Legacy (Keeper of the Lost Cities Book 8)

by Shannon Messenger

  “For the good of everyone,” the other eleven Councillors repeated, their diamond circlets glittering like stars. “We will listen. We will learn. And we will adapt.”

  “Your service to us will not be easy,” Emery added, widening his gaze to include all of Sophie’s teammates. “It will not be safe. And it will not always be what you wish it would be. But it will be vital. It will be game-changing. And together, we will bring our side to victory—assuming we’re on the same side. Are you ready to accept this partnership?”

  “A partnership in the loosest sense of the word,” Bronte clarified quickly. “Your authority will technically be no different than the authority of any other Regent. And our authority will remain supreme. But… we will hear you out and keep an open mind. And the fact that I’m promising this after I’ve endured your ridiculous discussions of team names and titles for Miss Foster—and did so without inflicting on any of you, no less—should be more than enough proof of my commitment to this vow.”

  “We’re all committed,” Terik assured them. “The five of you are incredibly special children.”

  “Uh, who are you calling ‘children’?” Wylie asked.

  Terik smiled. “When you get to be my age—and certainly when you get to be Bronte’s age—you’ll see why the term still applies. But you’ll also see that it’s not a bad thing. There’s great power in youth. What you lack in experience, you make up for in innovation. And hopefully, by combining both perspectives, this new arrangement will be the solution we so desperately need.”

  “Which is why we must now ask for your commitment,” Emery added. “We’ve sworn our oath to you. It’s time for you to make yours to us—which will be a two-step process. First a vow, similar to what most Regents say, with slight modifications to reflect our unique situation. And the vow will be followed by a simple test to prove that you’re each ready for the responsibilities and challenges ahead.”

  “Test?” Sophie and all of her friends repeated, sharing a nervous look.

  “A simple test,” Emery emphasized, “which will only take a few moments—and all of you should have no trouble completing it. But I assumed it would hold your focus from the moment I mentioned it, so I’m going to explain the details of the test first, even though it will technically be the second step in this process.”

  He led the five of them forward, and Sophie noticed that her legs weren’t the only ones shaking as Emery had her, Dex, Biana, Wylie, and Stina line up in that order. He positioned them several feet apart and had them face the diamond-and-crystal dome with the rest of the Councillors behind them.

  “We brought you here to experience the power of the Prime Sources,” Emery said, stationing himself to their left. “Have any of you already detected their presence?”

  “Yes,” Wylie breathed, his hands trembling as he wrapped his arms around himself and closed his eyes. “They’re… overwhelming.”

  “I’m sure they are for a Flasher,” Emery agreed. “Just as I’m certain they’re more intense for a Vanisher.”

  All eyes shifted to Biana, who’d started flickering in and out of sight like a strobe light. “Yeah, they’re… wow,” she whispered.

  Emery nodded. “But even those without light talents can still feel each source if they concentrate properly. It’s easiest if you stretch out your arms and hold your palms toward the windows.”

  Sophie had assumed he was only talking to her, Dex, and Stina—but when she glanced over her shoulder, all the Councillors had done the same.

  “The sunlight is the easiest to identify,” Emery said quietly. “You simply need to seek out the same warm tingle you’re used to feeling on a bright summer day.”

  The instruction wasn’t quite as simple as it sounded, given how freezing it was inside the Paragon. But Sophie knew from her skill lessons with Keefe that there was always more warmth around her than she realized. She just had to make her mind concentrate the right way. So she thought of that sweltering yellow glow she’d endured for most of their journey, focusing on the trickle of sweat she’d felt streaming down her back. And sure enough, she could still detect traces of that same heat prickling along her spine. She centered her mind on the feeling, and it was as if someone had turned on one of those human patio heaters, showering her with a dry, swirling warmth that erased her shivers, even though her breath was still clouding with every exhale.

  “Sunlight is not a gentle heat,” Emery continued. “It’s an invisible fire that can burn all the way to your core if you let it—and that’s still only the beginning of its power. The sun always has more to give—which means it can easily become too much if we draw upon it too heavily. So we must never let ourselves take more than we have a need for. Harnessing the sun is about respect and restraint.”

  “The moonlight is the opposite,” Councillor Terik informed them, limping to stand beside Emery. “It’s always cool and gentle and soothing. And it can sometimes be elusive. To find it, you must search for the soft calm you feel on a clear evening. It tends to linger in the quietest places.”

  He paused, giving them time to seek out the right sensation, and it took Sophie several breaths to home in on the feeling—a cold, silky caress down the back of her neck.

  “The moonlight will always be there for us in our darkest hours,” Terik continued. “But it’s also ever-changing. Sometimes weak. Sometimes strong. It all depends on the day. So we must learn to embrace the force in all its varying phases—demanding as much as we can, but never pushing for more than it has to offer. Never expecting it to be more than it is. Harnessing the moon is about managing expectations.”

  “And starlight is the most varied of all the Sources,” Councillor Oralie whispered as she joined Terik and Emery, placing one slender hand against a clear pane of crystal on the curved wall. “Each star will share only the faintest flicker—unless we ask it to give us more. Then it will pour out all we need in abundance. And even when we ignore its force, or wash it away with other light, it is always there waiting. You’ll feel the starlight patiently thrumming in the background, like a steady, tingly heartbeat.”

