Page 53 of Damned and Broken Gods
Yes, the sea trials are lethal, and I will not let any harm come to my Lee—to my demigod.
Dharma and Chaya lead the way into the courtyard that houses Eben, the stone recordkeeper.
The rest of us follow.
Seven demigods. Seven to take the sea trial, it seems.
Unless I’m wrong and this meeting is about something entirely different.
We gather on the path leading to the monolith of stone and the six smaller stones that circle it and wait.
Leela shifts from foot to foot as long minutes drag by. Blue sits still on her shoulder, his gaze watching the archway on the other side of the room, his nose twitching in anticipation. The other anchors are the same, silent and watchful, remaining close to their demigods.
“Are we sure we were meant to come here?” Alia whispers to her drohi.
“Yes, my blossom.” He grazes her cheek with his knuckles, sweeping a dark tendril of hair over her shoulder. Her eyelids flutter closed for a beat beneath his touch, and when she opens them and looks up at him, there is raw hunger there. The look of someone satisfied but craving more.
I tear my gaze away, my heart pounding hard because I remember that look on Leela’s face—the way her mouth parts, the rapid beat of her pulse, and the tightening inside me that begs me to satisfy. Her. Me. Us.
Her arm brushes my knuckles, and a stab of sweet pain lances through me.
Where the fuck is Umbra?
She enters the room like a prayer, her dark gaze sweeping over us. Guru Mihir is close behind, dressed in his training clothes, his expression stern.
“You have been chosen to take the sea trial,” Umbra says without preamble.
No one speaks, but the tension in the room spikes. “Some of you believe you know what the sea trials entail, but let me clarify—every sea trial is different.
“What you know to be true was only true for the demigods who experienced it. Butyourexperience will be different. And no. I will not tell you what it will be. But know this: You will be tested at every turn, and not all of you will return.” She lets her gaze track over each of the demigods, but it lingers on Leela, and I feel my charge tense.
I don’t like that Umbra’s making her feel uncomfortable. “When do we leave?”
Umbra takes her time pulling her gaze from Leela and fixing it on me. “You will leave at rising sun. There is no need to pack; supplies will be provided at your destination.”
“And where are we going?” Joe asks.
I know the answer to this question, and it hits me that I should have shared what I know with Leela. Not just as her drohi but as her friend.
“The island of Shantivan,” Umbra says. “There is a settlement there, and a small convoy of ascended and their drohi. The journey will take a week, and you will remain there for three weeks, training before you take your trials.”
“Wait a second. What about us?” Blue asks. “What about the anchors?”
Umbra flinches a little, probably because she isn’t used to an anchor having its own voice, and I bite back a smile. She recovers her composure quickly enough. “The anchors remain here.”
“For four weeks?” Blue’s tone goes up a notch. “No way, chick. We arenotbeing kept away from our demigods fa that long. You best sort somefin’ out.”
A ripple of energy unlike I’ve ever felt fills the room as demigods lock eyes with their anchors in silent communication.
“I don’t like this,” Dharma says. “Ida’s right. We need our anchors close.”
“Why can’t they come with us?” Joe asks, his gaze locked with his feline companion who’s draped herself across his shoulders.
Everyone begins to talk at once, to question and demand. But Leela is silent, her brow pinched in thought. I’m about to ask her what she’s thinking when Guru Mahir’s voice rises to demand silence.
The cacophony dies.
“Let me remind you of the purpose of your anchors,” Umbra says. “You may treat them as companions, as…pets, but they are constructs woven into existence to keep you safe. If you die in the field, we will use them to draw your soul back to your body. They are anchors for a reason. They must be kept safe. Here. We cannot risk any harm coming to them. You only get one anchor.”
