Thayla
“What?”
Yemi, Iric, Sevryn, and Doren avert their gazes from me as Rose rises from the table, collecting our plates.
“I’m going to step outside for a moment, then I’ll come back in and wash these up.”
“You don’t have to do that, Rose,” I say, focusing on her.
“I don’t mind at all. I’ll be back in a minute.”
She hurries from the kitchen and out the front door in a breath. I lean back in my chair and cross my arms as I stare the other four down.
“Obviously, tensions are too high for her. What are you four scheming?” I ask, narrowing my gaze on them.
“Will you three give us a minute as well, please?”
“We’re leaving in like two minutes, Yemi,” I say.
“I know. This conversation will only take a second.”
I grit my teeth as her guys leave, and she pins me in place with her stare.
She’s so annoyingly observant. I knew this conversation was coming.
“You put up another emotional barrier, Thayla.”
“So?”
“Why? And with who this time?”
I tear my eyes from her and glance off into nothingness.
“No, Thayla. The guys?”
“I don’t want to do this right now.”
“Please talk to me.”
A long, slow breath falls from my chest despite my battle to hold it in. Her soft plea slices me across the chest, though.
The next one I put up will be toward her.
Okay, no, I won’t, but still.
“The guys and Derivius.”
“I knew I sensed it this morning but couldn’t tell if your Chaos was playing tricks on me. Why? I warned you that emotional barriers—”
“I know what you warned me but…” I jump from the table and run my hands through my hair as I pace behind my chair. “It isn’t like the one that’s up for Mellcom. Even his isn’t working right.”
“Sevryn told me you hit him so hard this morning, you sent him through the barrier to the Abandon.”
I snort before I can stop myself.
“Okay, yes, I did do that, but I still feel emotions toward him. I still get angry and hate him when I look at him. The guys…”
My hands grip the back of the chair as I bow and shake my head.
“I had to do something. The hell I wanted to unleash.” I squeeze my eyes shut.
“If I didn’t put the barrier up, I wouldn’t be able to focus.
All I would think about is them, and those thoughts and emotions would run the show.
I can’t allow that right now. They need me. I can’t fall apart right now.”
Her chair scrapes across the floor and I don’t open my eyes as she stands beside me and runs circles around my back.
“You’re still feeling things strongly?”
I sigh.
“I wouldn’t say strongly, but definitely still feeling. It comes, then it’s like washed away. My mind still recognizes it, though.”
She hums as her rubbing slows. “When I put my barrier up between myself and my mom, I felt…nothing. Well, it was a cold detachment. After it was up for so long, it kind of bled into my personality.”
My attention snaps toward her, and my eyebrows jump up.
“It was your mom? That’s who you’ve had an issue with and what Iric’s been helping you work through?”
“Yeah.” She lets out a shaky breath. “Havar’s and my mom have always been adventurers at heart.
Once we were old enough to take care of ourselves, they’d hit the road for days at a time.
When Havar got chosen in the Veiling, I thought maybe they’d both stay around a little longer since I was alone, but that didn’t stop them. ”
She glares off to the side, then shakes her head before meeting my gaze again.
“The day of my Veiling, she didn’t come to the ceremony, so when I was chosen, the only eyes staring back at me were those of Havar’s and my friends.
Then, when I got home, I got there just in time for her to be heading out the door.
On to her next adventure. I told her I was chosen, and she said, ‘That’s great, honey, congratulations.
’ I was stunned, hurt, so, so many things.
I asked her if she realized this would be the last time she saw me, and she sighed like I was being dramatic.
She gave me a kiss on both cheeks and told me to enjoy my new adventure. Then she walked out the door.”
My mouth parts in shock while my blood heats on her behalf.
What the actual fuck?
“I’m so sorry, Yemi.”
“Thank you,” she says with a small smile.
“Anyways, I came here, and you know all the shit that happened. I would write her letter after letter, just venting. It made me feel better that I could talk to someone other than Havar about it. Then the next Veiling rolled around. I asked Havar to stop by if he could and check on them, see how they were.”
Her lips tighten, and her eyes water. My stomach drops.
“What?”
“She’d never opened a single letter. They were all sitting on the table right where I starshot them.”
A harsh breath falls from my lips and I shake my head in disbelief.
“That’s why you put the barrier up. To block out that hurt.”
“Yeah, and it worked wonders. I didn’t want to feel that. The barrier wasn’t healing anything, though. Just…hiding something that was never going to go away.”
She turns her gaze from me, and I get the picture loud and clear that she doesn’t want to talk about this anymore. So I nod. Even though she can’t see it.
