Page 76 of Fateless
“Thank you, Kysa,” I said, and gazed around—at Halek, at the hive mother, and finally at Raithe, standing beside me. “Everyone. I don’t know what I’m supposed to do, but I swear, I’ll try my hardest. I promise I’m not running from this. Not anymore.”
Raithe brushed my cheek, a brief, light touch that sent shivers up my spine. “That’s all we can ask for,” he said softly.
“Well, that, and eventually beating the Deathless King,” Halek added, making me wince. “Uh,” he went on, as everyone glared at him, “but not for a while, at least.”
We left the lore keeper’s hut and walked back through the village, which was considerably smaller than it had been beforethe attack by the undead horde. Two of the house beetles had been killed, and one had fled into the sandstorm and disappeared. I hoped the Scarab Clan would be able to rebuild, to find other beetles, and to continue living their lives as they had always done. Somehow, I didn’t think it would be that easy.
We reached the edge of the village, where Rhyne waited patiently. To my surprise, another rock beetle was tethered nearby, saddled and ready to go, though there were no other riders around.
“Is someone else coming with us?” I wondered, looking at Kysa. “Whose mount is that?”
The insect rider gave me a strange smile and glanced at my arm. “Yours, warrior of the Scarab Clan,” she said, to my complete amazement. “He belonged to one of our clansmen who died fighting the blood mage’s monstrosities, and he needs a new rider. His name is Ratuk.”
“But...” I stared at the huge insect, heart pounding. “I don’t know anything about riding a rock beetle. You make it look so easy, but... I’ve never done this before. What if he doesn’t like me?”
“Don’t worry.” Kysa gave me a genuinely affectionate smile. “I’ll teach you. It’s not difficult... once he accepts you as his new rider, of course. Go ahead and mount up. Be firm with him. Rock beetles respect strength.”
A few minutes later, I sat in Ratuk’s saddle, trying to remember everything Kysa had just told me about handling and steering rock beetles. We’d had to double up; rock beetles were only granted to proven warriors of the Scarab Clan, so Halekwas riding with Kysa and Raithe sat behind me. I could feel him against my back—his breath in my hair, his arm curled around my waist—and tried not to let myself be too distracted.
“Are we ready?” Kysa asked, looking at me. I took a deep, steadying breath and nodded, hoping I wouldn’t annoy the rock beetle enough to make him pitch me out of the saddle. Kysa observed me a moment longer, then shook her head. “We’ll let you get used to riding on the ground before we attempt to fly.”
“Don’t worry,” Raithe whispered, leaning in. His arms tightened around my waist. “Even if he takes off with us, I won’t let you fall.”
I put my hand over his and squeezed. Without any prompting, Ratuk began a clicking, steady walk, following Rhyne, carrying us away from the Scarab Clan village and into the looming expanse of the Barren Steppes. Somewhere beyond the desert lay the city of the iylvahn, Raithe’s home. And the queen who would determine, once and for all, if I was truly Fateless.
“Your heart is pounding,” Raithe murmured, his voice low in my ear as he bent forward. “What’s wrong?”
“Just thinking,” I whispered back. Gazing at the distant horizon, I swallowed. “It’s hard to believe that not even a month ago, I was a thief in Kovass,” I said. “Working for the guild, not realizing what was under my feet the entire time. And now...”
I shivered. Raithe leaned in, holding me closer, and I closed my eyes. “The world has gone crazy, Raithe. Vahn is dead. The Deathless King is coming, and I... am only one person. Even if I am Fateless, what can I really accomplish? I don’t know what Fate has in store for any of us.”
“None of us do,” Raithe murmured back. “But with you here,nobodyknows what the future holds, not even the goddess of fate.”
“That’s not exactly comforting, you know.”
He chuckled. “I can tell you one thing for certain,” he said, running a gentle hand up my arm. “Whether you’ve changed my story at all, unraveled my thread, undone my fate, it doesn’t matter. I’ll be with you until my story comes to an end or my thread is cut entirely. And when you stand against the Deathless King, whatever that entails, you won’t be alone. That’s a promise.”
Turning in the saddle, I leaned back and kissed him. Ratuk continued on, plodding across the barren earth toward the mountains silhouetted in the hazy distance. Solasti peered down on us, waiting for her sister to join her in the skies, as the Hourglass of Time turned and we marched on toward whatever fate waited for us at the end of the road.