A slow smile worked its way across Maya’s face. While the woman normally wore floaty flower dresses and boots for mucking through the forest, there was something in her eyes that always reminded Elysia to mind herself, to pay attention when in Maya’s presence.
“You want me to teach you how to use the raw power.”
“Is that possible?”
“You’d be amazed at what I can teach you, Parker.” Maya crossed her arms, considering the task before them. “That type of training will take more than the time you have before visiting the mortal realm.”
Elysia deflated but nodded. “I figured. It’s one thing to assist the dead in removing their burdens, but mortals are still living. I can’t go around relieving them of their pain. I just figuredthere had to be another way to, I don’t know, find excess energy, and use it.” She frowned, maybe it was too crazy.
Maya placed her hand on top of Elysia’s. “Allow me to be your guide. I will teach you what Aidan can’t, and I promise, when you’re ready, nothing will stop you.”
Her mouth was moving, agreeing to Maya’s offer before she could form a thought. “Teach me. Show me what I can do.”
Even while under the laws of Kava and her father’s thumb, she had trained, plotted, and ensured she never felt entirely powerless. But her trip to Bellia had left her afraid, all too aware of her current disadvantage. Luckily, she knew that even the most mediocre of natural talent could be trained into something greater with enough discipline and devotion.
Maya swept up the glasses and bottles. “Good, it’s settled. I always wanted an apprentice.” She grabbed a piece of paper and scrawled out instructions that she dropped into a small drawstring pouch along with a few handfuls of glass balls. “Follow those carefully. Aidan will murder me if you blow yourself up.”
Elysia grabbed her loot, heading for the door. “Don’t worry, I’ve made poisons before, it’s practically the same thing, right?”
Chapter 28
Elysia strolledthrough the sculpture garden surrounding the god of the undead gods temple, enjoying the swish of her bright blue robes. It hadn’t gone unnoticed that Maya had supplied her with appropriate garments in the exact color of Aidan’s eyes. She wouldn’t have pegged Maya as a romantic, which only made her wonder further about her motives.
Sewn into the endless folds and pleats of her strategically pinned robes were tiny sachets of explosives and one drawstring pouch of igniters. The igniters rolled quietly against each other. Each small glass ball was no bigger than the pad of her pinky finger. What mattered was that when she chucked them at the sachets, she would be in business.
Dressed like one of the acolytes, no one noticed as she marveled at the statues and sculptures while also lacing them with explosives. It was a pity she hadn’t had time to learn how to utilize raw magic yet. She didn’t know what she would be able to do, but she was imagining being able to light everything off at once in a grand finale of exploding golden statues.
Given that wasn’t possible, she continued her work through the garden, relishing the warm sand squishing up against her sandal-clad feet and being able to see blue sky above her.Assuming the boys hadn’t gotten far, then she would find Rollie and Topp inside in a rather compromised position. She couldn’t wait to scare the shit out of them.
Elysia stepped out of the sun into the cool air of the temple. It was every bit as gaudy as she had seen on the grid. Ostentatious and lacking in spirit, she was hard-pressed to understand how people still brought their money and pleas to this tomb of a temple. But then, she also understood the lure of a shiny promise and a little hope. Her mother had once said that religion was for scared, lonely people, and while she knew it was more complicated than that, she could see her mother’s point. It was easy to prey on the downtrodden.
It was midafternoon—the time when everyone slipped off to their chambers to get out of the worst of the sun, to sip on cooling teas and juices and maybe even steal a nap. Not a single footstep echoed in the green-domed temple beside her own, but there were the hissed voices of two grown men squabbling far above her head.
Elysia’s sensible sandals clacked against the white and black marble steps as she walked up past a blessing fountain onto the raised dais where the priest would speak from. She cupped a hand around her mouth, calling out with a drawl. “Hello, boys.”
Someone’s head thumped loudly. Cursing drifted down from above, making her smirk as she waited. Soon enough, Rollie was leaning dangerously over the scaffolding bars, his blonde hair poking into sight.
“Elysia?”
She’d never seen him look surprised before. She decided she liked it. Men like Rollie needed to be surprised occasionally if only to remind them that their calculations weren’t always perfect.
Topp, on the other hand, looked hassled and one second away from lighting the temple on fire early. She assumed this was because of Rollie, not her. “Parker, what is it about you that you’re always exactly where you shouldn’t be? Get the fuck out of here,” he barked.
Or maybe that facewasabout her. She smiled, thoroughly enjoying disrupting them. “You’re hiding up there and planning to what? Drop a match and hope for the best during evening prayers? How are you even going to get out?”
Rollie crossed his arms. “They’ll be distracted, and don’t worry about how it’s getting lit. I have it covered.” Indignant, he didn’t elaborate further.
She nodded, reaching over, and letting the blessing fountain water trickle over her fingers. “Sure, but not so distracted that they don’t clock your faces.” She gestured spectacularly. “Prince of Kava! Anti-religious zealot destroys the god of the undead gods temple in the White Sands!”
There was the sound of boots hitting metal, and then Topp’s body came into sight as he lumbered down the construction scaffolding. Gracefully, he dropped to the floor beside her, slowly rising from bent knees to his full height. “We were going to wear masks.”
She looked at him incredulously. “Topp, the first rule of being friends with Rollie is knowing when to point out when he’s lost sight of practicalities! He was probably so enraptured with making his boom-boom powders that he doesn’t give a shit whether they identify you or not. All he cares about is finding out if they work the way he imagined they will.” Frustrated, she glared at him.
Rollie awkwardly descended until he was hanging from the scaffolding and refusing to let go. Elysia saw him and groaned. “For fuck’s sake. Topp, help him down. He’s stuck.”
Topp reached up and gingerly placed one hand on either side of Rollie’s waist.
“Let go already, I’ve got you.”
