Veris nodded in agreement. “Definitely seems shady.”
“This boy will be the one who decides the fate of Nyth. His decisions will shape her future. He will be the first of many Riders. He will hold all the powers of the High Fae as his mother once did, but he will do it naturally. Gods will step aside when he walks. The enemy shall tremble at his blade. And still, his decisions are uncertain. He will either be your savior or your destruction.”
“Yeah, yeah. We told you we remembered it. Why you gotta repeat it?” the boy asked.
Saelira turned to him, and like a grandmother would tell her grandson, she shook a finger at him. “You know what the boy went through. You know his heart, don’t you?”
Taldor gave her a squinty look. “The hag hurt him. A lot. So what? All the humans and Godforged got hurt.”
Veris turned from her brother to Saelira, a questioning look on her face. “Yeah. Why’s he so special?”
“Because he’s the one who’s going to change things, little ones. If hisheartisn’t in it, if his soul doesn’t yearn for Nyth’s salvation, then why would he make the hard choices that will lead to it being saved?”
“So we’ve gotta fix hisheart?” Veris asked.
“Or find someone who can…”
Chapter 8
This war was supposed to be a means to an end. I accepted that the world would see me as the villain, and maybe I was. Maybe Iam. Azric certainly sees me as one. But we could not live in fear of the future forever, and I could not live an eternity without Cole. I do not regret my decision, but I do not know if I can continue to be the woman I was. The Houses I fought so hard for are nothing more than a piece of history, and maybe I am too.
~Maeve Arden, The Future of Magic and Dragons
Fiona
I’m standing in my father’s laboratory again, but this time, there’s no cauldron bubbling with an Infusion. Instead, my father is staring at the table, at the equipment arrayed in front of him. My armor is covered in its own Marks. A new Priest’s cloak with none of the little nicks and tears I got when I jumped out of the Prince of Bones’ tower lies beside it. A vast array of Infusions. An oilskin.Two new daggers equipped with the little devices Bram showed me two weeks ago. Beside all that sits a small ermine pouch I know all too well.
A short bow leans against the table with a special quiver that’s been separated into three compartments. “These ten arrows are normal arrows, but they’re coated in steel. Remember, magic and steel are the only things that can wound your enemies.” He points to the second and third compartments of the quiver, and continues, “These have been given Marks. When they connect with anything, they’ll let loose the powers in those Marks.”
He points at the flights and says, “Yellow for lightning and red for flames. I can get you more if you need them, but I doubt you want to be running around with a bucket of arrows on your back.”
“I’ve never even heard of arrows being given Marks,” I say with a touch of confusion.
He huffs. “That’s because they’ve never been used. Bram came up with the idea three days ago when we were talking about how you were going to fight without your Marks. I feel like the world’s biggest idiot for not recognizing it was possible all this time. Regardless, you have them now.”
His eyes move to the pouch. “You brought me these glass beads which are infused with Caeldra’s powers. I don’t know what they do, but if anyone needs them right now, it’s you. They’re yours after all, fairly stolen. Try to find out what they do, but if you can’t, then just like with the Mark of the Coin, if you get into a situation where you don’t have any other answers, try to use them.”
He looks into my eyes and says, “These tools and the lifetime of training you’ve had are all I can give you, Fiona. I wish there were more I could do, but I can’t walk into Draenyth or Dunloch. I can’t be there for you, and I can’t send anyone else.”
I look from the equipment in front of me to my father and see the pain in his eyes. “I’ll have Darian.”
A soft silence follows before my father responds. “But he’s not me. He can’t keep you safe like I would, and he’s Fae. There are certainly worse Fae than him, but you can’t ever trust them like you could trust a Priest. Like you could trust me.” He says that last bit bitterly, but then he takes a deep breath. “You’ll be fine. Humans have always won, Fiona. At everything we’ve done. We are the wall, Fiona. You’ve had the best training possible, the best gear that I’ve ever heard of, and you’re cleverer than most will expect you to be. You may be a little headstrong, but I should have expected that. You’re my daughter after all.”
Rhaskar Thorne has never been an emotionally available father. He’s let Bram and Cedric fill those roles. Yet, as I stand here beside the man who’s always been the center of my world, I can’t help but let my emotions rule. I may have trained to be a Priest, but I’m still human. I wrap my arms around him, and a few tears escape my efforts to hold them back. “I’ll come back, Father. I’m going to win this.”
He wraps his arms around me and whispers, “Just come back to me. That’s the important thing. I don’t care about the rest.”
Then he lets me go. He runs a thumb across my cheek and gives me a smile. “Don’t forget that you can’t trust any of them.The only time I ever trusted a Fae, she ruined this world. They will always put themselves and their agendas before anything else, including you.”
I don’t say anything, but I don’t have to. My father knows that I listen to every word he says. He helps me put on my armor and cloak. He fills the secret pockets with the different Infusions, an entire arsenal of them, and he straps the new daggers across my hips. Then comes the bow and quiver.
I flip the hood up to hide my face in shadow, and he smiles down at me. “May your Marks forever burn.”
I try to smile at him, but it’s broken. “May your blade never break.” I turn around and go to where Ainslee and Darian are waiting in the sitting room. They both give me an arched eyebrow.
“Ready?” I ask.
Darian looks down at his pants, the same rumpled golden fighting leathers he’d worn two-weeks ago, and he says, “I’ve got my Try Not to Die pants on, so I guess so.”
