“My essence was never meant to live inside a single body. The Hearth was built to contain me...and to keep me hidden from the enemy,” Hika murmured, her voice laced with sorrow. “Your father’s heart was a miracle, large enough to hold me on its own, like yours is. But…” She faltered. “His heart broke when he lost her.”
Taren reached for Bran’s hand, their fingers tangling. Bran turned, meeting the young man’s eyes, but neither of them spoke. None of them did. Not for a long time. The land below rushed past, and the stars wheeled above them as the Great Phoenix carried them onward.
Rynna had always wondered why the people of Ember Reach seemed to hate the wild young boy. Finally knowing the answer didn’t make it any better. Only when the great wings began to slow, air buffeting against her, did the silence break.
“This is as close as I can take you,” Hika said. “The Waygate’s energy is too volatile. If I get any nearer, I might disrupt it.”
But she didn’t descend yet. Hovering in place, her wings stroked the night air, almost as if she were waiting. Holding the moment open. Kaelith blinked hard, shoulders shifting like he was shaking off a weight no one else could see. Then—
“I almost came for you after it happened,” he said, voice nearly lost to the wind.
Everyone turned to him.
“I knew what the Reach would do,” he continued, eyes downcast. “I knew they’d fear you. Maybe kill you. Or worse—let you live, but raise you in shame and hate. All for something that wasn’t your fault.”
He still didn’t look up.
“After Rynna disappeared…I couldn’t breathe, let alone raise a child. Bringing Ben to Ember Reach was the best I could do. The only thing I could do.”
Hika began to descend slowly.
“But by the time you were born…” Kaelith’s voice strained. “I didn’t trust myself. Not with the power you held within you. I was afraid I’d break you and take it for myself.”
Bran’s knees gave slightly. He leaned heavier into Elara, and she didn’t let go.
“When I saw you at the tournament,” Kaelith said. “With Rynna…and the wolf…” His gaze dipped toward the other man. “I’d been replaced. Forgotten.” His face lifted to the stars, eyes squeezing shut. “But not returning for you had clearly been the right decision.”
The Phoenix settled onto the ground, her wings folding in.
No one moved.
The silence pressed thick around Rynna, sitting heavy in her chest. Her lungs refused to work—at least not properly—as she stared at Kaelith. His head was still bowed. Hands still slack at his sides. And the lines of his face unmoving.
Over and over, she had failed him. She’d left without a word the first time, vanished into another war on another world. Then, when the Weaving brought her back, she hadn’t remembered him. Hadn't even recognized him. At the Ascension, she’d rejected him outright—blade drawn, fire in her blood—because it was easier than facing the truth. And somewhere in the midst of it all…she’d fallen in love with someone else.
Her pulse thudded in her ears.
She shook her head once. No. She’d never regret loving Fenn.
Her gaze turned toward him, where he stood a few feet away, soundless, watching her. His brow was drawn, his expression unreadable, but his eyes…they searched her like he could hear every word she wasn’t saying. Her heart clenched, the ache blooming behind her ribs. And now she was failing him, too.
The ocean was still miles away, but she could hear it now, churning behind the hills and trees, near the closest Waygate in Tide Reach. Then Fenn stood, brushing his palms against his thighs.
“What was it you used to say, Rynna?” he asked, glancing at her. “The Weaving weaves as it wills?”
She nodded once.
Fenn, Kaelith, and Fang Unit. They had all been tied together and put on this path since before most of them had even been born. It was becoming clearer every day.
But still…
Kaelith dragged a hand down his face, fingers lingering at his jaw before dropping away. His spine straightened. Air hissed through his teeth. Then the corner of his mouth twitched, lazy and familiar.
“I think what the wolf is trying to say is: maybe we survive the day before we go drowning in the past.”
He pushed upright with a groan and extended his hand to Rynna.
“Plenty of time for that later,” he said, squeezing her fingers once their hands met. His eyes held hers. “Right?”
