Page 68 of Children of Anguish and Anarchy

In her presence, I struggle to speak.

“What do I do?” I whisper to Mae’e.

Yéva doesn’t turn from the sun. She doesn’t even acknowledge our arrival.

“Do nothing,” Mae’e breathes. “You just have to wait.”

Mae’e leaves me in the crater, returning to the mountain’s edge. I hold on to her instructions as the sun arcs above, ignoring the strain in my legs.

All the while, Yéva doesn’t move. The air dances through her silver hair. My shoulders start to relax when I hear the slither of approaching vines. I look down as the vines weave into a circle around me, connecting me to the circle Yéva stands in.

In a breath, the weight of the air shifts. Yéva remains still, yet I feel the faint brush of her fingertips. My skeleton turns to lead. The medallion pulses through my skin.

“What did you feel when it chose you?”

The mountain rumbles. Yéva’s ancient voice pulls me in like the tides. Before I know it, I’m standing next to her. Her all-consuming aura wraps around me, strangling me like vines.

“What did you feel when it chose you?”

Her unspoken question rumbles through the ground once more. She forces me to my knees. I look to the medallion in my chest.

“Did it choose me?” I whisper back.

“Their metal lives.” Yéva keeps her eyes on the sun. “It has a spirit. A soul. It feeds off your being. It is feeding on you now.”

Yéva waves her hands, and the ancient medallion heats. New veins sprout from its golden metal, spreading across my dark skin like the roots of a tree. I scratch like I can tear the medallion from my chest, but the veins continue to spread.

“Their bloodmetal prepares you for the harvest. Its roots will grow until they’ve overtaken your soul. You will be his greatest weapon. With the power of the storms, he will end civilizations.”

All at once, I see my kingdom ablaze. From the vast grain fields of Minna to the stone huts of Ibadan. Our temples. Our people. Our language.

Everything I’ve ever known disappears in the flames.

There are no maji. No tîtáns. No nobles and no kosidán. My motherland lies barren, destroyed by the power I hold within.

“How can I stop it?” I gasp through the pain. “Tell me how to stop it!”

My chest heaves up and down at the sight. I close my eyes, trying to shut the images out.

“You must fight.” Yéva finally looks at me. The world stills in the center of her gaze. “You must take the power he seeks to harvest from your soul and use it yourself. Rise!”

Yéva circles me, sharp like a red-breasted firehawk. I hold my breath as she walks. Her stride could draw blood.

“Tell me what you hear.”

My body starts to shake. Thunder booms between my ears.

“Tell me what you hear!” The mountain quakes with Yéva’s voice.

“Thunder!” I shout back.

Yéva sweeps out her hands. All at once, the mountain disappears. Everything darkens in an instant. It’s like she blocks out the entire sun.

“Now breathe.”

Yéva presses two fingers below my diaphragm, and the medallion lights in my chest. A surge like lightning pulses through my skin. I stare at my buzzing hands, suspended in a black haze.

“Feel it.” Yéva’s voice shudders through my soul. “Draw it deep inside.”

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