Breena’s bright face dimmed.
“But the Lightbringer feared what would happen if his children turned on one another. So he called for a sixth island to rise at the center—Soul Isle. There, he planted a seed of his own soul, and from it rose Natalis Mountain. At its peak, he lit a flame, the First Candela. A forever-flame to balance all the lands.”
Breena paused, looking over her shoulder toward the Scurboga Gate and Luckland’s Candela beyond. Her voice dropped, almost reverent.
“The First Candela’s light spread outward, and from it, a Candela emerged in each of the five lands. Anchoring each one to another, sharing their soul-flow, their power, their peace.”
She slowly turned back, letting out a soft sigh as her eyes met mine.
“If a Candela was ever snuffed out, the land would fall into silence. Its gate would close. And the souls—they’d be left to wander.Lost.”
The earlier image of the Scurboga Gate sent a shiver up my arms, as if scraped by ice. It had flickered like a candle, gasping for breath.
A deafening silence fell between us. My tongue grew heavier with every thought of Loveland popping into my head, weighing it down. Their souls,lost.A vice tightened on my heart. I’d do anything to help David bring power back to his land—to restore its Candela.If that’s possible.
“For luck’s sake,” Aine’s voice tore through the air like an angsty teen ripping down a poster. “What happened tounwinding?”
I hadn’t even noticed, but at some point, she’d pulled off her pants. Her sweater then followed as she tugged it upward, undershirt following suit, revealing her beautiful, slender, almost-naked body.
What the hell was she doing?
“Um,” I drawled. “Is there something you’d like to share with us, Aine?” I flashed a half-shocked, half-amused grin.
Feet thudded on the dirt as Breena leapt off her rock, untying the strings at her waist.
Okay. Well, this was gettingweird. Was this the part where we’d get naked and chant around the fire? Some witchy, Si Craft thing?
“The two of ya babbling about lore is stressing me out,” Aine grumbled as she strode toward the off-shoot pool of thestream. “I’m soaking in the spring.” Her foot kicked off her panties, leaving her completely, bare-ass naked.
Oooookay. Welp, that just happened . . .
It wasn’t a bad sight at all, but it took me by surprise. Part of me wondered when we’d crossed from friends, topeel off your layers,display all your vulnerabilities,go skinny-dipping togetherkind of friends.
“Fates! We haven’t dipped in forever,” Breena squealed, excitedly tossing her clothes aside.
I involuntarily darted my eyes away, not used to knowing this level of intimate detail about my roommates.
Turning back, water sprayed into the air as Breena jumped in. Aine’s eyes closed, head resting against the ledge where rock met grass.
“Oh, come on now, Carwynn,” Aine said. “No one’s got anything we haven’t already seen before.” Her mouth twitched, exhaling a relaxed breath.
She had a point. We were all mature, grown women. And yet, memories of that insecure little girl changing in the bathroom stall of the locker room . . . placing a pillow over her stomach as she sat on her friend’s couch . . . being close to passing out in the heat because she refused to remove her sweatshirt . . . all came flooding back.
You are not who you were,a voice, perhaps my own, firmly whispered into my mind.
A slow, subtle warmth curled along my senses, a comforting hand reminding me of the present. These were myfriends. My safe space. Not once had they ever made me feel unheard, unseen, or that I had something to be ashamed of.
“All right,” I said, feeling lighter. “But if it’s freezing cold, I’m out.”
I let out all the air I was holding hostage in my lungs, then removed my clothes. And?—
Nothing. No one booed. No one laughed. No one gasped at the marks on my skin. Only a loud silence that reminded me I was my own worst enemy. And tonight, I’d only allow myself to be among friends.
Breena let out a dramatic exhale, studying me like I was some intricate work of art at a museum. “What I wouldn’t do for those hips and a pair of tits like that.”
“I’ll swap you for the gold freckles,” I said, chuckling as I stepped into the water.
Oh my god.
