Page 105 of Fate of Echoes and Embers
“I will take it off after today so you can have it.”
“No,” I said immediately. “It is yours. A token of my love and thanks for the sacrifice you were willing to make that day and the one you make in leaving your home. Searching for answers about my mother’s death led me to you, so I will never regret it, but I too must stop living in the past. You are my present and my future.” I smiled. “And my wife, as you humans call it.”
“Husband, partner… the name is less important than the commitment and love I have for you. Wherever the sea takes us, I will be by your side for the adventure.”
“Our fate was sealed the first day I rode through these gates. If only I had known it then.”
“We know it now, and that is all that matters.”
Our fate, our future, was just beginning.
EPILOGUE
ISSA
The Ascension, Aethralis, the palace… despite having been here before, it was as awe-inspiring as the first time. As we walked into the Celestial Hall, I reminded myself it was still day. Here, the high ceiling illuminated to replicate the Elydorian night sky. We’d come during The Trial of the Tempest, an annual Aetherian festival that tests the abilities of its participants on everything from storm summoning to wind whispering. According to the guards, it was the last day of the trials, and those who had shown exceptional skill that day were being celebrated this eve.
We had been taken to our shared chamber, Marek and I enjoying the waterfall room together before dressing for the evening. Mev and Kael were apparently soon returning from the Sky Pinnacle, a sacred mountain where winds were at their strongest and today’s test had been held. Now, having been escorted here, I remained in awe of Aetherian architecture.
“How do they manage it?” I asked. It appeared the roof was open to the night sky, but I knew such a thing was not possible since it was still daytime.
“Much of Aetherian magic is still a mystery to me, even after all these years. Ask Lyra; perhaps she’ll know.”
The Aetherian in question walked toward us.
“Marek. Issa.” She hugged us both. “Apologies you were not personally greeted into the palace. Mev, Kael, and the king should be returning any moment.”
The hall was already filled with participants and their parents, with Aetherian council members and honored guests, also according to the guard.
“Everyone is dressed so… beautifully,” I said, their shades of silver and white hair matching gowns of the same colors mixed with deep blues and celestial inlays.
“This is one of the most revered nights of the year in Aetheria. Your Festival of Tides is similar,” she said to Marek.
“I don’t believe there will ever be another one quite like the last,” he said as Lyra gestured for us to walk with her. We made our way to a door that I hadn’t even seen, it was so seamlessly cloaked into the wall around it.
Stepping through it, we entered an antechamber that was similarly decorated as the hall. It was, however, quite empty.
“Is it true?” she asked. “We received your message.”
“That we are married?” Marek teased. “Aye, it is indeed.”
Lyra’s smile was as serene as her movement, as if she was an angel come down from the sky. I really did need to ask her how they managed it. “Was that really not the actual sky above us?”
“It is true,” I said, not willing to leave Lyra in anticipation. “We have it.”
“There you are.”
Mev burst through the same door we’d come through, running toward us. She looked every bit an Aetherian princess, her all-white gown shimmering with silver threads. Grasping us both at the same time, she held onto Marek and I as if she would never let go.
“You will suffocate them,” a gruff voice said from behind her. Kael.
“I don’t care.”
“Is that a way to repay your friends?” another male voice boomed.
The king.
Mev let us go, turning toward the others.
