Chapter 32
Elysia sat for a breath, feeling the dirt between her fingers, the damp against her legs. The sky and lands were awash with shades of the ever darkening twilight, but in the distance, she could still see where the day bled into night. Rusty cardinal ink blotches dispersing into the dark. The blood sky made the hairs on her arms stand upright. She had grown used to only gray, and the bloodied copper above made her nervous.
For the first time, the song which haunted her dreams did not play out into the night, nor did she wear the ethereal slip of a dress she had expected to find herself clothed in. More importantly, she did not feel as though she was about to be ripped back to her true body, which rested in Relaclave. Bare feet planted in the damp river bank soil, she realized she felt solid and anchored to this place.
Fear shivered up her skin, making her pull at the sleeves of her sweater. She couldn’t think of things such as being stuck here. It would do her no good. She was here now, and that was what she had wanted.
Elysia stood and began walking alongside the iridescent oil slick river. It appeared endless. Winding through the twilight into the burnt red over the horizon. Her bare feet became chilled, numbing with each step along the shore. In the distance, the bonewood trees stood sharp against the barren landscape, their fingers whittled to severe points.
Silent nothingness wrapped around her, making her spirit uneasy. She’d grown up in the capital of her kingdom. Someone was always shouting. Builders were always banging. Feet and wooden wheels cracking against cobblestones. Silence was a made-up construct in the heart of Relaclave. But here, it felt as though it might smother her.
Cloaked in eerie quiet, she wondered if she had imagined the man in her dream. Because how could anything or anyone possibly live here? And yet, the ruddy sky and rushing purple-blue water gave her hope that somewhere past her line of sight there was not only life, but the answers which she sought from this realm.
Soot fell like a soft blanket of death upon Kava, stealing the color and warmth a little more with each passing day. The decay was as gentle as a lullaby, coaxing her people easily to their doom. The process so gradual that no one even bothered to protest. She hadn’t realized just how bleak it really was until she stood here, in death’s home with its strange silence and jagged trees, and yet there was still color blooming across the sky.
Elysia walked for what felt like ages with no idea if she was growing closer to where she needed to be. She hadn’t the faintest idea where to find the god of death, only that he did indeed live here. Tired and frustrated, she stopped walking and blew out a long breath.
I could be going in the entirely wrong direction, and I would have no idea.
Crouching low beside the river, she reached out to let its dark waters brush her hand. It moved swiftly beneath her skin. Hand hovering, but not touching, she watched, mesmerized by its colors.
The silence broke with the sudden terrible sound of snarls loud enough to jolt her back from the water. Falling onto her ass, she scrambled to stand, immediately snapping to attention. She scanned the seemingly endless expanse all around her, searching for the source of the sound. Heart racing and body now poised to run, she saw nothing. This fact did nothing to ease her anxiety. She was the only person for miles—if an animal was snarling and barking, then it had likely fixed its sights on her, and being unable to see her oncoming attacker was not a good sign.
All at once, three small dogs with barks twice the size of their bodies were diving and snapping around her legs. Elysia froze. There had been nothing, and now there were three dogs pawing at her ankles. Clearly, this realm did not work as hers did. Then again, she’d never lived with magic and knew nothing of its rules.
Heart slowly calming, she kneeled now that she knew death was not imminent. Tiny with apple shaped heads and big brown eyes, the dogs greeted her warmly. She smiled, running her hands over their small frames. One was fluffy with shades of black and copper. The other two sported matching tan coats of gleaming cropped fur.
“Where did you come from?” she murmured.
The dark fluffy one instantly sprang into her arms, clambering up to nuzzle into her neck. Holding the creature securely, she stood, brushing her fingers over its soft body. The other two acted like little demons, nipping at her pants, growling and tugging.
In spite of what looked like extremely sharp small teeth, the small dogs didn’t hurt her as they nipped and headbutted against her legs. She’d spent time with enough of the prince’s creatures to understand when she was being herded.
“Alright, alright then. I’m right behind you.”
Pleased with her answer, they turned tail, immediately trotting off to the undead gods only knew where.
Walking leisurely behind her new escorts, she peered down at the one who’d been smart enough to mooch a ride. A burgundy velvet collar circled its small neck, but she couldn’t see a name sewn into the fabric or anything else that would give her any information. She brushed a thumb over the smooth velvet.
