The Boy with Fire by Aparna Verma

Author:Aparna Verma [Verma, Aparna]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781636763552
Publisher: Aparna Creative LLC
Published: 2021-08-16T20:00:00+00:00

26

Leo

“Peace,” the land rumbled.

“Change,” the sky whispered.

“Destiny,” the fire hissed.

—from The Legends and Myths of Sayon

Leo tapped the concrete table before him, the bitter taste of sand still in his mouth. After learning of Saayna’s deceit, he had wanted to rush back to the Temple. He had wanted to hold her remaining priests over the Fire until she cowered and told him the truth.

But Alonjo had advised against it, arguing that killing the priests and the High Priestess before the coronation would only bring trouble.

“Citizens will question the legitimacy of Elena’s reign if she is not properly inducted by the Order,” the Astra had said.

Grudgingly, Leo had found himself in agreement. The Order was a crucial part of the coronation. The High Priestess bestowed the blessings of the Eternal Fire onto the next monarch, who then promised to lead Ravence into another glorious generation. A divine ruler was nothing without her god.

Everywhere he turned, the Phoenix lay in wait. Her fiery grasp reached every part of his kingdom, his history. He despised Her, yet he could not rule his kingdom without Her.

The coronation was now less than two weeks away, and the Prophet was still free. As he sat at his desk, studying the runes, Leo no longer felt rage. Instead, a cold resolve had hardened in its place like the desert’s diamond-backed serpent.

Alonjo arrived carrying a tray, and Leo watched him pour tea into gem-encrusted cups. The surrounding fire crackled softly. Alonjo offered a cup to Leo.

“To Ravence and her dream,” he said.

“To Ravence,” Leo returned.

The tea scalded his tongue, but he swallowed it without complaint. Alonjo sighed and sank back in his seat. His eyebrows drooped past the corners of his eyes, giving him a sleepy, dazed look.

“I suppose there is only one thing left to do,” he said, his voice heavy.

Leo nodded. He enlarged the holos of the runes. The burning symbol left by the Arohassin glared at him. Spreading out his hands, Leo brought up a topographical map of Ravence with all her dunes and canyons. He looked at Alonjo over the peaks of the Agnee Range.

“After we plot these runes, we’ll know the truth,” Leo said.

I hope.

He overlaid the first sign, the feather of the Phoenix, onto the map. It stretched across Ravence like a long scar. He then took the second rune—the one left by the Arohassin, the inward storm with an arrow’s end—and planted it over the feather. It swept across the valleys and dunes, the eye of the storm settling on the capital.

Leo waved his hand, and the third symbol floated over the others. The leafless banyan tree. He placed it on top of the others, noting how its bare branches brushed the tips of the Agnee mountains while its trunk split the desert in half. Leo called for the last sign, but then he hesitated.

This rune was simple—a circle with a dot in the middle. He had never seen it before in his texts, or, if he had, he overlooked it for its mundanity.

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