“Sade, what are you doing up so early?” Esmelda asked when she passed by with a bucket of water. Adora was right behind her with her own.
“I haven’t been able to sleep,” Sade said.
“You look like a walking corpse,” Adora said and hurried past them.
“You don’t have to stay here, Sade. You should use those gifts of yours to get yourself a cushy life. Jerrick is always saying your rune work deserves to be in the hands of a High Vestral,” Esmelda said. Sade fell into step next to her, grabbing the bucket when Esmelda stumbled.
“I haven’t repaid my debt to you or Jerrick; without you, I’d be wandering the halls of the God of Death,” Sade gripped the handle of the bucket. It felt heavier than anything she had carried before.
“If you remember, I said it was too late for you. Jerrick was the one who pushed to save you.”
“Regardless, you welcomed me in your home and let me eat your food,” Sade said. Her stomach grumbled loud enough for Esmelda to hear.
“Sade, if you are going to stay, then please for the love of all the Gods will you eat something?” Esmelda asked, placing a hand on her shoulder. “I know your God teaches about the tenants of Mercy, but please do not kill yourself over it.”
Sade froze. “How do you know what God I follow?”
Her mind raced. Had she slipped and accidently enchanted a rune? Had Esmelda contacted the Vestrals at Plainspire?
Esmelda’s eyebrows shot up. “Because the company you keep has always been very vocal about what God they follow.”
She nodded at Attrius who was walking toward the gate and Sade felt the tension flow out of her body. She wanted to smash her head against the wall. The lack of sleep was messing with her mind.
“Please go rest. You really do not look well,” she said, grabbing the bucket from Sade. The movement caused water to splash onto her shoes.
“Esmelda! Sade!” Jerrick rounded a corner, holding a small piece of paper. “I have wonderful news! Our new Vestral is arriving today!”
Sade’s eyes widened. “Today?”
“Yes, and they are coming from the Temple in Plainspire!” Jerrick smiled at Sade.
Sade smiled back, despite the rising panic within her. Almost a hundred people served in the Plainspire Temple, and Sade could only recall about a dozen faces. Vestral Dirna could have sent one of the newly attuned, and they would have no idea who Sade was. But there was still a chance she could send someone who knew Sade or had seen the destruction of the God of Justice’s shrine.
Her heart nearly stopped as she remembered the statue for the God of Justice had been returned into the village shrine. If the new Vestral saw the statue still in there, they might start asking questions. Or worse.
“I’ll be right back,” she said and ran. Jerrick and Esmelda called out to her, but she didn’t dare stop. She headed to the older part of the village where Corin and his group were staying. The rickety old house looked like it was one windstorm away from crumbling into pieces.
“What is it?” he snarled as he squinted in the sunlight, his face softened when he saw Sade. “Sade? What are you doing here?”
“I need to talk to you,” she said and shoved her way past him into a room with a large table positioned against a wall. A small hearth and a couple bed rolls were tucked against the far wall. Leida and a few others waved at her from a table, a game of Griffin’s Lark was spread out over it.
“Sade! Come join us!” a man shouted, Sade struggled to remember if it was Sam or John.
“No thank you, I am here to discuss a matter with Corin,” she replied.
“What’s wrong?” Corin asked. Sade took a few breaths to calm herself and walked over to the hearth.
“A new Vestral from Plainspire is coming.”
Corin let out a low whistle and he ran a hand through his hair.
“Plainspire? That’s fancy for a place like this,” he said. He shot a glare at the group gathered around the table as one side let out a cheer. “I suppose you want us to move the statue out?”
“Yes, otherwise they might launch an investigation.”
“Ha, an investigation? That’s what you are worried about?” Corin shook his head. “We burned him on a funeral pyre for Gods’ sake.”
“You don’t understand; if the Vestral believes Marius’s death wasn’t an accident, they will get the Council of High Vestrals to grant a Rite of Necromancy and pull his soul back from the God of Death’s hall,” Sade said. “If they get that information they will come after us.”
