But who was to say that was the truth? The more time she spent in this newly raised kingdom, the more she began to question everything. And she knew the one way to get the truth—thefulltruth—was by demanding it from the Veil of Visions.
She stepped closer to the basin, her fingers carefully wrapping around its stone edges. “Show me.”
The air stirred, a subtle breeze fluttering through the room and causing a ripple in her reflection of the water.
Her heartbeat thudded in her chest, a reminder that she was alive, and yet, not whole. Even after learning of Maerinys and obtaining Kaelypso’s power, something inside her still felt unfinished, like a book with pages torn free and burned before she could read them.
“Please… show me who I was. Show me the truth of my father’s past and what led to the day Maerinys sank.” As the words slipped past her lips, her thoughts raced in quiet chaos.
The runes along the floor ignited in a pale-blue sheen, spiraling around the basin. The water’s surface began to ripple, as if the Veil itself had drawn a breath before flaring to life with blinding light.
The brightness wasn’t golden with warmth, but pale and sharp like moonfire. Her breath caught in her throat as the ground beneath her vanished. The air was ripped from her lungs as she went to scream,but it twisted into a single high-pitched ring as the Veil tugged at her soul.
It felt like her spine had been caught by a hook, as if something was reaching inside of her and yanking her forward. Her limbs went weightless, her skin tingling with an icy heat as her vision shattered into a cascade of color and shadow.
Time folded in on itself, and space bent until up and down meant nothing at all. The room around her disappeared and her body fell away.
And then the world itself paused.
The Veil’s pull released her all at once, like a breath held too long and finally let go. The weight of her body returned, her heart pounding wildly as her fingers trembled.
Slowly, Esmyra opened her eyes and realized she was no longer looking into the past.
She wasinsideit.
Esmyra stood between two towering windows, the tall violet curtains fluttering with the breeze. A balcony stretched out before her, the sea glittering in the distance like glass. Her jaw fell open in awe as she took a few hesitant steps up to the rail. The sunrise above burned in molten hues, casting gold across the realm.
Where was she? She had never seen a view like this before. It was breathtaking.
But before she could take in more of her surroundings, the sound of soft, steady breathing drew her attention back inside.
Esmyra turned from the rail, her eyes widening as she took in the room that lay just beyond the high-arching windows. Her bare feet padded across the floor, her sheer dress billowing in the small gusts of wind.
The massive chamber opened before her, carved from smooth, pale stone veined with shimmering white and gold. To her left, an arched doorway led to a bathing chamber she could only just glimpse, and to her right, a table was set with figs, soft cheeses, and bread.
And there, on the far side of the room, was a grand bed fit for kings and gods alike with two figures lyingacross it.
The silken sheets pooled around them, rumpled around their waists, their bodies were bathed in the molten light. As she took a few steps closer, her eyes narrowed and found it was a man and a woman.
The hard planes of the man’s chest caught the soft light of sunrise that spilled through the towering windows. His features were relaxed as his dark lashes kissed the tops of his cheeks. The man looked lean and powerful, sleeping with a hand resting beneath his head; the other hand was wrapped around the woman tucked into his side.
Her breath caught then.
Silver hair fanned over their pillows like strands of moonlight, her face mere inches from his. Her skin glowed faintly as her power coiled beneath it, showing in her swirling tattoos. The blanket barely covered the curve of her hip and the line of her bare shoulder, exposing the elegant slope of her back.
Her taloned hand was on his chest, her fingers splayed in possessiveness.
Kaelypso and Irah.
They looked…whole. Happy, even. Like the sea and flame had found balance, and his betrayal had never touched their world.
Even in their slumber, the gods looked like they were in love.
“I will find you again.” Esmyra remembered the words Irah had whispered to Kaelypso the day he murdered her.
If he never intended to betray her, or wanted to find her in another life, then why would he ever agree to plunge the blade into her heart?
The sight of them wrapped in each other was so painfully beautiful. Esmyra longed to feel what that version of herself—whatKaelypso—must’ve felt.
