Chapter 13
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
PHOENIX
Ifollow Noire deeper into the tunnels that loom under the castle. We walk in silence, his robes flowing behind him.
I’m keenly aware of my two Ezkai guards. Do they know where we’re headed? What’s about to happen? I guess they do, if it’s a custom for every Ezkai General to go through it.
Something in my chest tightens. I rub the middle of it, as if that could help ease tension.
Everything is happening so fast. Vera’s kidnapping, Caligos scheming, the laws, the blood debts, and now this…My mind is running a thousand miles an hour.
We descend a couple of floors deeper, and I recognize the corridor here. It’s a bit brighter, with less doors. We pass the massive stone door to the room where the Trial of Wisdom took place. My stomach lurches, but Lorca doesn’t stir.
After another couple of minutes, we reach another door I recognize. Behind it lies the Well, source of all Decarios power. Immediately my steps halt as the memory of lifeless bodies floating in the ethereal water surges to the front of my mind.
Cool seeps into my bones. I flex my hands, trying to keep the weird panic at bay. Will I ever get used to this part of Ekios? The unknown of the otherworldly?
“General?” Noire’s voice snaps me out the trance.
I blink, and focus my gaze on him. He looks worried.
I clear my throat and give him a sharp nod. “I’m okay, Noire. Let’s go.”
Right then, the double door opens and a monk wearing long crimson robes appears. His face looks familiar, but I’m not sure if it’s the same person I met during the Culling. My mind may be playing tricks on me.
He bows at the waist to me. “General.”
I nod at him in acknowledgment and follow him inside. Once I step through the doorway, I realize Noire and my Ezkai follow me. I glance at them over my shoulder in question.
“I’ll be right here, waiting,” Noire assures me.
Before I can reply, the double door closes with a heavy thud. I’m sealed inside the Well room with four monks. I swallow the ball that rises in my throat and roll my shoulders.
I don’t think.
I don’t feel.
I simply am.
An unmoving mountain.
With an exhale, I approach the Well. The ethereal water is just as disorienting as I remember it, the strings of different shades of blue weaving together as if they’re alive.
It takes every ounce of my willpower not to freak out.
“Please remove your leathers, General,” the monk instructs me.
My head whips towards him. I must look as bewildered as I feel because the monk gestures at the Well and says, “The ritual will take place inside the Well, General. It’s a custom for the Ezkai General to take an oath in their most natural form.”
Mm-hmm, most natural form. I manage not to roll my eyes and start stripping. The monks respectfully do not look, and once I shimmy my leather pants down and step out of them, three of them are already inside the Well.
They get to keep their robes on and I don’t? I scoff inside my mind.
With an exhale, I try to rid myself of my annoyance. The walls I’ve built around myself to contain everything I don’t want out in the world are close to crumbling. I can feel it. Yet, there’s not much I can do.
I thought being the Ezkai General, having the power I lacked, would give me control. But I’ve never felt so out of control in my whole damn life.
It’s like sand between my fingers, slipping away no matter how hard I clutch.
Tears burn the backs of my eyes and the tip of my nose tingles. I blink rapidly and bite the inside of my cheek to keep them at bay.
Life’s hard. Toughen up.
“General, we’ll start whenever you’re ready,” the monk says.
I glance at him and nod. Slowly, I descend the wide stairs into the Well. Second time around, the experience is not much more comfortable.
It’s odd, seeing my body submerge into water that feels nothing like water. The tendrils swirl around me, enveloping me in a blanket of all hues of blue.
The three monks standing in the Well extend their arms, welcoming me in their embrace. I glance at the fourth monk behind me. He gives me an assuring nod and follows the steps down into the Well.
Bracing myself, I approach the monks. I try not to flinch when their hands land on my shoulders, turning me around so I face the fourth monk. Only now do I notice him holding an amber glass bottle in one of his hands.
