After a moment, she shook her head, pressing her hand to her chest. “Sorry.”
I raised my brows at her lack of explanation. “What was that?”
Mila scanned the street, one eye still on the woman, then pulled me to the side. Toying with the gold cuff on her wrist, she whispered, “I’ve been having these…visions. Every so often and sporadically. There’s no connection I can understand of why or what they mean.”
“Premonitions? Like when Soulguiders sense a death?” I asked, following her gaze to the woman across the street.
“No, Erista said these are definitely different than hers.”
As if sensing our attention, the woman stood up straight, white dress flowing around her brown skin. A short trainslithered over the sandstone path as she turned to face us. When her dark eyes locked with Mila’s, a grin split her lips.
Mila’s mouth barely moved as she admitted, “They are always places I’ve never been. People and…creatures I haven’t seen.”
“Creatures?” I muttered, being sure to turn my head enough that the woman across the street wouldn’t be able to make out my words.
“Winged human things sometimes. Sometimes what could be warriors riding beasts. It varies.”
With a knowing nod, the woman turned away, brown coiled curls bouncing as she sauntered to another shop.
“And you sawher?” I guessed.
Goose bumps peppered Mila’s arms, and I gripped my sword tighter.
“Just now. With red eyes. I saw her holding a baby in some kind of grove.”
Red eyes? What in the everlasting Angel fuck was that about?
Mila shook her head, face pale. “Let’s go back to the manor. We’ll visit the blacksmith tomorrow.”
She didn’t mention the visions or the woman in the city again all day, but her memory followed Mila’s every step.
Chapter Seventeen
Cypherion
“Brigiet’s responsesaid the Bodymelders are still recovering from the recent fires, but she’s sending a legion and a small party to attend our council,” Meridat said. In the grand war room of Xenovia’s capitol building, she moved a single bronze marker of the Bodymelder sigil to Xenovia, leaving the rest in their territory across the mountains. “They’ll likely arrive before Ezalia.”
The room was fit for two dozen to sit around the table, with tiered rows of seats lining the perimeter for lower ranking advisors, and there were no windows. Just a bronze chandelier strung with decorative crescent moons and a large portrait of the Angel at the head of the chamber.
In the few days since Valyrie had visited, Meridat’s advisors had pinned lists of legions to the walls on one side, and across from them, Erista and Mora were currently building an index of myths and corresponding magic to the gods. Anything that could point to how Echnid would banish them from Ambrisk. The large central table had an elaborate map of all of Ambrisk built into it, points where Artale’s magic was known to touch the realm highlighted in bronze.
“Everyone has the same question, though,” Mila said from her spot beside Tolek. “How will Echnid sever ties to the gods?”
“That’s what we’re all asking,” I said. And I placed the bronze marker of a dove atop Damenal. “And what will we even be fighting?”
“Hopefully, Ophelia and Malakai will learn more,” Meridat said.
“They will,” Mila confirmed with a steady nod. Since Valyrie visited, the general seemed to pull herself back to life. Or at least she pretended she had. The sporadic visions were a problem.
Tolek, on the other hand, was still angry. Per Santorina’s message from Ophelia, I’d kept him grounded the past two nights with excuses about needing his help on correspondence, which truthfully, hewasskilled at.
My head pounded just considering what I was going to say to him tonight to get him to stay here.
I rubbed my temples, returning to the map before me. “Right, so until we know—” I paused when a note flared to life above the mystlight in the center of the table. It drifted to the scroll-strewn surface, an onyx sigil of crossed axes glinting on the seal.
“Barrett,” I muttered, snatching the letter.
“The Engrossians answered?” Meridat asked, standing at the head of the table.
