Page 57

CHAPTER FIFTY-SEVEN

ZéLIE

S TANDING ON THE SUMMIT of Mount Gaīa, I feel her heart beat deep below. The world has shifted since I awoke from her sacred spring. I sense the life in the vines around me.

Yéva’s loss hangs over the city like storm clouds. Every New Gaīan dresses in white. A never-ending line waits before the Mother Root at the city’s center to pay their respects. They whisper words of gratitude into the vines like the fallen hierophant can hear.

Guilt weighs down every breath I take. At times I worry Yéva made a mistake. In her absence, attendants talk to me. At me. They search for answers I can’t give. Yéva had been with her people for nearly two hundred years.

She used her last light to keep me here.

If I’d only been strong enough…

Regret eats at me. We wouldn’t be here if I had been able to stay in control. My gut twists with the golden lightning trapped inside. I hear the words King Baldyr whispered. They shudder down my spine.

Blóeseier.

My fingers scrape the medallion in my chest. It’s like King Baldyr stands over my shoulder, staring down at the city of New Gaīa.

His presence haunts me though we’re oceans apart.

I can still feel the paralysis that hit me when he invoked the blood oath, the sear of the medallion activating at his command. I yearn to take back the magic he ripped from my skin, the powers he used to reanimate his fallen men.

His actions desecrated every sacred Reaper act I’ve ever known, magic only meant to be used over the spirits caught between this life and the next world. With that power over me, I don’t know how to fight back.

I don’t know what I’ll do if he lands on New Gaīa’s shores and attacks.

As the days tick away until the Blood Moon, the city prepares to wage war. The Laminas train like beasts. The shouts of battle echo from their training squares. Every night they travel into the jungle to activate their newest warriors, tattooing fresh weapons on the trainees’ bare skin.

Vineweavers work day and night to create new videiras for the attack, reshaping their boats to add more riders. Their new additions triple the vessels’ speed, allowing us to race to King Baldyr’s lands.

Other weavers work to erect new fortresses around New Gaīa’s borders. Thick vine towers rise from the ocean shores. They take turns practicing their defenses, using elongated vines to snap massive fish from the ocean as if they were the Skulls’ ships.

But of all the preparations made, I’m in awe of the Green Maidens’. They work in teams to build an underground network of vines. The maidens move from plot to plot, weaving new escape points throughout the floating city that lead all the way to the black sands.

Watching them work, I want to be strong. I want to keep both our people safe. But every time I think of facing King Baldyr, my throat grows tight.

It feels like I’m the only person in both our lands not prepared for the fight.

“There you are.”

I turn to find Mae’e standing at the mountain trail, dressed in all white like the rest of her people. Something has shifted inside her since Yéva’s passing. A hardness has entered her diamond gaze.

The new hierophant joins me in the center of the summit. She laces her fingers with mine, overlooking the preparations around her city.

“Jorah’s given his word,” Mae’e continues. “Their forces set sail in three days’ time. They intend for us to stay here.”

“You disagree?” I ask.

“I will not leave my people to battle on the front lines. We need to cut King Baldyr down before he has a chance to step into these lands.” Mae’e turns to me, and her diamond eyes glitter. “Promise me you will stand by my side.”

“You don’t understand.” I pull away. “You weren’t in that cave. I’m the reason Jorah and Koa were injured. The reason those warriors were killed—”

“You are also the reason we struck him,” Mae’e pushes me. “When all else failed, you were strong enough to attack.”

“But what if he takes control?”

“You fight him!” Mae’e says. “You did it before. You can do it again!”

Mae’e opens up her palms, and dozens of vines split through the black rock. They writhe back and forth in the air, commanding a force she didn’t wield before.

“What are you doing?” I step back.

Before I can react, the vines lunge at once. I dive to the side as the vines strike the place I was standing like spears. Cracks split through the mountain stone. The vines recoil and head straight for my chest. I nearly tumble off the mountain’s edge in my attempt to escape.

“Mae’e, stop!”

The hierophant moves with a ferocity I haven’t seen. Before I can dodge again, Mae’e’s vines snap around my torso with a vengeance. They raise me into the air and squeeze.

“He seeks to harvest your heart, Zélie!” Mae’e shouts. “Not the other way around.”

Mae’e waves her hand again, and the medallion lurches in my chest. I grit my teeth as it burns.

Magic twists from my skin in red streaks, ripping itself free from my veins. King Baldyr stands before me, blood dripping from his golden skull.

“ Fight it! ” Mae’e’s voice mutates. Her new powers swell before my eyes. My body starts to ache. The mountain begins to shake.

A flash of anger rises in me, and I push. I claw for the power inside. I think of my people. Of Mae’e’s people.

Of King Baldyr and how he must die.

A roar rips from my throat. The medallion lights through my white silks.

A current travels down my arms in thin, blinding rays, spilling from my fingertips.

Tiny bolts curve from my body like snakes, twisting into the sky as the golden lightning awakens inside.

With a rush, bolts of lightning rip through the vines, setting me free.

I look up as the bolts of lightning fade. A fresh coat of sweat covers my skin. With a push, another golden bolt escapes my throat, reaching through the clouds.

“You are not his weapon for the harvest.” Mae’e bends down. “You are the force that will bring about his end!”

I push myself back onto my feet and open my arms.

“Hit me again.”