34. Osmium
The morning isn’t kind to me. My arms and legs burn with weariness from swimming, and my head still rings with the dull screech of my suit. It did not take us long to be brought to this bubble, but water is heavy in a way that is hard to describe.
When Teo shook me awake, I didn’t want to open my eyes. I wished to stay in the embrace of dreams a little longer.
It was a good dream, the kind that makes one cry a little when they open their eyes and realize it wasn’t true.
It was of…
I bolt upright, blinking furiously. My hand flattens against my stomach.
It was of me,belly swollen with Teo’s child.
Disoriented, I look around the hut devoid of color and all furniture save a bed. Then I see my mate watching me with an alarmed expression. To see the tenderness in his eyes pierces straight through my heart.
I think of when I caught him holding Sama, speaking sweet nothings to Iryth’s adopted son. My heart clenches.
His large hands reach forward to cup my cheeks, and they dwarf my skin.
“Estela, my heart, what is wrong?”
I open my mouth, but no sound comes out. My eyes trail to the damp hut around us, and I inhale a deep breath of salty air. How can I tell him I dreamed of our child when we are in the middle of the ocean?
Closing my mouth, I lean into his hand, and put on a weak smile. “Nothing. I was merely surprised to wake up here.”
He smirks, clearly amused. “It is not a place I would return to.”
We share a laugh, and then he helps me dress and fix my hair. With weary resignation, we pull back on our crystal suits. Teo’s was broken in the fight, so they gave him Tir’Suel’s old suit. It is dark and menacing, but it fits him well.
As we leave the small dwelling, I take in the sights of this place once again. Everything is water-stained and damp, and the inky world outside of this is hard to make out, save the glowing speckles of light floating through the water. A few fish swim close enough to show off their glowing scales, but the rest of the light and depth is no more than a blur. Enduares can see in the dark quite well, but my eyesight is still painfully human in comparison.
To me, it looks as though we are stationed in the middle of a sea of stars.
We meet back up with Si’Kirin, and everyone is silent as they watch us approach the edge of the magical bubble. While the others talk, I raise my hand and put it against the thin barrier between dome and sea.
My arm passes through with little resistance, and I wonder what magic could sustain such a way of living for so long.
“What do you make of this place?” Thorne asks, coming to my side.
I look up at him. “I think it is a miracle.”
He huffs a laugh. “I am sure that it is a relief to know that there are more than three hundred of your people left, but I don’t know if I would like to invite these men into my home.”
I bite my lower lip. “Looking into an ancient society is hard enough to fathom, but these people are only fifty years separated from the Enduares I love so dearly.”
He huffs a laugh. “You really do love the trolls, don’t you?”
I look at him. “Before I met them, all I knew were stories of ruthlessness. The giants told us slaves that the Enduares ate humans—that they would violate us and throw us into their enormous fires. All of that stemmed from lies that started after the Great War. Their old king destroyed the continent, but I think they have proven that that false version of themselves doesn’t exist.”
His eyebrows rise. “Perhaps in Enduvida. But does that mean you will take these other… Enduar soldiers into your city? They don’t even call themselves by such a name, they keep referring to themselves as trolls. They are direct and loyal to violent displays.”
I look at the men speaking with Teo. Bits of the people I know in Enduvida peer back at me—their strength and ingenuity. Not to mention their intense neatness and organization. A part of me also knows that this solitary bubble at the bottom of the ocean has preserved some of their cruel, bigoted old ways.
“I trust them… I think,” I say at last. My eyes flick back up to Thorne. Logically, I know that he is here with Mrath, but there’s something about him that makes me feel at ease. I don’t see him as a threat like some of the others. “When I came to Enduvida, I tried to poison Teo. I believed the things I was told, and I changed.”
“So you believe that they will adjust as well?” He gives me a skeptical look. “These men aren’t harmless.”
“I wasn’t either.”
Thorne accepts my answer and is silent as I join my husband. Teo senses me without turning, his arm drawing me close as soon as I approach.
“Mi amor,?1 these men will take us to the spot Si’Kirin spoke of,” Teo says.
I nod as Ner’Feon and Ka’Prinn come into view. “Thank you for helping us.”
The men bow deeply, and the taller one says, “We are ready to leave when you are.”
