The Forsaken Hero

Fate was back in the cathedral, as if she had never left, speaking with Magic in a low voice. They quieted as I entered, and Fate glanced at me, her brow furrowing slightly as she scanned my thoughts.

”I’m sorry,” I mumbled, hanging my head. ”I know I shouldn’t have--”

”You spoke right,” she interrupted gently. ”All things are as they should be.”

Her assurance caused me to look up. ”Did you know?”

”I suspected he wouldn’t touch you here. His power is considerable, but the stars of High Valley were not his to control. And now, he understands Haven.”

”Isn’t that a bad thing?”

”From a strategic perspective, perhaps, but Fate is a new, ascending god. He has no Divine Realm of his own and finally understands how daunting it is to build one. It would be far easier to claim Haven as a foundation.”

My eyes widened. ”He can do that?”

”He seems to believe so, and I’m inclined to agree. But, to attempt it, the realm must still exist. And that means he needs you alive.”

”Oh. How convenient.”

Her laugh was musical. ”The moment he had you alone and undefended was the moment he realized he couldn’t just take the divinity. The path of fate is an ironic one, isn’t it?”

”You got lucky,” Magic muttered.

”There is no luck. Only fate,” she chided.

”Whatever. I’m ready to return to the weave. We still have much to do.”

”Patience.” She turned back to me. ”What will you do now?”

”Find Luke.”

She’d already seen my memories and visions, so there was no point explaining more.

”I see. When the time comes, I hope you’ll call on my aid.”

I nodded, a touch uncertain what she meant by that.

”Fate,” Magic said, a hint of impatience in his voice.

”Right, right.”

”Wait,” I said, clasping my hands. ”Where are you going? I thought you couldn’t leave Haven.”

”Into Fate, where no realm holds sway. Reality is too real for what we must do. Good luck, child. And do not despair. Your hope hasn’t brought you this far to surrender now.”

With that, she and Magic faded. I watched with wide eyes. There was no magic or runes, no teleportation. They were just gone.

With Fyren, the Fatesworn had returned to Haven, bringing my friends and Grace with them. Reuniting with them was a tearful affair, mostly on my end. Korra and Grace were already sparring.

I left Haven as the sun reached the zenith of Enusia’s skies. Rodrick had returned to his stewardship of the church and was waiting for my arrival.

”Captain Andres wished to see you,” he said, greeting me with a bow.

I thanked him with a nod, and with the Star Guard as my escort, left the island. High Valley had quieted after the battle, but still bore its scars. The villages were untouched, preserved by the blood of the Crimson Guard, but the walls, towers, and keeps lay in ruins. Long furrows and chasms raked across the ground, and craters dotted the lakeside. Thousands of corpses were piled in heaps for cremation. Mages wandered about, using their mana to fan the flames, sending huge, dark plumes of smoke into the starry mists.

Fatesworn mixed with the guard, reinforcing their numbers and securing the area. When I finally found Captain Andres, he was with Commander Bethiv, leaning over a map of High Valley.

They paused, looking up at me with surprised expressions.

”Good morning, my Lady,” Bethiv said, straightening to attention. ”Or evening, I suppose. You look beautiful as always.”

I blushed, touching my cheek. ”Um, a few days of rest will do that.”

He chuckled. ”I was worried when I heard what had happened, but I’m glad those Skyknights came through. Been wondering if it was right to invest in their training. Glad you found a way to get their ship out of Haven.”

”Skyknights?” I tilted my head quizzically. ”You’re calling them that, too?”

He shrugged. ”It’s as good a name as any, and they seem fond of it. Lord Jasrin might be eccentric, but he has a good pulse on the feel of an army. Some restructuring was the right idea, and it makes even more sense with the addition of the Crimson Guard.”

I blinked, glancing at Andres.

