Page 74 of The Divine Shallows
This outcome was not part of her meticulously laid plan—months of training seemed wasted in this moment of doubt and uncertainty. Elyria’s aura churned as she struggled to quell her inner turmoil. What had driven her to turn her magic against her supposed comrades? Would the Goddess perceive it as cowardice, or worse, as a petty act of retaliation? Caena, all-seeing and all-knowing, would surely sense Elyria’s wavering confidence.
Shutting her eyes tight, Elyria tried to silence her spiraling thoughts.
She cursed herself for not staying the course of her own plan, but she conceded it was far too late for that. At this stage in theVitus, she needed to act now.
It was amidst her contemplation when she belatedly realized the waves within the arena had grown eerily still. Her eyes flung open, hastily scanning the surroundings, yet she found no trace of the blood-eyed eel. When had it vanished? How much time had elapsed during its absence? Elyria cursed her oversight. Undoubtedly, the creature was using this lull to recuperate itself.
Surveying the motionless depths, she clamped her fists in frustration.
TheVituscould end at any moment; there was no definitive duration for how long the ritual would last. As all things were, the timespanwas determined by the Moon Goddess. The ritual would end when Caena deemed she had seen enough to render her judgment.
In previous seasons, its length had varied greatly. The most recentVituslasted a mere five minutes, concluding immediately after Prince Thomys Bloodweaver’s performance. Within that fleeting timespan, the Goddess severed her connection to the High Priestess, signifying her selection of a victor. In contrast, theVitusprior to that had stretched on for nearly three hours.
That meant Elyria understood one thing for certain—the Moon Goddess was still observing the ritual. Her decision for a victor had not yet been reached.
There was still an opportunity to execute her original plan. An air of readiness emanated from Elyria as she surveyed the surrounding waters. If the blood-eyed eel was withdrawing from the fight, she would draw it to resurface. Inhaling deeply through her nose and exhaling slowly through her mouth, she turned her gaze to the stars, meeting the radiance of the full moon. A shadow of a smile tugged at Elyria’s lips as she anchored her feet on her raft. Elyria lifted both of her tanned arms with her inkless palms upturned and she invoked the moon’s power.
Suddenly, a crackling surge of magic thundered across the arena. From Elyria’s upturned palms, two fierce columns of flames the color of winter frost erupted. These ivory infernos swelled, illuminating the starlit sky over the arena. As the plumes of flames grew, they began to take shape, morphing into blazing silhouettes of monstrous firedrakes beating their mighty wings in the moonlit sky.
Collective gasps streamed from the crowd as the whispers of one word were repeated in waves—moonfire.
The two blazing firedrakes circled the sky under Elyria’s command as a blistering cold cloaked the air, causing gooseflesh to ripple across Elyria’s skin, yet she continued to guide the glacial firedrakes to the corners of the arena. A sweat broke across her brow, but she siphoned more of her magic into the phantom firedrakes, both apparitionsbreathing brutal beams of moonfire into the lulling waves below. Where the moonfire struck, the waves froze and crystallized. Spotting the blood-eyed eel retreating, Elyria directed the twin beams towards the creature, gradually encircling it until it was trapped within a narrow opening of water.
Elyria was mindful to construct the open cavity away from the other candidates, confining the blood-eyed eel to the southern barrier of the arena. Above them, her phantom firedrakes hovered the skies in waiting. Elyria bided her time for the moment the eel would emerge from the depths; however, it never came. Uncertainty fell upon her shoulders, but she pushed it aside and concentrated on her goal. Breathing hard, she amplified the power that wielded her arctic dragons, commanding them to unleash a magnified inferno, piercing the frozen waves to lower the water to subfreezing temperatures, coaxing the eel to the surface.
To her satisfaction, her plan succeeded—it was now warmer at the surface of the arena than the depths below.
Suddenly, the eel’s shadow darted from beneath the ice and burst out of the cavity with a frantic shriek. At once, Elyria directed another moonfire beam to seal the opening, leaving the blood-eyed eel with no means to escape. The beast slithered and floundered on the icy surface as it attempted to right itself. It began to spray metallic acid aimlessly and the droplets sizzled on the chilled surface of the arena. Elyria’s aura cringed, finding no joy in the creature’s distress. With a swift maneuver, she released her legacy spell, causing the moonfire dragons to dissipate into silvery plumes of smoke, returning the arena to the dim glow of feylight.
As a Fangwright legacy by birthright, Elyria possessed the unique feat to wield moonfire, a gift inherited from the first king of Eriden. Even among legacies, very few Fangwright warlocks and sorceresses have truly mastered the ability to tame it. Moonfire could only be effectively harnessed at night when the moon’s temperature reached a freezing point. The wielder channeled the rays emitted from the moon, controllingand dictating its powerful energy. Moonfire subsisted at a numbing temperature, piercing enough to suspend the tides of the Swyn Sea ten times over.
Moonfire was as dangerous to the wielder as it was destructive to the target. The wreckage and devastation moonfire could cause was unpredictable—only those with great stewardship over their magical abilities could channel the gift.
Nonetheless, Elyria had conquered this demanding feat, and tonight she was determined to ensure that the Moon Goddess and the fey of Neramyr acknowledged this.
With deliberate steps, Elyria strode from her raft onto the frozen battle ground and stalked towards the monstrous creature. It continued to shriek and flail as Elyria closed the distance between them. Only once she stood mere paces away from the creature did she pause, facing it with certitude. Closing her eyes, she called upon the full moon once more, feeling its incandescent rays caressing the surface of her face.
Harnessing its power, she thrust both arms towards the blood-eyed eel.
A torrent of destructive moonfire erupted from Elyria’s palms, striking the sea creature with unbridled force. The eel staggered backward, engulfed in ivory flames, it’s cries stilled as swiftly as they sounded.
Elyria released her legacy spell, allowing the moonfire to dissipate, leaving shimmering silver plumes swirling in the night sky. Before her, the eel remained frozen in place and where it stood. A groan began to sound beneath it, growing louder as the eel’s body began to slant. It gained momentum until it toppled over, shattering into countless fragments that scattered across the arena.
Elyria released her mind manipulation on the other six candidates, but they remained unmoving even in their liberation. The entire arena fell into a heavy silence as mere seconds stretched into an eternity.
From above, the High Priestess’ voice resounded throughout the arena.
“The Goddess has severed the divine tether between our realms, signaling the conclusion of the ritual of the Sixth Day,” she declared. “The Moon Goddess has cast her judgment upon these seven divine candidates, and her ruling will be announced tomorrow during the Crossing of Kin. Let us commend our candidates for their completion of theVitus!”
Elyria’s heart was pounding fiercely as she turned to the crowds, her gaze roaming the stands. Finally, her eyes locked with her father’s, the king of Eriden, and she met his steeled expression with one of her own. The arena fell silent around her, save for the sound of her own ragged breaths, but she refused to let the exhaustion unfold upon her face.
This time, Elyria did not cower in the face of their silence.
This time, in the face of Neramyr’s disbelief, Elyria bowed before them with conviction.
25
Born to Wield
