Page 62 of Riftborne
“No, I haven’t spent much time on this side of town,” I admitted, shoving my hands into my pockets.
“Perfect, the first round is on me.” She gestured for me to enter. The entire place was teeming with members of the Sídhe Guard. I gulped, shifting my eyes around to find a few seats open at the bar. She sauntered past me, headed straight towards the bartender. The pub was made entirely of creaking wood, from the floors all the way to the beams encasing the arched ceiling. It smelled of sweat and alcohol.
I approached Raine, who had already taken her seat at the bar. She was mumbling something to the bartender as I slid into the raised stool beside her.
“I think we both deserve this after what we learned today.” She pursed her lips as the bartender returned with two mugs.
“Cheers to survival?” she whispered, holding it out towards me.
“Cheers,” I nodded.
I tapped my mug against hers and took a long sip.
“So, what is your focus, if you don’t mind me asking?” I wasn’t sure about the etiquette regarding such matters, but directness seemed like Raine’s preferred form of communication.
“Me? I can wield lightning.” She grinned and held out her hand. Sparks emanated from her fingers, twisting and twirling about. My eyes widened.
“That’s incredible!” I watched as she turned her palm over, the sparks dissipating.
“It’s quite fun, I’ll admit.” She laughed. “Although it doesn’t really serve any purpose back in the Highlands. When the Generalfound me, I figured this was where I could be of use. Regardless, I was just happy to get out of there. All I want to do is travel and see the Isle. This seemed like the best way to do that.” She placed her elbows on the bar. “What about you?”
I hesitated, trying to figure out the best way to explain my… focus.
“Erm–well, It’s not as specific as yours. At least, I don’t believe it is,” I muttered, taking another sip of my drink.
“General Ashford described it as… well, liquifying people’s minds… or something like that. My best friend calls it mind-shredding,” I whispered, looking around. I winced with embarrassment. It sounded ridiculous.
Raine grabbed my arm as her jaw fell open.
“Holy shit. I’ve never heard of anything like that. That’s fucking badass,” she sang, leaning back to examine me further. Her gaze left me sweating.
“Remind me not to piss you off.”
“It’s all new to me, really,” I admitted, shifting my eyes around the room. I mean,controlling itwas new. I desperately wanted to divert the conversation away from me.
“What about the rest of the recruits?”
“Well, there’s Baelor Soleil. He’s excruciating to be around. He’s the one who…” Her eyes fluttered up to meet mine, gauging my response.
I simply nodded.
“Well, he can harness fire. If we’re to take his word for it, he could incinerate an entire village. His family is revered amongst the Nobility for doing just that. Not only was he born into the Elite, his father is the retired General, Bron Soleil. He’s practically a legend.” She eyed me hesitantly before continuing. “He’s the one they credit with the victory against Riftdremar.”
Something within me twisted, but I kept it hidden. I wasn’t sure whether it was the revelation about Baelor’s heritage or how considerately Raine spoke of the place I was born. As if theresult of the war was anything but a victory. That was new to me.
“Seems fitting,” I finally said. Raine laughed.
“Right. And then his friend, Nazul Halstead. Well, I don’t know if they’re friends, really. But he seems to go along with all of the nonsense that Baelor spews out. I do know they grew up together. His family is Noble too, of course. He can form powerful shields, but only in a small radius around himself. It’s quite rare, actually.”
“Well, that sounds valuable,” I murmured, annoyance heating my skin. Of course, such an important defensive ability was gifted to someone so selfish. Fate worked in mysterious ways.
“But Briar–he’s great. You would really like him, I think. He can control the landscape. Well, I mean, that’s a simplification. He can mold nature to his will, in a sense. Grow vines rapidly, cause sinkholes, and turn rock to mud. It’s really impressive.”
She smiled softly before continuing, “He hasn’t told me much. But from what I’ve gathered, he applied for the Guard on his own, expecting to be a Base recruit. This caused some kind of tension between him and his family. Apparently, they are very anti-war, and therefore veryanti-guard.” She shrugged. “But he wanted to do it, all on his own. The General became aware of his focus and promoted him to team V immediately.”
“Team V?” I let out a small laugh.
“I will not be forced to refer to it as Faction Venom. It’s beyond cringey.”
