Page 42 of Duskbound (Esprithean Trilogy #2)

CHAPTER FORTY-ONE

The war room was drenched in nervous energy as I stepped through the door. Vexa paced near the windows while Effie perched on the edge of a chair, fingers drumming against her knee. Theron and Mira huddled in quiet conversation, their shoulders tense. Rethlyn stood alone, arms crossed, watching everyone else with wary eyes. Only Raven seemed calm, lounging in a chair, face buried in a book.

"Finally," Vexa breathed, stopping mid-pace. "Urkin sent orders for all of us. I thought for sure?—"

"What happened?" Effie was already walking towards us.

Raven shot up. "The Sentinels practically dragged you out of the archives."

My mind still reeled. I wasn't even sure if I could form coherent words.

"They're going to strip us of rank, aren't they?" Theron's voice carried an edge of panic.

"If we're lucky, that's all they'll do," Mira muttered.

"We're still going to Riftdremar," Aether said, his voice steady beside me. "Tonight, as planned. "

"Have you completely lost your mind?" Theron pushed away from the wall. "Urkin is back now. He will never allow it."

"He already has." The words felt strange leaving my mouth, like I was speaking from somewhere far away.

"That's not possible." Mira shook her head. "After what happened in Draxon–"

"Something's changed," Raven said quietly, studying us with sharp eyes. "Hasn't it?"

"What exactly happened in that meeting?" Vexa's eyes darted between Aether and me, her usual confidence wavering.

I sank into the nearest chair, the weight of everything pressing down on me. My father. A prince. The implications scattered my thoughts every time I tried to grasp them.

"We told him about the siphon," Aether said, moving to place a hand on the back of my chair. "About the King of Sídhe."

"And he just... believed you?" Effie's brow furrowed. "Just like that?"

"There were other factors," Aether replied carefully.

"What factors?" Rethlyn asked, speaking for the first time. "What aren't you telling us?"

The door opened before either of us could respond. Urkin entered, and the room fell silent. Some form of tired determination ringed his eyes, and his rigid posture had softened with exhaustion. He surveyed us all before speaking.

"I'm leaving for Stravene within the hour to address the Council." His voice lacked its usual command. "The rest of you will proceed to Riftdremar as discussed. Raven will remain here to maintain communication between realms."

The confusion in the room was palpable. Effie's mouth fell open, while Vexa's eyes narrowed with suspicion.

"Two others will join you," Urkin continued. "A Sentinel whose tether allows manipulation of stone and minerals, and an Archivist skilled in cartography. They'll meet you at the stables this evening. "

Without another word, he turned and walked out, leaving the room in stunned silence.

"What in the Void just happened?" Mira's voice shook slightly.

"How did you manage this?" Vexa asked, taking a step toward me. "One minute the Sentinels are dragging you off, and the next Urkin's giving us permission to desert?"

Questions buzzed around me like insects, but I couldn't focus on any single voice. My attention kept drifting to absurd details—the way Effie's fingers twisted her rings, how Rethlyn's shadow stretched across the floor, the slight tremor in Mira's hands. Anything to avoid processing the weight of what we'd learned in Urkin's office.

"A mineral specialist will help with the arcanite," Mira said, "but why send an Archivist?"

"It's a huge continent. That type of skillset will certainly help us navigate it," Rethlyn said, though his brow was still creased in confusion.

"How are we all going to get there?" Effie said, slumping back down in a chair.

"I have my Vordr now. Right before the meeting, Easkath claimed me." Mira hid a grin that threatened her lips.

Rethlyn shot her a proud smile. "Excellent, Mira?—"

"I'm more concerned about why Urkin suddenly supports this," Theron cut in. "He was ready to have us all arrested this morning."

"Something changed his mind." Vexa's eyes hadn't left my face.

"Whatever it is," Theron's voice turned sharp, "it better be worth risking our lives over. Some of us don't have the luxury of running off on secret missions whenever we feel like it and keeping things from the rest of the unit." His eyes fixed on me.

Aether's form shifted, shadows writhing beneath his skin as he advanced on Theron. The air seemed to still around him, and when he spoke, his voice carried a viciousness I'd never heard before. "You will never speak to her that way again. "

The threat in his words made my pulse quicken, though I wasn't sure if it was from fear or something else entirely.

The room stilled. Even Theron seemed to lose his earlier bravado, confusion washing over him.

"Aether," Vexa said carefully, "what's gotten into you?"

Everyone's attention shifted to me, questions burning in their eyes. The truth sat heavy on my tongue, but I couldn't make the words form.

Aether's golden eyes found mine, carrying an intensity that made my chest tight. He was waiting for me to decide—to either reveal everything or keep it hidden. But my mind felt trapped behind a mist.

