Page 98 of Shardless

The 3rdday of the month Quinna, during the 25,659thyear of our Lady Raine

The Genesis Council formally convened at 27 minutes past the 9thbell at Infinity’s Edge.

Transcript of the Council Chairwoman, Her Most Supreme Imperial Majesty, Queen Azura Raine’s Statements:“Over the course of the past year, this Council has listened to the arguments from both House Ghislain and House Myridan regarding the conflict that many are now calling the Shade Rebellion. What started as a minor territory dispute between two households has now claimed the lives of almost 52,000,000 citizens of the Fey Imperium. Every great race and people scattered across time and space, including our allies, friends, and familyunited under the name of this Council, all fought and died together, their blood spilled in a pointless war that could have easily been avoided.

It is the unanimous decision of the Genesis Council to lay the full guilt of this tragedy on the aggression of House Myridan and its allies. The members of their household responsible for orchestrating this conflict will have their magic stripped and their bodies desecrated, and any lands they forcibly co-opted will be awarded to House Ghislain.

Additionally, House Myridan’s treatment of their dead will need to be further scrutinized. While this Council has always recognized that shadow magic is fundamentally different from any other school of magic, we have been content to allow the Shadow Guild to set the rules and regulations for its practice. However, considering the implications of the spells and enchantments developed by the shadow mages of House Myridan, we will be reconvening at the end of the month to discuss the necessity for a more formal set of restrictions.”

For what felt like the hundredth time that morning, Taly sneezed, her body convulsing as she breathed in another plume of dust. Although she had always dreamed of being allowed inside the restricted section of the Ebondrift library, she had never imagined just how dirty it would be.

Dust had collected upon every available surface of the cramped, neglected corner on the top floor of the impossibly vast library, as if even theGate Watchers wanted to forget that this part of the collection existed. Peering overhead, she could just make out the faint outline of several months’ worth of cobwebs strung between the rows of mahogany bookcases—intricately woven sculptures of silky thread set against the starry backdrop visible through the library’s domed glass ceiling. It was almost six bells, and two of Tempris’ three moons still swam through the inky sea of the pre-dawn sky.

Suppressing a yawn, Taly turned back to the disorderly stacks of books spread out on the cluttered library desktop, sipping at what used to be a steaming cup of coffee. Why was she awake before six bells again? Oh, that’s right. Her subconscious mind hated her. Now, not only did her dreams insist on returning her to the night of the fire time and time again—an unending loop replaying the horrific tragedy that had stolen away every memory from the first six years of her life—but she could also add fighting off an army of dead men to her nightly rotation of things she wished she could forget about.

In sleep, she couldn’t escape those creatures’ sorrowful, rage-filled eyes as they clawed at her. She could feel their bony fingers, smell the decay and rot that clung to their sallow skin. And perhaps most terrifying of all, her entire body had been awash in a golden haze. It had set her blood on fire as it coursed through her veins, a part of her that was still tethered but begging,pleading, to be set free.

To her credit, she hadn’t woken up screaming in the wake of this new nighttime terror. After years of facing off against forgotten fears on the battlefield of her dreams, she had merely startedawake with a gasp, her face wet with tears. And for the first time in a very long time, Skye had been there with her, already stirring from his own set of nightmares, a warm, comforting presence guiding her back from the dark recesses of her mind.

He shushed her quiet sobs, whispered words of comfort into her skin, all the while telling her stories that grew increasingly more outrageous the longer she let him babble. Needless to say, she didnotbelieve that he had snuck into the mortal realm the last time the Aion Gate opened, stumbled upon a lost island, befriended the natives—a species that looked strangely like bipedal bears—and then taught them the way of the shadow mage. Still, despite her refusal to accept his words at face value, Skye had sworn up and down that his shadow bears were now moving across the European continent, spreading the word of the great, all-seeing Em.

He had also decided that he would like her to start calling him the great, all-seeing Em.

So… yeah. That happened.

For as long as she could remember, that had always been Skye’s strategy. When the nightmares struck, clouding her mind with terror, he’d just keep talking until he had her laughing so hard she couldn’t remember what she’d been afraid of in the first place.

Once the shadows had been banished from her eyes, he’d quieted. They were both exhausted from the previous day, and she had quickly started to drift off again, lulled into a deep state of relaxation by the firm yet gentle stroke of his hand along her shoulder and down the length of her arm. But when he pressed his lips to the back ofher neck, his warm breath fanning out across her skin, she had immediately jolted back awake for an entirely different reason.

Even now, hours later, just the memory of having that adorably drowsy, half-dressed shadow mage practically nuzzling her neck had her shifting uncomfortably in the cushioned wooden chair, each creak shattering the early morning silence.

Just friends. You’re just friends.

At least that’s what Taly had told herself as she made a hasty if somewhat clumsy escape from their shared bedroom, eventually finding her way to the library. And that’s what she kept telling herself every time her mind began to wander despite the veritable trove of undiscovered knowledge surrounding her on all sides.

If she found herself smiling as she remembered the way Skye’s arm had draped across her waist in sleep…

You’rejust friends.

When her eyes glazed over as she recalled every detail of how he had held her in his arms the night before, or how she had thought for just one moment that they were about to…

Just friends!

Taly sighed, realizing that she had been staring at the page with unseeing eyes for who knows how long. Afteryearsof begging Ivain to be granted access to the Vetiri—the collection of texts housed at the Ebondrift library that contained the only remaining written accounts of the forbidden rites—here she was wasting the opportunity by fantasizing about Skye.

“You in there, Tink?”

Taly started, almost spilling her coffee.Looking to her left, she saw Skye in the seat next to her, a bemused smile gracing his lips. She had momentarily forgotten that he had come with her, refusing to be left behind when she had given him some mumbled excuse of not being able to sleep as she made for the door.

“How long have you been there?” Taly asked, wincing at the slight squeak in her voice. He had shuffled off a little while ago, sleepily muttering something about going to get more tea.

Skye chuckled as he turned back to his book. “Since you started staring at that page about five minutes ago. Must be riveting.”

“Yeah… uh…” Taly checked the page, her eyes scanning the sloppily penned lines of Faera script. Most of these texts were just a disorganized compilation of notes and writings—she had yet to come upon a volume that was organized in any cohesive fashion. “Something about desecration. Isn’t that the ritual where they take a fey and make him mortal? Neither Ivain nor Sarina would ever say exactly.”

Taly didn’t miss Skye’s slight wince at the mention of the other members of their small family. Although neither of them had dared to broach the subject, they were both worried about Ryme. If Ebondrift was being attacked, then Ryme was the next logical place to strike. And since the scrying relays had inexplicably gone offline before the attacks started, they had no way of knowing what was happening on the rest of the island.

“Understandable,” Skye replied, throwing his book off to the side and picking up another one from the stack. “Most fey don’t like talking about things that remind them they’re not infallible. But yes, that’s the gist of it. Desecration strips away afey’s ability to use aether.”

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