I’d pulled on my leathers, ready to travel as soon as she had handed me a map.
Much preferring an active approach, I’d never been bookish. I relied on Asterie, Fen’s betrothed, to do the heavy reading. She enjoyed having her nose stuck in a book far more than I did. Where danger lurked, my mind had no time to wander or reflect on other matters—at least when I wasalone.
Fen grumbled and combed back a mess of auburn hair—a family trait. It grew past his ears in the same way Papa’s had. I shook that thought away before the sadness could work a pit into my stomach.
I’d cropped my once-long locks to shoulder-length, having tired of braiding and fussing over my appearance. I’d tired of most things since that awful day in the amphitheater.
We approached the cliff wall, and with each step, my eagerness grew.
“Come this way,” I panted out, willing my legs to keep walking through the thick brush in our path. A breeze hit my back, guiding me forward and offering reprieve from the sweltering jungle.
My Source magic had finally appeared after being dormant for four centuries.
Served me right—I was routinely late.
I’d rolled my eyes when Asterie suspected my Wind had been stunted on account ofmentalbarriers, not physical. The power had been with me all along; I’d just never listened to it. In my youth, when the magic should have risen to the surface, the trauma of losing my parents had interrupted it.
I shuddered and shook away those thoughts, too. If I kept moving, they would not catch up with me.
Not here.
Not now.
My focus needed to remain on finding the remaining two relics.
“Odd that a Phynnic Princess should choose such a remote location,” Fen thought aloud as he assessed for any entry points.
“Indeed.” I placed my hands on my hips, looking around for an opening in the rock. Secluded by miles of ungroomed brush and with the babble of a river nearby, this oasis seemed nothing more than a home to nature’s blooms and creatures.
But it should be here.
Our ancestors often sought peace in their final resting place. The openings to tombs were never easy to find and always riddled with perils—flooding, arrows flying from nowhere, walls caving in.
I’d seen many tricky obstacles within ancient ruins in my travels. My hope for this location sputtered out. It appeared the rock face was truly a dead end. I let out an exaggerated sigh.
Fen rested his hands on his knees. “We could always turn back and be in Luz before lunch is served.”
“What’s the matter, old man, growing rusty?” I jabbed. “Youasked to join me.”
He huffed a laugh and wiped his brow with the back of his hand. “Maybe I simply wanted to bond with my estranged sibling. You’ve kept busy lately.”
Fen and I were separated for four centuries until recent years.
I shrugged. “Well, that can be done over a stiff drink with far fewer bugs around.” I swatted away the gnats swarming overhead.
Admitting that I preferred to venture out alone would only bruise his pride. There was solace in never needing to face conversations that required the type of reflection that ended in melancholy. Talking about the past held no appeal to me. We could not alter it—why dredge up those memories?
There were tombs to raid, caves to explore, and traps to avoid. Lingering too long on why angst knotted in my chest would do no good—not when vengeance may lie behind vines and dust-covered rock slabs.
“Krait hates when I go at this alone,” I admitted. “He hasn’t outright said it, but I know he worries.”
Fenris gave me a pitying look, which I loathed, and hummed a response.
“Yeah, yeah, I know you agree,” I grumbled.
“I’ve lost you once, Elsie,” Fen said, his tone turning pensive. “We have every right to worry about you.”
My attention locked onto the gritty, coarse stone before me. I’d go to the depths of the realms and skirt death a thousand more times if it meant that no more of my loved ones would fall.
