48. Chapter Forty-Seven
Chapter Forty-Seven
Isoria
Fog veiled the muddy road, making every step more treacherous when we could not see if there were dangers lurking in wait.
Archer had said Vithenna had mentioned the worshippers at her temple, so we assumed it still had living occupants, but that didn’t mean the revenant army hadn’t razed any civilization near it.
Not knowing what to expect made my imagination overactive. Every sound, every movement, had me scanning the countryside for signs of revenants.
Worse still, we’d been forced to leave our carriage and borrow horses for our journey.
We’d left Clay behind with the jaguars, since no stable hands would go near them, and he’d promised Cliff he’d take them back to the castle stables as soon as the weather permitted.
The guards each had their own mounts, as well as Cliff, Owen, and Lily, but Archer and I had to share.
Even if I’d known how to ride, my shackles wouldn’t allow it.
“Isn’t horseback riding glorious?” Lily looked far too comfortable on the back of her gelding, strands of fiery hair flying loosely about her face and eyes bright with excitement.
Only she could find the adventure and hope in a mission through a countryside that the revenant army might have already infiltrated.
Owen grunted noncommittally from his horse. He, Cliff, and Lily rode on either side of Archer and me, though our gelding trailed, unable to keep the same pace with its heavier load. The guards brought up the rear, silent and sullen.
Lily’s gaze flicked to Cliff. “Nothing against your beautiful jaguars,” she added.
He sighed. “My sweet cats. At least I know they’re in good hands with Clay.”
Silence fell among us as we continued onward, the way growing rougher as we entered the thick, boggy Darkwood. I couldn’t shake my growing discomfort. Perhaps it was the eerie atmosphere of this misty, godsforsaken land.
Vithenna's temple sat within the forest, its carved stone walls adorned in moss and climbing vines so thick, it was almost disguised with the rest of nature. If we hadn’t known where to look, we might have passed it by.
“Do we have to go in?” one of the guards grunted, studying the temple warily.
“Why? Afraid the goddess of life will strike you down for your wretched ways?” Lily goaded.
“You can stay outside with the horses,” Archer ordered. “But Isoria is not going in with these shackles.”
The guards whirled toward one another, forming a tight circle on horseback as they conferred with one another.
At last, the female turned to us with a nod, her jaw tight.
“Vithenna would hold back the demon’s power from destroying her temple and her worshippers, surely.
” She dismounted, removing the key from a chain around her neck.
Archer dismounted and took me by the waist, lifting me off our horse and setting me before the guard, who proceeded to remove my shackles.
With a grimace at her proximity to me, she stepped away, shoving the shackles into her saddlebag.
Cliff, Lily, and Owen dismounted. Now that I could remember my magic and how to wield it again, I drew on that innate sense within that let me detect death. But there was nothing unusual here, only the typical rotting wood, dead plants, or deceased animals that were a part of a forest.
With a deep breath to steel myself, I nodded to Archer, a silent acknowledgement that I didn’t detect any revenants nearby.
Archer strolled at the forefront of our party, guiding us along a row of mossy stepping stones and up a narrow flight of steps to the heavy double doors.
Unlike the rest of the building, they were wooden and weather stained.
Carved with depictions of the goddess of life surrounded by nature, animals, fae, and all other sorts of creatures, it was a work of art in itself.
If only that was the only side of the goddess we had to face, and not the angry, mercurial being I feared we needed to convince to lift the death plague.
Adopting his signature charming grin like donning a mask, Archer knocked on the door.
My blood pulsed in my ears as we waited, nothing but birdsong and the trickle of water breaking the quiet around us.
Nerves squirmed in my belly, ones that didn’t abate even when the door creaked open and a veiled figure appeared in the entryway.
Clothed all in muted shades of grey, she was tall and willowy.
Her features were vague behind her veil, but I thought I caught a glimpse of brown eyes so dark they were almost black, their gaze sharp and heavy enough it felt as if she was staring into my soul.
“Who are you? Are you here to worship the Goddess of Life and Creation?” the figure whispered, her voice soft and ethereal-sounding. “We have not had visitors for many long months.”
Archer’s posture was tense, though his smile remained intact. “I am Prince Archer Emberglade. This is my betrothed, Isoria Gildmere, and my friends and confidantes, Lily Starblood, Owen Stormveil, and Clifton Fireshade. We need to speak with Vithenna about some urgent matters.”
The female cocked her head, the effect rather eerie with the way the veil shifted. “Vithenna is not someone who can be summoned on a whim.”
There was a slight jump in Archer’s jaw, a tension in the lines of his mouth as he continued to force his charming smile. “Indeed, we understand this, but she recently spoke to me. And to Isoria. She commanded us to come here so we could further commune with her.”
The veil moved as the figure shifted on her feet, thinking. “How am I to believe that she spoke to you, when her power is limited outside of this temple? She left the mortal planes long ago and limits her appearances to where her Dedicated linger.”