Still rubbing her thumb over the velvet collar, her fingers curled into the animal’s fur. It slept on peacefully, a soft buzz blowing out of its dark lined lips with each breath. A thin layer of wariness soaked through to her bones as she walked. The heavy beat of her heart played in her ears and each exhale sounded trapped in her chest.
Over her shoulder, the river disappeared while a forest of barren trees loomed ahead. Toes numb and aching, she entered the woods. The silence grew even thicker alongside it the darkness of night. The Lovestone Woods in Relaclave were a sanctuary, but there was no peace to be found here tonight.
Feet sinking into the dirt, she paused at the mouth of the forest and let her eyes roam. After a moment, she realized that no matter how long she stood there, her eyes were not going to adjust. Not when the reddish-black sky swallowed the light whole. Her guides let out a huff as she resumed walking. Unafraid, the two dogs moved swiftly into the dark.
The naked trees and their branches scraped up like spindly fingers, curving and pointing with gothic judgment. It felt as though the forest mocked her. As if it knew she was unprepared for what was to come. The quiet patter of her canine guides kept her placing one foot in front of the other despite her instincts. She couldn’t help but wonder if their ease was misplaced. The forest was silent. But that didn’t mean there wasn’t danger.
It was the silence before the sky fell and beneath these naked trees, there would be nothing to break its fall. Her steps hurried as her mind twisted, thoughts turning as gnarly as the forest around her. She wanted out of here, wanted to find the god of this realm and be done with this.
The pup in her arms squirmed, begging to be let down. Once on the forest floor, the three dogs sat down, no longer interested in racing ahead. She tried to walk past them, but one of the short-haired dogs grumbled and circled around her until she was back where she started. Hands in her pockets, she studied her surroundings.
What had been one simple worn path now split into four. All dark and unlit. All likely terrible options.
“A crossroads,” she murmured to no one.
One path behind her. One path before her. One path to her right. And one path to her left.
A woman slunk out from behind the pin-thin trees, moving like the night itself. She had wood-brown hair cropped to her chin and smart gray eyes that tracked Elysia’s movements. A few freckles stood out faintly on her fair skin. Wrapped in a light pink ankle-length dress with chunky boots, she seemed both out of place and completely at home in the forest.
Her entrance had been as silent as the woods around them and there was an air to her that reminded Elysia of the women in her city who tended the dead. An ease that only came from looking death in the eye over and over again until the false enmity faded into something gentler. Elysia couldn’t say she understood, but between the hangings and the death moths she had developed something of a fascination with death. One of many secrets she never told. Good girls and daughters of the Crown didn’t wonder about such things.
The woman’s voice was soft, caught somewhere between youth and the adult body she bore. “Elysia Parker. The fates do have their jokes, don’t they?” She stared unflinchingly, taking in the measure of her, before gesturing almost demurely around them as if this were a throne room instead of the most unnatural forest Elysia had ever had the misfortune to enter. “You’ve come upon a crossroads.”
Elysia met her gaze, thinking that she seemed familiar. “You know my name, but I don’t know yours.”
The woman’s face didn’t so much as twitch, but a pleased mischief entered her stone-colored eyes.
“Don’t you?” Her lips almost smiled. “You can call me Maya.”
She sat on a fallen log with perfect posture. Her palms turned up, gesturing to the paths surrounding them. “This is only your beginning, Elysia Parker, and your indecision will ruin you before you even embark on your true quest. So, I have come to grant you a boon.”
Apprehension skittered through Elysia. “And what is the price of your gift?”
Maya’s mouth curled up, pleased at her question. “Our goals align for the time being. No cost.”
Before Elysia could respond, the woman, who appeared perhaps a decade older than her, stood and her tone turned brisk. “The choosing of the path—fate’s first query into whether you are worthy.” Hands inside the pockets of her dress, Maya surveyed the four paths.
Elysia eyed the woman as if she were possibly mentally unstable. “I think there’s been a mistake. I need to speak with the god of the dead. If you could point me in the right direction that would be much appreciated. No need for… this .”
