39. Chapter 39
Chapter 39
Viola
M ace and I struggle to our feet, throwing our clothes on as quickly as possible. Amaryn's laugh is tinkling, a soft bell-like sound, as she watches us flounder.
"Oh, don't get dressed on my account. I got here some time ago. I appreciated the show." She flicks her wavy blonde hair over her shoulder, revealing wide, pointed ears just like mine have become. Her face has a slightly pinched look, her nose upturned a bit on the end. Her top lip is thin, but her bottom one is full, an unbalanced look that somehow makes her more beautiful. Her eyes are the rich green of a healthy leaf, her skin slightly pink with a fertile glow. She wears a dress of vines and flowers on her thin, willowy frame. She's short, probably barely reaching my chest, but her presence is huge.
Amaryn, the Bloomtide, the God of Spring.
"Amaryn," I say, stepping forward. "I am glad to have you here."
She smiles without showing her teeth. "What an interesting way you two decided to bring me back. I'm just trying to figure out what the sacrifice here was."
Clearly, she didn't spend her time watching the realm for entertainment like Avidor did. Mace steps forward and bows his head. "Viola sacrificed a part of herself that she kept hidden from everyone. A trauma that she never wanted to surface."
"You rewrote her trauma? A rebirth? Is that right?" She swings her head to me, and I nod. Searching within myself, I can see she's right. There is no erasing the past and the effects that man had on me so long ago, but Mace has given me control of the situation for the first time, and that alone has healed a part of me I thought was so scarred it was hopeless.
"No wonder it worked then," Amaryn says with a smile. "I am the God of rebirth, after all."
"We're glad you're here, Bloomtide," I say. "We have much to discuss about your brother, Himureal. Solarius and Avidor are waiting for us in Rainworth."
"All of my brothers are here?" she says, her gaze darting between all of us. "Why am I the last to be brought back?"
Mace and I share a look. There is no real reason why we brought her back last. But Mace speaks. "Viola's high priest -"
"I'm sorry, your what?" she says, whipping her head towards me.
"My high priest," I say, raising an eyebrow at me. "You must know that I am the one who found your artifact, right? That I absorbed the power of yours as I did all your siblings?"
"Are you saying you're a God as well?" she spits, her cute face twisted in anger and jealousy. "That you just stole our magic and became a God?"
"I stole nothing," I say, clenching my fists. "I accidentally absorbed the magic from Himureal's artifact, and then when I summoned him, and he was a fucking lunatic, I went in search of the other seeds to bring the rest of you back. Imagine my surprise when I absorbed the magic from each of the artifacts."
"This was not supposed to happen!" she screeches, stomping her foot like a petulant child. "No one was supposed to get the power in the artifacts. It was there to power the rituals, and you stole it!"
"As I just said, I stole nothing! I didn't ask for this. I didn't want this. But now you've got me. And we have to work together to balance the realm and get rid of Himureal because he's killing fae who do not worship him, and I have no doubt he'll move on to humans next."
"Fae? Who gives a fuck if he kills fae?" she says, turning her back to me and stomping out of the woods towards Rainworth. "They're just humans who stole our magic. Our magic. It was never theirs to begin with." Mace and I take off after her, marveling at her attitude and how fast she can move for such a small woman. "What the fuck has happened to this realm while I was gone?"
"Listen, maybe you just need some rest. But once you do, the four of us will go and get rid of Himureal, and I will take his place. I am most comfortable with my Winter magic as it is." I finally catch up to her, and she sneers at me, shaking her head.
"You're not in charge here anymore, little God. I will be making the decision on how we will continue." She drags her eyes up and down my figure, tsking and shaking her head. "It's a shame I cannot take my power back from you. All four have somehow molded together inside you."
We reach the edge of the forest, where Zeph sits, half asleep, propped against a tree under the moonlight. He hears the noise and scrambles to his feet. "Shadowweaver!" he says, looking first at me and then at the Bloomtide. "It worked?"
"Yes, high priest," I say, trying to communicate with my eyes that the situation is not a good one. "We must get back to Rainworth at once and get the other Gods together and develop our plan." Zeph drops back next to Mace and I see them whispering to one another out of the corner of their mouths, so I try to distract Amaryn from the conversation by getting her talking.
"I know this isn't when or how you expected to return," I say placatingly.
"That is an understatement," she snarls, hustling up the hill. "My high priest betrayed me, my magic was stolen, and the first thing you want me to do is destroy my brother? On your word alone?"
"Not mine. I have several here who have witnessed his cruelty."
"I will need to see it with my own eyes before I believe you over my own kin," she spits at me. "I do not know you. I do not trust you."
"What reason do I have to lie? What does that accomplish? What goal will I reach through it?"
"I don't know. All I know is this cannot and will not happen without my say." She spins and looks at me, poking a finger in my chest. "You may be used to being in charge, little God, but I am here now, and you will answer to me."
