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“I did.” His face remained neutral.
“How did you know that?” I asked softly, shaking my head.
He hesitated, glancing away for several moments before sighing and looking back at me. “Because your name means Diamond.”
We spent the rest of the day waiting out the storm in the cave. Ryker and Mavris watched as I experimented with my energy. Though I didn’t admit it out loud, it was fun. I was able to do things and find energy in places I never thought about. The sound of the waterfall crashing into the river, the force of the wind at the mouth of the cave, the heat emanating from the flames in the hearth. Which led me to an idea.
I sent out my tendrils of swirling energy to the crackling logs and watched as the flames began to die out, but I continued to push it further. We all gasped as we watched the logs turn from black to brown. But still I pushed. I wanted to see just how far it could go. Small twigs began to sprout, and I couldn’t help the wide grin that spread across my face as little green leaves grew at the ends.
“Life,” Ryker breathed. “You can restore life.”
By the time it was dark outside, Mavris had gone to rest, still not fully recovered from using so much energy on me the night before. The storm had died out and Ryker and I decided to wait until morning to return to Voara. Thoughts of Odarum came back to me. And though I was utterly spent from using so much magic throughout the day, I wanted to clear my head.
I went back to the mouth of the cave and lay on my back with my head resting at the edge of the cliff, watching the stars appear in the inky black sky. Ryker joined me, and I held his hand in mine. We were so high up on the mountain that I felt like we could just reach out and touch the sky.
“This is what you would do back in Ilrek right? On the ledge in Morah?” he asked as we gazed up at the twinkling lights above.
I smiled. “Yeah. I used to do it all the time. One of the Scholars taught me about the constellations, and I would spend hours and hours finding them in the sky. More just out of fascination than anything.”
“Can you show me some of them?” He pulled my hand up to his mouth and kissed the back of it before resting it against his chest.
“Really?” I asked enthusiastically. Malina and Nikan never had much interest in it and I was happy to finally share it with someone, especially my mate.
“Of course.”
“Well that one there, the one that looks like two squares laid over each other,” I pointed up to a cluster with my other hand. “That’s Onvera, The Crates of Time.”
He hummed and nodded as I continued.
“And that one there, that’s Braegia, the Warrior of Night.”
“Oh, I like that one.”
I giggled. “And this squiggly one that goes across the sky is Xala, the River of—”
…what has a river that does not flow…
The task of the Trial came rushing back to me as did Kleio’s words.
…seek the truth…restore the balance…
Her task for me.
…what light brings to life yet dies in the darkness…
“A shadow,” I whispered.
“Hmm?” Ryker said.
I leaned over and pressed my head to Ryker’s, sending him my thoughts so that he may also understand.
…where the land meets the sky…
The mountain.
…The Glaev—Is not what it seems…
…only its death will bring forth the path…