“I’m not keeping this one up. Just long enough for me to get to them, then I’ll tear it down. I promise. Plus, like I said, I still feel plenty. It’s just dampening the emotions enough that I can actually breathe.”
“Okay.” She dips her head, accepting it even though she doesn’t want to. “Please just remember what I said. I also really wanted to make sure you didn’t put one up against everyone. We’re here for you.”
My head bobs up and down, and I give her a small smile.
“Thanks, Yemi.”
“Anytime. Now let’s go meet the good ol’ God of Creatures.”
A little laugh slips through my lips and my fingers uncurl from the back of the chair.
V files to my shoulder and nuzzles into my cheek as we make our way out my front door.
Sevryn, Iric, Doren, Lambrit, and Rose are already in the front lawn waiting for us.
Nero should still be in Valveilious, hopefully keeping his ears open for any rumors.
Havar is already at the meadows, waiting for us.
“I got to get back to Ellian, but I wanted to see you off. Rose is going to come with me since Yemi is going with you to the Meadorium instead of staying here alone, if that’s okay?” Lambrit asks as he squeezes me tightly.
“Of course it is. How’s everything going for you and Ellian?”
“Good. We’re getting things figured out. I swear.”
“Is anyone lined up to meet with me this afternoon?” I ask.
He casts a worried glance over at Yemi. “It’s looking like in the morning, Thay.”
I lock down the tremor attempting to slither across my skin.
The morning…
That’s pushing it really close.
“Okay.” I exhale. “That’s okay. We’ll make it work.”
I’m not sure if I’m trying to convince him, myself, everyone, but I continue to nod. Come sunrise, we’re working with a four-hour window to get the last remaining signatures, plus get to Valveilious and break the guys out. Then get to the Neutral.
It’s fine.
We’re fine.
I can…we can do it.
“Everyone who’s going, are you ready?” I ask.
Iric brushes his hand across Yemi’s as he steps beside Lambrit and Rose while Sevryn and Doren step closer to the two of us.
“Ready, V.”
His power washes over us and in less than a thought, we appear in front of the Meadorium in the meadows. The loss of his weight on my shoulder has me unconsciously rubbing on the spot he was sitting and glancing around.
“Where did you go?”
“I’m around, just unseen. Focus on what you need to do and I’m here if you need me.”
My eyes jerk toward Havar’s laugh and a small smirk crosses my lips.
The look fades fast.
It’s easy to point out who the God of Creatures is. He’s shirtless and his beautiful, ebony skin glistens in the sun. The multiple small creatures scampering up and down his arms and legs give that away.
I have no clue who the stunning goddess beside him is, though.
“Who is that?” I whisper to Yemi.
“No clue.”
“That would be the Goddess of Sound.” Doren leans in and murmurs.
“What is she doing here?” I ask him.
“That I do not know.”
I mean, she was on my list of Domain Gods, but I didn’t really consider her a true possibility. I honestly only added her because she made that poorly imitated sound of V’s hoot for Kyzen.
I didn’t know anyone with a connection to her that could invite her to meet me. I suppose Ellian could have, but he said he was focusing on the gods he thought carried the most weight.
“Ah, sir, this is the goddess the Prime and myself wanted you to meet,” Havar says as he finally notices us standing here.
My breath nearly hitches when the God of Creatures’ eyes flick to mine. They’re stunning in a hypnotizing way. I didn’t expect them to be…animalistic. The slitted shape of his pupils reminds me of a Spyvies.
“Otiero, God of Creatures. It’s very nice to meet you, Ms.—”
“Godrun. Thayla Godrun.”
“Ms. Godrun. This is Lyrica, Goddess of Sound. We had a prior engagement planned for the day before the Prime Veilatara reached out. I figured what better way to impress a lady than to have a stroll around a Veilatara meadow and introduce her to my fine creatures.”
The Goddess of Sound giggles a sweet, musical sound, and I force a smile through my clenched teeth.
I don’t like how he said his.
I see there’s a little romance brewing between these two, though.
“The meadow is stunning and it’s a gorgeous day, so you’ll more than likely see the younglings running around playing.”
“That surely will be a sight to see. So where is the Prime? And why did he want me to see?”
Very good question.
“Seismet? Verlet?”
“We’re on our way. Get ready.”
“Get ready for what?”
Everyone falls still as the ground beneath our feet trembles and my head slowly turns toward the echoing gallops. My lips part as not only Seismet and Verlet charge toward us, but the whole herd.
A quiet laugh huffs out of me as I take a step toward them.
“Whoa, Ms. Godrun. I wouldn’t advise that. The Veilatara are very wary of beings approaching them,” the God of Creatures says as he grips my elbow.