The godsneverallowed themselves to be seen by mortals. Except for Blythe, of course, but that was an entirely unique situation. And that wasn’t even truly Blythe. That was her soul, somehow configured into a sparkly, three-dimensional form.
“Whether you believe it or not, it is the truth. I was seconds away from being a dead man at the hand of a Draemornian when I was transported out of the situation. In fact, I thought that Iwasdead—everything around me went pitch black, and my body revolved at an incomprehensible pace. But then, I found myself on the footsteps of a white, marble palace. The very palace that you are in right now.” He laid a hand on top of mine, the tension in my fingers easing in response. “At the top of the steps, staring down at me, were seven of the eight gods and goddesses. Caius, Emrys, Eloise, Thea, Jesper, Sloane, and Zenith all stood there, welcoming me into the kingdom they had created foryou.”
For some reason, the roughness of his palm granted me a sense of trust, and instead of fighting it, I allowed the feeling to have space within me. I wanted to ask what they looked like. What their voices sounded like. Did they speak our language? But I had more dire questions.
“So they transported you out of death itself? I thought they refused to mess with the balance of life and death, and if they did, someone had to pay the price.” He literallyjustsaid that.
“You know, for the longest time I have wondered the same exact thing. But just recently I realized that someonedidpay for this balance.”
“My mother?” I inquired, though the answer was obvious.
“Yes. Your mother,” Archer confirmed softly. “Life and death must always balance each other out, and since I was spared from death to protect you, she paid the price. Years later, but still.”
Out of all those who had died because of me, for obvious reasons, this one stung the most.
My palms scraped down my face, trying to remove the prickle of heartache emulating from my stinging nose as I fought the urge to cry.
I distracted myself with another question. “Was it you who saved me from the castle?”
Archer nodded. “When they placed me here, the gods made sure to inform me of everything I needed to know in regard to you and the battle. I knew when it would begin and when your transition would occur. I couldn’t interfere until the transition was complete, but when the castle started to fall, which I surely wasn’t expecting, I pulled you from the rubble. I met your friends at the end of the tunnel by sheer coincidence, and took them along.”
“I’m not so sure that anything truly happens by coincidence.”
“Smart girl.” A grin broke free from Archer's tensed lips. “Anyway, I’ve been sitting on this information for two decades, and it's been absolute torture. But knowing I would see you and your sister again,” he hung his head, a few tears spilling off the slant of his pointed nose, “has made the wait bearable.”
My formerly empty stomach filled with acidic nausea. I shuffled back towards the bed, my legs suddenly much too weak to continue standing upon. “What about Mom?”
“What about her?”
“Weren’t you hoping to see her again, too?”
“Of course. But I knew the possibility of being with Margot again was slim. I figured she would have moved on since mydeath—at least I hoped she would. Therefore, I had to move on as well.”
“She never did.” I sniffled, wiping my nose with the back of my hand. “She never moved on. Never went on so much as a date with another man.”
Delani and I had often tried to convince our mother to date, but she always said that shehad her once in a lifetime love, andeven though their time together was short, that love was more than enough.
Archer’s despondent apology was only a mumble to me, thanks to the ringing in my ears.
Gods. I actuallywantedto puke now just to relieve the horrific qualm in my stomach.
“Until your arrival, Lumosia has been warded by the gods. Only those who were originally welcomed in by one of the deities, or were brought in by myself, could find the land.”
I forced reality to return.
“Wards? You mean to say that a few iron fences and a gate kept people away?” An audible scoff escaped me.
From somewhere behind me, Archer chuckled at my ignorance. “There are physical wards put in place by mortals. Things such as fences, gates, iron bars, moats, soldiers stationed at outposts, and more. Then there are wards put in place by magic, which is how Lumosia was secured. The gods ensured that if any travelers were to stumble upon the sacred area, all they would see is a mountain much too dangerous to climb. But upon your arrival, the wards have expired. The veil that once protected Lumosia’s location is gone. Although this land is unheard of by those who don’t dwell inside, so it very well could be years before any wanderers discover it.”
“If the gods created this land to keep me safe, then why would they dispose of their wards upon my arrival?”
“It would interfere with the balance, I suppose. They want to keep you alive, yes, but the only way to assist in that without affecting the balance is by granting you a safe place to reside. I think they made an exception in the timeline with myself and your mother, though that is only my assumption—I don’t have an exact answer, if I’m being honest. But it is not our job to question the gods.”
“Speak for yourself. I have stacks of questions for those fuckers.”
With the release of the insult, my voice vanished and I tried to process the information that was entirely too much. It should have beenunbelievable, except for the more I listened, the more I believed. The explanation made too much sense. It checked every single box.
A gruff, wrinkled hand appeared in front of my face, outstretched and asking to be taken. “Walk with me.”