"Fia?" Vexa's voice had lost its edge.

I opened my mouth, closed it. The silence stretched uncomfortably.

"They need to know," Aether said quietly, though something in his tone suggested he understood my hesitation.

"She's the daughter of Prince Andrial Valtyr," he said finally, his voice carrying weight but not dramatics. "Heir to the throne of Umbrathia."

"How can that be?" Vexa's voice cracked. "Prince Andrial died of illness before bearing any heirs, before he even had the chance to marry."

"No." Aether's eyes had turned sharp. "That was the story we told the public. Urkin and I were together that day, when Riftdremar burned. When the Prince refused to leave." His jaw tightened. "The reports show he'd been splitting his time between realms in the months before. Nine months before her birth."

The room stilled as understanding rippled through them. My heart thundered in my chest as I watched their faces transform—confusion giving way to shock.

"A forbidden affair," Raven breathed. "Between realms. "

"You're both—at the same time," Vexa said, studying me with new eyes. "Aossí and Kalfar."

"She is," Aether finished.

"How long have you known?" Vexa asked, her voice barely above a whisper. The question seemed directed at both of us.

"Since this morning." Aether looked back at me once more, a softness in his eyes.

"That's why Urkin..." Rethlyn trailed off, understanding dawning on his face.

"You outrank him, Fia," Effie managed, her voice barely there.

"So what should we call you now… Princess?" Rethlyn furrowed his brow as his eyes scanned the room.

"Of course not," I said a bit too quickly, my voice not as confident as I would have liked. “I'm still me. Fia… just Fia.”

"The Council will have to listen now," Mira said. "With Valkan's attack on the heir to the throne–"

"If they believe it," Theron cut in, though his earlier hostility had vanished. "This changes everything."

"It changes nothing." The words came out sharp. Suddenly, I felt as though I could move, breathe. I stood from my chair and walked to the center of the room. "We still need to get to Riftdremar. We still need to find that arcanite. My blood doesn't make our mission any less urgent."

"No," Aether said quietly. "But it gives us an edge we didn't have before." His golden eyes met mine across the room. "And right now, we need every advantage we can get."

Raven advanced towards me, that familiar glint returning to his eye despite the weight lingering in the room. He gave me a slight nod, something both playful and serious in his expression. "Well then. Let's go steal some arcanite."

The stables were electric with bodies rushing to prepare for the journey to Riftdremar. A woman in sentinel's armor stood near Vexa, her dark hair pulled back in a severe knot. The Umbra insignia glinted on her chest as she introduced herself as Dannika. Beside her, a thin man in Archivist robes shifted from foot to foot, looking distinctly uncomfortable among the Vordr. He gave a slight bow when Vexa introduced him as Tamir.

"Right," Vexa said, eyeing the two newcomers. "Dannika, you'll ride with me. Tamir..." She glanced around at the remaining Vordr.

"He can ride with me," Rethlyn offered, though his expression suggested he wasn't thrilled about it.

Tryggar huffed impatiently beside me, his wings rustling. The other Vordr seemed equally restless—Nihr pawing at the ground while Draug and Raskr shifted their massive forms.

I noticed the change in Dannika and Tamir's posture as I approached—how they straightened, their eyes dropping briefly before meeting mine again. The sentinel's earlier rigid demeanor softened into something like deference, while Tamir's nervous energy transformed into careful attention. News had spread quickly, it seemed.

Of course it had.

"Your High-" Tamir began, but Vexa cut him off with a sharp look.

"Just Fia," she said, and I shot her a grateful glance. At least my friends still saw me as myself.

"The rip hasn't been used in nearly two decades," Tamir said, clearing his throat and turning back to his map. "But based on the old records, it should be about an hour Northeast of Ravenfell, if we're flying, of course."

"Should be?" Theron asked sharply .

"The landscape has... changed since the records were made." Tamir's fingers traced a line on the parchment. "The drought has altered many of the landmarks we'd normally use for navigation."

"Wonderful," Effie muttered, adjusting her position on her Vordr. "So we're basically flying blind."

"Not completely blind," Tamir said, his voice turning scholarly. "The geological formations will still be there, even if the vegetation has changed. We're looking for a specific rock formation—three peaks that form a triangle when viewed from above."

Dannika mounted behind Vexa with so much ease, one might have thought she'd ridden a Vordr hundreds of times, but Tamir eyed Raskr like he might bite him.

"They can smell fear, you know," Rethlyn said seriously, and I had to bite back a smile as Tamir went pale. At least I was in on the joke this time.

