“What did you do?” Elijah asked.

  “You know as much as I know,” Sadie answered distractedly as she sat on the bed, leaning against the headboard. It had been hours since she’d performed her miracle, and Elijah still hadn’t gotten a straight answer out of her.

  All he knew was that, somehow, she’d managed to heal Anupriya Pandey’s sister. Not physically, either. That would not have alarmed Elijah. But to see the non-verbal girl suddenly speaking – albeit in short, clipped sentences that suggested her mental trauma hadn’t been entirely banished – was more than a little distressing.

  It was just another reminder that Sadie’s power included the ability to manipulate minds and hearts. Normally, such spells focused on forcing people to feel the weight of their deplorable actions, and somehow, that was a lot less alarming for Elijah. And he wasn’t entirely certain why that was the case.

  Was it because he found the mind to be sacrosanct? Because he believed that healing psychological trauma needed to be about more than flashing lights and magical power? Mending those issues with a snap of Sadie’s proverbial fingers was, in short, too easy, and the fact that she could do just that set off all sorts of alarms in Elijah’s mind.

  “Just tell me how it happened.”

  Sadie sighed, closing her eyes. The whole ordeal had really taken a toll on her reserves. She felt weak. Tired. Her core was practically empty, and it wasn’t quick to return to normal. To Elijah, it felt like her attributes had been halved, though when he pointed that out, she’d insisted that she would recover.

  Miracles did not come without significant cost, it seemed.

  “I knew I could help her,” Sadie explained. “From the first second I saw her, I could tell that much. As the meal progressed, that feeling only grew stronger. It became more insistent until, suddenly, I knew what to do.”

  She opened her eyes and fixed Elijah with an unreadable expression. Her own feelings were also muted. She’d never been a particularly expressive person, but now, it was like talking to a robot.

  “When we were isolated in that room, I cast the spell.”

  “What’s it called?”

  “It’s just called Bestowment of Grace,” she answered. “It wasn’t just ethera or faith that healed her. It was…I don’t know, Elijah. Like the spell used a part of my spirit to mend hers. It feels like there’s a hole inside me now, as if there’s a piece of me missing.”

  “Will it grow back?”

  She nodded, glancing away. “It’s already healing,” she answered. “In a few days, I will be back to normal.”

  “Why did you do it?”

  “Because I could help,” she answered.

  “But why her? Why now? There are plenty of people you could have helped in the past. Why that little girl?” he asked.

  “Shristi is hardly a little girl,” Sadie responded. “I believe she’s nearly twenty years old.”

  Elijah frowned. From what he’d seen of the young woman, he would have guessed fourteen or fifteen. Perhaps it was the way she held herself, as if she wanted to be so small that no one noticed her. It was easy to mistake that for youth.

  “You didn’t answer the question.”

  She let out a subtle sigh. “I don’t know, Elijah. Haven’t you ever just felt something? Haven’t you ever been driven to doing something, even when you couldn’t explain why?”

  “All the time.”

  “Then you should understand it. I knew I could heal her. I knew I had to do it. It was almost as if…it was like a mandate from above.”

  “God?”

  She shook her head. “I don’t believe in any God,” she answered. “Not before the world changed, and certainly not now.”

  Elijah didn’t say anything until she asked, “Do you?”

  He shrugged. “I don’t know,” he admitted. “Maybe. Is it so hard to believe that there’s something looking down on us? The World Tree is just a god by another name.”

  “No. I just choose not to see it as a god. It’s just another entity. Mighty beyond all comprehension, but still not an all-powerful god.”

  She seemed so certain about that, but Elijah couldn’t muster that level of surety. Did he think there was an omnipotent, white-bearded man in the clouds? Not really. But his instincts told him there was something touching them all. Maybe it was the World Tree. Or it could have been something else – like one of the many gods humans had worshipped over the years.

  Elijah didn’t know.

  And what’s more, he’d never been particularly interested in theology. Not as much as his sister, at least. Maybe she would’ve had an answer. Or at least she would have asked the right questions.

  He told Sadie what he felt – that he didn’t know, and therefore, wouldn’t discount any possibility – but she clearly didn’t accept that answer. That she was an angel who didn’t believe in god – or gods, plural – was a bit disconcerting. On the surface, her very nature seemed to contradict disbelief. But in the end, faith wasn’t tied to some unknowable god. Rather, it could be linked to anything.

  A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

  In Sadie’s case, it was characterized by hope. By faith in humanity. By the desire to do good. And that satisfied the requirements of her race and class.

  Thankfully, the conversation soon drifted away into silence, and the couple lost themselves in their own thoughts. For Elijah’s part, that meant anticipation for what was to come. Sadie’s miracle with Shrishti had thrown the timeline off by at least a few days, but the moment she recovered, they would set off for Benediction.

  And then, to the Labyrinth of Dead Gods.

  By this point, Elijah had managed to overcome a multitude of Primal Realms. He’d been through so much that he often wondered how he was still sane. By all rights, he should have been ready for the challenges represented by plunging headfirst into a Primal Realm.

  And yet, he couldn’t help but feel his stomach twisting into knots at the proposition. He wanted to go. A part of him craved the adventure and the accomplishment. But intertwined with those feelings was the dread that came from knowing what was in store. He had no idea how it would be represented, but conquering a Primal Realm meant torture.

  Would he be burned alive? Dissolved in acid? Forced to eat grotesque creatures like flesh spiders? Or would it simply be an exhausting, ongoing fight that pushed him to the limits of what he could take?

  He didn’t know.

  But in this instance, at least he wouldn’t be alone.