The Captain cleared his throat. ”After everything that’s happened, and learning the nature of High Valley, it seemed only natural. Commander Bethiv shared that your purpose was to bring down the corruption the gods have introduced into our lands. We would fight beside you to see that happen, and remain loyal forever if it’s accomplished.”

”Well, we’d be happy to have you. You have a lot of good men,” I said.

”Yes, they fill in the gaps in our experience rather well,” Bethiv mused. ”The Fatesworn have lots of battle experience, but only a few of us have had formal training to any degree. The Crimson Guard has spent decades honing their doctrine and training regiments. There’s a reason they were considered the Elite of Radia, even if they’ve rarely fought until now.”

Andres preened slightly, a small smile crossing his weathered face. ”I hope we can be of service. And I’m confident there are many more of my brethren that will join should they break free of the Heart Crest. This Liberation spell you’ve taught my mages will change everything.”

Bethiv gave me an uncertain look. ”I hope you don’t mind. As soon as they expressed their opinion to join, I saw no reason to withhold our signature magic.”

”Liberation was a magic given to our world. I would like that every mage, no, everyone, could use it. Then the slave crests would lose all power,” I said.

I was glad to hear the Crimson Guard had merged with the Fatesworn. More than the practical benefit of bringing on experienced, professional soldiers, it was proof the people of the Southern Continent were willing to do more than just defend themselves. North and South, traitors and deserters were coming together to fight under our banner.

The two spent the next few minutes outlining the logistics of the merge and restructuring to me, but I didn’t pay them much mind. To be honest, I couldn’t care less about the structure of the Fatesworn, or that Andres was now a captain equal to Jackal. The only room my memory had for organization was that of magic circles, spells, and runes. They could do as they pleased, so long as they answered when I called.

But I was a little annoyed to hear they’d implemented almost every single one of Jasrin’s changes. Still, it didn’t hurt to listen a little, especially about the leadership. That way I knew who to talk to for what. Commander Bethiv was the leader, obviously, with Jackal and Andres serving as his Grand Captains. ’Grand,’ I supposed, signified their importance at the top of the hierarchy. Jackal and Andres were more like aides rather than in charge of anything important, and outranked everyone else.

There were the Skyknights, which I’d almost come to think without cringing. Every ship had its own Captain, but Grand Captain Ellis was in charge of the division. The Empyrean Order was supposed to be the organization for the mages, with Elinore serving as their Grand Captain. I shivered, remembering the strictness of the elderly woman as she nursed me back to health. It seemed she picked up more from me and R’lissea than we thought, becoming a seventh-circle mage and the strongest of the Fatesworn.

And then there was the Star Guard. It had been Luxxa and the others’ nickname, but was now formalized. They were the elite of the elite, the strongest mortals and demons the Fatesworn could offer. Their assignments were guarding the portal and acting as permanent assignments to Grand Captains, Bethiv, and me. As far as I could tell, they only reported to the one they were protecting, or the Commander if not actively assigned. There were only like fifty of them total, all over fifth level. I managed to convince them not to give me more than I already had, but it would be a welcome relief to have a permanent guard of the portal, so I didn’t have to spare Kahlen, Fable, or the others.

Lastly, there was Nightwatch, under Grand Captain Avrass’s control. They were the scouts and rangers, just like Jasrin proposed. Everyone else beyond that was just part of the general Fatesworn, though there seemed to be a lot of motivation for the young and new to get stronger and join one of the elite units.

By the time their introduction to the changes was over, I groaned, rubbing my horns. Listening to so much jargon and instruction was beginning to make my head hurt.

Bidding them farewell, I left the protection of High Valley in their hands. I only made it a few steps before Rylam found me.

”I heard you emerged, but it’s really good to see you up and about,” he said, smiling in relief.

I smiled back. ”It always takes me longer to recover. But what about you?”

He touched his arm, flexing it. ”Eh, no worse for wear. Got a few scratches during the fight, but they’ve mostly healed. Say, you hungry? Want to get something to eat?”