"He's kidding," Mira called out, already astride her newly-claimed Vordr, Theron sitting calmly behind her. "Mostly."

One by one, the Vordr took to the sky. The familiar sensation of leaving the ground behind settled in my stomach as Tryggar lifted us higher. Below, Ravenfell's twisted spires grew smaller until they were little more than dark shapes. For a moment, I wondered if I'd ever see them again, and that sent a pang through my heart I wasn't expecting.

We flew Northeast, following Tamir's directions as he clung to Rethlyn, knuckles white against his leathers. The world stretched endlessly before us—an expanse of muted grays where vibrant forests should have been. Where they would again grow if we were successful.

Everything felt different now. Each wing beat carried us closer to Riftdremar, to the place where I took my first breath, where my parents drew their last. I'd spent years avoiding any thought of my past in fear of the pain it would bring. Now, the tiny fragments Aether had managed to piece together held weight. My father hadn't been just another casualty of war—he'd been a prince who chose love over duty, who gave up a throne to stay with my mother as flames devoured their world.

What would I find in those ruins? Part of me wanted to discover something that might help me understand who they were, who I was meant to be. But another part dreaded what those answers might mean. It was easier being Fia Riftborne, the orphan who carved out her own place in the world, albeit how small and suffocating that once was. Being Fiandrial Valtyr, heir to a throne I never knew existed... that felt like drowning in someone else's life.

The wind whipped tears from my eyes, though I couldn't tell if they were from the cold or something deeper. Ahead of me, Aether's form cut through the sky, while Vexa and Effie flanked us on either side. They still looked at me the same way, still treated me like the person they'd come to know. But how long would that last? How long before the weight of my bloodline changed everything?

I thought of the Queen, my grandmother, lost in her own madness in that towering castle. Was that my destiny too? Was there something in our blood that turned power into poison? That caused the destruction of those around us?

"There!" Tamir's voice broke through my thoughts. He pointed toward three jagged peaks rising from the wasteland, their formation unmistakable even through the haze.

Had we really been flying for an hour?

Rethlyn signaled for us to descend. The Vordr banked sharply, and through gaps in the clouds, I caught glimpses of what waited below. Dead vegetation sprawled in every direction, the skeletons of nature slowly reclaiming what had once been carefully maintained paths. My heart lodged in my throat as we dropped lower. This was it. This was where it all began.

We landed in what might have been a clearing once, though it was hard to tell through the ashen overgrowth. Dead vines crept up the remains of stone markers, their surfaces worn smooth by decades of neglect.

"The rip should be nearby," Tamir said, sliding awkwardly from Rethlyn's Vordr. He pulled out his map again, but the paper seemed useless against the reality of what time and abandonment had done to this place.

We spread out, searching. Fragments of old structures peeked through the tangles of dead growth—hints of the civilization that had thrived here before the drought.

Minutes stretched into what felt like hours. The others called out occasionally, marking their positions, but finding nothing. Doubt began to creep in. What if the rip had closed? What if we'd come all this way for nothing?

Then I felt it. A shift in the air, subtle but unmistakable. Like the moment before a storm breaks, when everything goes still and heavy. I followed that sensation, pushing through thorny vines until I found myself in a smaller clearing.

The rip hung there, barely visible. A shimmer cutting through reality, like heat rising from hot pavement. But this wasn't heat. This was a tear between worlds, a gateway to everything I'd spent my life running from.

I turned back to the others, my stomach in knots. They gathered slowly, forming a loose circle around the phenomenon. No one spoke. What was there to say? We were about to step into a graveyard of my past, searching for something that might not even exist.

The weight of their gazes pressed against my back as I studied the rip. A flash of movement caught my attention, and then Aether was there, right by my side, close enough that I could feel the heat radiating from him.

"Are you ready?" His voice was low, meant only for me.

I turned to face him, struck by how the muted light caught his square jaw, how it danced along his high cheekbones. How strands of onyx hair fell perfectly across his forehead. And then there was the look in those golden eyes, one that made me feel vibrant among all of the death. I tried to ignore how his shadows seemed to reach for mine across the space between us, and the treacherous feeling that accompanied them.

"Does it matter if I'm not?"

Something softened in his eyes. "We don't have to find all the answers today."

"Just the ones that might save us all." I tried to smile but couldn't quite manage it.

His hand moved as if to touch my arm, then stopped, fingers curling at his side. "I'll be with you. Always."

The words were careful, but warmth bloomed in my chest all the same. Because I believed him. Because I wanted him there, despite any of the judgement that should have plagued me. Doing any of this without him seemed impossible now.

Finally, I nodded, not trusting my voice, and turned back to the rip. One breath, then another, and I stepped through.