"All of you, shut the fuck up!" I yell over the cacophony of arguments taking place simultaneously in the dining hall. I look at everyone from my place on top of a table and rest my fists on my hips. "You guys," I say, pointing at Tulip, Jaz, Morrow, Plume, and Mace, "quit purposefully antagonizing. Sit down, shut up. Your opinions will be taken into account, but right now, the other Gods and I need to work through this."
My friends roll their eyes but sit, all in varying shades of red from their impassioned conversations. "Zeph," I say, looking at my high priest, who stands silently on the floor beside the table I have perched upon. "Go get Taegan and Cirrha so they can share their experiences." With a nod, Zeph leaves the hall, and I look at Avidor, Solarius, and Amaryn.
"You three," I say, stepping off the table and approaching them. "We need to have a mature conversation and come up with a plan."
"I told you you weren't in charge here," Amaryn sneers.
"Shut up, sister," Avidor says, rolling his eyes. "All of this posturing is exhausting. Just listen to what the Shadowweaver has to say."
"Oh, she has a title now, does she?"
"Himureal gave it to her," Avidor replies with a shrug .
Amaryn throws her hands up. "Of course he did! He always had no respect for the hierarchy."
"She also has a high priest and devotion," Solarius says in his deep, rich voice. "Something none of the rest of us have yet. Your refusal to accept her as a God is embarrassing, Bloomtide."
Amaryn huffs, throwing her hands up. "Are you both so enchanted by her that you cannot see that she is nothing but a little thief? She stole your magic."
"The way I see it, we wouldn't be here without her," Avidor replies, sinking down to sit at the table in front of him. "I consider it payment for getting to have a life. Besides, if you'd kept watch over the realm instead of doing whatever the fuck you were doing in your banishment, you'd know Viola is telling the truth. Himureal is a threat we must vanquish."
"He's slaughtering any who do not follow him," Solarius says, joining his brother at the table. "How are any of us to have worshippers if he kills anyone who is not aligned with him?" I wrinkle my nose. Solarius has a one-track mind that leads only to the goal of having as many followers as possible to increase his strength, and it doesn't sit right with me. I'm reminded of the story Himureal told of why he was banished in the first place.
Zeph has managed to piece together from the journals that Himureal most likely was telling the truth, but we don't have confirmation for sure. I should ask, should find out if Himureal's story is what actually happened.
But what if it was?
What if I brought back Gods who want nothing more than to force humans to worship them for their own power?
Mace and I lock eyes, and it's immediately clear that he's having the same thought as me. But what choice did we have? I could not kill Himureal on my own.
Could I?
Fuck.
Fuck.
Now that I have the magic of all the Gods, I would stand a good chance against him. He is deteriorating mentally, and he always did see the best in me. Maybe I could have done this without them.
My heart rate increases, and I feel myself panicking. My fingers drum on my thigh but do nothing to help me center and steady my breathing. The Gods continue to argue around me, their words a blur that I barely understand. Mace is at my side, hand on my lower back, pulling me into his side and whispering in my ear. "Breathe, Viola. In and out," he coaches me.
"What did we do?" I say quietly so only he can hear me. "Was Himureal right? Do they seek only to force humans to worship them?"
"Until Amaryn came around, I would've said no," Mace says, his lips barely moving as we both keep our eyes on the Godly trio. "But I'm not feeling great about what's happening here."
"We didn't have a choice, did we? Could I have taken Himureal on my own?"
"Maybe?" Mace answers honestly. "I don't know, and I wouldn't have let you risk it. None of us would've." His hand finds the back of my neck, and he squeezes. Our friends have noticed his treatment of me, and when they look at me, I see that their faces are all a mixture of shock and horror at the conversation going on in front of us.
"We do not need Himureal or the little God!" Amaryn is shouting, waving her arms.
"You will not harm Viola!" Avidor shouts, standing up. "We owe her our lives. Without her, we'd still be imprisoned outside of the realm."
"I agree," Solarius says in a practiced and subdued tone. "Let's get rid of Himureal and get things back to normal."
Their voices drop again, overlapping one another. I sway on my feet, exhausted from the emotional turmoil of the ritual, my back and body aching from the rough treatment it got. Mace drags his hand down my back, and the feel of it is like he lit me on fire. I wince away from the touch, and he swears. "Your back?" he asks, lifting the back of my shirt and cursing again. "Plume, get over here."
"Fine!" Amaryn is shouting, huffing, and crossing her arms. "We get rid of Himureal, allow the Shadowweaver to take up the mantle of Winter, and then we get on with our lives."
"I'm glad you're speaking sense now," Avidor says with an eye roll. He looks at me, and his brow wrinkles, watching as Plume, who just made her way to me, pulls my shirt off. "What's wrong?"
"Small injury," I say, laying face down on the table beside me as Plume cuts through the back of my chest wrap with one of the blades I purchased way back in Dalery. With my words, all three Gods walk over, crowding around us.