  Was that a good thing? In some ways, it was. Elijah couldn’t deny that loneliness had contributed to some of his torturous experiences. Having someone – especially Sadie, who he loved – with him was a kind of support he’d usually lacked. And yet, it also put her in harm’s way. Could he bear watching her go through the sorts of things he’d already experienced? If he was forced to do so, wouldn’t that just be a different kind of torture?

  Those thoughts accompanied him as he finally drifted off to sleep, and they didn’t completely leave his mind over the next couple of days. As Sadie recovered, he tried to ignore them. He attempted to distract himself by inspecting the admittedly impressive Citadel and the surrounding fortress city of Kalki. He even spent some time getting to know Hu Shui – at least as much as the man’s fa?ade would allow. But in the end, the anxiety born of anticipation only mounted until he felt on the verge of exploding.

  Because of that, Sadie’s announcement that she was fully recovered elicited a distinct sense of relief.

  They left soon after. Anupriya offered to send an escort along, though that offer was politely declined, and by all three travelers. Fortunately, Hu Shui didn’t try to bring any support staff, saying that he was accustomed to working alone.

  Over the past few days, Elijah had gotten a better sense of the man. Or more accurately, of his past. After founding the Conclave, Hu Shui had functioned as a combination of enforcer, manager, and visionary for the organization. According to Atticus’ research, conveyed via a series of messages through the Branch, Hu Shui was the person who dealt with anyone who opposed the Conclave. Most of the time, he responded with diplomacy, but he had no issue meeting hostility with violence.

  That, coupled with his unmatched access to towers, meant that he was a more than capable ally. Or a foe who shouldn’t be underestimated, should it come to that. Elijah hoped it wouldn’t. Not because he personally enjoyed the man’s company, but rather, because the Conclave and its Spires were necessary.

  And without Hu Shui, the Conclave would collapse. Not quickly, and when it did, it would fracture into dozens of smaller organizations. Those factions wouldn’t stand for long, and they would soon be coopted – either through diplomacy or force – by other groups whose intentions were much less benign.

  No – Hu Shui was necessary. The force of his mere presence kept everyone else in check. And more importantly, he kept the Conclave as neutral as possible.

  “The day is coming when humanity will need to stand together,” the man said the day after they left Kalki behind. “So far, we have seen settlers, but one day, the conquerors will arrive. We must be united in our response.”

  Unity was a noble goal, so Elijah didn’t respond. However, he was well aware that Hu Shui looked upon every non-human with a healthy degree of suspicion. It wasn’t quite paranoia, but he definitely took a xenophobic approach to how he saw the various other races that had come to call Earth home.

  For Elijah’s part, he only saw people. Good, bad, and everything in between. For every would-be conqueror like the war elves, there were refugees like Kurik and Ramik who’d come to Earth, hoping only to take advantage of the newly integrated planet’s increased opportunities so they could forge a viable life for themselves and the people they cared about.

  It didn’t take a seer to predict how quickly or easily xenophobia could escalate into something even more problematic, so Elijah vowed to keep an eye on things. It was just one more item to add to the increasingly long list.

  As they passed the ruins of civilization, Elijah couldn’t help but notice Hu Shui’s fa?ade slipping away. It never lasted long. Normally, his calm demeanor disappeared for only a second or two. But those brief glimpses told Elijah that the man cared deeply about Earth’s – and humanity’s – fate.

  He could work with that.

  The first couple of days after leaving Kalki passed mostly in silence. The trio stopped very rarely, and even then, they eschewed conversation. Sadie was still dealing with the miracle she had performed, so most of her thoughts remained inward. Hu Shui tried to talk, but Elijah was in no mood.

  Thankfully, it wasn’t long before the monotony of travel gave way to the dangers of the wilderness. With Elijah around, most animals steered clear, but there were always a few creatures around that were willing to test their luck – driven either by instinct or necessity. So, the group was forced to fight them off.

  The most dangerous foe they faced was a giant caiman that ambushed Hu Shui while he was kneeling beside a slow-moving stream. The creature burst free of the water, intending to swallow the man whole. Hu Shui disappeared, only to reappear a dozen feet away. A moment later, he disappeared again, and a mist of blood erupted from the caiman’s back.

  It fell limp after only a second.

  Hu Shui reappeared next to Elijah, his white clothes entirely spotless. He’d moved so quickly that Elijah had had a little trouble tracking him. He had only managed it via Soul of the Wild, and what he’d felt told him that Hu Shui was an incredibly dangerous man who used spatial magic to rapidly teleport around his foe.

  After what he’d experienced in the Broken Crown, Elijah knew just how dangerous such a skillset could be. The blue dragon had used his powers very differently than Hu Shui. Even to Elijah, he could be a deadly enemy.

  Or a potent ally.

  Of course, the caiman wasn’t the only creature to attack them, so by the time they left the jungle behind, Elijah found himself longing for the days when he could travel alone. Without Sadie and Hu Shui, the wildlife would have ignored him. Such was the price of having company.

  Despite the issues, they made good progress as they entered the series of hills that characterized the area surrounding Benediction. Some of those natural formations could have qualified as mountains, but compared to the range Elijah and Sadie had crossed only the week before, they were barely foothills.

  The wildlife they hosted was far less dense as well, which served to speed their progress.

  Until the inevitable happened.

  “What is it?” Elijah asked as Sadie suddenly froze.

  She didn’t answer.

  Instead, she darted off into a copse of trees. Elijah and Hu Shui shared a befuddled look before following. Her trail wasn’t difficult to discern, and when they finally caught up, they saw what should have been a predictable turn of events.

  Sadie brought her sword down with enough strength to entirely bisect the jackal-like demon. A few others lay around her, though it was difficult to tell the exact number, what with them being cut into pieces. And finally, a handful of natives to Benediction surrounded her, their various weapons held at the ready.

  “Shit,” Elijah muttered, racing forward.

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