It turns out we are ready to leave quite soon after that question is asked. We walk back to the edge of the bubble that I was playing with, and one by one, we push into the water.
Swimming away from the Ardorflame, a sense of unease creeps through me, seeping into the depths of my soul. The underwater world around us is aglow with ethereal plants and creatures that dart past in a mesmerizing display.
Dozens of pillowy creatures radiating a soft pink hue ascend to our left, their movements fluid and hypnotic. Sadly, their luminescence offers little guidance in the dark expanse.
Jellyfish,Teo supplies. Careful. Sometimes their tenticles are poisonous.
My head snaps forward, inching closer to the fish that guides us along. The curiosity fades as other small lights blink around us. They no longer mystify me, they represent potential dangers.
Time drifts by slowly in the hushed aquatic realm. It”s impossible to discern how many hours have slipped away since we departed from the temple towards this vast, cavernous ruin; it could have easily consumed most of the day. Midway through our journey, an enormous fish illuminated in green-yellow hues glides near us. It’s similar to the creature that took us from the ruins to the temple yesterday, and Ner’Feon turns back to us.
“This is a hlum’cranok. Grab on when it gets close!” he exclaims.
My eyes fix on the fish as it moves closer. Then, with one last push, I seize the opportunity and cling to its fins.
My heart pounds like a drum, each beat synchronized with the rush of adrenaline. The crystal-clear water flows smoothly over my sleek suit, its gentle caress heightening my senses. My familiar panic doesn’t claw at my insides, but I feel something call out from the distance. It’s not so much a sound as a presence. I focus on the rhythm of my breaths.
In and out.
In and out.
Teo adjusts his position in front of me.
Is the water upsetting you?
No, I respond quickly. I just… do you feel that?
He confirms, but we both grow quiet as we ride along the majestic form as far as it will carry us.
With each passing hour, fatigue begins to weigh down my limbs. Despite my prior preparations for this expedition, I yearn for the comfort of a soft pillow upon which to rest my weary head. Exhaustion settles over me like a dense stone tethered to my legs, dragging me down and chilling me to the core. I honestly am amazed at the physical distance we”ve covered.
A profound sense of depth unfurls beneath me as my muscles protest with each stroke through the water. The darkness below seems to yawn wide like a hungry abyss eager to engulf me. This realization pumps more adrenaline, dispelling any traces of drowsiness and sharpening my senses for what lies ahead.
When I make the mistake of looking down, it is a deeper black than I have ever seen. It coils with possibility and power. That blackness is something that would prefer to be left unknown for the rest of time. I swallow, physically struggling to look away.
“Teo,” I gasp as the creature guiding us along continues to rush through the water.
My husband’s hand, covered in the crystal material, reaches out for me. When we touch, the barrier between us sets my teeth on edge, and I mourn the loss of his skin. It would ground me.
The water feels more viscous as the darkness encroaches. It swallows the light from the fish and our suits. Our creature starts to move more frantically, resisting how the two Enduares at the lead try to guide it through.
The black waters seem endless. As I glance down again, I still can’t see further than my feet. My Fuegorra sparks and sputters in my chest.
I panic, but Teo”s grip tightens on my hand as I start to thrash and kick my legs. This sets off the creature carrying us along.
The fish dodges and jolts, disturbed by our movements. I cling desperately to its smooth scales, trying to steady myself as it darts through the murky depths. The darkness seems to press in on us from all sides, suffocating me. This is what eternal torment feels like. Not fire, but the silent terror of falling forever into the mercy of an enormous, starving creature slinking in the shadows.
Ka’Prinn shouts something in Enduar that I don’t quite catch as fear claws at my mind.
Then Teo pulls me away from the thrashing creature. It speeds away from us, the deep shadow quickly swallowing up its glow. I feel the horrible, unsettling sensation of plummeting.
I grasp at the water as fast as my body would allow. In my mind, I had known that we would need to go somewhere perilous to complete this mission. It was worth it to get the help of Mrath’s sisterhood. But that knowledge means nothing to my body as I am frozen in the frigid water above the utter darkness.
Teo pulls me into his chest. “My love, it’s okay. Just breath.”
“There’s something down there,” I gasp.
He nods. “It is likely the artifact.”
I shake my head, still trying to breathe. “No. Not a magical object… there’s something. It watches us.”
He furrows his brows. “Estela, stop. We’re going to be all right. I won’t swim down until your heart slows.”
