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I shook my head. “No, not really. Just bits and pieces.” Images of standing in front of the doors of the Morah library flashed through my head.
He moved to the next bookcase. “One of your elders, Hindella I believe, traveled here with you, Malina, and Nikan, each of you too young to be initiated as citizens of any Nation, even yours.” I nodded my head even though he couldn’t see. “Your elder knew of the old laws and asked for refuge for you three, for you to stay here. No other Nation would take your people,but she knew that Riyah could take only the young that had not been initiated. I took you three to live here in Ilrek and reside with me inside of Morah and train to be its Roav. But after what happened to Atara, the rest of your people would have been left to find refuge on the Drift Islands, as you know.”
We were the only Roav at Morah. Protectors of knowledge, and hunters. There used to be more of us, but they had either left or been killed, and Morah went many years without any until Eamon took us in.
“I do know this,” I said, not sure what his point was.
Eamon pulled a dusty leather book down from the bookcase and turned to me. “Then you also know that without lands, they cannot return to the continent. The Drift Islands suppress their magic and they suffer for it. Their Spirit suffers too.”
I knew that magic had to be used or else it drained the Spirit of the wielder. I hated knowing that my people, my mother and father, suffered that fate, that there was nothing I could have done to save them. It was one of the reasons I tried to block it from my mind. The constant guilt would have consumed me.
Eamon placed the book on a table and began flipping through old brittle pages. He gestured for me to come over as he pointed to a passage. It was written in an ancient language and I couldn’t understand what it said.
“This was written by Lord Alo, the first wielder of air.” His finger traced the lines of text as he read. “‘Those that are deemed Worthy to receive the gifts of the Gods are entrusted to preserve the spiritual balance of the land and its people…’ It’speople, Kya. The Spirits care nothing of the imaginary lines that our ancestors drew through the land to separate us. Being Worthy is about protecting the balance of both.”
I lifted my eyes to him and found that he was already looking at me. An emotion splayed across his face that made my heart clench. Pride.
“Thisis your fate.” He leaned forward and whispered, “You are the only survivor of Atara that bears the Trial mark. If you are chosen, you can bring your people back. You can give them a new home.”
Determination and will seeped back into my veins at his words, his belief in me was something I didn’t know I needed. But still, I doubted.
The tasks of the Trial were ruthless. There was a reason that so few had been honored with the title of Worthy. Most contestants didn’t survive long enough to complete the second test, whether they were killed by something in the Woltawa Forest or bysomeone.
It wasn’t uncommon for contestants to kill each other, even before the Trial started—another one of the many reasons I kept my mark concealed. Contestants would take down anyone they saw marked if it meant less competition later. The fewer there were left alive at the time of the Trial, the more of a chance they had at being chosen. It was vile, yet the Gods allowed it. Not only did I have to keep my eye on the task ahead, but I also had to watch my back.
Eamon and I continued conversing even through lunch, which was served in his study. After I inquired about Nikan, wanting to see him before I left for the Trial, Eamon informed me that Nikan wouldn’t be back in time before I had to leave even if he found out now. Nikan was sent to take care of additional business with the Lord of Oryn.
I hated that I wouldn’t see Nikan before I left for the Trial, knowing that I wasn’t able to say goodbye. If our last encounter was the last time I ever saw him… I didn’t want that to be our last memory together. He was my brother and I loved him. I didn’t want to leave things the way we had. I could have hopedand prayed all day long that I would survive but there was no guarantee.
Afterwards, I headed back to my rooms and grabbed a stack of books on past Trials on my way. I’d already read everything I needed to know about the Trials—but I needed to do something. I needed some tangible task to make me believe I was helping my chances of not only surviving but also winning. So I reviewed the material until the sun set and the moonslight shone through the obsidian walls.
Another light came from behind me. I turned to find a small, delicate orb of light hovering in front of my door, and I couldn’t help the smile that spread across my lips.
Always so subtle.
I reached out my hand and gently touched the orb with my finger. The light recognized my touch and slowly drifted through the wooden door. I followed the sphere out of my rooms and toward the staircase, until it led me to the top level of the third spire of Morah and across a walkway that overlooked the great library below. I stopped at the railing and looked down, taking in what was likely my last time seeing this wondrous place. The orb stopped a few steps ahead of me, waiting, until I followed it again out a set of hidden doors that lead to a ledge.
Malina sat on the edge, her feet dangling as she watched the stars appear in the darkening sky. I joined her without saying a word, and she looked at me as I gestured to the orb with a smile. She grinned as she made it disappear between us.
“Your light wielding is improving. It didn’t flicker this time, even being so far away from you.”
Malina was able to not only manipulate light, but to also create it—a rare form of wielding. Wielding light was rare in and of itself.
Every fae was born with some kind of elemental ability—usually ground, water, air, and fire. Light and shadowwielding were extremely rare, while mind and blood wielding were forbidden—a fae discovered with it met an unfortunate end. There didn’t seem to be any way to determine what kind of ability they would have when born. Their abilities generally manifested around puberty.
“I’ve been working with one of the Scholars who studies it. He’s been really helpful in guiding me on holding it at longer distances. It’s different from manipulating, that has always come so easily to me. But producing it takes a lot of concentration and feels harder to control, unnatural even.” Malina spoke with a soft smile on her lips as she lifted her hand in front of her, producing another soft light over her palm. I knew she was proud, she had been working hard on the creation aspect of her abilities and it was paying off. She let the light go out, then dropped her arm when she finally looked at me.
“Do you want to see what I’ve been working on?” she asked.
I nodded. Malina’s face lit up with a bright smile that showed her teeth. She raised her head and threw her hand out in a sweeping motion that I followed with my eyes.
Hundreds of dots of lights twinkled around us, like the distant stars had fallen to surround us on that ledge. It felt like we were inside of the gleaming sky for a brief moment before they went out. It was beautiful, unlike anything she’d conjured before. I turned to her with a look of astonishment.
“It’s something new. I can’t hold them all for long but even I was impressed.” She shrugged.
“I’m impressed too. That was beautiful.” I sighed. “How long have you been out here?” I laid on my back and looked at the stars shimmering in the black, inky sky.
“Not long.” Malina laid down next to me, her black hair haloed around her head. “I just miss coming out here like we used to.”