"Give me some space, please," Plume says politely as she rubs her hands down my back, healing the rips and tears in my flesh. But her hands drop from me quickly, and she gasps, stumbling away from me.
I look back and see Amaryn standing beside her, Plume's eyes trained on the God. "My… my magic," Plume whimpers. "My magic is gone."
I sit up quickly just as Zeph enters the room with Cirrha and Taegan, but I don't care that everyone has a view of my breasts at this moment.
"What do you mean your magic is gone?" I hiss.
Zeph's eyes grow wide, and he rushes to my side, putting a hand on my elbow. I can immediately tell he's filtering devotion into me, bolstering me in case there is a need to fight.
"She… she touched me while I was Healing you, and it's gone!" Plume sobs, burying her face in her hands.
My eyes burrow into the Bloomtide, who at least has the decency to look ashamed.
"I had no idea that would happen!" she says, hands clutched in front of her chest. "I was just so curious to see another wielding my magic. I didn't know touching her would remove it!" She looks at all of us, eyes wild, pleading. "You must believe me. I never would have done that on purpose!"
"Then give it back!" Jaz says, breaking into the group. "Give her her magic back!"
"It doesn' t work that way," Avidor says sadly. "The magic the fae have came from the sudden departure of the Gods and is a result of all of the devotion for us having no place to go. It cannot be returned."
"So you mean to say I'm… human?" Plume gasps, her face swollen and splotchy from her tears. She stumbles backward, hands shaking and eyes wide. "I'll never have magic again?" Jaz wraps their arms around Plume, pulling her against their chest. If looks could kill, Jaz would level the room at this moment.
"My child," Amaryn says, stepping closer to Plume.
Jaz wraps her tighter and spins their body, making themself a shield between the two. "Stay the fuck away from her!"
Amaryn sighs, dropping her arms to her side. "I never meant to bring you harm. I am so, so sorry."
Her words speak of sincerity, but a part of me does not believe it. Her posture, her eyes, and her tone all beg forgiveness; all point towards this being an accident. The look of horror on Solarius and Avidor's faces supports the theory that this was an accident.
But the magic that lives within me does not believe her.
Shadow comes crawling out from under a table and wraps himself around my chest, covering my breasts like a chest wrap. He's definitely bigger than the last time I saw him, and I am appreciative of the covering even if having a snake for a shirt feels quite odd.
Zeph squeezes my elbow, and I look at him. He shakes his head imperceptibly, letting me know he doesn't believe this either. Mace, Cirrha, Taegan, and Morrow have plastered themselves to the wall, keeping their distance from the Gods in hopes of preserving their magic.
Jaz escorts Plume from the room, her sobs echoing through the space as she leaves. Amaryn looks at me, her face contrite and full of sadness that smells artificial. "I am so sorry this happened, Shadowweaver. It was never my intention."
"We'll need to figure out why it happened," I say tightly, ignoring the way Zeph's fingernails dig into my flesh. "This is not something that can continue to happen. When we get to Ytopie, there are only fae, and if they believe they could lose their magic to you, they will not come anywhere near you, much less pledge devotion to you."
The Bloomtide ducks her head, clasping her hands in front of herself, a picture of submission that is so at odds with the fuming woman who was here just moments ago. "I will work to figure out why."
"For now, get some rest," I say as a way to dismiss her. "Your body is getting used to being back in the realm. We can reconvene in the morning to finish planning." Slowly, everyone leaves the hall except Mace and Zeph. The brothers look at me expectantly.
"There's no way that was an accident," Mace says, snarling. "I do not buy that for a second."
"Me neither," Zeph agrees, finally dropping my elbow.
"We need to find out how and why this happened," I say, keeping my voice low. "We're now down a fae. We need all the magic we can get in the coming days."
"Zeph is incredibly stealthy." Mace turns to his brother, crossing his arms on his chest. "I cannot tell you the number of times I caught him spying as a child. And there is that very memorable time we learned he was spying as an adult."
The tips of Zeph's ears turn red as he rubs the back of his neck. His tattoo, the black geometric design enhanced with red and bright blue, stands out more as the flush spreads to his neck. "I did apologize for that, right?"
"Let's not talk about it," I laugh. "None of us need to relive that."
Zeph clears his throat. "I will spy on them. I'll find out just how purposeful that was and what the plan is." He looks at the door where everyone left, his eyes glistening. "Fuck, Plume must be devastated. I need to go to her and see if she's okay."
"She's with Jaz," I tell him, placing a hand on his forearm. "I believe they may have the beginnings of a romantic relationship blooming."
"Plume? In a relationship? I thought she…"
"I thought that too. But just because she doesn't desire sex doesn't mean she doesn't desire love. There seems to be something between the two of them. Let Jaz support Plume in this moment. Seeing you, with your magic, may be too hard for her."
Zeph must know I'm right because he nods, running his hand through his auburn hair. "Fuck!" he shouts. "Fuck! This is a nightmare!"
"I agree," Mace drawls. "This is not good at all."