“What?” Xae asked.
“He said they were thieves. That what they did was disobedient and dishonorable. And that the Goddess could have saved them had she wanted to.”
“There's nothing harsh about that, Ember,” Rath said. “It's just the honest truth. Those men broke into the Training Commander's office and stole a trunk of fruit that had been picked for another class. That alone would have gotten them kicked out of the program. But then they ate the fruit without permission, making it an even greater offense.”
“Starfruit is holy,” Xae said. “Stealing and eating them are like an act against the Goddess. They were foolish to think she'd accept them after that.”
“See now, if you had told me all of that, I could have let it go,” I said with a grimace.
“We didn't think about it.” Rath made a face at Xae and Kel.
“Well, at least Taroc did,” Keltyr said. “He's already helped us.”
“What else did you talk about?” Rath asked.
“His life.” I shrugged. “He was raised on the coast.”
“The coast of what?” Xae asked.
“Oh, uh, Xae Gant. A small village to the north of Myar. He didn't tell me the name.”
“I'm not familiar with that area.” Rath looked at Xae.
Xae shrugged.
“Really? You're not going to ask me if I know where it is?” Kel asked.
“Do you?” Rath lifted his brows.
Kel grimaced. “Well, no. But you shouldn't have assumed.”
Rath rolled his eyes.
“Oh, and I talked to Caleb too,” I said.
Xaedren growled.
“And that's what I want to talk to you about.” I pointed at Xae's face. “Caleb's not interested in me like that. He just wants a friend who understands him. And I like having someone from my past to connect with. It's good to remember that I'm human.”
Xae's face twitched.
“I know you're trying to be nice to him.” I went to sit by Xae, between him and Rath on the couch. “But can you try a little harder? Please don't scare off my new friend.”
“Very well,” Xae said, sliding an arm around me. “For you.”
“Thank you.” I started to lean in against him, then straightened suddenly with, “I almost forgot! I had an idea about the people of Fress.”
“What's that?” Rath asked.
“Maybe they could rebuild the village. There's no reason for the Corrupter to return now. As far as he knows, it's destroyed and no one will be going back. So, really, Fress is completely safe.”
Rath's eyes widened, Kel nodded, and Xae grunted.
“What do you guys think? Should we talk to General Rontor about it?”
“I think we could help them rebuild,” Xae said.
I snorted. “You just want to get Caleb out of here faster.”
