Page 65 of Of Empires and Dust

The woman stayed silent for a few moments, her stare unblinking. “This is the first major decision our people have made together in a very long time. We should send for Coren andFarwen. Their roles in our survival have been as vital as yours, young Virandr.”

“I agree.”

“It is settled then. We will send for Coren and Farwen. They will be needed either way. If we are to stand together as one, a new Archon should be raised, and that cannot be done without all our say. The journey should only take them a few weeks. Until then,” Chora continued, “the final decision will be suspended and the prisoners will remain here under guard. They will not be permitted to leave this eyrie under any circumstances. If they do so, they will be killed on sight.”

“Prisoners?” Calen rounded on Chora. “What about Farda?”

“What about him?” Chora raised an eyebrow, the touch of amusement in her voice only irritating Calen further.

“He murdered my mother. He has?—”

“He has done no more than Tivar.” The woman looked at Calen as though he were an idiot. “If you wish to pardon her, that same grace extends to him and the others. You cannot pick and choose who lives or dies based on your own grievances. All four of them betrayed The Order. All four of them have slaughtered and burned and destroyed.” Chora wheeled herself closer to Calen, looking into his eyes. “I don’t have enough fingers to count the number of people I loved that were killed at Tivar and Avandeer’s hands. What makes your loss greater than mine?”

“I…”

“You have much to learn about the world, Calen Bryer. So much to learn.”

Hoursafter the altercation at the Eyrie, Aeson stood on the ledge of one of the many cliffs in one of the many valleys thatsnaked through the Aravell. The rain had started only moments after Farda and the others had been escorted back to their quarters, and it fell like the skies themselves had opened. It was poetry, in a sense.

His clothes clung to his skin, and his hair matted his face. He had stood on that ledge for what must have been an hour. The rain calmed him. It stilled his mind, and he had much to think on.

Aeson lifted an eyebrow, turning his head at the sound of rocks crunching beneath wheels.

“You were hard on him,” he whispered, just loud enough for his voice to rise above the rain.

“The world is hard.” Chora stopped her chair beside Aeson, her blonde hair tacked to her face. “There will be much more difficult choices ahead. He needs to learn, and we don’t have the time for him to learn slowly. You and I both know I would have been happier to take Farda’s head, but he is more useful this way.” Chora stared out into the valleys. “Seeing the others, seeing them so close I could touch them… so close I could break their necks. It was… It unsettled me.”

“As it did us all.” Aeson wiped the water from his eyes and folded his arms. “Tivar can never be forgiven, but she and Avandeer could be the difference in this war. She truly has regret in her heart. She could be what keeps Calen alive. She could be what he needs.”

“If Coren and Farwen vote to spare her, I will honour that decision.”

Aeson let the rain fall for a moment. “You didn’t allow them to roam free in the Eyrie out of kindness.”

Chora choked back a harsh, dark laugh. “No. Let young Bryer see his mother’s killer wander around the Eyrie. Let him see the pain he puts us through by forcing us to keep Tivar’s head on her shoulders... The arrogance of youth.”

Aeson let out an exasperated sigh. “The longer you and the others spend in Aravell, the more like the elves you become. Games and tricks and schemes.”

“It was always that way, Aeson. You just never saw it. You were never willing to look.”

The drumming of the rain against the stone grew louder as the pair stood in silence.

“We are to meet the Triarchy in Mythníril tomorrow,” Chora said. “The steps forward must be decided. With the Blood Moon in the sky and the empire distracted in the North, now is the time to solidify our allegiances in the South. We must move swiftly and crush every foothold they have here. With Jormun and Ilkya gone, Calen can fly more freely. The Warden of Varyn. That is a title we can use. I suggest we secure Illyanara then push for Valtara and Drifaien. Our support in those regions seems strong by your reports.”

“It’s good to see a fire in you once more.”

Chora stared out at the open valley. “It is good to feel somewhat warm again. If I can do one thing before I see Daiseer, it will be to rip Eltoar Daethana’s beating heart from his chest.”

“Agreed. We will talk on it tomorrow.” With that, Aeson turned and began to walk away but stopped after only a few feet. “They believe in him, Chora.”

The woman scoffed as she pushed one wheel and turned her chair. “Who believes in whom? And why must you always be so vague and dramatic?”

“My son, the elven rangers, the rebels from the North. They followed Calen across the Burnt Lands because they believed in him. Not because of who he is as a Draleid, but because of who he is as a man. Even Atara and Thacia and Harken – I see it in their eyes. He has given them hope.” Aeson paused a moment. “He will do what must be done, I am certain of it. He was right about Tivar, and he had the strength to stand for it. He has beenbound for barely a breath, and he held no fear in his heart at standing for what he believed in. We should never have put her in those shackles. We knew the pain it caused. We didn’t do it to stop her from touching the Spark. We did it to make her know the agony of not feeling Avandeer’s soul. We are broken, you and I, and we will never be whole. But he is different. I have watched him grow, watched him turn from a naïve boy into a warrior who refuses to lie down. He is becoming what we have let slip away. Give him time.”

As Aeson stood there, the rain pelting down around him, he remembered Calen’s words when the Aravell burned.“There’s no point in living if we don’t fight for what we love. We’re meant to be Draleid. We’re meant to be guardians, not survivors.”

“It sounds like you’re starting to believe in him too, young Virandr.”

“Hmm.” Aeson let out a half-laugh and turned back towards the trail that led to the city.

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