Corin’s jaw clenched, his green eyes becoming tight with anger.
“Those damn High Vestrals are the ones who caused this problem in the first place!” he said and walked over to a small rug. He moved it to the side, revealing a small cellar door underneath. Once it was open, he motioned for Sade to follow, rolling his eyes when she hesitated. “If we wanted to kill you, we would have turned you in to the villagers by now.”
She followed him down a creaking ladder, into a room dimly lit by torches. It looked like it had been a root cellar in a past life, now it held a bunch of scrolls and a long table that had a protection rune carved into it.
“What is this place?” Sade asked while Corin lit more torches.
“My sanctuary,” he said while he pulled out a few scrolls. “What are your views on the High Vestrals?”
Sade frowned. “What do you mean? I’ve never seen a High Vestral.”
“Don’t play word games with me,” he said, setting the scrolls onto the table. “Answer the damn question.”
“Until I was outcast, I never gave them much thought and I still don’t. I’ve got more pressing concerns,” she said. Corin nodded, though he did not seem satisfied with her answer.
“Have you ever found it odd that only those who were attuned to mere Spirits were the ones to set in place all the rules?”
“Well, we don’t really know who set all the rules. Vestrals have been around longer than anyone can remember. They were mentioned in the ancient texts way before the fall of the Kesillan Empire.”
“No, you are not understanding what I am saying,” Corin said and took a breath as if to calm himself. “The High Vestrals are all attuned to each kingdom’s Spirit of the Realm, correct?”
“Yes, they are,” Sade said slowly.
“So, they are answerable to a Spirit, not a God.”
Sade sighed. “Corin you know the Spirits of the Realms were appointed by the Gods to ensure the mistakes of the Kesillan Empire were never made again. That is why the High Vestrals are above everyone else. They are the ones keeping us from collapsing into chaos.”
“Pretty words, but have you noticed how the High Vestral of Sodervia has blocked every single request by those who are trying to stop the famine?”
“That’s not true; she allowed the Vestrals to the Goddess of the Harvest use magic on the crops to help them grow.”
Corin snorted. “And we can see how well that’s going.”
Sade shot to her feet, her magic swirled around her. “Are you accusing the High Vestral of committing crimes against the realm?”
“Yes, I am,” Corin said calmly and pointed to a scroll he had laid out. Sade frowned and peered at it. It detailed the perils of using magic to grow crops. On the very bottom of the scroll was a small wax seal with two intertwined orbs, marking it as the seal of the High Vestral of Sodervia.
“Where did you get this?”
“That doesn’t matter,” he said.
“Did you steal it?” Sade asked, magic formed around Corin while he rolled up the scroll. The magic then seeped into the paper and became too faint for Sade to detect.
“It’s on loan,” he said. He tossed the scroll onto the table.
“Why are you showing me this?”
“Because I’m afraid the Spirit of the Realm is no longer being used for the good of the kingdom. I believe the High Vestrals have been using it for nefarious purposes that will harm the realm. For example, why in the name
s of the Gods would it choose a peasant to rule?” he asked and continued when Sade remained silent. “Our new queen will be nothing more than a puppet for those who wish to expand their power. A fisherwoman cannot be a queen. She won’t have the head for it.”
“What do you want from me? Are you going to make me murder the High Vestral in her sleep?” Sade asked.
This man is crazy, I need to get out of here. She would not become a puppet in some scheme to overthrow the kingdom. She should’ve left the moment she killed Marius.
“Do not let your guilt for killing Marius overshadow the actual issue here,” He said then softened his tone when Sade bristled. “Think about it. The Spirit of the Realm has been influenced by the High Vestral for centuries. Now they have declared a God dead. Snuffing out the voices of reason that would decry any acts that would be unjust. You have heard the whispers of war; I fear they plan on taking more power.”
“So, you’ll take down the High Vestral and then what? Install someone of your own?”
