Page 155 of Born of Blood and Ash

“They felt like hope,” she whispered, squeezing her eyestight. “This part he speaks of? The giver of blood and the bringer of bone? Ithink I know what that means. Blood symbolizes life.”

“Bone represents death,” I murmured, my mind flashing towhen I stood with Aydun beneath Aios’s trees.

“Yes. Life and death. Blood and bone,” Penellaphesaid, her knuckles turning white as she fisted the skirt of her gown. “Thatpart speaks of a Primal of Life and Death.”

“That’s what we figured, too. And the giver of blood and thebringer of bone?” I frowned. “You think that’s referencing something or someoneelse?”

Her gaze lowered as she shook her head. “Possibly. It makessense. But what I do know is that what I saw happens in the future. The partthat involves the two daughters?” Her lashes swept up. Eather pulsed brightlyin her eyes. “It is they who will remake the realms. They will usher in theend. Not Kolis.”

“That whole usher-in-the-end part still sounds as bad as itdid the first time I heard it,” I said, even more confused. “How can you besure that’s the end of the vision?”

“Because all that occurs after our awakening, and we haven’tgone to sleep yet,” she said. “That is when the realms are remade. Not before.”

I shifted closer to Reaver. “You saw yourself sleeping?Going into stasis?”

“I saw most of the gods going into stasis. A long one,” shetold me. “I didn’t elaborate on that part when Holland and I first spoke to youand Nyktos. I didn’t think it was an importantdetail.”

My stomach twisted. “And when does this happen? Whywould it happen?”

“It won’t happen for quite some time. When? I can’t say forsure, but I know of things that have yet to occur. Things that will.” Her righthand fluttered to her stomach. “And why? That, I also can’t say. But it didn’tfeel bad. It felt natural. Like it was time.”

Now, it was I who stared at her.

She laughed lightly. “I know that going into stasis forhundreds of years can sound frightening.”

“Hundreds of years?” I mumbled.

“But I’ve heard it passes as quickly as a handful ofnights.”

“Uh-huh,” was all I could say.

Ward turned his head but not quickly enough that I missedhis grin.

“But what’s important is that Kolis is wrong. What he thinksis the end—that it’s him rising? He’s wrong,” she repeated, her voice steadyingand becoming more confident. “He is.”

Maybe… “Or you’re both right.”

Her brows pinched. “What do you mean?”

“You believed that the great conspirator was Kolis, right? Ialways thought it sounded like he would reawaken.” Unnerved, I resisted theurge to rise and begin pacing. “And you said the gods go into stasis. Who’s tosay that Kolis doesn’t, too? And the end you saw is when he awakens.”

As soon as I said that, I thought about Ash’s and myoriginal plan to entomb Kolis, and the unsettled feeling grew. “The Ancient whobrokered the meeting between Kolis and me—Aydun? Do you know him?”

“I’ve only seen him a few times in passing,” she said. “I donot enter Mount Lotho, where they live. Not even withHolland.”

“Well, he said something before I spoke with Kolis. That warbetween the Primals could only be won once there wasblood and bone. And I can’t shake the feeling that it ties into the prophecy.”

A slight frown appeared. “Why did he say that?”

“I honestly don’t know, other than it seemed like he wasurging me to find a way to prevent war.” I brushed a crumb from Reaver’sforeleg. “He said that, in all the threads he’d seen, war wasn’t prevented. Butthat me Ascending as the true Primal of Life was changing some threads.” Myhead tilted. “Which is strange. Why would I be that unexpected consideringyou,” I said to Ward, “were made a viktorbecause you helped create my bloodline?”

“But that was just the thread that started yours,” Penellaphe said.

“And yeah, it seemed like I wouldn’t Ascend, but…” I shookmy head. “The whole fate and thread stuff makes my head hurt.”

“Same,” Ward murmured, looking at Penellapheas she fell silent.

Her honey-hued hair swayed as she shook her head. “That partabout the bearer of two crowns? He believes that is referencing you. What aboutthe great Primal power rising? He believes that is him? But it can’t be. Thephrasing—giver of blood and the bringer of bone doesn’t makesense. It would mean that he brings about—or brings into creation—the Primal ofBlood and Bone. Not that he becomes that.”

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