“My mother,” I muttered and Caelan’s eyes glowed brighter.
“I do wish you would refrain from interrupting Xavier. I have quite the temper, especially when it comes to this story,” he said icily, and I swallowed, taking another sip of the mead.
“Like I was saying, their queen was a great sorceress. Always experimenting with new magic, expanding her knowledge. She was greedy and was in constant war with the surrounding kingdoms.”
My mouth parted. Kingdoms, not kingdom. Meaning more than one, more kingdoms than ours. My heart thundered in my chest, my pulse thrumming in my ears, and I couldn’t help but speak again.
“So, my suspicions all these centuries were right,” I ground out, my chest tightening. “We aren’t alone. There are others, more kingdoms like ours out there?”
Caelan nodded.
“Then why?” I barked, anger searing through me. “Why does no one remember? Know!” I shouted. The questions that have haunted me for centuries, burning past my lips.
My uncle had watched me go nearly mad trying to figure it out. Ever since I was a boy, I noticed the blank books, the redacted pages, the maps that were unfinished. The naval fleet that never left our shores…
Jaxon and I had asked my uncle why, and he claimed he didn’t know what we were talking about. Acted confused and changed the conversation. I thought it had been because we were only boys, but when we got older his answers never changed. Even when we asked others, they had done the same, and got confused. Some even passed out when we pressed them for information, for what they knew.
When the crown passed to me, I sailed as far as our ships would allow, only to find our shores again, as if we had been turned around by some phantom wind. My entire crew was confused, dazed, not remembering why they were there or what we had been doing.
The glass I held shattered in my grasp, and Caelan only watched as my blood fell in thick drips onto my leather pants. “Does my uncle know?”
“Yes,” Caelan said simply.
“Why? Why do none of my people remember? Know? Question?!”
“May I continue?” Caelan said dully, unbothered this time by my interruption, my rage. My head lowered, a strand of my hair falling into my eyes, and I shook my head to rid it from my vision as I glared at the Fate sitting in front of me.
The glass in my hand disappeared, and a new glass, whole and full of amber liquid, appeared on the table. Blood was nolonger coming from the gash on my palm. The skin was smooth, and I stared down at it, blinking.
“As I was saying, Eionian was constantly at war. Their queen was greedy, wanting more control, more power, more land. She thought herself powerful, and powerful people only want one thing. More power. For a while she and her armies were unstoppable. Their kingdom was nearly impenetrable. But when all the kingdoms allied together and were about to march into her lands, she knew she had to relent and agreed to a treaty, if only to bide herself time. She sent her daughter as a peace bargain to a neighboring kingdom, and for a while peace had been held.”
My brow furrowed at this information, but I didn’t interrupt him this time, letting him continue.
“The queen heard rumors of a great power, of gods who walked among them and had been seeking one for centuries. Through pure luck, she managed to trap one.” Caelan hissed, and my eyebrows shot up into my hairline. “My sister was caught in her vessel by experimental magic that we were unaware had been created in this realm,” Caelan said, his head turning ever so slightly to his left. He sounded bitter, and I glanced at the empty throne beside him, the hair on my neck prickling.
“How is that even possible?” I questioned, and Caelan's gaze snapped back to mine. His eyes glowing a bright blue.
“Do not dare ask me how,” he nearly shouted, and a wave of power flowed past me, making me shiver. “Just know that through some evil, she was able to entrap my sister's essence in her vessel and take her away.”
I squared my shoulders, and my gaze met his again. “You never told me what a vessel was.”
Caelan’s eyes dimmed, their power lessening as he rolled his shoulders softly, chin lifting. “Vessels are born into every realm, created with the sole purpose of allowing us to enter your world. Their unique biology enables them to carry our divine power, our essence, so that we may act within your world through them. This allows us to move between realms and guide others, fulfilling our purpose of directing souls toward their destined paths. It is not only mortals we may inhabit; creatures can also serve as vessels. Most vessels are born into the same bloodlines, repeatedly, unless that line ends, in which case we create a new one.”
My mouth parted slightly, my mind whirling with this new information. “So, Soren is your vessel?”
“One of them, yes. This is why in your world and many others, we are known as the faceless gods. It's also why throughout history, everyone who has encountered us has offered a different description, depicting us as young, old, or even as monstrous creatures.”
“How then did the queen find your sister?”
“My sister had a soft heart for one of her vessels. She often visited it, the town, and became known by others. The rumors then followed.” Caelan gritted his teeth, his voice haunting and full of emotion. His eyes were distant, as if visiting her now. I cleared my throat, and his gaze seemed to return, his eyes locking onto mine.
“The queen experimented on my sister, learned how to access her knowledge. Through whatever magic she learned, she had been able to reach into the mind of the vessel my sister inhabited and was able to see what she knew.”
I didn’t have to ask what that meant, as Caelan already heard the question in my mind.
“When we inhabit a vessel, our host isn't ejected. Merely pushed back. We might inhabit their bodies, but they are still able to see as we do. Observe and witness our thoughts, our visions as they occur. Consequently, anything we discover, think or learn while inside them is also known to them.”
My back stiffened, a wave of unease washing over me. So, Soren was here too, watching us? Aware and listening to this very interaction. That was… fuck—that was insane.
