“Perhaps I should level the playing field, then.” Vi set down the knife, forgetting the food a moment, and untied the crystal sword from her hip. Deneya stopped laughing.
Vi drew the sword and held it out before her, parallel to the ground, at eye level. She focused on it, feeling the magic that collected together and gave the crystals shape. Vi tightened her grip, imagining her hold on the magic becoming greater in turn.
Change shape, she willed the crystals. Magic moved through the blade, invisible to anyone but her, and collected in the far tip of the sword. The blade thinned, transforming into a pole. The magic at the end jutted outward.
By the time the light faded, Vi was holding an axe of crystal.
“You’ve been making more progress than you’ve let on,” Deneya said with quiet awe.
“You can hold it.” Vi stretched her arm across the table.
“You’re sure?”
“Yes.”
Deneya took the weapon and twirled it once. She stood, swung it two times, and let out a low whistle. “I could cleave so many heads from shoulders with this.”
Vi laughed.
“She’s accomplished incredible things,” Taavin said warmly. Vi glanced at him, the pride in his voice nearly making her blush.
“So, you can manipulate crystals however you please in addition to transferring power between them and the Caverns.” Deneya turned back, passing her the axe. “It’s what we were hoping for, isn’t it?”
“Yes.” Vi took the axe in both hands. She was silent a moment, intense focus overtaking her as she shifted the magic within the crystals once more. Like ice melting in sunlight, some of the crystals vanished, others jutted out, smoothed over, and the sword took shape once more.
“When the crystal weapons are taken to the Caverns, Vi will be there to transfer the power and—”
“The magic weapons won’t actually be destroyed and the Caverns will remain intact,” Deneya interrupted Taavin. “Then we’ll combine the collective magic of the crystal weapons, the Caverns themselves, and what’s trapped in the flame of Yargen in Risen to give a physical form to the Goddess herself. Then she’ll duel Raspian in another battle of light and dark, yes, yes, I know.”
“For a battle that the fate of the world hinges on, you make it sound boring,” Taavin remarked.
“The fate of the world has been boring these past fourteen years,” Deneya quipped without looking at him. She shoveled food into her mouth and Vi took the opportunity to do the same. “What I’m asking is… now that she can do this, what are our next steps?”
“We’ll approach the weapons in order, based on Taavin’s knowledge of past histories and stones in the river of fate,” Vi mused aloud. “First is the sword. We know where the scythe is, so that won’t be a problem.”
“Glad getting to Meru is listed as ‘not a problem’,” Deneya muttered. Vi ignored her obvious disbelief and continued.
“The axe is safely hidden away in the North—or it should be.”
“It’s never been found before the War in the North.” Taavin gave Vi a nod.
“That leaves the crown, then,” Deneya said from behind her hand as she chewed. “Where do we think that one is?”
“Almost impossible to say. The crown is always so variable in its location.” Taavin scowled. The crown was never a pleasant topic of conversation. It had the most variables and made them all nervous.
“For the time being, we work with the stones in the river. We try to vary the timeline as little as possible,” Vi said calmly. “We’ll go to the Capital and see Aldrik gets the sword so he can fulfill that stone in the river of fate: him bringing the sword to the Caverns.”
“You’re giving him the sword?” Deneya blinked in shock.
“Of course not,” she said with a laugh. “I’m going to need you to make me a new one.”
“Memake a new—” Deneya stopped herself, comprehension dawning on her face “—oh, I get it.”
“And, honoring the stones in the river, will help ensure the birth of a new Champion,” Taavin said with an approving nod.
The words grated her, but Vi didn’t let it show. How were they supposed to look toward success if they were constantly planning for failure? For the time being, it wasn’t a question she was ready to pose to him. They were on the same page, and the night was going beautifully.
She swallowed the uncomfortable thoughts with a hunk of rabbit and washed it down with a long drink.
