The remainder of the day had been passed in a haze of fear and bewilderment. Elira was unable to shake the image of the Voidsworn's cold, malevolent eyes or the cryptic words they spoke.
She hadn't expected anyone would be arriving for them quite so quickly. The Voidsworn were followers of the ancient deities, their holy duty to keep balance within the mystical worlds—and and yet, here they were, charging her and Kael with something neither one of them was even fully conscious of.
Kael had been unusually silent since their encounter, guiding her through the labyrinth of the library, through rows of books she barely comprehended. He'd not uttered a sound until they'd returned to the dormitory building, when he'd barred the door and told her to lie down. He was off to deal with the Council, and she was to stay put.
Of course, Elira hadn't obeyed.
The instant Kael left, Elira dissolved into the shadows, her mind spinning. She couldn't stay behind, not after having witnessed what she had witnessed. Not after all that she had suffered. She needed answers. And for them, she would have to go further.
Her feet bore her with no conscious effort, through the corridors of the academy. The magic pulsed in the air, a constant vibration that seemed to hum at a low frequency, so that her skin tingled with it. It was something she had become used to—the feeling of magic coursing through her veins, the feeling of the bond connecting her to Kael.
She had tried to brush it aside, but each day it grew stronger. It could no longer be ignored. They were linked. In a way, it was as much a curse as it was a blessing.
Elira came to a halt before the door to the room in which Kael had vanished. One of the many hidden rooms in the academy, a place where the most clandestine of conversations were held. Whatever lay beyond the door had her pulse racing.
With no hesitation, Elira slapped her hand to the door. Her magic reacted in a burst of sudden, jagged energy that coursed through her. She took a deep breath, stepping back for an instant, before she could get her balance. On her second touch of the door, the wood groaned and the lock gave way, letting her in.
There were candles here lit only by runes, which shimmered dimly as dying coals from an old fire, but no better for all the flickering movement. Dust clung heavy upon the scent of parchment.
Inside this room lay a table across which Kael stood debating animatedly with elder men and women.
The Council.
Elira's heart skipped a beat. She hadn't expected to find them here, not like this.
She stood against the wall, her breathing shallow as she watched the exchange. Kael was tall, his face a mask of control, but she could sense the tension in his posture, in the way his fingers were clenched into fists.
The first voice she listened to was cold and biting, a woman's. "We cannot allow this connection to continue, Kael. It is too dangerous."
Kael's eyes flared with a contained fury. "You don't know. You don't know what is on the line."
An older man at the table, than the rest, leaned forward. "And what do you think you know, Prince? You're allowing your emotions to cloud your judgment. This bond—this Aetherion—it must be severed. Before it's too late."
Elira's breath caught in her throat. Aetherion. That word again. The same word the Voidsworn had used. The same word that had haunted her since Kael first spoke of it.
She strained to hear Kael's answer, her heart pounding in her ears.
"I won't break the bond," he said, his voice a soft and sinister rumble. "I won't leave her."
The silence in the room was heavy enough at that to smother. Elira felt it in her stomach—the weight of those words.
The woman spoke again, her voice shaking with rage. "You don't know what she is, Kael. She isn't like you. She is dangerous."
"She's the last of the Aetherion," Kael snapped, his voice rising. "She's not a tool to be discarded!"
A silence followed, one that had them spinning their thoughts long enough. The Aetherion. Was this what she was really? A tool? A curse?
And then the older man had one more thing to say. His tone was more controlled now, almost patronizing. "You're a fool if you believe that, Prince. She is a pawn in a game you don't even have any chance of playing. And if you continue down this path, you'll lose everything."
Kael didn't respond at first. He just stared at the Council with an icy resolve, his jaw clenched in frustration. And then, finally, he spoke, his words laced with an authority that Elira had never heard before.
"I'll take that risk."
And with that, the discussion came to an end.
The Council members rose to their feet, their faces grim, and Elira knew the decision had been made. The bond between her and Kael would not be severed.
But at what cost?
Kael moved toward the door, his face like stone, but before he could even make it there, his gaze flicked to Elira.
She halted, her heart pounding in her chest.
He had known.
"You should have been in your room," he whispered, his voice tinged with annoyance and something darker—something she couldn't quite put her finger on.
Elira slipped into the room, not bothering to hide. "I needed to hear it from you," she stated, her voice trembling but firm.
Kael didn't say anything for a while. He just stared at her with those cold eyes of his, as if weighing her every move. Finally, he breathed out slowly and spoke, his tone softer now. "You didn't have to hear it, Elira. You didn't have to know."
"Why didn't you tell me?" she asked.
Kael's eyelids fluttered, and for an instant, Elira could have sworn she saw something like regret in them. But it was momentary, gone in the blink of an eye to be replaced by the same stoic face he always wore.
"Because it's dangerous," he replied curtly. "The more you learn, the more you'll realize that this bond—our bond—is a curse. One we might never be able to escape."
Elira's chest tightened at his words, but she refused to let them break her. She would not be afraid. Not now, not after everything she had learned.
"You're not going to push me away," she said, her voice firm. "Not again."
Kael observed her for a while before he finally broke silence. "Okay. But hear me out, Elira. What we're doing—what we're going to do—none of us is ready for it. And the consequences. they'll be more than you ever imagined."
She shivered with cold as what he said ran through her veins. What had she gotten herself into?
She felt the bond pulsing within her, harder now, near to a heartbeat. She was tied to him—tied to a future they couldn't define.
But she wouldn't back down.
Not now.
Not when the truth lay at her fingertips.
"Let's face it together, Kael," she told him firmly. "Whatever it is."
No answer from Kael, but she saw the glimmer of something—perhaps hope?—in the depths of his eyes.
And that, for the first time, gave her the courage to believe.