  The last word helped Sophie center on the right sensation—a pulsing shiver that felt like it was everywhere and nowhere all at the same time.

  “Every star is different,” Oralie added softly. “And calling on too many can muddle their energy. It’s best to be deliberate when we reach for them, selecting the precise star we need and nothing more. Harnessing the stars is about choice, and utilizing them takes both knowledge and wisdom.”

  “We realize all of this likely feels a bit abstract,” Emery said as Oralie stepped back from the window. “I’d wager some of you are even thinking, ‘Why does this matter? Don’t we mostly use light for leaping?’ And you’re not wrong. But light is the foundation of our world, and it affects everything. So the more we endeavor to understand and appreciate the unique attributes that each type of light comes with, the better we’re also able to understand the needs of everything that relies on that light for existence. Which is why the test we’ve chosen is the same test we take ourselves every year: We want you to leap back to Eternalia using a beam made from all three Prime Sources. It will be no more challenging than any other leap you’ve made, but it will also feel unlike anything you’ve experienced. And it will help you to better comprehend the power at your disposal—and your position in relation to that power—in a way that nothing else truly can.”

  “You’ll each make your leap with two of us at your side,” Bronte added, “and those same Councillors will be your points of contact for as long as they serve and you maintain your title as Regent. You’ll report primarily to Miss Foster, of course—given that she’s your team leader—and she’ll report to all of us, both for general updates and for any larger matters. But should you need further guidance on smaller issues, know that your assigned Councillors will always be available to you. And no—you don’t get to pick who you’ll be paired with.”

  Darek and Liora moved to stand
beside Biana, while Clarette and Noland joined Dex, and Ramira and Velia stationed themselves by Wylie. Alina and Zarina went to Stina—who looked less than thrilled to be paired with her former principal—and Sophie realized they’d each been paired with the same Councillors who’d helped steady them when the Paragon had stopped moving.

  So she wasn’t surprised when Bronte and Oralie moved to stand next to her—but she was surprised that she didn’t mind the idea of working so closely with Bronte.

  Definitely a very strange day.

  “Emery and I are at your disposal as well,” Terik explained. “Think of us as the team’s general overseers—those less closely involved in the nitty-gritty of it all, in order to maintain a wider perspective.”

  “Is everyone ready now?” Emery asked, and when Sophie, Wylie, Dex, Biana, and Stina had nodded, one Councillor from each pairing reached into their cloaks and removed a long silver chain that held a simple crystal pendant.

  The crystals were swirled with three different colors—white, silver, and gold—and looked much cloudier than the stones the elves usually used to create leaping paths. But that did nothing to dull the vibrancy of the light that was refracted at everyone’s feet when the Councillors held the pendants up to the windows. In fact, the paths were so bright that Sophie couldn’t look directly at the beams.

  “Now that everything’s in place,” Emery said, “it’s time for you to make your oaths. And as I mentioned before, the vow has been slightly amended for this occasion. Regents generally say: ‘I swear to use everything in my power to serve the Council and make our world a haven of peace, hope, and illumination.’ But for you five, given that you’re making this oath at a time when war threatens to cast its shadow over our world, we’ve made two small adjustments to the wording. The vow we’re asking you to make is: ‘I swear to fight with everything in my power to serve the Council and keep our world a haven of peace, hope, and illumination.’ We’ll have you make your oaths one at a time—and then you should let the Prime Sources carry you back to Eternalia, where your assigned Councillors will give you a few final instructions. Then your appointments will officially be complete and you can get started on your assignment. Is everyone clear? Good. Who would like to go first?”

  “Shouldn’t our fearless leader show us how it’s done?” Stina suggested, smirking at Sophie.

  “Actually, a true leader goes last,” Emery corrected, “to ensure that everyone in their team successfully completes their task.”

  Stina’s smile faded.

  “I’ll go,” Wylie offered, and when his eyes shifted to Sophie, it took her a second to realize he was waiting for her approval.

  That… was going to take some getting used to.

  She nodded and he reached for Ramira’s and Velia’s hands, then cleared his throat and said, “I swear to fight with everything in my power to serve the Council and keep our world a haven of peace, hope, and illumination.”

  “May the Prime Sources carry you safely,” Emery told him, and Wylie turned back to Sophie. Once he had her permission, he pulled Ramira and Velia forward and the three of them stepped into the blinding light, vanishing in a shower of shimmer.

  Biana went next, copying Wylie almost exactly. The only difference was the tiny wink she gave Sophie before the light whisked her, Darek, and Liora away.

  Then Stina made a big fuss about it being her turn. It looked like she wasn’t going to get Sophie’s permission before doing anything. But at the last second Stina rolled her eyes and turned to face her new leader. “We good, Foster?”

  Sophie considered the question, wanting to make sure she was being honest when she nodded.

  Stina nodded back and huffed out an annoyed breath before she repeated the oath and disappeared with her Councillors in a particularly bright flash.

