“Tell me that’s not true,” Jade said, her hands trembling.
“Not everything is so black and white,” Celesine answered coolly.
Isla stepped forward, and the wind stirred the sand at her feet.Wasshedoing that?“It’s beenyoumanipulating Sebastian this whole time. But—why?” The words shocked Isla even as they rolled off of her tongue. She glared at the spirit elemental, the hum of her new abilities beneath her skin giving her courage.
“Well, am I wrong? Answer me!” Isla bellowed when she didn’t respond. Sebastian’s hand grazed her spine lightly, like he was trying to keep her steady.
Celesine inhaled deeply, slowly, as she looked at each of the—former—immortal beings surrounding her. “You don’t know what it has been like these past eons.”
Jade shook her head and crossed her arms over her body as if that would hide her from the pain of betrayal. Isla saw the truth register in Jade’s eyes, watched with guilt and pity as her friend realized she was on the cusp of losing one of the strongest forces in her life. That perhaps she’d never truly known the female standing before them.
“Then tell us, Celesine,” Aidan said, trying and failing to muster up his usual confidence. Isla could tell they were all struggling, all missing pieces of themselves.
Pieces now residing in her.
“I’ve watched for millennia as the four of you paraded around the realms, thinking yourselves gods among men, resorting to violence when the people would not acquiesce to your will.” Celesine’s voice grew sharper and more determined as she went on, the words spilling from her with venom. Her small stature did not conceal the beast within, the vengeful creature Isla sensed had been locked inside of her for some time. “Tell me, are youproudof what you have done?”
“What are you talking about?” Jade shouted. “Does it look like the kingdoms are wanting for anything? We’ve done our duty and provided for the earth and its people our entire lives!”
Violent purple flashed in Celesine’s eyes as she responded. “Who was the one that I had to watch over like a pathetic child because she was angry when the people didn’t worship her?”
Whirling on Aidan, she continued, her anger untethered. “Or the one who could not tame his emotions for centuries, forced to take his wrath out on the earth and its innocent humans? Does your beloved wife even know of all the lives your fire has claimed?” Aidan opened his mouth and then slammed it shut, his jaw clenching.
Kai and Rynn stiffened as the spirit elemental drew her attention to them next. “And you two, the ones who sparked a war that took thousands of lives simply because you wanted what you could not have,” she sneered at Kai, “and were arrogant enough to believe your thirst for revenge was worth the cost.” She spat at Rynn’s feet.
“Do you still claim to have ‘done your duty’?” Celesine mocked, and the four of them stayed silent. “The Primeval gods made a mistake. No being should be permitted to exist in this world as long as you have. Over time, you became unstable and irresponsible toward the realms you helped to create. And it wasIwho had to witness it for millennia.”
Isla glanced at Rynn and the others, despair at Celesine’s words written on their faces. What Isla hated most was that she couldn’t refute Celesine’s words. The elementalshaddone those terrible things in their existence. It wasn’t the first time Isla had thought of the mistakes they’d made.
But did they deserve this?
“I’ve seen what the world needs.Ican provide for it.” The sea breeze whipped Celesine’s dark hair and gown as she spoke.
“How long have you been planning this?” Aidan seethed, finally speaking.
“Two years,” Isla answered, her heart skipping a beat at the realization. “That’s when the people of Karstos noticed their king was absent. You found Sebastian and started all of this two years ago, didn’t you? But why did you even need him?”
“I needed someone in this world to be my hands, to carry a portion of my magic and do what I commanded. Mostly, I needed to find the dagger. The Primevals forbade me to search for it myself and hid its location from me.” Her voice took on a tone of revulsion. “While I may possess the power to see into this realm, there are some things they hold within their control and do not see fit for me to know.
“But still, I knew of the dagger’s existence, what it could do. I’ve been planning this for far longer than two years; it all depended on that ridiculous prophecy, and I knew the time had arrived for it to come to pass when you were born.” She inclined her head to Isla.
“Me?” Isla asked, her forehead crinkling.
“The ‘crimson savior,’” Celesine said. “An heir to the Vasileia throne, the only bloodline that can trigger the dagger’s abilities. Because of the blood that runs through your veins,” she brandished her arm to Isla, “I could not touch your mind myself, of course—just as the others cannot. There have been many of your ancestors born since Iona fell, but I needed time to gather my strength. You have no idea how much power it takes to hold onto a mind so completely that they forget even themselves,” Celesine crooned, stroking Sebastian’s arm.
“So, the king was simply a—a puppet to get you the dagger? A ruse to keep us occupied?” Jade asked, her voice strained.
“In part,” Celesine said. “At first, I did not see the need to wake you. I thought—foolishly, I admit—that I could use Sebastian and Isla to find the dagger without going through the trouble of summoning you. I had him using his vast resources to search high and wide to locate it, hoping it had washed ashore with the descendants of Iona and could be found by brute force. Taking your powers while you were slumbering would have been much easier, after all.”
Isla’s nostrils flared.Coward, her mind screamed.
“Eventually, it became obvious that I had to wake you. And here was this wicked king whom I could throw into your path, his ledger freshly bloodied, leading you to believe he was the foe from the prophecy. The threat of his powers—through me, of course—was enough to motivate you to find the dagger.”
“But in the mountains, after we found the second prophecy, you attacked him,” Jade forced out. “Was all of that for show?”
Celesine’s jaw twitched in annoyance. “He surprised me that day. He wasn’t supposed to be there.” She tutted. “Yet it ended up working in my favor, helping to keep your faith in me. Kai and Rynn were already less than trusting as it was.”
“You said you knew you needed me. How did you know I’d even find the elementals to begin with?” Isla asked. “It was all just by chance that I ran into Rynn.”
