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“Perhaps…perhaps not… Time works differently for me. I don’t track it like you humans do.”
Maybe she shouldn’t ask all these questions. Not when it might bring back painful memories for Ari. If Illaris had been as important to Ari as he was to her, then she could understand how devastating it would have felt to lose him.
She glanced at the crystals, which were flickering like candlelight. “Can I have a small sun crystal? I would like to keep it with me when I return to town,” she said, and he went still for a time, as if processing her words. Maybe he couldn’t understand that she would like to maintain the connection to him and nature, even when they weren’t together. “I’m sorry that you lost Illaris, Ari.”
“There is no real life without death.” Ari placed one hand on Nava’s shoulder, squeezing gently. “The immortals crave its finality—obsess over it. Even the trees die eventually, so a new one can thrive in its place.”
“Still…” Tears pricked at her eyes. Why was she about to cry when she hadn’t even met the other Beekeeper? All she’d seen of him was his quickly decomposing body—and how pained Ari had been.
“Don’t think it a coincidence. You crossed the edge of the Grey Forest and were called to me just as the Zorren took Illaris’s life. I’m happy you are my companion. There is no need to be sad. The pain of abandoning these bodies we occupy is fleeting. I will meet Illaris again.”
Was that true? Would she meet them once she died? Or was she different because she was human? If she went to the Beekeepers’ realm, what happened to Ark’s soul? Would they be separated?
The question brought such intense pain that it took her breath away.
“Arkimedes told me his magic came to him when he was five,” she said. Hopefully, the change of subject would ease her panic. “I’m five years younger than him. Do you think the gods chose me to become a Beekeeper because I’m his soulmate? Or…”
“Yes?” Aristaeus narrowed his eyes as he tried to make sense of her questions.
“Was I always destined to become a Beekeeper and that’s why Arkimedes is my soulmate?”
“The gods don’t choose soulmates at random.” Ari inspected Nava’s changing emotions. “Does the order matter?”
Sometimes it was easy to forget that Ari’s emotions worked differently than hers. “I—I guess I’d be disappointed if they chose me to be who I am because of who my mate is and not because of me.” She leaned against a tree for support and lowered herself onto the ground.
His movements were slow as he took a seat next to her. “I will not claim to understand the emotions you feel right now. The gods picked you to be his—just as much as they chose him to be yours. You’re from the same soul, equal and perfect for this task.”
For a while, they sat in quiet companionship as his words settled inside her. He was right, of course. It didn’t matter why or how, for she wouldn’t change a thing. Even if, at first, she hadn’t wanted a soulmate or a kingdom to rule. And definitely not the huge responsibility of defeating an immortal.
A year ago, all she’d longed for was to be free to choose her future. But that was precisely what she was doing now. She loved Arkimedes and fought for him. She could have stayed in a home in this kingdom, lived a quiet life alongside her brother, and allowed Ark to continue his royal life on his own without remembering her.
Having a soulmate wasn’t what defined her choices—it only brought clarity to what she really wanted. Their love was a partnership. The gods had woven them together, but nobody was forcing them to remain committed to each other.
It was them clinging to each other that would shape the future of this kingdom. And she was ready to fight for the people who lived here, too.
“Wait, did you say there’s an underground pool here?” she asked, perking up. She desperately needed to be out of these bloody clothes.
“Aristaeus told you about the pool?” Arkimedes’s voice floated toward her, and he stepped around a crystal a mere moment later, carrying two dead rabbits over his shoulder. He set them aside and crouched beside them.
“Have you seen it?” He nodded, but Nava could have answered the question herself. He didn’t look half as filthy as she did. Even his clothes lacked the gray tones of ash and soot. “I want a bath.”
“How are you feeling?”
Like demons had tried to kill her and almost succeeded. “I’ve been better.”
Arkimedes grabbed her hand and pulled her to her feet, guiding her away. Ari stayed, quietly watching them sidle past fruiting trees.
Nava’s breath caught in her throat at the beauty that greeted her past the tall rock columns that held up the cavernous ceiling. The pool was bright turquoise and smelled strongly of minerals. Its shape extended like a winding serpent, far beyond what her eyes could see.
She’d never witnessed anything so magical before, and she’d visited many places.
A small island jutted from the center of the pool, made of white rock. On it, one lonely tree grew. Above it, a giant hole in the ceiling let in the morning sky.
Nava was undressing before she could think of a reason not to. “Do you think there are beasts under the water?”
“No.” Arkimedes laughed, gaining a glare from her. “The only thing you have to worry about here is me. Now, let me see how your wound is healing.”
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