Darkfall by M L Spencer

Author:M L Spencer [Spencer, M L]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: epic fantasy
ISBN: 9780999782545
Publisher: Stoneguard Publications
Published: 2018-11-28T07:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twenty-Five

Branching and Unbranching

Isle of Titherry, The Rhen

“Are you sure you can do this by yourself?” Quin asked. “You’re not a Harbinger.”

Naia paused, one hand lingering on the balustrade, and looked back at him. Quin stood on the balcony overlooking the Crescent with his hat in hand, hair tousled by the wind. He was trying to look unruffled but failing miserably. He hadn’t seemed right in days. Not since the morning they’d buried Tsula.

“I am the closest thing to a Harbinger there is left in the world,” Naia corrected him. “I no longer need Tsula’s guidance. At least, not to read the Crescent.”

His brow furrowed. “In my time, it took twenty years to train a Harbinger.” He bounced his hat against his leg. “Don’t you think you might be getting ahead of yourself?”

Naia shot him a reproving look. “Most of the training Harbingers received went toward teaching them how to cope with their visions. Simply reading the Crescent is effortless.”

Quin planted his hat squarely on his head. “Is that why Tsula had the personality of a rock?”

“Harbingers were trained to let go of all attachments and emotions. I think it was the only way they could protect themselves from going insane.”

“I don’t want you going up there,” he said firmly, his face stern.

“I’m going up there,” she insisted, and set a hand on his arm. “That’s the reason why we’re here. With Tsula gone, I might see new versions that were not available before. I have to try. I’m going to die, anyway, in just a few days—”

“No, you’re not.”

Looking suddenly more dangerous than she’d ever seen him, Quin stared at her piercingly. He held her gaze steady for a long moment, then leaned in to press a slow, lingering kiss on her lips.

“Come back to me,” he ordered, his eyes still fixed on hers.

Naia swallowed, taken aback. And stunned by the bold feelings his kiss inspired. She licked her lips and turned away, feeling off-balance. This wasn’t the Quin she had known, she realized. Tsula’s death had changed him.

A bolt of understanding rocked her hard. This was Quin the way he used to be, she realized. This was the man he had been, before Amani’s death had extinguished the spark within him. Naia turned slowly back around, searching his face for confirmation. Quin regarded her with a steady confidence she’d never seen before.

“I’ll come back,” she assured him.

Naia turned away and walked through the stone balustrade onto the arching path of transparent stepping stones. The breeze caressed her face and fanned her hair. It felt cool, even as the sun felt warm on her skin. She followed the invisible path out over the mercurial surface of the Crescent toward the Nexus.

Steadying herself, Naia passed through the thin membrane. Entering the room always reminded her of the way a stick can pass through the surface of a bubble without bursting it. Inside, she found herself once again within the dark, spherical chamber. The silver tendrils writhed across the walls like vines, twining and untwining, branching and unbranching.

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