  Then it was Dex’s turn. And when his eyes met Sophie’s, he looked more nervous than she’d been expecting. As if the reality of what he was agreeing to was finally hitting him.

  “Ready to become Lord Dex?” she asked, trying to help him relax.

  “You ready to become Lady Fos-Boss?” he countered.

  The title didn’t feel like a tease this time, and Sophie assumed that meant he was asking if they were making the right decision.

  She honestly didn’t know.

  But they never knew if they were making the right decision. They just took their best guess and kept going.

  So she told him, “I’ll never be Lady Fos-Boss. But… everything else? Bring it on.”

  His dimples peeked out of the corners of his mouth. “Yeah, bring it on.”

  “And then there was one,” Emery noted as Dex, Clarette, and Noland glittered away.

  “The girl who changed our minds,” Terik added, and Sophie couldn’t tell if he meant that as a good thing or a bad thing.

  She pressed her hands to her sides, refusing to tug on her eyelashes during such a crucial moment. Instead, she took her chance to ask the question she’d been wondering about since she first stepped into the Paragon.

  “The day I first met you guys,” she said, turning to Oralie and Bronte, “when you tested me to decide if I qualified for Foxfire, you were wearing the same cloak pins you are now. Does that mean you’d been up here before you went to Everglen—or came up here after you left?”

  “Yes,” Emery answered for them. “We all made the journey that morning, since we sensed that your arrival was sure to be a turning point in our world.”

  “We wanted to ensure that we had the proper perspective when we met with you,” Oralie explained, “in order to make the best possible decision under such unexpected circumstances.”

  “We leaped straight from here to the gates of Everglen,” Bronte added, “and I thought a lot about the Sources during our visit. In fact, the whole time I was there, I couldn’t help wondering if someday you’d be standing up here beside us—and now, here you are.”

  He snorted when Sophie’s jaw fell open.

  “No need to look so stunned,” he told her with a rueful smile. “I never said I was pleased with the idea. I could simply tell that this was where we were heading. Why do you think I pushed you the way that I did? I had to ensure that you were truly someone who could be trusted with the role you were surely meant to play. And I won’t claim that my behavior toward you was always admirable—or fair. But… you bore it far better than I ever would’ve expected. And now, here we are, and I must say… you are certainly worthy.”

  Sophie’s eyes burned worse than they had with Wylie’s earlier compliment.

  A couple of tears might’ve even spilled over.

  She hoped no one noticed.

  Oralie took Sophie’s hand, gently twining their fingers together. “Are you ready to make your oath, Lady Sophie?”

  Sophie nodded.

  But instead of the vow, she found herself blurting out, “I have no idea what I’m doing.”

  Bronte took her other hand, guiding her closer to the beam of light. “I’ll let you in on a secret, Sophie. One that you may or may not find reassuring. None of us know what we’re doing.”

  Terik laughed. “No, we certainly don’t.”

  “That does not make me feel better,” Sophie told them.

  But as the words left her mouth, she realized they weren’t true.

  Maybe this was what growing up meant—tackling the huge challenges, whether you were ready for them or not. And trusting that you’d figure out a way to get through it.

  “You ready?” Bronte asked.

  “She’s ready,” Oralie answered for her, offering a shy smile before adding, “The Empath would know.”

  Sophie tightened her grip on each of them—the two Councillors she’d first started her adventure in the Lost Cities with.

  It seemed fitting to let them guide her into this next stage.

  She only wished Kenric was still with them.

  But she’d let his loss fuel her determination.

  She owed him a victory. Hopefully this wa
s how she’d get it for him.

  “Okay,” she said. “I swear to fight with everything in my power to serve the Council and keep our world a haven of peace, hope, and illumination.”

  Then, without a second’s hesitation, she led Bronte and Oralie forward, and they each stepped into the light and let the Sources carry them away.

  NINE

  SOPHIE HAD ENDURED LEAPS OF all different speeds and sights and sensations during her years in the Lost Cities—but she’d never experienced anything that made her feel so… small.

  She was a dust mote swirling in an endless sunbeam.

  Plankton riding the crest of a tidal wave.

  And yet, somehow, the journey still felt incredibly empowering—and peaceful.

  The Sources’ threads of soft warmth and silky cold and subtle tingles moved in perfect synchronization.

  None of them tried to overshadow the others.

  None fought to take control.

  Each force did what it did best and relied on the others to handle their own.

  And the unity was so soothing—so steadying—that Sophie’s mind happily surrendered to the flow, trusting the light to keep her safe and cared for during their travels.

  She would’ve followed the Sources anywhere as they swirled and spun and soared across the sky. But the powerful triad of light knew exactly when it was time to let her go. And suddenly there was breath filling her lungs and solid ground under her feet, and her eyes were blinking through the too-bright glare as her body pieced itself back together and the light continued its adventures without her.

  She wasn’t sure if the test had been meant to remind her that she was both strong and insignificant, or to teach her the importance of balance and cooperation. Either way, she could definitely understand why the Council found it valuable to make that leap year after year after year.

  The Sources had shown her a perfect example of how to lead without dominating—and made her feel powerful and humbled all at the same time.