chapter seventeen #2
“But enough of that.” She pins me with her black eyes.
“Because you, my child, fare much worse. Not only were you raised in a land without a soul, but you yourself have very little left of your own.” Her scrutinizing gaze runs across my body in a way that makes my skin prickle.
“It’s almost a miracle you’re breathing at all.
” She taps the space right above my heart.
“Someone knew exactly what they were doing.”
I stare at her in silent confusion, unsure how to react. She seems to know an awful lot about me. “Who would steal pieces of someone’s soul?”
She lets out a dry laugh. “Oh, you would be surprised . . .”
“But . . . why me?” This is making less sense by the heartbeat. “I’m as unimportant as anyone can get. Burn you, I’m probably the most powerless being on all of Reā. I’m barely allowed to decide what to do with my time on the best of days.”
She lets out a low snort, as if what I’m saying is amusing.
“Child.” She pauses briefly, making sure I’m listening. “Do not tell me you are so far gone you cannot sense that you have but a fragment of your soul left inside of you?”
“I . . .” Without thinking, I rest my hand atop the hollow spot in my chest. Is that why I feel so empty?
No, I decide. What she’s saying is ridiculous.
“All I know is that my life is better than it has been for the past twenty years.” I straighten my spine, determined not to let her scare me.
I glance toward the door Seniia went through. What’s taking her so long?
The female follows my gaze. “She will not come for a while yet,” she says.
The small crystal beads in her many braids click softly as she moves through the store, adding pinches of dried herbs and drops of colorful tinctures to a glass jar.
She turns toward me. “Your soul is calling, child. Can you not hear it? Or has your time in the soulless land made you deaf to its voice?” She sets the jar on a nearby shelf and walks to stand behind me, placing her hands on my temples. “Close your eyes and listen.”
I want nothing but to be as far away from this female as possible, but her presence commands unquestioning obedience, and so I do as she says.
As I close my eyes, a vivid vision rushes into my mind.
I see a towering mountain, its peaks covered in snow, while the rest of its darkened stone seems to devour what little light surrounds it.
A distinct crack runs along its center, splitting it into two halves and forming a narrow pathway.
Perched precisely at the mountain’s midpoint, the Celestial Moon hangs pregnant, surrounded by her four lesser moons, all of them at their peak.
Their ethereal glow weaves together, casting a solitary beam of light that illuminates the entrance to the passage.
I let out a gasp as she lets go of me, the vision disappearing.
“At the heart of Anam’gate are the missing pieces you seek.
” Returning to the jar, she continues her walk through the store, adding another pinch of herbs into the jar before she fills the rest with a clear liquid.
“You can choose to ignore it, of course, but your soul will never cease wanting to fulfill its purpose. The soul never does.” Her dark gaze locks onto mine.
“So when you go—and you will—enter at Mi’Awal.
No sooner.” She grabs ahold of my jaw again, forcing me to meet her eyes.
“And most certainly no later. Am I understood?”
It’s hard to both nod and speak when she holds me in her grasp.
“Mi’Awal?” I press out.
"Yes, Mi'Awal." Her lips press into a thin line. "When all four of the lesser moons peak in unison with the Celestial Moon—the most powerful convergence. Have they taught you nothing, child?"
Apparently not.
“Do not get complacent.” She gives my jaw a squeeze. “Do you hear me?”
I manage a muffled sound of agreement.
She lets go of my jaw and pushes the jar with the mixture she has made into my hands. “There will come a time when you will have to forget what has been.” She glides toward the door. “Use it wisely, La?na.” She shuts the door behind her.
“Hey,” I call after her, a little too late, my hand reaching out before dropping.
“I didn’t tell you my name . . .” Not knowing what else to do, I sink down onto the stool and wait for Seniia to come back.
I turn the jar over in my hands, studying the mixture inside—swirls of color suspended in clear liquid. Use it wisely, she said. But for what?
Placing the jar in my satchel, I lean back against the wall, massaging my temples. Pieces of my soul, missing. I snort. The words feel absurd even as I think them. A woman I've never met, spouting visions like some sort of oracle.
No, I decide. I’m done being manipulated and I'm not going to let some stranger's cryptic warnings get under my skin.
VY ARRIVES AT MY DOOR EARLY the next morning with news of my dance lessons.
Stepping out into the hallway, I pull the door shut behind me, gesturing for Vy to lead the way.
Sunlight streams through the tall arched windows, warming the cool white stone, and soon the strange woman and her riddles have begun to fade like a half-remembered dream.
Pieces of my soul, missing. I shake my head. The words feel foolish in the daylight.
I trail behind Vy down the winding corridors of the Arc until we arrive at a lounge area I haven't seen before—a spacious room with high ceilings and tall windows that frame views of the gardens.
Vy moves aside, revealing a blond male with shoulder-length wavy hair and striking teal eyes lounging in one of the chairs. I recognize him immediately.
"La?na, this is Reü." They give Reü a small bow, but Reü doesn’t bother to acknowledge them. Vy’s lips press into a thin line.
Turning toward me, they go on. “Reü is one of our very best dancers, and he has happily agreed to teach you in preparation for the ball.” They give me a smile and back away.
“Happily agreed,” Reü repeats in a mock voice.
“They make it sound as if I actually had a choice in the matter.” Leaning back in his chair, he cocks his head and gives me a slow, deliberate once-over, disapproval etched on his face.
He says no more, but the silence is heavy with unspoken criticism, and it’s a fight not to shrink under his judgmental gaze.
“Very well. Maybe if you learn how to dance, your appearances will be more tolerable.” He pushes himself to his feet. “Though I doubt you’ll ever be anything but a mouse,” he says, flipping my ash-brown braid as he passes me.
I scowl at his back. Is he always such an asshole?
