Page 19 of Beasts of Briar
This is a common occurrence. The gods regularly use the god of shadows to punish mortals. He is their weapon, the reason so many fear him.
She said the words so casually. Like it meant nothing for an entire village to be wiped off the face of the earth. I thought of the story I’d come here to tell, to offer the god of shadows.
“May I tell you both a story?” I asked.
Khalasa’s lips twitched, and she bowed her head in encouragement.
I remember clearing my throat, so nervous that I’d say the wrong thing and be smote right there. But I had to speak up. I had to encourage them to intervene and not let the hot-headed god of fire order the god of shadows to do such a thing.
This was the story I told: “There once was a bear who lived in a forest full of animals. A beautiful forest. Fish swam in the creek. Deer roamed the woods. Squirrels, raccoons, and other small creatures foraged and used the trees as their homes.”
Both the gods were silent, watching me intently as I told my story. I tried not to squirm and attempted to keep my voice steady as I spoke.
“The bear was the mightiest of the creatures, yet none of them feared him. So he decided to teach everyone a lesson. He ate all the fish in the creek. He ate all the deer that roamed.He smashed the smaller creatures. He roared at the birds until they flew away. The bear had peace finally. Word of his conquest would spread and everyone would see him for the mighty creature he was.”
The god of shadow tilted his head, and still, I forged on, nearing the end of my story, amazed I was still alive to tell it.
“The bear slept all winter, and when he awoke in the spring, the forest was quiet. Word of his conquest has indeed spread, and now, everyone feared the forest. With no bees to pollinate the flowers, they all slowly died. Without fish in the creek, the algae became overgrown, releasing toxic poisons into the air that harmed the trees. And with no deer or small animals to eat the vegetation, plants took over the forest, making it impossible for the bear to roam. He moved on to other areas, but everywhere he went, the creatures fled, terrified of him. The bear had not earned the animals’ respect. He’d gotten their fear, and now instead of the mightiest creature, he was the loneliest.”
I finished my story, my heart hammering in my chest. It was so loud I was sure the gods could hear it, could smell my fear.
Finally, after an agonizing silence, the goddess of stars broke into applause and squealed in delight. “You are an amazing storyteller.” She leaned forward, her eyes flashing with a look I didn’t recognize, but it soon became clear.
I didn’t end up getting the god of shadows’s help today. I got something better: the goddess’s.
Chapter Eleven
BELLAMY
We walked on the dirt path that led upward toward the dark grey mountain at the end of the village. Palm trees sprouted up on either side of the path. Behind the trees, thatched-roof squat buildings populated the space. Dirt and grime covered the windows while the doors were splintered, chipped and peeling. Roofs had caved in on some of the buildings, while others had trees growing out of them. It was clear no one had lived here for a long, long time.
“What do you think happened here?”I signed.
Leoni’s mouth flattened. “Spirit Shadow,” she whispered, almost as if she was afraid to say his name too loudly, like we could summon him somehow.
My eyes widened at that.“You’re saying he killed his own people? Why would he do that?”
Driscoll swallowed thickly. “We don’t know, but it was confirmed by a shadow elemental who we met a few months ago. She saw it all happen and was the only survivor. She managed to escape and hid for her entire life out of fear that Spirit Shadowwould find her and kill her so she wouldn’t expose that he was free.”
That was horrific. I’d already hated him for killing so many of my people, but he’d also killed his own followers, elementals who worshipped him, used the magic he’d gifted them. He’d annihilated two entire races of elementals. And why? Why do all of that and then hide out here in his castle?
What was his end game?
“We don’t know why,” Leoni said, as if she could read my mind. “But we do know he’s trapped here, on this island or in his castle, maybe? He can’t be free until all the elementals are released from wherever they’re trapped. And the only way to release them is with their weapons. He’s collecting them, using his shadows to go searching for them since he can’t. He already has Spirit Water’s trident, his own dagger, and Spirit Earth’s bow and arrow.”
Leoni’s gaze dropped to the satchel strapped across my shoulder. She didn’t have to say what was on her mind. I knew what she was thinking. Here I was bringing this bolt straight to him. A weapon he needed.
I ignored her, signing,“So is that his grand plan? To collect all the weapons, then use them to free the other spirits? Then what?”
She shrugged helplessly. “We don’t know. Based on what he did to the star and shadow elementals, we’re guessing the spirits want to kill us all. Maybe in revenge for being trapped so long ago? But it doesn’t make sense because we weren’t even the ones who trapped them. It would’ve been those of the Old World.”
And all of them were dead. They’d perished thousands of years ago, right around the time the Seven Spirits disappeared. I’d read about it in books that I’d found, had talked about it with my brothers and father. My father’s voice echoed in my head.
“Don’t take everything you read at face value, Bell. There’s always more to the story if you dig deeper, read between the lines.”
He wasn’t much of a history buff. He preferred the fictional stories to the nonfictional ones. Said they were more fun—and they tended to have happier endings than those in the real world. There was always a sadness in his voice when he’d say things like that, and I knew he was thinking of my mother. Of what happened to her when the star court warped and turned into the Wilds. Of the creature she’d turned into before she abandoned us. I rubbed my arms and sighed.
“Do you think he’s up there right now?” Driscoll peered at the castle in the distance. “Watching us approach?”
