There wasa knock on my door.
Stretching my arms over my head, I opened my eyes. I was still exhausted, somehow feeling more fatigued even though it was the first time I had slept in days.
The warm breeze floated in from the open window, and my breath caught. The two suns were sinking behind the mountain range. I ran over to the window, leaning far out to get a better look. Distantly, a shadow flew overhead, its roar vibrating the sill beneath my fingers.
A dragon.
The mountain range, the one that was so mesmerizing I couldn’t tear my eyes off of it last night, was the Drakin Grounds.
Blue, red, and hues of green scattered across the fading sky as the outline of the moons were slowly peppering in. I could only glimpse three of the moons rising, the other three—the black, gray, and white moons—were still hidden. I was so caught up in the view that I almost fell out the window when another loud knock sounded.
The idea of someone knocking was so foreign to me that I totally forgot about it.
I ran my palms down my hair, trying to smooth the tangles before going to the door.
The first thing I noticed when I opened the door was the large‘W’stitched onto the chest of the gray uniform. I immediately recognized him from the throne room—blonde hair, green eyes, and freckles across his nose—he was the Wielder who saved me from answering why Dahes sent a Tallik after me.
“Evening,little Wielder.” He smiled as he leaned against the door frame with one boot crossed over the other.
“Little?” I repeated, unable to hide the bite from my voice. I had no idea why it bothered me. Dahes called me hisslavefor crying out loud.
He cocked a grin. “I’m assuming you haven’t reached your Staying Age yet.”
I hated the way he was looking at me, how his eyes roamed over my body. I was still wearing the torn slip. “I’m a year off.”
He nodded, his lip curling upward into a smile. “So twenty-two?”
I didn’t acknowledge it. “Why are you here?”
“I’m here to train you.”
So this was Cash.
“And my age is relevant to that?”
He shrugged. “It’s nice to know how long you’ve had your Token. Which was when?”
“Sixteen,” I answered, crossing my arms over my chest to cover myself. “Why are you here?”
“To train you,” he repeated like I was stupid, maybe I was. I hadn’ttalked to anyone in years, and I was finding myself awkward and stumbling over my words half the time.
“I meant, why are you here now, atnight?”
He looked me up and down slowly. “I figured you’d be more comfortable in the dark. Doesn’t Moriann only exist when the moons are out?”
I didn’t answer. I wasn’t sure what to say that wouldn’t be an insult so I bit my tongue. I didn’t even like Moriann, so why was I so triggered by someone ill-talking it?
“Moriann is brighter at night during theWatala, but that doesn’t mean we’re nocturnal,” I finally settled on, working to calm my breathing. I wasn’t panting like I’d been in the throne room, but I still couldn’t regulate it. It felt like heavy weights were strapped across my chest, preventing me from fully inhaling.
“Only the monsters and ghosts then.”
I narrowed my eyes.
He straightened, uncrossing his legs, forcing me to tilt my head to look at him. He was tall, his frame bordering on lean beneath his uniform, that it didn’t hold nearly the same intimidation level as the drakin had. At least, I had a chance of beating him in a fight. Except—he had a Token. I just had no idea what it was.
“Next week is the Vargothi,” he said. “I’m the leader of the Wielders, so I’m going to be busy during the days leading up to it. The only time I can train you is at night before it starts. So like it or not, I’ll be here every night because my king expects to see your power by the end of the tournament.”
I nodded, tucking away the information that he was the leader. Any thought of me overpowering him went with it. But I wanted it. I wanted to train. If I could return to Dahes and have mastered my Token this would all be worth it. I wouldn’t have to worry about Dahes grabbing me and my power not working. I could be certain he’d never touch me again.
