My throat tightened. But she was right. So was Sean.
The cheers and shouts were starting to die down. I stepped forward, my eyes sweeping over them. And I took a deep breath, my mind made up.
“Come with me,” I said. “If you want. But before you agree to fight at my side, and with Lady Lyriana, there’s something I need to say.”
Already they were chanting my name, shouting out again. But now, it wasn’t Arkturion they were calling me. It was Arkasva. Arkasva Hart. High Lord of Glemaria.
My stomach turned.
“I want you all to know,” my voice cracked, and I started again. “I want you all to know that you’re free. Your freedom was returned to you for no reason other than it was always yours to begin with. None of you deserved to have it taken away. Not one of you, me included,” I paused, my eyes watering, “deserved what happened to them, to us.”
Harman’s eyes watered. Brandes shed a tear.
“You were cured by the grace and power of Lyriana Batavia. And to understand how, you should know. It’s because she is Asherah, the Goddess reborn.”
Lyr gasped, her eyes widening. “Rhyan.”
I shook my head. It was time. Time for everyone to know. She’d healed them all, done the impossible. And it wasn’t going to be the last time. If we were going to do this, I was done with hiding. Finished with secrets. What the Empire deemed illegal no longer concerned me.
“She saved you,” I said. “Her magic, her strength. It was she who brought me back and all of you by extension. I am so grateful to her, for more than just myself. For all of you. She is mymekarim.My soulmate. I will love her, and honor her and serve her for the rest of my life. So if you want to join me, if you want to fight with me, you fight for her.”
Her hazel eyes watered, the specks of gold glinting in the faint light escaping through the canopy of branches above us. The former akadim cheered, now shouting Lyr’s name.
“There is a war coming,” I said. “And I need your help to fight it. But you are under no obligation to me, or to this cause. None of you signed up to have your lives disrupted, your souls taken. None of you asked to be changed, hurt, or violated in the ways you were. The way I was.” I took a deep breath. “And I hold none of you guilty for the crimes committed when you were not yourself. If you need to hear you are absolved, I say this to you now—you are.” My voice shook. “Though I admit, I am struggling to remember the same for myself. But I’m working on it. And I’m willing to work on it beside all of you.
“If you want to go now, if you wish to go home, to go back to your countries, your Kavim, your families, if you want to leave the Lumerian Empire altogether and continue west, know that I understand. And that you go with my blessing, and—” Ireached for Lyr’s hand, bringing her forward. “You go with Lady Lyriana’s. But if you do want to stay, I would be beyond honored to fight beside you. We are heading north, to Glemaria. To take down its Arkasva and Imperator. My father. I am the rightful Heir Apparent. And I’m ready to finally remove my father from power. Something that should have been done a long time ago. For years, he’s abused his position, allowing akadim to roam free, terrorizing my people, and everyone in the North. And he’s committed other crimes. Too heinous to name. But it’s time for him to receive justice. So you all get to choose now. You can come with me and fight. Or, you are free to go.”
I felt dizzy as I stopped speaking, like I might fall over. Only because Lyr’s grip on me was so strong did I manage to stand. But suddenly, the former akadim were shouting, shouting my name. Calling me Arkasva. Pumping their fists in the air, bowing, kneeling.
“Arkasva Rhyan! Arkasva Rhyan! High Lord of Glemaria!”
Sean sank before me, pressing his fist to his heart, two times, then flattening his hand against his chest. “Me sha, me ka, Your Grace, Arkasva Rhyan Hart, High Lord of Glemaria,” he shouted.
Everyone erupted into cheers.
I turned away, burying my face against Lyr’s as the tears overwhelmed me.
Chapter
Forty-Two
LYRIANA
I held Rhyan tight, letting him compose himself, before he bravely turned to the former akadim, and accepted their oaths. The applause that sounded was the most beautiful thing I ever heard. Because Rhyan deserved it, he deserved their support, and they all deserved a chance to make things better, for themselves, for Lumeria. And this was step one. So many wanted to come forward to thank us, offer hugs of gratitude, introduce themselves, and personally pledge their sword, or skills, or simply their loyalty.
Others had wanted to touch my hands, the hands of the person that had healed them, that wielded the red shard. I still could barely believe it. The cure had worked. Rhyan was saved. And so were all the akadim that had been bound to him. It was a miracle, and my heart wouldn’t stop pounding. I tried to stay close to Rhyan through it, to make sure he was okay. He’d never exactly been one to make himself the center of attention. And I knew despite his brave words, and the strength he was exuding in each interaction, he was still unsure of himself. Still carrying the guilt of what was done to him. What had happened.
And questioning his new title. Arkasva.
Soon the numbers of people who wanted to speak to us quickly became overwhelming, and I found myself moving into various crowds as Rhyan was pulled in the opposite direction away from me.
Sean’s soturi—now Rhyan’s and mine—had been making their way to Dobrava all day long. Which meant that after several hours, there were over one hundred of us gathered together, attempting to make camp for the night. Dozens had gone into the nearest town to try and barter for food with gold. Dozens more had gone into the woods to hunt any local game they could find. Another group had risked going back across the border into Lumeria to purchase more supplies. Spare cloaks, daggers, boots, and armor. And of course, for those who’d been akadim, they needed clothes and shoes.
About a dozen of them who had been taken from human lands and had no magic in them, had begun to melt down Morgana’s collars in order to weld the steel into swords.
I was in shock at how much was happening and how quickly. Only a day ago Rhyan had been akadim, and I’d been on the verge of hopelessness and despair. Fighting for my life and his.
And now? Everything had shifted. Our world turned upside down, and for once, it was all in our favor. After months of hiding and being hunted, of being forced to sell ourselves in every way to survive, we had support. We had allies. We had a chance. It was more than I could have dreamed. And I couldn’t stop being amazed every time I thought of it.
