65. Chapter Sixty-Five
Chapter Sixty-Five
Kya
R yker led me to an area on the other side of the Noavo base. With dusk having fallen, I could see light from a large fire flickering off the stone walls of the tents as we approached. I felt dozens of people surrounding it through my terbis, moving about from person to person.
“Are you nervous?” Ryker asked.
I glanced up at him with creased brows. “No. Why?” I swallowed the truth.
“Because you’re squeezing my hand awfully hard for someone who claims she’s not.” He gestured to our joined hands with a smirk.
“Oh.” I hadn’t even realized it, but my knuckles were white. I loosened my grip. “Sorry.”
“You have nothing to be nervous about. They’re all pretty nice,” he reassured. “Well, Niabi is a bit rough, but she comes around quickly.”
I huffed a laugh, appreciative of his attempt to ease my anxiousness. I knew I was just working myself up, but this was what I had been working so damn hard for.
Glancing down at my thin, emaciated body, I deflated internally.
This wasn’t what I imagined it would be like when I met my people again. I wanted to make a good impression, to show them I was worthy enough to protect them and make our Nation grow and thrive. Right now, I barely looked alive, let alone able to command the respect of a Nation.
No. You’re going to get your shit together. You didn’t do all of this to be beaten down. Because then, Daegel wins—all your enemies do. You’re going to show them who you are, not what you were reduced to. You’re a Worthy.
“Yes, you fucking are,” Ryker said, clearly having heard my thoughts. The prideful glint in his silver eyes had me holding my head a little higher.
I was glad we were connected in every way again, able to know what the other was thinking at all times. I wouldn’t keep anything from him anymore. Never again.
I shoved those insecurities down, deep beneath the surface. I may not have been proud of how I looked but I wasn’t about to meet them looking weak and acting timid. I would show them why I was deemed Worthy by Kleio, and why I was also worthy of them.
We emerged from the tent line where a large pile of timber burned, illuminating the night and the dozens of people standing around it.
They all stopped as Ryker and I approached hand in hand. I continued to hold my head high despite their scrutinizing stares.
Nikan broke from the group and came to meet us with a wide smile on his face. He grabbed for my hand, and Ryker let go of my other one as Nikan led me forward. They all gathered closer—Malina as well—and Nikan stopped us in front of them.
“Everyone,” he began. “This is Kya. Ataran by birth, born from Otoka and Kaiyana of Asha, Roav of Morah, mate to the Lord of Oryn,” his voice boomed over the silent crowd with only the sound of the crackling fire between his words. “Deemed the first Worthy of Kleio, Lady of Atara.”
I didn’t move, but I met each and every one of their stares, memorizing every face.
Malina stepped in front of everyone and approached until she stood directly before me. She reached around the back of my head and unwound my braid so my hair fell loose. Then she reached beneath her own and pulled a feather from a braid behind her ear. Her hands came up to the top of my head as she wove the feather into my hair, displayed on the side.
“You have earned this honor, Kya,” she whispered with a shine in her eyes. She stepped to the side revealing the Atarans lined up behind her.
One by one, I greeted them. I listened to each of their names and learned their faces, attaching them to my memory. I would not forget a single one of them. Each of them came up and pulled a feather from their hair and braided it into mine around the crown of my head and down the length of the strands.
Having a single feather braided into the hair was an honor reserved only for those who were initiated as citizens of Atara. The only ones who had ever had a flowing crown of feathers were those chosen to be Lord or Lady of Atara. And I was the first Worthy to have that honor. This was their symbol of acceptance, an extension of their welcome in the highest accord.
Ryker stood off to the side with Hakoa, watching the ceremonial tradition take place with a soft smile on his lips.
Nikan approached me, and I closed my eyes, taking a deep breath as he braided the final feather in my hair. “Eamon was right, you know.”
I opened my eyes. “About what?”
He smiled broadly and leaned in close to whisper so only I could hear, “Your title describes you. ”
I huffed a laugh as tears welled in my eyes. “When did you get so sentimental?”
He kissed my forehead. “When you became the master of your own fate, overcoming it against all odds.”
I shrugged. “Or it’s because you’re getting old.”
He sighed dramatically. “Yeah, it could be that too.”
“One last thing,” Malina said as she walked up with a male I remembered was called Luthon.
He held a small bowl of black paint in his hands. “Welcome to Atara, Lady Kya.”
He lifted his paint covered fingers to my face, and my breath caught as I closed my eyes. His hand spread the paint in a straight line across my eyes from temple to temple. When he was finished, and I felt him step back, I lifted my lids and my breath caught.
All of the Atarans were bowing before me.
I glanced over to Ryker. He and Hakoa also bowed at the waist.
“Come here, my shadow,” I called down the bond.
He didn’t hesitate and walked over to me. I smiled up at him and took his hand.
“You are my mate. We do this together,” I said resolutely. “We’re here for them. They deserve the same respect they offer us.”
He nodded with a proud grin.
And for the first time in history, the people were given the same respect as Ryker and I—two mated Worthy, Lord and Lady—bowed to the people of Atara.
It was a powerful moment, one I would never forget as my bent body represented my life and loyalty to my people.
But the moment was short-lived.
I felt one of the Noavo warriors rushing toward the group. “Chief Hakoa,” he called .
Ryker and I rose, glancing over to the male as he leaned in to speak quietly with Hakoa. Hakoa listened for a moment before his eyes widened and snapped over to Ryker.
Ryker stiffened a moment later.
“What is it?” I asked, seeing the concern on their faces.
Ryker slowly turned to face me with a grave look in his eyes. “The other Nations are almost here.”
My heart stopped as I waited for him to say the dreaded words.
“The War of the Worthy is about to begin.”