I suck in a gasping breath just as Ner’Feon swims up.
“It is time to descend.”
I shake my head, my heart still racing. “No. We need to leave.” I try to push out of Teo’s grip and turn back. “Thorne, please. Let’s leave.”
Thorne’s face is only partially illuminated. He’s taking too long to answer me.
Then, a disturbance in the water hits Teo and me, blowing us apart.
GO.
I thrash through the water. New arms grab onto me, and I find Vann holding me as he tries to swim away. It’s useless when the water changes. Slowly, at first, we begin to move in a circle. Then it speeds, a whirlpool dragging us down toward whatever thing watches us beneath all light—beneath all civilization.
Helpless, I cling to Teo as Thorne clings to me, and Vann clings to him.
In my heart, a string of prayers starts up to my mother. To the woman of light, wishing for anything. For my powers to strike up at once. For Teo to split open the world and simply replace the mind-squeezing black with scorching reds.
The whirlpool finally stops as we hit stone—hard. My breath is rammed out of my body, and the crystal covering my body—so well crafted, so strong and flexible—cracks. Water seeps into my back, wetting the leather clothes I wore underneath.
All of our suits stop glowing, wholly robbing us of our sight.
I look up. Despite my blindness,my senses feel the blackness moving.
“Teo?” I call.
“I’m here,” he says from a spot nearby. “Everything is fine.”
“Are you all right, Vann? Ner’Feon? Ka’Prinn?”
I try to move and more water leaks into my suit. The fear clawing at my nerves crawls to my throat and tightens. “My suit is cracked,” I say.
The relentless dampness creeps further, a chilling embrace threatening to drench me head to toe. Each icy droplet feels like a cruel hand tightening around my throat, stealing the warmth from my body. It’s almost as if I were back in Zlosa. Without the shield of the crystal suit, I am left vulnerable, my very survival hanging by a fragile crack that threatens to spread at any moment.
“Estela,” Teo says frantically. “Keep talking. I’ll find you.”
I can’t breathe.
“Estela!” he shouts.
My mouth opens and closes, only for a sob to break free. My mind races, grasping for answers in my memories. When I helped Liana make this suit, we combined heat and magic to break down and reform the crystal. I relied heavily on her ability. It might be possible to use the heat from my light magic, but I can’t remember how to draw in air.
My love, I can’t find you.
Teo, my suit?—
The dark rises above us, all sensation and shadow. Unbidden, my Fuegorra starts to glow brighter and brighter. An undercurrent wraps around me, pulling me physically off the stoney ocean floor. I scream, and the water stops seeping in.
Teo’s voice shoots through the water.
“Estela!”
The crimson glow of the stone casts a red sheen to the swirling flecks of sea waste as they dance before me. My voice is frozen in my throat, fear gripping me tight as my husband”s question fades into the background. The water ripples ominously once more, and a massive object passes over me. Despite my inability to move, my magic thrums with an intensity that terrifies me, its power feeling alien and uncontrollable.
The power sings directly to my Fuegorra, causing the crystal magic to intensify. Images start to pass before my eyes. Some are memories, and some could be visions of the future, but they pass too quickly to pluck one out and examine it.
I tug against my restraints, feeling the pulse of crystal and stone all around me. The magic pushes deeper into another magic connected to the stone in my chest. It slides past the gem and onto the glowing thread running from my head to my toes.
All it takes is one pluck, a spark, and I catch fire. My red glow transforms to white heat.
The light continues to expand, brightening the tremendous dark hole surrounding us. Then a colossal stony hand stretches back out, controlling the currents that hold me in place. The graceful, powerful arc of masculine fingers reaches toward me until, at last, glowing blue eyes snap open.
I am close enough to look directly into the vast circles. They appear to be made of two smoldering sapphires. Long locks of pure white marble float around a grey head as it gazes at me.
My heart skips a beat, but exclamations come from beneath me. I can hardly hear them. When I try to twist down and see Teo, the magic tightens.
“Daughter of the Light Weaver,” a voice as old as the world rumbles through the water. It snakes through the liquid and salt until it radiates through my whole soul. It is somehow quiet and booming.
“Who are you?” I choke out, feeling those penetrative eyes bear into my flesh, searching my heart. Seeing every selfish choice, every drop of blood I’ve spilled. Every evil thing that hid inside me.
