Torin #2
“Silas is like the wind; his thoughts blow in every direction,” Erevan grunts as his eyes roam the warriors.
We expect Silas to be waiting outside, but he’s entered uninvited. A glance at Erevan tells me he’s pissed, but he’s letting it slide since we must all stand united.
Silas has his back to us when we enter; his brown hair is pulled into a small braided bun.
His armor is made of leather crafted by the fae.
It stands no chance against the elves, but Silas is always the reckless one; his defense magic helps him create shields and veils that can deflect blows unless the attack is made with a God Sword.
“Making yourself at home,” Erevan jabs, rolling his eyes.
“This was never our home,” Silas fires back with a sneer. His palms are flattened on my desk as he looms over something of great interest.
Is he going over the maps again? None of us have forgotten our lands, but we continually drew maps to ensure the newcomers would not be lost to the great wonders of our world.
“I always had doubts,” Silas adds with a measured calm.
Erevan shuts the door and pulls me close to his side, keeping one foot placed ahead of me.
“We have gone over the battle plan numerous times, Silas,” Erevan sighs.
“Not of our return.” Silas turns, revealing what held his interest.
My book sits open on the desk. Shock freezes me; I look up at Erevan, whose eyes scan my belongings, which we planned to bring.
“You overstepped!” Erevan rushes forward, about to grab Silas by the neck. A blink of Silas’s eyes triggers his defense magic. Erevan’s hand hits a veil.
“Your steps have been far more treacherous, Erevan.” Silas’s eyes loom over us, full of judgment.
“I always doubted the runes were born naturally. They resembled Amariel’s designs too closely.
The lies you spun…” He flashes us a razor-sharp smirk.
“The others were enchanted by them. You used your magic on them!” His laugh is more of a hiss.
“They actually believed those designs were borne from your magic and that they resembled her art because you love her.
But I had my suspicions; that's why I shielded my mind when you spoke.”
The secret is finally out. “I had to make the runes in order to bring peace.” I step forward, but Erevan blocks me. “I needed to create a balance. And I did. We have our army.”
My palms sweat as I step out from behind Erevan.
“You are the imbalance, Amariel,” Silas seethes. His shields rise, fully covering him. “If I had it my way, you’d be dead. It’s your life that has disturbed everything. It can only be stilled when you die for your crimes. Only then can the requiems of war be sung.”
“And what of your crimes?” Erevan spits back.
I swiftly avert my gaze, wiping away my tears. It’s been centuries since the other gods cursed my hands and reminded me of what I made. Erevan’s correct; the deep-seated anger towards me will quickly escalate after we gain control over Attkris. Once the elven war is over, I’ll be their target.
“I never said I was without guilt.” Silas slides his cold glare to Erevan, speaking coldly.
Erevan closes his fists and slams them into Silas’s defensive magic. “Lower your shields and fight like a man,” he growls.
“You forget, I am no man. I am a god.” Silas chuckles when Erevan can’t touch him.
“We left those titles behind when we felt the kiss of death. You can be killed. Threaten her again, and I will be the one to slay you.”
“My debt to you is paid.” Silas’s smirk spreads slowly, then he points to my book of runes. “But that book will not be coming back with us.” His eyes narrow.
“It’s mine!” A precious gift that pulled me out of my depression. I lost my home and Lucian. That book gave me hope again.
“You lost the right to own anything!” Silas roars. “Your hands create nothing but tricks of death.”
“The swords were a mistake,” I cry. Erevan leaves my side, and from his belongings, he grabs his sword, the original blade I made for him. One of the last remaining God Swords in our possession. The sound of metal sliding against its sheath fills the air.
Yet Silas holds his ground. “You wish to kill me now? Do it.” He tips his chin high. “All your efforts will be lost,” he challenges.
We only have five God Swords here with us, but we all agreed they were too dangerous to bring back home, so we are leaving them here, gifting them to those who stay behind. Dragon fire has forged metal strong enough to withstand a few blows from a God Sword. Our armor and weapons are made from it.
However, there are still areas of vulnerability within its design. Should a God Sword pierce our flesh, we can still be slain.
“You cast a stone but forget your walls are made of air,” Erevan seethes. “It was you who first mated with a human, so do not speak to me of our old and new laws.”