“No, I believe the Spirit of the Realm must be freed from its imprisonment and not answer to any so-called High Vestral. They advised the rulers directly, not through some intermediary with dreams of power,” Corin said and unrolled another scroll. It was the ancient decree of the Gods passed down before they gifted each kingdom with their own Spirit of the Realm.
As rivers of blood ran around them.
The children of the Gods cried out in desperation.
The Gods took pity on their wayward creations.
Sending each kingdom a Spirit of the Realm.
They were charged with three sacred duties:
To guard from the darkness within all men.
To guide the rulers when they strayed from the path.
And to ensure no man tried to rise above the Gods
themselves.
It was something Sade could recite with her eyes closed, and yet she could not stop reading the last line. Declaring the God of Justice dead and proclaiming to be the only ones to know when a God was dead. Was something the High Vestrals claimed they had the authority to do. But one could say they were elevating themselves above the Gods with such decrees. Perhaps that was why the famine had started, maybe the Gods were getting angry. Perhaps the God of Justice was not dead, but merely disgusted with them and had turned his back.
“You see? The more you think about it, the more it makes sense. Sade, I need your help,” Corin said, his voice thick with an emotion Sade could not identify. “I do not want to see this kingdom suffer and watch Vestrals get tossed away like you are nothing. I am sorry about what happened with Marius, but I need you to move past that. The kingdom needs you, Sade; it needs the Vestrals for the God of Justice to stand tall and not take any more of the High Vestral’s lies.”
Sade looked at her rune pouch; pinpricks of orange light passed through the small holes in the fabric. The rune for the God of Justice glowed brighter than she had ever seen it. For a moment, Sade felt a light brush of divine magic swirl around her. It faded as the glow from her rune pouch dimmed. She looked up to see Corin grinning like a madman.
“See? Even the God of Justice agrees.”
“It’s never done that before.”
She pulled the rune out and looked at it. She turned the rune over in her palm. The magic inside was filled with more life than ever before. Normally, the magic was pure orange, but now she could see flecks of silver and green were now mixed in. She stared at it for a few more moments before dropping the rune back into her pouch. Corin was busy putting the scrolls back on a shelf.
“Who are you?”
“I told you, I’m no one significant,” he said and smiled at her. “But you just might be the difference between our kingdom crumbling into ruin or becoming a beacon of glory for others.”
“Pretty words, but I don’t believe in prophecies.” Sade folded her arms; she hoped the Goddess of Fates wasn’t listening. “I will help you, but I will kill no one else.”
Corin shrugged. “Wasn’t planning on asking.”
Sade tapped her foot, waiting for Corin to launch into a grand scheme, but he merely stared right back at her.
“How are you going to accomplish this?”
Corin placed a finger over his lips and his eyes glinted with mischief.
“That is for me to know until the time comes. It’s better for everyone involved to know only the information that they need to know and only when they need to know it.”
Sade scoffed. “I’m the only one here who stands a chance at staying alive should we have to fight against the High Vestral.”
“Which is precisely why I will keep you in the dark; it’s for your safety. I don’t want my prize jewel to be the first thing they go after.” Corin walked over and lightly squeezed her shoulder. “Trust me, many things are going to be set into motion soon. I just need you to wait.”
“I’ve spent my entire life waiting,” Sade muttered as they walked over to the ladder.
“Sometimes signs are not the flashy ones that most people see; sometimes they are more subtle,” Corin said. “But I can promise you Sade, soon you will not have to wait any longer.”
As Sade left the house, she rested a hand on her rune pouch. Doubt rose in her mind while she walked. A part of her screamed she had no true idea who Corin, or the rest of his group truly were. Then again, they had helped her with Marius and none of them were causing any trouble for the townsfolk.
“Gods be praised!” she heard a villager shout, jolting her out of her thoughts. A woman was a carrying armfuls of bread and potatoes. Some of which dropped while she struggled to open her door.
