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Chapter

Fifty-Eight

Liv

I spent the night awake going over the things Brekt and I argued about.

Somewhere in my anger, I remembered the sound of Stephen’s door slamming in my face when my life was in danger.

Every day, I learn more about the world and the people in it.

Words often mask emotion, hiding the reason they were said in the first place.

Every action tells a truth, and in Brekt’s actions, I’ve only ever been loved.

I sprung from my bed, grabbing the wooden frame and curling against it.

I had been floating past consciousness when a knock at my door ripped me from my dreams. I had slept for nearly two days.

After months of travel, meeting the Elders, being paraded around the city, shopping in the markets with Maev and then Brekt’s visit—I fell into the large bed in my suite and slept.

And slept.

At some point, Maev came to my room, and I told her of Brekt’s visit and that he hadn’t heard any more of Ollo. She had brought me a full bucket of empty crystals, which now sat glowing next to the bed. I felt a million times lighter than I had in weeks.

The knocking at my door continued, and I scanned the room, finding no shadows crawling in the corners or hiding behind curtains. “I’m coming.”

Maev had been searching for more empty crystals and supplies for our journey. When she was done, we would see her friend Cal. I was getting anxious. After all the time it took trying to reach her city, I was ready to leave it just as quickly.

I opened the heavy doors to find a staff member with fresh linens and food. He set them down on a table after I thanked him and informed me the Elders would be downstairs in an hour and requested my presence.

I swung the door of my suite closed.

My anxiety spiked. I skipped the food, my gut twisting as I got dressed inside the massive closet.

Lifting the hem of my new dress—today a colour close to the sky—I tied the laces of my boots.

No, they didn’t match the dress, but they were for comfort.

I would need every ounce of bravery I could muster.

And I had learned from a wise friend to fake it if I must.

An hour later, I approached the seated Elders, dressed as they had been two days prior. The sun cascaded across the floor where my boots landed, warming me every time I passed a window.

Cloudine, the Elder of Crafters, smiled as I stopped before them. “I hope you’ve rested well, Olivia. I trust the suite has provided you with every comfort?”

“It’s been nice. Thank you.”

Where was Maev? I assumed she had received an invitation as well.

“We wished to discuss with you our plans for the city. Plans that we have long debated well before your arrival.”

I waited for her to continue. Every Elder was watching me, and I clasped my hands behind my back, toying with the hem of my sleeve.

The Aerial Elder wasted no time with courtesies. “You are the Ikhor who has returned to give the power to the people. That power is much needed to protect this city.”

“Audel,” a man said next to him. This Elder had wild, knotted hair that grew from his head like vines, flowing away from his face.

He resembled the monks at Ouras’s temple.

“It is not the way we speak to those we wish to ask for help. Slow down.” His tone suggested he wasn’t one for nonsense.

“Saviour, I am Xandar, the Elder of the Mechanists.”

“Are you Maev’s professor?”

His eyes crinkled at the question. “I used to teach, but no longer, as my duties became much more complicated. I work closely with the university where Ms. Pretruq studies.”

“Are we not here to discuss our plans? There is no need for formalities,” Audel argued.

The oldest of them, the white-haired Elder with green skin and eyes, shook her head.

“I am the Elder of Alchemists, Esthar. I work with the distribution of magycris to our people who need it most. However, we are in short supply. Legends have told us the Ikhor will return power to the earth, where it has run dry. Can you do this, Saviour?”

I squeezed my hands together. Attention was all on me.

Pellon, Elder of Medicines, stood. “The Hospitals need magycris first, Saviour.”

“The airships need crystals for defence,” Audel said, standing too.

“Agriculture needs healthy soils.” An Elder with bright red hair and scaled skin rose to argue with the others.

Cloudine frowned at me. “We have long discussed our plans and have never come to a conclusion about which area of the city the Ikhor should help first. We discovered too late that the Aerial Elder had sent a letter to you, Saviour. He requested help with defences and an attack on the Guardian City—plans he made in private. War is not my first concern.”

“We must show them our strength,” Audel argued. “The Guardians have never stopped. Our borders are uninhabited because the people are afraid. And now we discover our returned saviour is one of them!”

“I am not,” I stopped him.