“And you will. But first, your decision.” Seeing Elysia’s expression, Maya continued, sounding exasperated. “Look, you came here and clung to a tree like a barnacle. It caused a stir. And now you drugged yourself to get back here and speak with him again . For better or for worse, you’ve got the fates’ attention after those little stunts.”
A flash of frustration coursed through Elysia. She forced her voice to remain even. “Those were not stunts . I simply have something to discuss with the god of the dead. Fate has nothing to do with any of this. Besides, where I’m from, the gods and fates do not hear nor care.” Bitterness darkened her voice.
Maya smiled at Elysia’s rancor, but a strange pity softened her eyes. “Hardly the truth, but I believed that once, too. Either way”—she gestured around them—“you still have a path to choose.”
Elysia threw her hands up. “Fine. You want me to pick a path?” She started to fling out an arm, but Maya caught it in midair.
She lowered Elysia’s arm slowly, anger swirling in her eyes. “You would do well to respect what you do not know. And if you cannot respect it, then at the very least have curiosity.”
Embarrassed, Elysia intuitively knew she had almost just made a possibly mortal mistake. She stopped, closed her eyes and breathed. Nerves needled under her skin now. She had no idea how to find the god of this realm, or which way to go. It wasn’t like she’d been dropped off with a map and a bundle of snacks for the road.
“I am sorry.” She spoke stiffly, the words unfamiliar and unused on her tongue.
Maya relaxed, stepping back in wordless acceptance of the apology. “You will find your magic is accessible here. I imagine it may illuminate your path.”
Elysia’s eyes shot to her new guide’s in surprise. People from Kava were magicless no matter which land they slipped into—sure, someone like her would retain the crumbs they had started with, but it wouldn’t bloom into anything more just because they crossed a border. A painful feeling of vulnerability overcame her. She had no idea how to use her magic properly. If anything, her magic used her.
Nervous, she scanned the four paths surrounding her. Even as she strained to look beyond what was visible to her physical eye, she saw nothing but dark empty paths cutting deeper into the woods. Eyes closed, she listened, hoping to hear what was hidden out of sight, but not from someone like her.
At first all she could feel was tension, all she could hear was doubt. Muscles knotted and feet aching. Thoughts as twisted as the trees around her, telling her she never should have left Relaclave. But then the silence that had smothered her sunk into the spaces between her thoughts, quieting and soothing until she could finally hear.
Inside her mind’s eye, it was the breaking of dawn. The sun she barely knew, cresting the land—its light just enough to see within the shadows. Through the light and beneath the shadows, she found the truth. Sepia-toned images flashed through her mind, faster than she could track. Music overlaid the images, adding texture and depth to what she saw.
A small hum that turned to a soft sigh escaped her mouth even as her body staggered, unused to the toll of magic. But the magic slid through her, potent and heavy like hot fire in her veins, burning away any illusion or dogma that magic was something to fear or squash.
She had not realized just how dead and broken magic really was within Kava. Because here? It was ease. It felt like freedom—like her . She wanted to roll in the feeling, bask inside it until she never forgot what it was to be her again. She wanted to laugh like the undone child she had never been and bottle this moment for when she inevitably did as all humans do, and forgot this feeling.
It was unfathomable how the people of Kava had survived for so long without magic. The fact that her people had lumbered on only spoke of their resilience, and it made her wish that every last person in her land could feel what she was feeling.
A branch crackled somewhere in the woods, and Elysia’s eyes startled open.
Maya watched expectantly, tapping a long thin stick in each of the four directions. “Ready to make your choice? Whatever your decision, after today, you cannot say you didn’t know.”
Elysia took a breath, the nerves flitting back from where they had hid. She heard what Maya wasn’t saying. That after today, she could blame no one but herself for what was to come. She had looked with her magic wide open and chosen her path. And more than that, she could feel the weight of every past decision settling around her shoulders. It was neither heavy nor cumbersome. It was simply the truth. There were always going to be unmovable variables. Her parents, her home. But there were endless tiny decisions that no one could claim but her. This moment was about admitting her role in the mess that was her life. Picking up the reins and loving herself enough to acknowledge the power in her yes and in her no, in what she did or did not do.