Silas gave his sword away to his child last night. The first demigod. He bore children whom he will pass the sword down to, eventually. Erevan never confessed Silas’s name to us; it was Silas’s child who gave away his secret.
Silas’s eye twitches. “The book stays behind, with the swords. Both are too dangerous if the elves get their hands on them.”
Reaching out, I lower Erevan’s hand, aiming the sword at the ground. “I can not leave the book behind. What if they abuse the pages?” Endless pages.
“You should have thought about that before you forged it.” Silas crosses his arms; his eyes follow the tip of the sword as it presses into the stone floor.
“I created it,” Erevan admits.
“It makes no difference. You gave her the material to create yet another weapon, you fool!” Silas bites. “Love has weakened you.”
“And the loss of your love has hardened you,” Erevan bites back.
I heard whispers of what happened to the human Silas mated with. Age stole her from him. But… “It can change, Silas. With this book, I can create a rune for you to use, a rune to grant prolonged life, to bind a human to you. You could find love again.”
“I do not want love again! To you, love is a cut flower you trap in a vase; you admire it until it wilts, then replace it. I let my flowers grow untamed, refusing to confine them,” he roars.
My knees falter. Before I fall, Erevan grabs me. I urge my legs to stand tall, then I say, “Flowers wilt and perish, but you forget they have seeds. I have never forgotten Lucian. I fight for him even now.” I touch my heart, my chest caving in.
Silas leans forward, his voice but a hiss. “Your lips are unworthy of speaking his name.”
“That is enough, Silas!” Erevan hollers.
Silas tilts his head. “You got what you wanted, didn’t you, Erevan?”
Erevan exhales through clenched teeth. “What is that?”
Silas’s sly smirk feels like scissors cutting thread. I look from Erevan to Silas. The air electrifies, and I step between them. “Let’s stop arguing. Silas, I’m just trying to help. This book does that.”
He angles his head towards me, but for too long, he watches Erevan.
Finally, he speaks, “I don’t doubt your passion when you forge items. I doubt your foresight.
Rules, laws, and limits are still words you have not learned the definition of.
I can not allow that book or anything else you created to come with us. ”
Erevan's earlier warning hits home. Once this war has ended, they will all try to cage me. Stop me from using my magic.
My hands yearn for my book. “Your love was of this world, Silas. If I leave the book behind, you damn her lands. There will always be someone who seeks to abuse. They will find my book and tarnish the good the runes have made.”
“Then leave it here in these lands.” Silas stomps his foot.
“I will mask this kingdom with a veil of defense. Only the people we trust are here. Those who are staying behind are loyal. My veil will stop others from entering this land. If those inside wish to leave, they can, but the cost will be exile. The weapons we are leaving behind will be safeguarded. You are not the only god who is forced to leave her tools behind.”
“But what if it gets into the wrong hands…”
Silas aims an accusatory finger at me. “That’s the question you should have pondered before you drew the first rune.”
“What questions did you solve when you slept with the human? When she was pregnant with your child! You look down your nose at Erevan and I, but we were not the first to bring magic here! You were!” I shout back.
My heart hammers against my armor. “You are to blame for the evil that is growing here. The evil the Genesis unleashed to purge our magic from her lands. A evil that hunts us all down!” This new evil is why so many of the magical creatures here wish to leave and come to Attkris.
The only good is that its helped our army grow.
“How does it feel to know you started a war, Silas?” A menacing smile spreads over my lips. Our arrival on Panthas, did have repercussions. But that’s another war story we can’t take part in yet. I dread the day we do. It’s unnatural for a child to kill their maker — for a God to murder a Genesis.
Silas’s neck pulses. He blinks again. Erevan roars, fist pounding, but he can’t reach me. Silas traps me in his shield. I raise my hand, trying to calm Erevan.
Silas steps closer. I hold my ground.
“I asked myself if watching her die of old age would be worth the few years of happiness, of freedom from you all. I asked myself the price our world would pay if I didn’t return, if my absence disrupted the balance.
I asked. I answered. I paid the price. For our world!
I returned. I left my family behind for you.
For our history. You dwell on fixing the past. I look to the future.
That book will not be part of it, Amariel.
” He flicks his fingers, shoving me back into Erevan’s arms.
Erevan holds me tight. “I think of the future,” I whisper, voice broken.