CHAPTER 12 #2
Rounding on Wep, I lashed out. “You don’t get to pretend like our problems are the same.
You are surrounded by admiration in the land you’ve grown up in.
You know everything about this place. You are completely at home.
You are accepted.” I knew my voice was rising, but I could not bring myself to care.
“You aren’t sneered at while walking through the market.
No one sidesteps you for being a stranger.
You’re not mocked for your hair, your body, your height, and everything else about your very existence.
You know nothing of what it’s like to be me. Nothing.”
Wep stood. His jaw clenched, and this time, I only wanted to slap it. “I know a thing or two about being mocked for your hair.”
I glanced at his coppery locks and rolled my eyes. Storming out would have felt blissful after such an outburst, but I only made it halfway across the room before I remembered myself. With a day of lessons ahead, I was not free to walk away. My mouth filled with bitterness.
“May I be excused?”
He scoffed.
“May I?” I repeated, wrangling the edge in my voice.
Wep sighed. “Go.”
As fast as I could, I exited to my room.
Despite the cramped space, it felt empty now.
There was no one who could share this burden with me—no end to the depths of alone I faced.
By evening, I would surely regret my outburst. My cheeks would burn to remember how the stoic weaponmaster had tried to connect with me, and I repaid him with harsh refusal.
The rational side of me knew none of this was Wep’s fault. But, for now, I gave in to my anger.
THAT NIGHT, my dream of the cave was the most vivid yet. I approached the entrance with wide eyes and open ears.
“Come in,” that now familiar voice beckoned in my mind. “I’ve been waiting for you.”
I entered. Inside the cave was dark, yet it was permeated by color and light. Swirls of iridescence surrounded me, caressed me, and filled my very being. I was alight with it. Fire and ice and something I could only describe as vastness combined within me. I was ancient. Powerful. Perfect.
“I see you,” I said into the light.
With my next breath, it consumed me. I screamed, whether from pain or ecstasy, I couldn’t tell, and tried to move, turn away, or do anything to relieve this brilliance bursting through my skull.
Then, it was gone.
“Sleep,” she said, and for the first time, I knew the voice was female. “It is done. All is well. You are mine, and I am yours. Sleep.”
The next morning, I woke to the sounds of Callagh setting down my breakfast tray.
I groaned without opening my eyes. The previous day came back to me.
Before long, I would be faced with Wep again and would have to find a way to apologize.
I just hoped my mood hadn’t tainted things with my ranng, too.
“Dane wishes to see you after your meal.”
I jolted upright. “Me?” I opened my eyes, and the room swirled.
“Yes, my lady.” Callagh’s face was soft. She understood too much.
“Why?” My voice sounded distant in my ears. I willed my mind to focus. I was in my room, in my bed—that much I knew—but the air around me was swirling, sparkling light. I recognized it. There was something important that I knew, but I could not put it into words.
Callagh fidgeted with her skirt, and I fixated on the movement. “He didn’t explain, my lady.”
“Right, of course.” I frowned. Head spinning, I got up and hobbled to the wardrobe.
I stared at the clothes. The once-muted fabrics now shimmered with colors I had never imagined.
A rainbow of iridescence poured forth, mingling with the vibrancy of the room.
It was as if a veil of gray had been lifted from my eyes, and now the very breeze from my window swirled through the room in a thousand translucent colors. I gaped in awe.
“Are you all right, my lady?”
My jaw snapped shut, but I couldn’t stop my wide eyes from darting around the room in wonder.
Dressing took time, and Callagh moved to help me without asking.
I couldn’t even form the words to thank her.
When dressed, I sat before my vegetable plate and stared.
I picked up the fork, but I couldn’t bring myself to eat.
Not only was my stomach on edge from all the swirling, but these vegetables just looked off.
They were dark and ashen. I looked to Callagh, who was now eyeing me with wariness.
I held my breath and managed four bites before my stomach threatened to expel everything.
“Let’s not keep Dane waiting.”
If my mind had not been in such a state, I might have noticed my glasses left behind on my bedside table. By the time I made it to the hall, my mind was a blur of fog and colorful mist.
I stood before Dane, who frowned while stroking the long braid of his beard. The floor tilted beneath me, and Callagh moved closer, gripping my arm to steady me.
“Are you ill, Daughter?”
My eyes jumped from person to person. Everyone in the room was glowing, vibrant lights spilling from their bodies. A rainbow of colors emanated through their skins. I gasped.
“What’s wrong?” Dane’s voice boomed.
I shook my head, and the colors swirled painfully in my vision. Nothing, I tried to say, but no sound came out.
“Peace.” She spoke, and I stilled. Everything quieted, and a small soft light beckoned me to a corner of my mind. I followed it, retreating into sleep.
“Bow before me,” she demanded through my voice, but it was all right. I let her have it. “I shall return to you soon to demand your promise be fulfilled. The time is nigh. Be ready when I summon you.”
A force pushed out of me, and everyone in the room toppled to the floor. Only Dane remained upright, though on his knees.
When he stood, I could sense the struggle and pain from his wobbling leg. He rose and looked straight into eyes that were not mine. “We stand ready to serve.”
“You have done well, Small One. Now, sleep.”