"These are Overlord bands," he said. "They're bestowed on very few."
Her gaze lifted to find pride and a fierce satisfaction blazing in his.
"It means the Mea’Ave has judged you worthy," her uncle rumbled. "Congratulations. You've passed the uhva na."
TWENTY-SEVEN
It was several days later when Wren finally managed to hunt her down. A part of her had been expecting him.
She'd never know if it was what she'd done that day or Quillon reaching him in time was what saved him. Kira didn't think she wanted to know.
Wren joined her where she leaned on the stone balcony of her new room. It seemed when you passed the Trial of the Broken, you got better accommodations.
This room was bigger than the last and came with more amenities. The balcony was one.
Like her first room, it had come fully stocked with a full complement of clothes. Many were the same ballistic-proof quality of the outfit she'd worn to the trial.
In addition, Kira had found two weapons that made her mouth salivate. They begged her to test their capabilities. One was a sword similar in form to an en-blade and fit her hand like it had been made for her. The second was a bracelet that turned into a whip of light, perfect for those times you couldn't go overtly armed.
Her not so mysterious benefactor had been more than kind.
To everyone’s surprise, Kira wasn't the only one to pass the trial. Devon had received his marks at some point before she'd arrived. Joule too, she'd been delighted to discover.
Raider’s attempt was delayed by a day so the Overlord could deal with the fallout from events, but soon he too bore marks of his own. He was the first human ever accorded the honor. It had sent shock waves through Roake as a result.
Not that Kira was surprised. She always knew Raider was capable of it. Her former ally was nothing if not tenacious.
The question of Aeron’s infiltration had been answered as well. Loudon had been a busy boy over the past few weeks, falsifying Aeron’s background and making sure to put him into Devon’s orbit whenever possible.
Aeron was supposed to get close to Devon, then find a way to alienate him from the rest of the initiates. It was meant to mentally weaken him and drive him into a corner, making him easier to scoop up in the end.
The trial was over, but the path to the adva ka was still long and twisting. No one could tell her when the next one would be called. They simply didn’t know. Evidently, the adva ka existed based on the Mea’Ave’s will. It would allow entrants only when it wanted.
It meant Kira was back in a holding pattern. Not that she minded overly. With evidence provided by Odin that Elise was out in the universe again, it meant her need to find the Tsavitee home worlds was no longer as pressing.
She still needed to find them, but she no longer felt like she was going to come out of her skin from the urgency she felt. Besides, it was going to take time for Odin to sift through the data she’d given her. This had always been a long shot.
For now, Jin’s presence on Ta Sa’Riel had been overlooked, Loudon’s and Aeron’s actions overshadowing his trespass. In light of what had almost happened, Roake was more distracted with dealing with the fallout from that rather than assigning punishment and blame for Jin’s presence here.
It helped that Kira’s uncle seemed content to pretend he’d known about Jin all along. Kira wasn’t going to argue.
She traced the patterns of the marks on her wrists as she waited for Wren to speak.
The seon’yer looked pretty good for a man who had been inches from death only a few days ago. Tuann medicine at work. It was impressive, to say the least.
In the end, he said nothing, simply setting a medallion on the railing next to her.
Kira picked it up, tracing the raised ridges. "What's this?"
"Proof of your apprenticeship," Wren told her.
"And you've given this to me why?"
He fixed her with a cool look. "You're bright. I'm sure you can figure it out."
She rolled the medallion in her palm, as she considered the Tuann in front of her.
Wren was a hard one to read. It made dealing with him difficult. Manipulation was out of the question. He saw too much. Behind that stiff reserve was a very smart man. There was a reason Rheya had salivated at the thought of an apprenticeship with him.
He didn't wait for her response, moving toward the balcony door.
"Awful arrogant, don't you think?" Kira commented to his retreating figure. "Assuming I'll accept?"
He stopped, regarding her with an enigmatic gaze. "You'll accept."
Kira set the medallion on the stone beside her, before leaning against the railing and lacing her fingers over her stomach. He seemed very sure of himself. This should be good.
"You called the memories because you couldn't fight them both alone," he said. "You got lucky Graydon and Harlow showed up just as Loudon fought his way free of your trap. Next time you might not be so lucky. I promise that by the time I finish with you, you'll never have trouble with enemies of that caliber again."
Her head tilted. There were many responses she could have given him. Defenses. Excuses. Reasons why she'd chosen that route instead of another.
None of them mattered—because he was right. She hadn't been sure she could take both of them on at once. Not without possibly sacrificing Devon.
“I plan to keep an eye on you,” he told her in warning. “Never forget that.”
Kira stiffened, internally cursing. He remembered.
Wren moved toward the door, saying over his shoulder, "We ship out in a week; I expect to see you there. It seems the Haldeel have called a quorum. You and the others who passed will be part of a delegation handpicked by the emperor."
Jin rose behind her as Wren disappeared into her room. "Care to explain what that was about."
Kira scrubbed a hand over her face before facing the ocean again. "Not particularly."
"But you're gonna anyway," Jin sang.
Kira's head dropped. "I may have implied the daughter he lost in the Sorrowing is still alive."
Jin dipped. Long moments passed before he said, "I see I missed a few things after my spawn was incapacitated."
Kira grunted. That was an understatement.
"What are you going to do?" he asked. "You know what the group will do if they find out you're sharing secrets."
Kira had made certain promises. Promises she'd broken for Wren. The rest wouldn't be happy if they learned about it.
"I’m well aware of all the ways this could go wrong,” Kira said, resigned.
She was playing a dangerous game, with stakes she no longer felt certain she wanted to pay.
After several minutes, Jin floated to the railing next to her. "The Haldeel. Their territory was where Odin said Elise was last seen, wasn’t it?"
Kira’s lips curved. "And Wren just handed us the perfect excuse to go investigate."
Jin chuckled as he swung toward her door. "There's something I found that I think warrants investigating."
Kira stretched and stepped away from the railing. "I was starting to feel a little cooped up now that you mention it."
*