Turning around silently, she peered into the darkness of the path behind her. She spoke quietly, almost reverently, in the wake of meeting her magic. “The path behind me is diseased, but enticing in its familiarity. I saw a tangle of roses. Soft, beautiful, thorny roses with petals of blood and velvet. It felt familiar. Like falling into your bed at the end of a long night. But the thorns and stems were snarled so tight—I am not sure it may even be entered.” Her brow creased as she stared into the nothingness, her arms wrapped around her middle.
Maya held still, her face serious and eyes distant in contemplation. Elysia continued describing the paths that lay open to her.
Her voice took on an almost eerie quality now. “The three that remain are different yet the same. They run through the woods on different trails, but all remain the same. One with brambles, rivers, and vines. Another with creatures, teeth, and claws. The third with gambles, vice, and lies.”
Maya nodded, still deep in thought as she considered these new paths. She pointed her stick behind them. “You can go home. It would be as if you never came here.”
Swinging her stick, she tapped it down to the right, to the left, and then finally straight ahead. “Three paths that are so very different yet bring you to the same place. What you lose and gain along the way will not be the same. Who you become will not be the same. What will your choice be, Elysia Parker?”
Her eyes darted between the paths. She was not the slow and patient sort. Nor was she a warrior at heart—not the kind that lived to battle tooth and nail to feel victory spray upon their skin. There was no point in lying about who she was in a wood so dark with no one here to see.
She spoke her judgment steadily. “What’s another gamble?”
The world responded to her words and the will beneath them.
The crossroads vanished. All paths but one disappeared, trees suddenly surrounding them.
“And will you take the path alone? I am more than happy to escort you to whom you seek.” Maya’s voice came from behind her, the much taller woman looking down over Elysia’s shoulder.
A bright green thread whispered to Elysia, and it sounded like suspicion. She watched the thread evaporate. It might have sounded like suspicion, but it felt like meddling. It made her think of the interference between siblings—how she would happily muck up Beatriz’s plans if only to watch her squirm. Sidestepping the question, she asked one of her own.
“Why doesn’t the undead god of this land know I’m here?”
Maya leaned back against a tree now with her arms folded, the small amused lift of her lips the only acknowledgment of Elysia’s insinuations. “Oh, he does. He’s just a little occupied.”
Elysia persisted, narrowing her gaze. “Last time I managed to hold my form here, he appeared rather immediately. Although, I did seem to upset him.” She frowned.
He’s a god. Why would he care about a measly human in his realm?
Maya scratched her nose before her hands went back to the pockets of her dress. “Yes, I imagine he might have been a bit sensitive about that. If he has any common sense, he’ll have gotten over it. But we don’t get humans here often. Well, live ones anyway. Lots of dead ones.” She grinned to herself, but then continued, her gray eyes growing serious. “While I have certain hopes for you, this decision was sacred. You grew up in a world where your choices were stripped from birth. I thought it was important to allow you the gift of clarity and choice before your journey begins without a god swaying your decision.”
Her expression warmed, a sharp sort of mischief entering her eyes as she pushed off the tree. “And I wanted to meet you for myself.”
Elysia bit her lip, thinking through Maya’s words. The idea of a perfect stranger holding space for her to meditate on her path—all so she could feel a sliver of trust and confidence in herself in the time to come was strange and unsettling. Instead of feeling grateful, she felt wary. When in doubt, she reached for the diplomacy that was second nature.
“Then I thank you for your hospitality and kindness. And I would appreciate your guidance in finding your god.”
A low whining growl came from near her feet, and Elysia smiled. She reached down to give the pup some pets. “Yes, you can come too.”
Maya stretched, her arms reaching up and back. “Time for us to go, then. It’s getting late, and I imagine his deadliness will be feeling a bit frustrated by now.” Her shoulders shook with a silent laugh, but she didn’t explain, just set off at a steady pace down Elysia’s chosen path.
The dogs galloped off with loud barks, darting around Maya’s heels as they plunged ahead. Something about the sight gave Elysia pause. The tall bone-white trees, Maya’s self-assured form, and the little dogs. It had all been such a strange day already, from her conversation with the prince to drinking tinctures and magical tests in a dark wood.
And now she was to meet a god. If her path was to be filled with gambles and risks, she imagined this was only the first of such strange days.