With all the light stripping away my shadows, maintaining my form was getting to be a strain, and darkness was pushing in at the edges of my vision.
But I had promised her we would fight together.
And then, a door slid open behind the fallen cultists, and a figure stepped out—an old man in rich robes embroidered with gold. He frowned at Elena.
“Elder Kathar,” she said with a snarl. “Finally ready to face me yourself?”
Chapter 19: Elena
I needed answers.
I needed the truth, not the polished, rehearsed lines theElders had fed me my entire life.
And I was going to get it, no matter what it cost me.
“Well,” I said, raising an eyebrow at Kathar. “Are you ready to tell me the truth?”
He laughed. The bastard actuallylaughedin my face.
“Oh, Elena,” he tutted. “You continue to surprise me with your naivete. Why do you think we oweyouanything?”
Behind him, the doors opened again, and the rest of the Elders filed into the hall to stand behind Kathar, smirking at me.
The light from the torches danced across their faces, casting long shadows that seemed too dark, too deep, making the Elders look almost…demonic.
“High Priestess,” Elder Theron said, his voice smooth and measured, as it always was. His pale blue eyes, cold and calculating, flickered over me as if assessing the damage. “We didn’t expect to see you here.” He looked at Dario beside me, flickering in and out of vision, and raised an eyebrow. “Or in such company.”
I could hear the unspoken question beneath his words, the subtle accusation that I was with the enemy.
My heart pounded in my chest, but I forced myself to remain calm, to keep my voice steady.
“I’m sure you didn’t,” I said, stepping further into the room. “But I came here for the truth.”
“What truth?”
“I met your acolyte,” I said. “I came to investigate, and I see now that I have been too lax.” I gestured at the fallen mages around me. “You’ve allied yourselves with some dangerous people.”
Elder Irina, her white hair pinned in its usual tight bun, raised an eyebrow, her dark eyes narrowing slightly. “These riffraff?” She waved a hand. “They are thugs that we had hired for our protection, but it seems that they were running their ownagenda, which we were not aware of.”
I frowned. “They were luring children away from their homes. Why?”
Elder Irina frowned. “We were simply providing aid to the drought-stricken villages, as per our duty as the Elders of Solaris.” She shrugged. “We know nothing else.”
Her voice was smooth, almost dismissive, as if she were brushing away an insect. I clenched my fists at my sides, the anger rising in my chest.
How could they sit here in their temple, untouched by the suffering outside the city’s walls, and pretend everything was fine?
“Then explain the corrupted magic of these mages,” I said, my voice rising despite myself. “Explain the missing children.”
The room fell into a tense silence. For a moment, no one spoke, the weight of my accusations hanging heavy in the air.
I could feel their eyes on me, cold and sharp, as if they were dissecting me piece by piece.
Elder Theron was the first to speak, his voice soft but laced with steel. “You have been away from the city for too long, High Priestess. “ He glared at Dario significantly. “Theshadowsof the outside world have clouded your judgment. It is obvious, you have been corrupted by the Shadow King, and can no longer be trusted.”
Their words rang in my ears, sharp and cruel, each syllable laced with poison.Corrupted.Naïve.Too young to see what must be done.
I had faced monsters before, I had felt the bite of steel and the scorch of cursed flame, but nothing cut so deep as the voices of those I had trusted most. They looked at me as if I were a child again, foolish and blind, not the High Priestess who had bled for this city, who had bound herself body and soul to the Sun God’s light.
