Page 97 of The Truth-Teller's Bargain
At the mention of the other Aeshlien, Alethea frowned. “She’s gone?”
Emi causally fluffed her pillows, making small adjustments and gently drawing the covers up over Alethea’s lap. “After the way Nakir laid into her? I’ve seen them fight before, but that was... something else. I’m surprised she stayed at all.” She passed her the cup of tea, and Alethea took it gratefully, the warmthdistracting her from the body aches. “She took care of you while you were out, the past day and a half.”
Alethea nearly spit out her tea. “Day and a half!”
“Ah, yeah. Trying to touch the Weave will take a lot out of you. I don’t recommend it, having seen it firsthand.”
Alethea thought of Elena, Emi’s sister, and her gaze fell to the cup of tea in her lap. She traced her fingers along the rim, lost in thought. Emi’s eyes, warm and understanding, followed her movements.
“You can ask about her, if you want,” she offered gently, sensing the unspoken questions in her friend’s gaze.
Alethea had always wanted to know more, but she’d never given herself permission to broach the subject. “What happened to Elena?”
Emi’s smile was soft and distant as she began her story. “My sister and I… Our powers have always been... explosive. The idea we were blessed with magic that could only be used to destroy horrified her. She was terrified of hurting someone, which only made her powers more unpredictable. Her greatest fear was that her loss of control would get someone hurt. I... I see a lot of her in you sometimes. She, too, had little stomach for violence.
“The Academy was rigorous, and she struggled to keep her head above water... until she found the attention of the Headmaster. He saw great power in her—in both of us. Twins are special in magic, and he had theories about our abilities. We try to force magic into categories, into special boxes—Channelers, Mystics, Runecasters, the Orders... but the truth is more complicated than that. He took his time with her. He was patient when others were not, and Elena flourished under his tutelage. She was like a rare orchid who just needed some tenderness, some care. Roman gave her that.”
Roman Kentigern. That name was beginning to fill Alethea with dread.
“Once she started to accept her magic, he began to push her.He pushed both of us. Elena would have done anything for him, participated in any of his experiments, summoned any amount of power he asked. And after what he’d done for her, I went along with it too.
“The night it all happened, we were taking part in one of his experiments. She seemed... off, but she was determined to help him test whatever theory he’d recently concocted. He had us summoning more and more power, diving even deeper into our wells of magic. Then she started to lose control. I... could sense it somehow. We could never read each other’s minds like Telepaths, but I justknew. Her lightning started to lash out, breaking windows, equipment. It became clear to all of us that if she couldn’t stop, she was going to destroy the tower. We were in the lowest level, with dozens of classrooms and dormitories above us. If she brought it down, hundreds of people would die. It was her greatest fear come true... but she just couldn’t regain control.
“I knew there was no coming back for her. I could see in her eyes she’d gone too far. She’d touched the Weave. She was drowning in it, and it was taking back from her. I knew I couldn’t save her, but I couldn’t let her last act in the world lead to the death of hundreds. I reached across to her, and I held her. I’m not sure how it worked, exactly... Maybe it was because I was her twin, or maybe it was because I’m another lightning Channeler, but I redirected the energy into myself. I took every single volt as I watched her burn out.”
Alethea thought of the scars she’d seen that night in the bathing tent, all over Emi’s body. “You... absorbed her powers.”
Emi’s lips twisted into a sad smile. “I held her as the Weave took what she had borrowed. It wasn’t until later that we discovered my well of magic... it had no bottom anymore. I’ve never even come close to it. Roman wanted to keep experimenting, but I... I couldn’t. I nearly dropped out of the academy.”
“Why didn’t you?”
“I came home for a little while, spent some time with my family, with Nakir and Kerrigan. Mostly, I grieved. Then I started to see my sister in my dreams. She told me to keep going. She made me promise her I would finish my education, that I would graduate, that I would come back home. She said I wasn’t done yet—that I had a part to play in something bigger.
“I knew it would change me. How could it not? How could I come away from something like that without being touched by darkness? I’m lucky... Nakir and the others accept me, despite the fact I... am the way that I am. Unfeeling at times. Able to unleash destruction that sends most people running. The number of lives I’ve so easily ended... Sometimes, I wish they would accept me less.”
“Because you don’t believe you deserve it after what you’ve done?” It was a feeling Alethea knew well. Goran’s beheading came to mind, as well as the young man sitting in the dungeons because of her own actions.
Emi lifted her chin toward her, as if she were surprised to find understanding in Alethea’s words. “Yes.”
“Is that why you and Dawes aren’t...?”
Emi went still for a moment, then let out a short, embarrassed laugh, her cheeks darkening. “You caught on to that, did you?” She tipped her head back to stare at the ceiling. “I suppose it’s not exactly subtle, is it.” It wasn’t a question. A beat passed. “I’m not sure how to be the kind of person someone can love.” She tucked a few stray hairs behind her slightly pointed ears.
Alethea wished she knew how to comfort her. She wanted Emi to find peace in this world after what she’d suffered, but everything that came to mind felt painfully inadequate.
“Maybe he can show you,” she murmured softly.
Emi managed a sad smile. “Maybe.” She shifted the topic, her voice gentle but probing. “Since we’re on the subject ofmen, I feel like I should ask how you’re doing.”
Alethea let her head fall back against the headboard, her neckaching. “I don’t know. I’m not good at any of this. At being an Oracle. At being arebel.”
“At being loved,” Emi added, and Alethea’s eyes brimmed with tears.
“How would I even know?”
“I’m clearly the wrong person to ask,” her friend admitted. “But I love you, as my friend. All you can do is try to make sense of the chaos in front of you. You’ll always have a place with us.”
“Thank you,” Alethea said, squeezing Emi’s hands tighter.
