I let out a disappointed sigh. “Thank you, Mother Liana.”
She smiles and waves me off.
I take one more moment to luxuriate in the warm joy inside the cave of crystals, all perfectly attuned to those like me, and then slip out.
The sword training will start soon. The energy flowing through me needs some kind of release. Hopefully, Ulla will be glad to see me.
Chapter 30
Shattuckite
TEO
Scrolls are sprawled across my desk, along with measuring instruments and the two books that Estela brought from Zlosa. She gave them to me to translate.
Currently, Vann sits at my side while I work.
“Fektir is an old man full of demands. First, he wants me to make Aska a queen. Then, we must destroy the Enduares to gain access to their caves and wealth, and finally I shall make my reign the richest dynasty the giants have seen in years. Fektir sees us as the most powerful people in the land and sees me as a vessel for his immortal honor. I don’t trust him, but he’s the only way I can sustain my crown,”I read off.
Vann shakes his head. “He’s a fool.”
“A dangerous fool who plots for our annihilation,” I say darkly.
“I look forward to his death, and I hope it is a fitting end to such an awful beast,” Vann says.
I look up from the book and push my glasses further up the bridge of my nose. “Are you still displeased that I didn’t bring you with me to see the elves?”
He snorts.
“I don’t think my memory is that long.” He brushes a scroll filled with my calculations of Iravida’s ruins. “However, since you’ve brought it up, you plan to take me with you to the ocean?”
I grunt.
“And after? Will you be taking me to march on the giants after we find the artifact?”
I narrow my eyes in mock irritation.
“Svanna already spoke with me. She thinks that she and Lothar would be better at protecting the cave for the stretches of time where we will be gone. Not that she didn’t enjoy working with you, but she thinks I need the extra support. I tend to agree.”
The words are blunt, but Vann smiles.
“I like tending to the cave, but there’s something about the possibility of death that puts me more at ease at your side. I don’t know if you should be going on this mission.”
“If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were worried about me while I was gone,” I say, nudging his shoulder.
“Immensely,” he says without humor. But then I see the tell-tale curl of the corner of his lip. “You and I have fought together since we were children. I half expected you to lose all your instincts without your good luck charm.”
“Is that supposed to be you?”
He nods.
“I was there the day that Qa’Velo decided to challenge you at the academy, and at the battle of kings, not to mention the day the volcano spilled over land and swallowed our home whole…” He trails off, remembering such bitter days, but the sadness quickly flashes away. “I was also there the day you found Estela and stole her away.”
“Perhaps you do have a certain penchant for saving my life and witnessing my pivotal moments,” I say with a laugh.
He raises an eyebrow. “Is that an apology for leaving me behind to visit the elves?”
I scowl at him.