“You do not know me?” the enormous stone man says to me. “I am the father of the trolls, King of Stone and Crystal. Lover of the Goddess of Stars. My children call me Endu.”
The word makes everything around us rumble that much harder. I remain frozen, lost to his words. Helpless to his power.
“You are… a god,” I breathe. It’s so quiet I wonder if he can truly hear it.
He nods slowly. “I am.”
The statement feels more profound than it sounds as if his existence stretches far beyond the confines of my mortal understanding.
I twist away and look down at Teo. All of the men have been bound in a similar fashion, and each tugs against their restraints. The space separating us is substantial, as they linger far closer to the ocean floor than me. My bound arm reaches toward Teo.
I can just barely make out how his eyes are widened in disbelief, and a mix of shock and wonder dancing across his features. After a moment of stunned silence, his voice trembles with awe as he calls out, ”My god, Endu, is that really you?”
Endu”s gaze shifts from me to Teo, a small smile spreading across his stony features. “Yes. It is I,” he rumbles, the sound resonating through the water.
The other men remain silent, but not Teo. “I had not thought this place an appropriate dwelling place for a god. Do you not reside in the center of the earth?”
“Is this not the earth? I came a time ago after the screams of my children woke me from a thousand-year slumber. When I arrived, I found them all dead, so here I stayed, guarding their bodies and sending them off to life to come. Some decided to linger, and I felt I couldn’t leave them. It is… pleasant here, surrounded by stone. My home is wherever I can best care for my offspring.” He exhales, sending spiraling eddies full of sparkling particles all around us. “The question is… why are you here?”
I look at him, his eyeball larger than my entire being. I watch him with a furious beating heart. “We seek an artifact from the elvish god. One that was taken by the old king of your people.”
He tilts his great head to the side, hair flowing out around his face. “The orb of the universe? I have been keeping it safe for Doros.”
My eyebrows furrow as Teo calls up. “Why not give it back to him?”
Endu scoffs, and the ground beneath us quivers. “Why should I unless he calls upon me? Surely you know of the cracks between our peoples.”
He extends his hand again, lighting up the water with ancient symbols I cannot quite read.
As the words begin to travel through the water, one approaches me. Both my Fuegorra and my lyre string begin to heat up in my chest, and I gasp at the pain.
“His child searches for it now,” I say, jerking my head to the spot where Thorne treads water.
Endu pauses, the light channeled through me white hot. He searches my soul for something. It is pure, too pure for my mortal vessel.
I let out a groan.
“Do I hurt you, Estela of the Humans?” he asks in a voice that is surprisingly gentle.
“I would appreciate not being used as a lantern.”
Though, in truth, if it means not dying at the bottom of the ocean from a suit crack, I will endure it.
He barks a laugh. The sound pushes me back against my powerful tethers holding me in place.“You have spirit. Grutabela gave your mate a gift when she chose you and bestowed upon you a drop of power.”
He flicks his finger, and the pain from the light lessens. I suck in a deep breath, relaxing against the sensation.
After, his eyes lock onto mine. I should bring up the orb. Instead, I ask, “Is this drop of power why you call me the Daughter of the Light Weaver?”
He tilts his head to the side. “No. Your powers of light are divine, but they do not come from Grutabela or me. Your mother is known amongst the gods—touched by the goddess of humans.”
I furrow my brow. ”In the eyes of the world, humans are seen as godless.”
He pauses for a long moment. “Is that truly what you think?”
The weight of his full attention is unsettling. I open my mouth, prepared to say I don’t know, but instead choose honesty. “No, it isn’t.”
”Very good. The gods weave their influence in ways seen and unseen, known and unknown. Your mother was a vessel for the divine light. She’s passed that gift to you, as my queen bequeathed a drop in your soul the night your Fuegorra was placed in your chest to show you the ways of our people.” Endu”s voice is calm, almost soothing in its depth, as he regards me with those shimmering sapphire eyes. “The two powers working together… well, that is something I’ve never seen.”
His hand comes to his mouth, and he taps his stone lips. “You have piqued my curiosity. It is not often that we see one of your kind. I will make you a deal: answer one question with truth, woman, and I will give you the artifact.” His voice booms through the space.
I take a deep breath. “Merely one question? Should you not bargain for more?”
