The thought of relocating the Rebellion seemed nearly impossible, considering how large their forces were. I couldn’t imagine the amount of time it took to build all the houses and buildings that allowed them to maintain a functioning community here. If we moved, no doubt it would be only the bare minimum needed to survive coming with us.
“Can you let the council know that I’d like to speak with whoever is responsible for the current barrier spell?” Bastian questioned as he sat back in his chair, his brow pinching before a determined look crossed his face. He seemed to lose himself in thought for a moment, but his eyes brightened as he glanced at Steele. “I’m starting to realize I don’t know the extent of my powers, and maybe thereissomething I can do to help with security.”
Steele nodded in agreement before Ronan spoke up.
“So, about that…” he trailed off, glancing between Bastian, Gabe, and me. “Did any of you catch what Noah said about him as he was working on healing Niz?”
We all shared looks of confusion.
He sighed, before continuing, “That’s what I thought. After Noah said something about the complexities of magic and Bastian disagreed, he said that Bastian was speaking like a true Archimage. Does anyone know what that means?”
I couldn’t believe I missed that, but I had been enraptured by Bastian’s magic at work in the tense moment. But my jaw dropped as the term clicked into place, quickly recalling what little I’d read about it in a book.
“Yes,” I spluttered, drawing all eyes to me. “I read about it briefly when studying dead affinities. I don’t remember everything written about it, but essentially it’s far above a regular Caster. It’s someone who doesn’t need spells to use magic and has a limitless well of power. There’s no cap to what type of magic they can use, whereas most Casters have aspeciality of spells they can cast, with a limit on the energy they have to use them.”
Bastian mulled over my words for a moment before smiling. It was slightly sinister, the way the wide grin pulled slowly onto his lips as he lifted his hands to examine them with an unfiltered glee reflecting in his eyes. “So, what I’m hearing is, basically, I’m superior.”
“Maybe it’s Bastian’s large head we need to be concerned about now,” Gabe joked before digging into his food.
If I’d heard someone else say what Bastian had, I’d be concerned for their sanity, but it felt entirely normal coming from his mouth. I wasn’t sure what that said about any of us, but at some point, we’d just accepted his unusual brand of thoughts and words.
Ronan’s shoulders slumped in my peripheral, drawing my focus as I attempted to read his expression—sadness seemed to infiltrate his gaze. It quickly dawned on me that with the Archimage revelation, he was the only one in the room without a dead affinity. And that was on top of finding out that he actually didn’t tame the wyvern that helped him climb as high in the ranks of Tamers as he had.
Ronan quickly schooled his features, plastering on a false facade. He rolled his shoulders back and lifted his fist to lean his head on. I needed to talk to him about this later, in private.
Between bites, Gabe offered, “I say we take the rest of the day to help clean up from the battle and lend our help to where it’s most needed right now. Tomorrow, we need Kieran and Bastian to work with Noah, to learn more about their powers, so we know exactly what we’re all capable of.”
With everyone in agreement, we quickly scarfed down our food and headed out, though Ronan stayed behind to keep a close eye on Niz. My feet led me toward the medical center, and upon telling a healer I was there to help however I could, theyput me to work. Hours passed, and my hands felt permanently tinged crimson with blood, never really coming clean no matter how often I washed them. This time there was some comfort in it, though. While I wasn’t a healer by any means, I was doing what I could to save lives.
Gabe had to practically drag me out of the medical center, telling me that Niz was awake now and we needed to go home. A piece of my soul felt a little lighter as we exited the building, but I still felt the need to hide my stained hands, shoving them into the back pockets of my jeans.
The path back seemed fairly empty, and the light shining on us from the moon would have usually given me comfort. Now it was just a reminder of the scene of our battle.
A hand gripped my wrist, gently tugging it from its hiding spot and drawing my eyes from the sky to Gabe. He stared at the stained skin before twining our fingers together and squeezing. We walked in silence for a few minutes before I tentatively asked, “It doesn’t bother you?”
I watched his tongue dart out to lick his lips before his head craned to look at me. “Are you asking about the figurative blood on your hands, or the actual stain on them from helping today?”
It shook me to my core how easily he seemed to know me.
“Well, I guess both,” I admitted, letting my eyes fall to the path in front of us.
He tugged us to a halt, pulling me into him. He cupped my cheeks in his hands, turning my head up until I met his gaze. Shivering, tingles ran through my body at the feel of his thumb sweeping across my jaw lightly.
“Neither bother me, Little Star,” he admitted before grabbing both of my hands to bring them up between us.
He leaned to press his soft lips to them. Looking up at me from beneath his lashes, I couldn’t recall a time where I had felt this certain that I didn’t want to live without him. The way hemade me feel so seen, heard, and safe all at once without me having to explain myself was so special, and sometimes I felt like I struggled to comprehend it.
“Despite not being in each other’s lives for long, I’ve seen multiple versions of you. The Kieran who fiercely detested her oppressors and took the decision to live her life the way she wanted to into her own hands. A woman who gifted me a night I’ll never forget, just for a chance to feel like her life was her own to deal with.”
My cheeks heated at the memory of our first night together as a deep, pulsing need unfurled within me. It yearned to know exactly how different it would be now that he was in his true form.
“After that, I saw the angel who was tired of taking Alfemir’s shit, and instead chose to believe in herself. She took her fate into her own hands and took the scariest leap of faith to exist.”
I swallowed harshly, remembering the anguish I’d felt at leaving my mother behind after realizing the true depth of the abuse my father doled out. I hoped with everything in me that she found the strength to leave as well.
“I didn’t think you could be more stunning and inspiring than you were then,” he breathed out before kissing my hands again. “And then I watched you navigate a new world around you, handling some really hard truths that turned your own world upside down. Throughout it all, there was an air of grace and assurance about you, something that showed that you could handle anything that came at you. I was in awe of you.”
“But then?” I questioned as my shoulders fell slightly, wondering if the strength of his feelings for me had dimmed.
