Page 172 of Sunsplitter

“It’s an honor without equal, to stand in the presence of the first Voidweaver.” They pressed a hand to their chest. “Syvr.” A point to the side. “Ixli. And—”

“Antal,” Veshri said.

Fishudderedat his voice. Notably less unsettling coming out of his mouth, rather than inside her head. The tone was just as low, just as calm, something ancient.

Antal went pale as death. Understandable, when an ageless creature knew his name. Veshri cast the younger daeyari a long, appraising look.

“She thought of you,” Veshri said. “She hadinterestingthoughts about you.”

Antal slashed Fi a vicious amount of side-eye.

“Look,” she said. “I was lost in the Void. I thought I was about to die.” He ought to be flattered. And honestly, she’d forgotten a little bit about the mind reading thing. Did she need to guard her thoughts now? Fi hadn’t the slightest clue how to do so. Shetried to think of pebbles, of grass, not a shirtless daeyari lying in her bed.

Veshri stepped toward her.

Antal moved between them, snarling. What a selfless, stunning, stupid creature.

“Hey,hey.” Fi settled a hand on Antal’s arm. “Let’s not start fights with any pseudo-gods today, hm?”

She faced Veshri with head high, as bold as she’d faced every immortal who sought to see her cowed. Unflinching—on the outside. Inside, her uncooperative heart attained previously unheard-of levels of chiseling up her throat in terror.

The first immortal daeyari didn’t tower over her, no more than a couple inches taller, discounting his antlers. Fi felt minuscule all the same. His eyes weren’t skin-peeling like Avroz’s, but they did pierce through her, dissecting at a visceral level. His antlers were sharp-tipped, carvings over every surface. At the highest points, two golden bands. Fi hadn’t noticed before, in the dark of the Void. She’d not known to look.

He’d saved her life, once.

A passing curiosity. One chance meeting didn’t mean this ageless creature saw her as anything more than a gnat, like most of his kin. It didn’t save an insolent human from his not-god smite, as he stared at the fresh gold on her ears.

“Veshri?” Fi greeted.

The younger daeyari flinched at the name aloud. Their creator stared back, stone-faced.

“I didn’t get your name, last time,” he said.

“Fi,” she returned. “Thanks, by the way. For not leaving me to die.”

Ok, maybe his stare was alittleskin-peeling. Not in the way that Fi worried about teeth lunging for her throat. Those eyes were too keen. Too time-honed.

“So… can I help you with something?” Fi continued. “Your esteemed… Void-ness?”

The snark was an unfortunate coping mechanism. Fi tried to reign it back, in the interest of not getting gagged by Ixli.

Veshri seemed unflustered, a slight lift of his brow.

“I heard of a successful hunt.” Carnelian eyes flicked over Antal, Ixli, lingering on their antlers. Then back to Fi: “Instead, I findyouagain. And even more interesting…”

He reached for her.

Fi had about two seconds to decide… no, she shouldn’t swat the hand of the oldest daeyari in the Shattered Planes. Claws cupped her ear. Veshri’s head tilted, inspecting the gold.

“Why?” he asked.

Confusingly, the question bore no derision, addressing this lowly human who dared meet his eyes. Just calm. Mildly curious. The same as last time.

Ixli inched closer. Bowed her head. “Esteemed Voidwalker, she’s earned the marks. She fought with us. Landed the killing blow.”

Void alive, Fi couldn’t cry in front of Veshri, of all creatures. She bit her lip against the kind words.

“You killed anaedari?” Veshri said.