Page 77 of Eternal Ruin

“She’s working for the same people that arrested my father, Kidan. Which means she chose this on purpose. She thinks we weaken her and it’s true, she has made decisions that risked her position in Uxlay for us.”

“I thought she’d changed!”

Yusef’s shoulders hunched forward. “It’s her family. They’re not like ours. They wouldn’t support her as next in line if she didn’t elevate Qaros House’s position.”

Inherit.

Kidan paused. Slen had told her she would follow Koril’s footsteps.

Wool makers. Music makers. What will you make us now? I have more in common with my father than differences.

“Come on,” Yusef said. “Let’s go visit my dad. He may help.”

Kidan needed something to do so she followed him numbly, thinking over Slen’s words. She should have been more cautious around her. But the three of them were supposed to be past all this rivalry.

Aseracti ensnared her mind, repeatedly saying:fool, fool, fool.

Once they arrived in Drastfort, Yusef told Omar about the House Council votes and what the 13th proposed. Kidan winced. The 13th. Slen. They were one and the same now.

Omar’s face grew more furious with each word, making her own blood cool.

“They dare remove Adane House from the middle?” he gritted out.

Nails dug into her own palms. “How do I convince the rest of the houses to vote my way?”

Omar leaned back, his shifting eyes unusually focused for once. When he finally spoke, his tone was bitter. “There has always been one true way alliances are struck in Uxlay. The quickest way to sway houses is marrying into their order.”

Kidan’s head inclined sharply. Orders. She faintly recalled the letter she had received at the start of the semester.

Whether you sway to the Abyss, or favor the soaring Eagle, prefer the Panther over the mighty Oryx, or simply marvel at the Blue Stone, the tower opens its doors to you.

Courting begins on the seventh of each month.

We await your response.

Omar appeared grim, then turned to Yusef. “You must attend as well.”

Yusef scratched at his loose curls, laughing nervously. “I’m not really looking to settle down—”

“It’s not a matter of love,” Omar cut in. “Your great-aunt is growing weak. And if you want Umil House to back you as inheritor, you must secure your position by marrying into our order—the Abyss.”

Yusef swallowed roughly, ducking his head slightly. He didn’t want to argue or say yes. Kidan herself was feeling a little sick.

Omar’s hardened face didn’t waver. “The true power of any house is children. Heirs and heiresses. Acti blood must always keep flowing to feed dranaics. They dare discuss removing Adane House because your bloodline is near at an end. Marry early, birth children, secure your positions. That is the language of our society.”

They were only nineteen. Was this how her mother felt? Her grandmother? The weight of Uxlay’s responsibilities seem to grow each day, crushing them under laws and expectations. Kidan wanted to be free, not tied to ancient traditions and forced to marry. But she was too powerless, too afraid.

If Kidan was going to survive the next month, she needed a clear mind. She could no longer afford distractions. Once she returned home, she stood still in the hallway until the sharp pain inside her heart transformed into something solid and unforgiving.

She retrieved her copy ofAseractiand flipped to “House Locking.”

Different parts of the body carry emotions. If you lock your body, you will seize control of all rooms, all emotions.

Similarly, different rooms of a house represented the eight primary emotions—fear, anger, joy, sadness, love, pain, trust, and anticipation. From her readings, Goro, the Food House, found success in consuming a variety of foods to bridge their connection to their emotions more quickly. Sweet sugarcane created joy, lemon created disgust, and the act of being fed by another magnified trust. Delarus, the Fashion House, often used specific fabrics to trigger emotions. The touch of silk magnified the feeling of joy, the draping of black clothes brought forth sadness, the binding of ropes on wrists stirred anger.

Quickly, Kidan made a list of her own emotions. The illusions she’d glimpsedso far—red flames for anger, blue water for sadness, the sound of drums for fear, the crinkling of papers for trust, the scents of rose oil and eucalyptus for…

She stared at the list for a long moment, unable to write the word, and moved on to the next. Visions of June and Mama Anoet in the observatory for pain. She assigned a symbol for each emotion, finishing with a square next to fear, a circle next to joy, a triangle next to anger.