It makes me wonder why I ever felt sympathy for him.
All I want right now is to palm one of my daggers and flip it at Reü’s back the way Vilder has been teaching me.
But I don’t. Instead, I drag my feet after him down the corridor to the grand doors of the ballroom.
“Everything all right, La?na?”
It’s Vilder, Seniia by his side. The two of them step out from one of the many archways lining the corridor.
She wears her robe, staff in hand, but judging by Vilder’s sweat-soaked outfit and the twin swords strapped to his back, he just had sparring practice.
Again, it hits me that as much as they spend time together, there’s no way he dislikes her as much as he pretends.
I glance at Reü, who narrows his eyes at me, daring me to complain. “Everything’s fine,” I say, though the words come out hollow.
Vilder levels a loaded stare at Reü. “You better treat her with respect, M’Garan.”
“What about you minding your own business, Aken?” Reü leans back against the wall, a bored expression on his face.
With predatory grace, Vilder stalks toward Reü, whose easy stance against the wall stiffens into an alert, upright position.
Planting his hands on the wall on either side of Reü, caging him in, he brings his face within an inch of Reü’s, fixing him with a direct stare.
“Careful who you pick your fights with.” His voice, though soft, holds a chilling promise of violence.
I hold my breath as they stare each other down. “Vilder, it’s fine. Really.” I don’t want him to get hurt because of me.
Reü finally drops his gaze. “Why do you care, anyway? Reāns are better. We are descendants of Reā and Wyr. We should be servants of no one, least of all a human.” He shoots me a look of pure disdain.
Seniia rolls her eyes. “Void, Reü. You may not like the humans, but you sure sound just like one. All focus on bloodlines, believing birthright determines ability to rule.” She throws an apologetic glance in my direction.
“No offense.” She looks back at Reü. “Just because you are the keeper’s nephew doesn’t make you better than anyone else, you know. ”
Vilder nods. “The gods bestow power upon those they deem worthy.” Pushing off the wall, he turns his back on Reü. “There’s no reason to be an ass just because Niia didn’t grant you much.”
Reü stares at Vilder’s back, his jaw tight, a furious expression etched on his face. With a growl, in one swift motion, he pulls his dagger and hurls it at Vilder.
“Vilder!” I scream, squeezing my eyes shut.
When I open them again, Vilder is holding the dagger by its hilt. There’s a menacing glare, like a predator sizing up its prey, on his face. “I warned you who to pick your fights with, M’Garan, didn’t I?”
“Perhaps the gods are mistaken,” Reü hisses, the words forced out between gritted teeth.
Vilder scoffs. “Knowing you, I think not.”
“Power is gifted to us so that we can protect those who cannot protect themselves, Reü,” Seniia says, shaking her head.
“It is not gifted to us for personal gain or for us to exploit power.” She gives him an intense stare.
“You of all should know better than to treat someone with disrespect just because they are weaker than you.”
Reü clenches his fists, his knuckles bone-white. His face looks as if it’s on its way to bursting, but he says nothing.
Vilder gives him a smirk. “That’s a valid point. You should consider it.”
“You are underestimating me. You both are.”
A wave of unease washes over me at the chilling undertone to his voice.
Vilder all but rolls his eyes. “Somehow, I believe you are impossible to underestimate.”
“You son of a bitch!” Reü lunges toward Vilder but is held in place by invisible threads. “Let me go!” He fixes Vilder with a furious stare.
Vilder shrugs. “Don’t look at me.”
Reü’s gaze snaps to Seniia, who’s lazily stroking her serpent. She raises her eyebrows. “What?”
“I said let. Me. Go.” The words are barely audible between his clenched teeth.
She tilts her head. “Do you promise to treat La?na with respect?”
He stares at her for a long time, but her gaze never wavers. “Sure,” he says. He looks away, and then Seniia must release him, because he takes a couple steps back.
“If he causes any more trouble, let us know,” she says, then turns to Vilder. “Let’s go.”
My mouth drops open as another dagger flies in Vilder’s direction, but Vilder grabs it out of the air is if he were thrown a ball.
“For fuck’s sake, M’Garan. With no magic to speak of, at least learn to handle a dagger properly, will you?” He flicks his wrist, sending the dagger back to where it came from, pinning Reü’s tunic to the wall.
I place a hand on Vilder’s arm. “Hey, it’s fine.
Be kind.” I glance toward Reü, his cheeks red with embarrassment.
I think back to how his own uncle treated him.
No one, regardless of their social standing or background, deserves such cruelty.
“You never know if there’s more to the story than we see on the surface. ”
Surprise crosses Vilder’s face, but he backs down. “She may defend you, M’Garan, but my patience with you is running low.”
Reü opens his mouth to say something, then snaps it shut as Vilder stalks over to where he stands. Vilder removes the dagger from the wall and, leaning over Reü, sheathes both of Reu’s daggers back into their places at his belt. “Do. Not. Push. It.”
“Vilder!” I chide, pulling at his sleeve to get him away from Reü. “That was excessive.”
“What?” He looks at me. “He threw a fucking dagger at me. Twice.”
“Fair point,” I say, pushing him in front of me. A glance over my shoulder tells me Reü is ready to kill someone.
“Surely you’ve both made yourselves clear by now. I’ll be fine.”
“And—” Seniia begins.
“I promise to let you know if anything happens,” I finish for her.
Seniia gives me a hug, and Vilder squeezes my shoulder. “Later, L.”
I stare at their backs as they disappear down the hallway, then turn toward Reü. “Sorry,” I say. He may be an ass, but he didn’t deserve that.
“You’re lucky to have such powerful friends,” he mutters. Pushing open the ballroom doors, he gestures for me to follow. “Come on, let’s get this dance lesson over with.”