“Please.” A hint of tension leaked into Archer’s voice. “We would like to offer our worship.” He hesitated. “There is a blood bond she told us she could break, one formed by the gods.”
There was another long pause as the figure assessed us. “Penance must be given in order to enter Her Highest’s sacred temple and walk among Her Esteemed.”
A chill slithered down my back, and I exchanged a glance with Archer. “What sort of penance is required?” he asked.
The figure opened the door wider, giving us a view into a windowless stone corridor beyond, lit only by the flickering light of torches.
In the dimness, the dancing flames cast shadows that could have been other worshippers, or could have been nothing.
My mouth went dry, everything within me rebelling at the idea of entering this temple.
“You must enter our innermost sanctum so She can bear witness,” the Esteemed declared in that feather-soft voice of hers.
“There, our Listener will hear Her voice and tell you what she demands.”
Archer laughed lightly. “You must understand that if the crown prince himself defied the king’s law to make this journey outside of the castle, it’s because this mission concerns the fate of our kingdom.
If Vithenna summoned us here herself, surely she will accept our obedience?
” Was he using his magic in that moment, pushing for the worshipper to work with us?
Was he making her feel our urgency? Making her long to help him?
Making her want him? I cringed inwardly at the jealousy that flared at the idea, and I tamped it down.
But the figure didn’t move, and when I managed to catch a glimpse of her eyes beneath the veil, I detected no sign of amusement, no hint she was affected at all by the charm that most courtiers swooned over.
“Penance is required of all,” she said flatly, “or they are barred entrance. Princes and kings are of no consequence when we serve a goddess.”
The prince’s tension was evident through our bond, ripples of anxiety joining my own.
With a subtle touch on his arm, I pushed a bit of my healing magic into him, hoping to stave off the possibility of his feelings escalating.
“Very well,” he said, all smoothness and smiles on the outside. “Lead the way.”
Opening the door wider, the Esteemed led the way down the dim corridor. I hesitated as Cliff, Lily, and Owen trailed Archer and me, glancing over my shoulder to see the door click shut behind them. Lily’s eyes flew to mine, wide and uncertain. Owen grasped her hand, squeezing it reassuringly.
“My name is Celeste,” said our guide as we passed the rows of torches along the corridor and entered an open room at the end. Two small windows on either side cast some natural light into the space, but it was so vast that they weren’t enough to chase away the shadows at the corners.
The main source of light was near the center of the room, where the ceiling itself opened up to the daylight, allowing one of the largest trees I’d ever seen to grow up through the temple.
Its wide trunk was so large, it would have taken multiple fae stretching their arms as wide as they could to span it, and its boughs stretched so high toward the sky, I couldn’t pinpoint where it ended.
Celeste paused, kneeling down on the stone floor and staring at the tree.
The light filtered through her veil, giving me glimpses of her dainty features and too-large eyes.
“This is Her eternal tree, a symbol of her ability to sustain life in this world. Kneel before it, and Esteemed Coraline will Listen to Vithenna’s voice and share what your penance is to be. ”
Stomach twisting, I obeyed. To my surprise, Archer reached for me, grasping my hand as I started to kneel and then joining me so that we were side-by-side, hand-in-hand.
Since his friends no longer needed to see a performance from us, this gesture left me unsure how to feel and reminded me of the emotions that had swirled between us last night.
I cast him a side glance, trying to read his expression, but his eyes were focused on the tree and its leaves, gently moving in a phantom breeze.
From the shadows, as if she’d been waiting all this time for visitors, another veiled form approached.
Her long, grey dress slithered along the floor as she walked toward the torch, her hands stretched to the sky.
“O Vithenna, I beseech Your favor. Tell me what penance You demand of these visitors who wish to commune with You. Please, share how they may make themselves worthy of a mere moment of Your time.”
Despite the heat and humidity, I could feel emanating from the open ceiling, chills erupted along my skin.
Coraline dropped to her knees and lowered her head to the floor, forehead pressed against the stone. She went utterly still and quiet. Nearby, Celeste chanted something under her breath as she stared into the tree boughs.
At last, Coraline lifted her head. From where I knelt, I couldn’t see her eyes behind her veil, but I could feel her gaze snap to mine. “She will give you each an audience…individually.”
“What about our sacrifice?” Archer asked slowly.
“If she requires your penance, she will take from each of you individually as required.”
My blood turned to ice, my foreboding only growing greater. Meeting with Vithenna with my friends sounded intimidating enough, but meeting with her alone sounded downright terrifying.
There was a heavy pause as we all considered this.
Archer rubbed his thumb over the back of my hand soothingly as he lifted his chin. “I agree,” he told Coraline.
“Who am I to deny a goddess?” Cliff said, dipping his chin. “If she will speak to me.”
“I will also meet with her alone, if she permits,” Owen volunteered.
“And me,” Lily added softly. She knelt near Owen, though they were no longer touching.
My pulse pounded uncomfortably in my ears. “I will too.”