Page 132 of Queen of Legends and Lies
Sterling arches a brow, lips quirking. “Look at you, having a plan.” Amusement colors his throaty voice.
I can’t help but grin as I remember how often I’ve complained about the council insisting we sit and strategize without ever taking action. “Shocking, I know.” Sobering, I lean forward, resting my elbows on the polished wood.“There’s a network of caves beneath Flighthaven that houses an abandoned Palace of the Gods. It’s hidden deep underground. That’s where Narc’s bones are.”
Everyone at the table knows this, but true to their word, no one interrupts.
“I believe we have to merge all four elemental powers directly over that land. That’s the other thing Orin, the God of Lost Things, told me…or rather, implied. That it’s the only way to destroy Narc’s corpse completely and cleanse the corruption tainting everything. If we succeed, we’d stop this war in its tracks.”
A weighty pause follows my words.
Then, with a nod, I open the floor to questions.
“It sounds doable.” Bastian rubs his bandaged head. “Dangerous as hells but doable.”
Leesa frowns. “The issue is that none of us know how to merge the way you and Knox can.”
I turn to Agnar, studying him. “Actually, I’m pretty sure we merged during the attack on Tír Ríoga.” His brows furrow as I press on. “Were you unusually cold the day after? Shivering and unable to get warm?”
Agnar’s eyes widen. “Yes, actually. I thought I was fighting off a head cold. Didn’t think much of it, really.”
I incline my head toward Sterling. “He’s always freezing after we merge. The opposite of my power. And I’m beyond dehydrated after merging with him. But with Alannah, it felt like I couldn’t catch my breath. With you, Agnar, I was dizzy for hours. At first, I thought it was simply exhaustion from pushing my magic and body so hard in battle. But it kept happening, even when Knox and I practiced. That’s when I started putting the pieces together.”
Bastian sips his tea. “That sounds similar to something I read this morning.”
No one seems surprised that he went straight to the archives after the healers patched him up. That’s just Bastian, always seeking knowledge, even in the face of injury and exhaustion.
“Can anyone merge? Or just Tirenese?” Helene cuts off a bite of her pastry, holding it midair. “Without magic, I feel so damn useless. But if I can merge with someone who can access their abilities, I can at least be of some help.”
“I still have a lot of reading to do, so I don’t know all the answers. But Eldor left notes…” Bastian trails off, his hazel eyes distant as he mentally sorts through the information.
Regret pangs in my chest. He tried to show me all day, but I was too busy to spend time with my grandfather. If only I’d realized this was his last day to draw breath…
The invisible hand squeezing my lungs tightens. My only solace is the knowledge that the issues keeping me from him were also the ones preventing the traitors from returning to Xenon with information about our forces. “Can you get them? Eldor’s notes?”
Bastian nods, already moving toward the door. “I’ll head to the archives now.”
Sterling stands abruptly, his large frame unfolding from the chair. “I’ll send a couple guards to help you retrieve them.” He strides to the door, exchanging low words with the sentries outside.
As he does, I continue. “There are a couple potential issues with the plan.” I hold up a finger. “First, we need permission.”
Amused glances dart between the others, and a few quiet laughs escape their lips.
I can’t blame them. Since when have I ever asked for permission? But this is different. “The main problem is we require the landowner’s approval to implement such a permanent and destructive change to their property. According to the gods.”
Understanding dawns on their faces as the magnitude of what we’re proposing sinks in. Altering the very landscape—even for the greater good—is not a task to be taken lightly.
Ten minutes later, Bastian and two guards arrive with stacks of books and scrolls.
Sterling directs them to a side table.
After they deposit the texts, the two guards depart, and Leesa and Bastian descend on the pile, rifling through the parchment.
Leesa glances up. “And the second problem?”
I hesitate, the implication of what I’m about to say already weighing on me. “We need wielders of all four elements to pull this off.” I meet each of their gazes in turn. “Fire, water, earth, and air.”
The room stills, the gravity of that last word hanging between us. We have fire, water, and earth accounted for. But air? After losing Alannah, our options are painfully limited.
My voice is grim as I utter the question that’s been plaguing all our minds. “Which Tirenese air wielder is both powerful and trustworthy? Who’s strong enough to withstand the merge? And willing to risk everything,”perhaps even their life, I leave out, “to see this through?”