“Where did you get that?” Sade asked. The woman tossed the food onto her table.
“Her Majesty has ordered all the grain and potato stockpiles in the realm be opened! We will not starve this winter!” the villager cried and shooed Sade out of her house. “Go to the market! There is plenty of food for everyone!”
Even if she was nothing more than a fisherwoman, the Queen seemed to have the common people’s interests at heart. Sade wondered how long that would last. How long would the Queen be able to stand against the High Vestral? Was this just a tactic to distract the realm from the looming storm clouds of war? No, the Queen most likely had been struggling herself before she ascended.
Sade rubbed her forehead as it throbbed. No matter the Queen’s goodwill, it would likely become tainted later. Just like the late King, whose legacy was not of a shining king, but that of a drunkard and a fool. The Queen would likely fall into a similar path.
When she stepped into the marketplace, she saw a crowd of people standing around a wagon filled to the brim with potatoes and grain. The smell of fresh bread filled the air. A few people were grinding up the grain and handing the flour over to a baker. Who was making bread in a firepit that looked hastily cobbled together.
The crowd surrounding the baker tore into the fresh bread, like they were afraid it would vanish.
“Calm down! There is enough for everyone!” The baker cried when a man shoved aside a boy waiting in line and snatched the newest loaf of bread. The man who grabbed the bread glanced down at the now crying boy. He tore the loaf in half and handed it to him. Both walked away stuffing their faces.
“Here lass, you look famished,” a man said. He shoved a loaf into Sade’s hands. The crust glinted golden in the sunlight and it was still warm.
Sade wanted to protest, but her hunger got the better of her. She tore into the loaf. Once she was finished, she hurried over to the wagon and grabbed a bag of potatoes and headed to the runesmith’s house.
The pure joy of the villagers had lifted her spirits in a way Sade didn’t know was possible. As she neared Jerrick’s house, she heard the boys laughing and the smell of fresh food wafted through the air. A dark cloud had been lifted from the village.
She opened the door and held up the bag of potatoes. Esmelda grinned at her from her the table she was kneading dough on.
“Isn’t
it wonderful?” she asked and Sade put down the bag of potatoes. “We’ll save those for later. Can you put them in the workshop for now? Jerrick is redoing the shelves in the cellar.”
“Of course!” Sade said and was nearly ran over by Devin and Herjack when they ran into the house, holding small loaves of bread.
“Boys! I told you to not take any bread from the market! Let those who are starving eat first,” Esmelda shouted and Sade hurried out of the house while the boys sulked in a corner.
The door to the workshop was ajar and Sade could hear someone shuffling around inside. She gripped the bag of potatoes as she stepped into the workshop. A figure in a black cloak stood in the center of the room, their back was turned to her, but she could see Jerrick across from him holding up a rune she had carved.
Sade set down the bag of potatoes as quietly as she could and crept back to the door before they spotted her. She was just about to slip out into freedom before Jerrick called out to her.
“Sade! Where are you going, lass?”
“Gods damn it,” Sade muttered under her breath before she turned with the biggest smile she could manage. Her smile faltered when she noticed the cloaked figure had turned to face her. They tugged back their hood, revealing a man with reddish-orange hair and bright blue eyes.
“Hello Sade,” Henry grinned as she choked on her words. She noticed he was wearing his cloak inside out, making it so that the runes did not immediately identify him as a Vestral. An odd choice, but she suspected he didn’t want to be bothered while traveling.
“Were you sent here to oversee the grains and potato distribution?” she asked, praying he wasn’t here to be the new Vestral for the shrine. She couldn’t risk him revealing her true history to Jerrick.
“I was, but when Dirna received word a new position opened up. She sent me packing, so here I am,” he said and nodded at Jerrick. “I’m glad to see you. The runesmithing building hasn’t been the same since you left for greener pastures. I’ve missed watching you work.”
The Spirit of the Realm Page 15