He smiles. “Consider it a test of your character. Two goddesses have seen great potential in you. I am still making my decision. Truth is precious and oftentimes hard to find in mortals.”
I nod, feeling the weight of his words settle on my shoulders. “I accept.”
He smiles. “As God of Stone and Crystal, I would ask you what you fear most?”
For some reason, I had anticipated him to ask about my powers or Teo. This is something deeper and more intimate. My life flashes before me. Loneliness is the first emotion I feel, but I don’t fear it. Hell, I have wallowed in it. I was such a wretched, spitting thing, trying to survive while stained with the blood of my mother and the weight of slavery.
Next, I think of Rholker. He terrifies me, but he is not my greatest fear.
Two faces pop into my mind. Teo and Mikal, and then a ruined memory follows. The memory slicers made me fear water one night of torture at a time. Even touching such thoughts causes a shudder to run down my spine, but still, that is not my ultimate fear.
No, what I fear most is my weakness.
Slowly, I open my mouth. “Love has not come easily for me. I loved my brother the best way I knew how, and I fell in love with Teo like one might fall over a cliff. Letting them in has caused me to be vulnerable. The thought of being powerless to prevent harm from befalling those I love, of being unable to stop the darkness from spreading—that is what truly terrifies me.”
I gaze into the depths of Endu”s sapphire eyes.
Endu’s eyes gleam, as if he understands the depths of that fear. ”That is a noble fear rooted in the vulnerability of your heart.”
The god is pleased; I can feel it in my bones. “Your human goddess seeks to free herself, child. Just as you were bound, so is she. She has guided your steps and made you a catalyst. When I give you the artifact, make friends with my rival’s offspring. Fell the giant king. Free your people in the name of your goddess—Ashra.”
The name lights up my entire body, and the magic holding me in place eases.
“What binds a god?” Teo demands. His face flickers in and out, as do the other men as my eyes open and close.
“A dark magic hidden since the beginning of time. I cannot say more.”
“She isn’t the only one bound. What of Abhartach, god of these cold creatures that attack us?” Teo asks. “Is he some vengeful lover?”
Endu looks down at him, but shakes his head. “That thing should have nothing to do with the humans. Do not confuse a goddess with a demon, child.”
Teo is silent, but Endu flits his gaze between Teo and me. “Your mate is strong, much like you, Light Weaver. It makes me miss my sweet Grutabela. It will be long before she sings to me from the heavens.” He dips his chin to Teo. “Forgive my harsh tone. The one whose name you invoke is still bound; there is little reason to worry over that demon.”
“So he is indeed a demon and not a god?” Teo calls.
Endu nods. “Yes.”
I tread in the water, my restraints now gone. “I have spoken truth to you. Release me, and give us the orb,” I say, with bravery that doesn’t reach my heart.
He smiles. “I am a god of my word.” Then he reaches into his chest, scraping and opening up his holy body to withdraw a small orb hanging from a chain.
Thorne gasps.
“That is it?” the elf asks.
Endu lets it drop. “Yes, Child of Doros. Take it back to your people, and be allies with my children again. Before you leave, I will give you one last gift.”
The god raises his own hands, and the song in my chest bursts forth, resonating through the walls of the crevasse. The echoes of the melody fill the space, blending with the light that radiates from Endu. I feel a surge of power coursing through me, connecting me to the very essence of the gods. It”s a moment of pure magic, where time seems to stand still and the world narrows down to just me and the divine presence before me.
When the song ends, I feel different.
More.
“What have you done to her?” my mate demands as I sink into his arms.
Endu’s glowing eyes take him in. “I have touched her heart and purified it. It is an offering to Ashra for letting her children mate with mine and salvage your futures. A token of gratitude.”
The water around us vibrates in time with immense energy, one that I have never felt so acutely before. My suit finishes cracking down the middle, and I scream, clawing at Teo’s chest.
“I will send you back to your home, Daughter of the Light Weaver. These waters are too deep for your small mortal form.”
The light in my chest flashes. A strong burst of energy drops us off in the Parting Cave. I cough, spitting up seawater, and find my suit completely gone. My fingers tighten around a hot orb.
The Cumhacht na Cruinne.
It is solid yet pliable. Its pulsing energy is the only sound that accompanies it.
Someone slips it out of my hand as everything fades to black.