Kallon was practically dragging Scottie through the shield, and Peter hesitantly followed, carrying Sie with him. As soon as Scottie passed through, she visibly relaxed. The shield sounded with four beeps, annotating the number of Advenians that passed through. Wells found a way to incorporate and meld mortal technology with our abilities back when Arcane used to visit. The two of them used to spend hours messing around, combining Advenian powers with mortal sciences. That was before they had a falling out. Before things changedfor Arcane, and his relationship with the King grew more complicated.
I never envied him, being the heir to the throne was something I’d run far and fast from. And despite my brother actually wanting it, the Lux King wouldn’t let him near the crown until he was well and dead.
Kallon stepped up beside me. “I’m going to my tent. I need a lot of ale and sleep,” she said, then leaned forward to whisper in my ear. “If I were you, I would explain this to her before she finds out from someone else.” Kallon nodded toward Scottie who was staring at the massiveness of the camp with equal bits of awe and confusion. Dravenburg had already ushered Peter and Sie away to the healer’s tent, leaving just the two of us.
“Come on, Rumor. I’ll take you to your tent.”
She nodded, but didn’t say anything. We walked past the training rings first. Advenians of all ages were going about their day.
A varying amount of clothes and mortal shirts—all thanks to Savannah, who claimed every Advenian needed to be introduced to mortal fashion—lined the grass as most of the men opted to train barebacked.
Scottie halted as she noticed them. Golden markings sprang to life on Tennebrisians who were using their abilities, and Luxians’ black markings were on display as their skin became coated with sweat. Some women and children were scattered throughout the grounds, fighting right alongside the former soldiers.
I waited for Scottie to say something, to ask me what she was seeing, but she didn’t. She collected herself and began following me again. Loud cheers and shouts followed long after we passed, but the silence from Scottie felt deafening. I wanted to know what she was thinking.
I guided her centrally. Everything of importance was located inward and spanned out from the dining tent, with the exceptionof the training rings—but that was only because there were too many noise complaints. The rings never closed, and most Advenians kept training well into the night.
“You can sleep here,” I said, stopping in front of Arcane’s tent. I couldn’t stand the idea of her sleeping in the communal ones, and my brother’s was next to mine and had been left vacant for years.
She walked past me as I pulled open the tent flaps. The ground was lined in furs with only a makeshift bed and a basin inside. The closest communal bath house was located half a mile from here.
“I don’t understand,” she said, whirling on me. “What is this place?” I went to answer, but she cut me off, “And be honest with me, Tezya. No more lies.”
“This place is called Brighta. It’s a camp for Advenians that have nowhere to go.”
“Advenians?” Her brows furrowed. “I saw both kingdoms’ markings back there.”
I nodded, taking a step closer to her. “It’s a refuge for both Tennebris and Lux. Although far more Luxians live here, both are welcome.”
“Refuge? They weretrainingoutside.”
“Yes, there is training too. A lot of things happen here.”
“Like what? What is this place? I still don’t understand—”
“Rumor, welcome to the rebellion.”
NINE
SCOTLIND
My mouth dropped.
The rebellion. Tezya brought me to the rebellion. The same rebellion he had destroyed over and over again by the King’s orders. “I don’t understand. The stories—they said you left the battlefield in ashes.”
“I did leave it in ashes. It was just never Advenian ashes.”
“So, you never killed them? Any of them?”
“I have killed, Rumor. But I try not to.”
“How? How did you do it?” Because the size of this camp… There were thousands of men here. Even more women and children.
“Anytime the rebellion started up again, my orders were to kill everyone. The Lux King didn’t want anyone left alive, even for questioning, so I made sure that’s what everyone thought happened. If thousands of soldiers believed all the rebels died, no one gave what I was doing a second thought.”
“How does everyone think you killed them, though?”
“It would start off like a normal battle,” Tezya said. “Men would die. Rebels would die. My soldiers died. Brock and Rainer would help me locate whoever was leading the attack as quicklyas possible. Once we did, I would fight their commander, not to kill, but I’d make it long enough to give me the opportunity to talk with them. If they refused to hear me out, I’d compel them without anyone seeing.”
