My eyes skipped to the smile on Lyvia’s face as we entered the room. The pirate lord lingered near her, his arm brushing hers as he pulled her chair out. While their pairing left me confused—pretty sure she hated the man last I checked—Gods, I was so happy for her.
I stomped out the pang of envy that entered my chest at their union. Not envy of the pirate lord… No, I’d never see Lyvia in that light. She’d always been too close to a sister. But envy at the love so clearly connecting the two.
Isla moved to the window and threw the floor-to-ceiling curtains wide, and a bright line of light cut across the dark table, diffusing my thoughts.
I’d divulged everything that had happened in Sultira since, informing them of the massive rubelline Mount Telum had become and detailing the terrifying sand serpents we ran into at the edge of the Harena Desert.
And finally, that High Priest Helmar still lived.
Lyvia’s eyes had darkened and her olive skin had paled by several shades as I was sure she recalled our harrowing time in Stynguard.
Aeriden’s hand clapped on my shoulder in greeting as he scraped the chair out from next to me and took a seat.
“Wait until you see what we found,” he signed, a wry grin forming on his face. “It’s right up your alley.”
I looked to Lyvia and arched a brow. She rolled her eyes at her brother and shrugged. Lord Astraeus moved forward and rolled a long, strange-looking scroll across the table.
I adjusted my spectacles and leaned forward to examine the material. The raised slices triggered something in my memory.
“Skin,” I signed with certainty.
“You figured it out faster than we did,” Lyvia replied, nodding. “The Lock Scroll, we think.”
“And the key?” I asked, looking to Isla.
Astraeus stood and removed an ornate, crystal decanter from the serving cart in the corner. I raised a brow in confusion.
“You’ll find answers ‘when new life waters ancient hide,’” Lyvia recited Tynan’s instructions.
New life…
I examined the contents once more. The dark, thick liquid coated the sides of the decanter as it shifted. Blood.
“We wanted to wait until you woke up to try this,” Isla continued, nodding to Astraeus.
The pirate lord carefully lifted the decanter of blood, dribbling the smallest amount over the scarred hide. The air in the room stilled, our breaths held, as the blood followed an invisible spell, rivers of it sliding over the hide.
I suppressed a gasp as the scars peppering the ancient skin began to move, shifting and twisting into new patterns. Some changed in size and shape entirely. Astraeus emptied the container, the entire hide now covered in the thick, coagulated liquid.
Patterns twisted and writhed on the hide, the movements becoming faster and the symbols smaller until finally, the scars stilled.
Isla’s hand had clasped over her mouth, and the five of us leaned forward.
Three rows of small script sprawled across the skin, and I blew out a breath of awe as I realized the ancient scars had not only reordered themselves into words but translated them into three different languages.
Lyvia’s hands moved quickly.
“The common tongue, Elvish and Old Votruvian,” she said, the familiar excitement of a discovery widening her eyes as she scanned the languages.
“How the hell—” Aeriden began.
“It’s the blood,” Isla answered as she examined the hide.
“The blood is the key. The four of us who filled that decanter…the hide somehow recognized our blood, our heritage, and translated the scars into a language we’d be able to read.
Unbelievable… This is like nothing I’ve ever seen before. This is fascinating magic…”
Aeriden and I stood, moving to the opposite side of the table to read the text.
“I think we start here,” Lyvia began, her finger moving to the center of the hide, where eight symbols stretched across the top. “These are the Embodied powers. The Bellator powers.”
Eight names and titles were scratched in scars below each symbol:
Aelius Soleia, harnesser of suns. Fire and flame bow to his name.
Rinla Ramadiel, master of affliction. Of remedy and blight, unmatched power and might.
Krunas Aeterna, extender of life. Immortality and power will make the worlds cower.
Meili Advetis, traveler of worlds. Distance and time walk a fine line.
Herrah Celestyn, commander of orbs. To shatter or shift, a world of power, the ultimate gift.
Tynan Obscura, bringer of death. Shadows and night bend to his might.
Renova and Ganmira Transcindiel, twins of the moon. Change and rebirth may cost more than they’re worth.
Sintarrak Palaega, weaver of dreams and thief of thoughts. Conquer the mind, and they shall fall blind.
The Advetis stood at attention as I read Meili’s line, recognition and memory flickering in the sensation of power that washed over me.
“These are the names of the Embodied,” Isla said.
“But why are some of them crossed out?” Aeriden asked.
Lyvia stilled, and I whipped my head at her. Color had leached from my friend’s face, and I noted the hand Astraeus slipped to her lower back. Her head shook slightly, the loose ebony waves of her hair swaying.
“Tynan said Sintarrak, the Impostor Messenger, was patient… That he’s been planning this for thousands of years. He sired the Starling race so they could literally steal power from the other gods… He wanted to weaken the other Embodied…”
Astraeus’s head dipped and his brows creased as he nodded softly. “He didn’t just want to weaken them,” he continued for Lyvia. “He wants them dead. He wants their power. He wants to be the One God.”
Understanding sunk in.
“The Embodied whose names are crossed out here,” she continued, her eyes drifting back to the ancient hide, “are dead.”