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The River
The river flowed across Verve’s vision, cutting through the darkness of the void around her with threads of brilliant white, blue, gold, pink, and every other color she’d ever seen or imagined. But this was like no river Verve had ever encountered in her waking life. This river hovered above her head, a flow of energy and light, beckoning her with a faint melody she almost knew.
A filament of the river flowed within reach, so she leaned closer to examine the wondrous sight. Thousands of tiny shapes, mirrors of each other, repeating forever, made up the river’s body. Each piece fitted perfectly with the others, all propelling each other toward some unseen end. Verve turned to follow the river’s path and found it flowing onward, toward a massive, glowing ocean of light somewhere far away.
“Beautiful, isn’t it?” Celidon said.
Verve whirled to the meridian—the dead meridian—who stood several paces away. A haze of light surrounded him and his eyes glowed faintly; a ghost with a mild voice. In Verve’s mind, his spirit resonated with hers and she felt his grief as keenly as her own. Jocasta’s presence lingered nearby, but the former meridian did not appear. Which was probably for the best, as this was all quite bizarre enough, thank you.
“What is that?” Verve asked, which was the most logical question, of course. Not “where am I?” Or “what’s going on?” She’d save those for later.
Assuming she had a later.
Celidon turned his face up to the shining river of light. “Space-Between-Stars brought you here. We are in the Fae realm, once called the Shadowlands. That is the Great River, where the souls of our people—the Fae and our own—flow together for all eternity. You can hear their song, can’t you?”
The beckoning melody strengthened into a song of thousands upon thousands of souls, resonating with one another; a flow of energy and life.
“Yes,” she breathed, and tilted her head up to better absorb the song.
Celidon’s smile held no warmth. “It’s not for you. Or it shouldn’t have been. But you…”
A sense of heaviness pressed against Verve’s heart, and her shoulders sagged. “I never meant for any of this to happen.”
“What did you think would happen when you took Karel’s life?” Celidon asked.
“I didn’t,” Verve replied. “I just… I believed I was doing the right thing, that I was working for the greater good. All mages may not be evil, but even you must admit they are capable of evil acts. Places like Freehold are proof of that.”
“Evil begets evil,” Celidon said. “That doesn’t make any of it right.”
“Then what’s the alternative?” Verve pressed. “Lay down and die? You know, I’ve never claimed to be a hero, or a paragon, or anything good. But at every turn, there’s someone shaming me for the choices I’ve made — the choices I’ve had to make, just to survive another day. If you meridians are so powerful, why haven’t you stopped mages from warring with each other? For that matter, why haven’t you stopped Legion?”
Celidon stared at her, but it was Jocasta’s voice that replied. “We have tried, Verve. But there are few of us, and many, many mages, and Legion grows more powerful with each passing day.”
The former meridian had appeared at Verve’s side. She was an older woman, older even than Danya or Ivet, with long moon-white hair flowing loose about her shoulders. Like Celidon, she shone with her own light.
“Well, that’s bullshit,” Verve replied, lifting her chin. “You have all this power, but it may as well be nothing at all for the good you’ve done. At least I use my evil for a good cause. Lotis is stronger now because of me. Doesn’t that count for something?”
Jocasta’s shoulders fell. “It does. The world needs more places like Lotis; places where hope can flourish.”
Caught wrong-footed, Verve didn’t know quite how to respond. “Well. Then maybe you meridians need someone like me, after all: someone who knows how to fortify, and fight back.”
Celidon’s jaw had tightened, but he looked at the flowing river and relaxed. “I didn’t realize what you were when first we met. I should have. My folly — my pride.”
“You didn’t realize I was a mage-hunter?”
He shook his head. “A walking wound, not healed over. I could have looked into your heart right there, in those caverns, and healed your pain. That’s what meridians do. That’s what I should have done. If I had, Karel might yet live.”
Few others Verve had ever met would so freely acknowledge their mistakes. Furthermore, she felt Celidon’s regret as her own: a slow, seeping loss of energy.
“You’re not at fault,” Verve replied, softer than she might have otherwise. “I killed Karel. You could have done nothing to stop it.”
Any more than you could have stopped Legion from destroying your family, Space-Between-Stars’s voice echoed in her mind.
Verve started up at the figure who’d appeared at her side: a tall, stately being with curving horns and eyes that glowed like twin stars. Space-Between-Stars’s skin was the inky black of night, speckled with the occasional star.
Her breath caught at the Fae’s true form. “You…” She swallowed. “You’re taller than I expected.”
Space-Between-Stars inclined their head, dipping the curving horns in what Verve imagined was a bow. It is… strange to see you here as well, Space-Between-Stars replied. You should know the other meridians have been speaking of you, debating what’s to be done. No other before has joined our family without our permission. It’s too late to separate you and I without destroying us both.
