Page 85 of Her Soul for a Crown
Twice.
Prophet Ayaan.
His tongue turned to liquid.
Commander Dilshan.
And drowned him.
Lord Wessamony.
Anula touched a hand to her necklace, finally looking away. To the door and the hall that would take her to the Bone Blade and Blood Yakka.
Toward vengeance on the Heavens.
32
The air sat thick in Reeri’s lungs, pinched at his shadow.
A light song swayed from the center of the throne room, where Calu held the Bone Blade for Kama and Sohon to see.
Palms damp, Reeri snatched it.
“What are you doing?” Calu asked nervously, eyeing the blade.
“More importantly, why did you wake us in the middle of the night?” Sohon stifled a yawn.
“We have to perform the soul sacrifice. Now,” Reeri said, a slight tremble in his hand. How many had he let down like he did Anula? How many suffered because he and the other Yakkas were controlled by Wessamony? How much blood was truly on his hands? He could take it no longer. With one last step, he could right all the wrongs. Even if he could not bring Anula’s family back, he could give her what she had been asking for all these weeks: a crown and a chance to change her kingdom.
Reeri straightened. “We cleave Anula’s soul and then use the Bone Blade before Wessamony has a chance to come after us all. It is best to invoke the powers of it first. There is no telling how quickly he will react.”
“What? Kama does not have her essence offering,” Calu argued.
“We will make do with three. Wessamony created all the Yakkas from one soul, mayhap the cosmos does not demand as much as we think.”
“Is that not a risk? We only have once chance to free themandkill Wessamony.”
Reeri gripped the blade and paced. Indeed, it was a risk. But Anula could rescind her bargain to spite him for what he had done. For what he had not done. And he would lose his one chance at making amends.
Calu shook his head. “I think we should wait. We have time to get the proper number of essence—”
“No, we do not,” Reeri snapped. “The longer we wait, the longer our brethren and our patrons suffer under Wessamony. We must act now.”
“Mayhap we test it,” Sohon said. “Ensure we can use only three.”
“How does one test an offering?” Kama sang.
“We ask the cosmos?”
“It is not often prone to answer.”
Reeri growled. Testing did not matter—succeeding did.
Calu neared, pointing to the relic in Reeri’s hand. “I was going to tell you at breakfast, but that relic looks familiar to me.”
“Of course it does.” Sohon scoffed. “It is Heavenly; it calls to us.”
“No, I mean it looksveryfamiliar.”
