Page 109 of Between Imminent Fates

Hearing the damning words spoken aloud made Celeste’s soul shrivel. For the past several years, their goal had been the integration of the two formerly distinct clans. This would have far-reaching implications.

Zeke looked at each of them in turn. “I’m eternally grateful to you, but holding the sovereignty of two clans is an impossible task. We must discuss how to manage this before my energy simply runs out. I’m functioning on a deficit, and each day, the network chips away more than I can recover.”

Their sovereign had put it plainly, and it was the least they could do to help him in any way possible. Immediately, Celeste began thinking of alternatives or a way out of their predicament.

“How is Nina faring?” Tzuriel asked. “Do we think she’ll wake up anytime soon?”

Kaien shook his head. “I’ve been unable to Amp her as much as I would’ve liked. Hemin and I have taken turns, but with the network in poor condition, that was where we focused our efforts.”

“What about bringing in other Amps, other healers?” Celeste asked. “Luna may be able to spare some energy, and I think I speak for us all when I say we trust her.”

Zeke nodded. “Agreed, but we can’t just depend on Luna. She’ll be working with Key, and Nero can’t afford for his senior healer to be drained. We call a meeting with the Accords’ delegates. See who can spare their healers or Amps.”

“In the meantime, we need to lighten the burden on Zeke,” Kaien said. “If he can’t power both clans indefinitely, then we need to find out is how to separate them if the situation calls for it.”

“So we try it with someone,” Celeste suggested. “See if Zeke can sever his bonds to them while the one with Nina remains. If it’s a lieutenant, they wouldn’t be a drain on Nina’s resources.”

Zeke shook his head solemnly. “We have no way of knowing what the psychic backlash might be. Nina and I spent so much time building up the bonds that to sever them now might cause psychic shock.”

Celeste straightened. “It was my suggestion. I’ll volunteer.”

Beside her, Remmus sucked in a breath. “We have no way of knowing if it’ll work, Celeste.”

“We have to try something,” she replied. “Zeke can’t continue like this, and short of shifting the clans to a pair of new sovereigns, this is our only viable option.”

Though Kaien wore his reluctance on his face, he didn’t interrupt when Zeke stepped forward. “Are you certain, Celeste?”

“Absolutely. Ready when you are.”

His half smile was quickly replaced by concentration.

All her life, she’d been in Nina’s clan. When Zeke had arrived on the scene, Celeste had simply added another clan to the mix. She’d never experienced clanlessness—nor did she ever want to. If this went according to plan, she would remain bonded to Nina.

The psychic bonds that connected her to Zeke’s clan were suddenly severed. Like a marionette whose strings were cut, she dropped to the ground before Remmus could catch her. Shockwaves rippled across her mind, a pulse of pain, as the trauma of the broken bond warped her psychic signature.

Shrieking at the sensation, she pressed her palms against her temples. The pain didn’t lessen as she attempted to right herself, and diving into her mental network only seemed to further tip the balance.

Beside her, she barely registered that Kaien and Hemin had taken hold of her shoulders. Both of them spoke, but she could barely understand what they were saying.

“The clan bonds only partially dissolved,” Kaien shouted—or whispered, she couldn’t tell. “Her bond with Nina is still active, and the imbalance has caused her psychic energy to tilt and funnel down the broken link. It’s going to drag her under if we let it go on too long. Zeke, you have to cut Nina’s bonds with her.”

A beat of silence. “I can’t.”

“Try again,”Kaien urged.

“The bonds are adamantine, Kaien,” Zeke whispered apologetically. “They belong to Nina and Celeste. I can’t cut them.”

Sharp, unendurable pain continued to worsen inside her skull. Celeste’s stomach heaved as she tried to combat the sensation, but nothing she tried seemed to lessen the pain. It rose to a crescendo, splitting her in two.

“Celeste, sever your bond with Nina!”

Try as she might, she couldn’t gather enough energy to respond. She fell further and further into the severed bond, still clinging to Nina’s clan while the psychic trauma continued to build in her mind. Blood gushed from her nose.

As she fell unconscious, her last thought was of Derikles.

Chapter Fourteen

Derikles

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