Taking calming breaths, I felt the despair relent.
Every day we traveled together, he would worm his way into my mind, just as he was doing now. By the time we reached the Acheron . . .
I would destroy this world and proclaim myself its savior.
“Why do you think the Acheron is the key to unleashing the Empty?” I asked.
“Because of how well it’s guarded,” Phaedrus answered, staring into the night. “Duath Nun sealed itself away, we think, because of the Acheron. Because they feared meddlers would try to enter and risk annihilation to save this world.”
“Implying both could be accomplished.”
“Or only destruction,” Phaedrus countered.
Studying the shadows cast by the fire, I tried to imagine what the Acheron might look like. A great black river rushing into an infinite abyss flickered behind my eyes. “What do you think happens then? When the Empty consumes everything?”
“Life ceases. Peace returns to this world.”
“But there is life in the Empty. The Keres. The still sea.”
“And they are the natural order of things. Everything will return to how it was meant to be. If new life can flourish from itsdepths, I pray it is better than what men have made of this world.”
New life? I reflected on the Keres and the siren who had called to us from the sea. She had felt familiar.
Seth’s accent had felt familiar, too. But I had never set foot in Duath Nun. Nor had Ainwir, though he’d known of the place.
The church spoke of a cycle. One we’d been through before. The Empty would close in, and the Maiden would cleave through the abyss, creating paradise anew for those who remained.
I didn’t believe it. There would be no salvation. For me, or for anyone.
In the Empty’s stillness, we would finally be free. Free from pain, from grief, from illness.
Phaedrus did not forcethesethoughts upon me. I had never believed in a better tomorrow. But in the release of death . . .
Never again would someone rip out my heart and cast it into the sea.
2
Eleos
Everything had felt perfect when we landed. A few hours later, it all fell apart.
I’d been excited to arrive in Duath Nun. An entire uncharted country lay before us, filled with unfamiliar architecture, cultures, and people. Now that I stood in the midst of its city, my mind dwelt on the one thing thatwasn’there.
Squeezing through the crowd, I sloshed into a puddle just to escape the press of bodies andbreathe. Percy chased after me, doubling over to catch his breath. White strands of hair escaped from his feathered hat.
“Seas,” he panted. “I never thought this place would be so crowded.”
“Did you think it would be empty?” I asked.
“Honestly, yes.” Percy stood. “In my head, it was just a barren wasteland—like it is on our maps.”
“Perse. You’re supposed to be a muse.Creative.”
“I’m a bard, not a calligrapher.”
“Cartographer.”
Waving a hand to dismiss me, Percy brushed back his hair. “But,gods, it’s incredible, isn’t it?”