“Today, you stand in the Well and swear the Ashen Oath to the spirits of the gods and people of Ekios. The ultimate show of your undying loyalty to people who trust you to lead them into a better future, to protect them from harm,” the monk says, lifting the amber bottle in the air between us.
My pulse races, but I steady my breathing. The hands on my shoulders and back push me down. My first instinct is to fight the pull, but I force my knees to bend.
I don’t expect them to push my head under the water. But they do.
My lungs seize, lips parting as a scream rises out of my throat—
But I’m not choking on the water. I’m not drowning.
I’m floating, light as a feather. I close my mouth and open it again, trying to understand what’s happening. But I can’t wrap my head around the sensation of warm tendrils caressing my naked flesh.
There’s oxygen. I can breathe.
Before I can understand how that’s possible, the same hands pull me up. When I emerge, I’m soaked in water, my wet hair clinging awkwardly to my face. I cough, my chest burning.
“Swear the oath, General, and let it burn a path inside you,” the monk says, still holding the bottle between us. “Repeat after me: I stand before ash and witness. Before fire that remembers what blood forgets.”
I do as he says, words spilling from my lips without hesitation.
“I renounce the claim of lineage. I sever the future that would bear my name. Let no child rise from my flesh, nor legacy bind me beyond my duty,” he continues and I repeat after him.
My mind is empty, chest void of any emotions.
“I am General before I am body. I am oath before I am blood. By ash taken inward and fire made law, I am unmade where kingdoms are born.”
He pauses and hands me the amber bottle, holding my hands in his. It’s warm, unusually so. I don’t even look at the small object, keeping the monk’s gaze.
“Let this be final. Let this be remembered,” he says and I recite after him.
He subtly tilts my hands, indicating for me to drink whatever draught is inside.
“Ash-draught,” he says quietly when I hesitate. He nods. “To finalize the oath, and bind you to your words.”
I nod absentmindedly and remove the cork. There’s no steam coming out despite the liquid being hot enough to warm the bottle. My stomach sinks. I swallow and bring it closer to my mouth.
When the scent hits me, I almost gag. Rich iron, mixed with burned herbs and charred…mangalo, or maybe honey that’s been left too long on the flame.
I close my eyes and bring it to my mouth.
It tastes even worse than it smells, the consistency thick and heavy on my tongue. I breathe through it as the slimy liquid slowly slides down my throat.
At one point, I’m scared I may choke on it.
When the burn starts, I don’t expect it, so I grimace.
My tongue, throat, chest, and stomach are on fire. As if I’m a dragon breathing flame.
The heat blooms in my abdomen, too.
The monk who guided me smiles and nods. “It is done. May your rule stay strong for many moons, General.”
Hands holding me slip away and the words echo around the cavernous space as I make my way out of the Well with shaky legs.
Quietly, I put my leathers on and head for the door. The monks are there to open it for me. As I pass them, they bow deeply to me.
Noire’s eyes sweep over me as if checking for damage. His face is a neutral mask.
“General,” he says. “How do you feel?”
I clear my throat and glance between him and my two guards. “Fine. A little hot.”
Noire nods. “It would be wise for you to lie down and rest. There may be uncomfortable side effects as the ash-draught works its way through your system.”
I lick my dry lips, throat parched. I’m already feeling it, whatever it is.
My body’s burning, sweat coating my skin. But I’m cold deep in my bones.
There’s nothing more I want than the comfort of my mom’s embrace when she hugs me and pulls me close to her chest. The safety of my father’s presence when he playfully ruffles my hair and presses his lips to my forehead. The warmth of my sister sneaking into my bed at night.
But I don’t have the luxury.
I flex my hands, ignoring the slight tremble of my muscles, and lift my chin. “No time for that. I’ll go see Jax to inform him of the trial.”
I can tell Noire wants to object, but he bites his tongue and nods. I give him a sharp nod in return and head down the corridor, my two Ezkai guards trailing behind.