“You came from Veydes. Don’t lie about not retaining your identity. The magic possessed you, but you remember who you are. You were raised as our enemy.”

I shook my head. “I am not a Guardian. I am a free citizen. I am friends with Maev and Ollo and promised them I would help your people as best as I could. My magic is strong, but it is wild. It belongs to the gods, not people. It doesn’t always listen to what I say.”

“You can’t control it?” Cloudine asked.

I shook my head. “It can be manipulated. Not controlled.”

“You mean to say you can’t do anything for our people?” Audel’s white skin darkened with anger.

“I won’t start a war.” I gave him a hard stare. “If I can find a way to heal the magic of the earth, I will. To help the people. But it’s important that I return the magic to the gods in the end.”

I prayed that telling them the truth was the right move.

Audel slammed a fist down in anger. “The gods haven’t bothered with our people in thousands of years, yet you would give the power back to them. You would let the suffering continue.”

The temperature in the room soared.

“I have seen suffering. I have seen villages wasted away from starvation and lack of medicines. Do not tell me what happens to those left unprotected and weakened.”

The Elders sat wide-eyed and nervous.

“Your people may be worse off than they were years ago, but they have homes, they have food, and they have hope. There is no one kicking down their doors and dragging away their mothers for speaking out against their rulers. There is no one telling them to line up for food or work. There is no one with a fist in their face to keep them quiet. So before you make one more demand of me, let me make myself perfectly clear. I am not your hero. I am not your enemy. I am not Veydian, Rydavian or any such citizen trapped by borders. I am a free woman who is possessed with magic that belongs to the gods. I will return it to them. And when things are set right, and the cycle is ended, you can argue then about how hard you have it. But you won’t get sympathy from me. ”

Hate had always buried itself deep inside me, but now I hated something new—people who couldn’t see their own privilege. Who whined and blamed someone else. Who begged and threatened instead of fought.

I hated the weak-minded people who thought controlling someone else would make their life easier.

“I promised to help those in need. To end the cycle and bring down those who try to control others. If you are leaders who force, coerce or manipulate, I will add your names to the list. There will be no attack on Guardian lands. And certainly not one with me in the lead.”

The Elder of Mechanists, Xander, stood and walked away from the others, stopping before me. He didn’t speak for several long seconds, studying me like a problem that needed fixing.

Only I didn’t need fixing.

“Saving every person, rather than a few. It sounds like a challenging quest, Saviour. You will have enemies wherever you go.”

“So nothing will be new.”

His mouth twitched. “You have made enemies here, I am afraid. Watch where you go in the city. There will be eyes around every corner.”

With that, he passed me and left the room, effectively ending their meeting.

“My apologies, Saviour,” Cloudine said, also standing. “It seems we were out of line to demand so much from you so quickly. Perhaps we could meet another day.”

I said nothing as she, too, left.

The Elder of Agriculture stepped away to follow Xander. “A crowd of citizens has gathered outside the castle, Saviour. They wait to meet you.”

I took a step back. “What will they ask of me?”

Audel stood. “Everything. As it was expected for the last thousand years.” He left his chair, passed me, and headed outside.

“Will you join us, Saviour?” Esthar asked. “We will ask no more of you, only that the citizens may look upon you while we assure them we are taking steps to receive your aid.”

I felt like I really had no choice.

Esthar ushered me to a stage where an entire city waited to see me on display. The crowd was alive with voices yelling, asking favours of me. I concentrated on the sting of my nails digging into my palms, and I squeezed harder. Where was Maev?

The sun shone brightly overhead, but where the city glowed before, it was now muted. They forced me onstage, and the citizens of Avenmae cheered and waved.

I relaxed, knowing I was in no danger.

Until I saw a man in the crowd I had never seen before, but I recognized the look he gave me—distrust and dislike.

I scanned the many faces and found another. Then another, until it was all I could see.

What was happening?

The Elders smiled and waved at the people. Audel stood next to me, wearing a scowl. He eyed me as the Keepers had.

I swallowed my anger, stuffed it away, and shut the lid tight on my box, which was rattling viciously.

Audel bent closer. His grey tunic matched the hair at his temples. “You see it, don’t you—the dichotomy of a legend. They love you for your power, and they hate you for it.”