Page 83 of Tides of Shadows

I clenched my teeth.

“If someone ever appears, I will let you know.”

“I should hope so,” Victor said with satisfaction, clicking his tongue to urge his horse forward.

“It is not that Cavareth boy, is it?” he called over his shoulder.

“Father!” I shouted, but he only laughed aloud.

“Daughter, I was young once too!” he called back. “And I know when someone irritates you that much, it is rarely without a reason!”

Kael and Brenn were crying with laughter. And I… I wanted to throw them all into the nearest stream. But in the end, I smiled to myself. Because despite everything… It was good to hear my father laugh again.

We rode on in silence. The forest grew thicker, the branches hanging low as if to bar the way to any who dared come too close. The air turned cooler, heavier. Only the steady beat of hooves and the snapping of twigs broke the stillness. After some time, a stone obelisk appeared in the distance, tall and overgrown with moss and ivy. Father raised his hand, signaling us to stop.

“Here. We go on foot from this point,” he said, dismounting.

We followed him deeper into the woods. With every step the silence thickened. No birds sang, not even the wind stirred. Soon we saw the faint outline of walls ahead. The temple was but a shadow of its former glory. The stones were veiled in moss, the roots of trees breaking through the foundation. The roof was gone, and the statues of gods stood broken, faceless. Damp earth clung to my boots, and the air smelled of decay.

“This is it,” Father whispered. “The ancient temple of the Elements.”

I looked around the place that had once been sacred. Between the stone columns stood large bowls, round vases set upon pedestals. They resembled the ones in the palace catacombs, though these were older, stripped of their carvings. I lifted my gaze and noticed something strange. Four vases stood evenly spaced, but beside them lay the shattered remains of a fifth column, broken into pieces.

A chill ran through me.

“Father,” I asked softly, “do all temples have these vases?”

Victor moved closer, running his hand along one of the stones.

“Not all,” he said. “Only the oldest. They were used when people still offered tribute to the gods. Later, such practices faded. Once, palladium was given as an offering. When that ended, the few who still came left simpler gifts: a lump of earth, drops of water, a burning candle. Only superstitions remained.”“

“And you?” I asked, though I already suspected the answer. “What did you offer, when you made your sacrifice?”

He looked at me with quiet gravity.

“Blood,” he said without hesitation. “Your mother’s and mine.”

Of course. I fell silent, glancing down at my hands. The skin was smooth, yet I knew how much power it could unleash.

“Then perhaps it was never just superstition,” I murmured.

I moved deeper among the ruins, touching the moss-covered stones. Each seemed to tremble faintly, as if something within them still slept. I stopped by the remains of the broken column.

“Have you ever seen a fifth vase before?” I asked, pointing to the fragments.

“Rarely,” Father admitted. “I paid no mind to it once, but lately I have heard the fifth bowl was cursed. No one dared make an offering there. The boldest would destroy it, fearing ill fortune.”

I stared at the dark shards of stone, and suddenly my dream came rushing back. The black vase, obsidian-dark and cold as the grave. My chest tightened. I didn’t know whether it was a coincidence or a sign. Father ordered the guards to transcribe all visible runes.

“We will take the inscriptions to the palace,” he said. “The scribes will try to decipher them. Some of these symbols may be older than our oldest books.”

I helped for a while, though I felt nothing. No trace of magic, no echo of the elements. As though the place itself had died.

“There is nothing left here,” I said at last, glancing around the ruins. “As if someone drained all power from this ground.” Father nodded, and we made our way back to the horses.

The forest swallowed us again in silence. The sunlight filtered through the leaves like through green glass, and I could not stop thinking about the fifth bowl. The one meant for a god no one worshiped anymore.

The journey took three days and two nights. When we finally reached the palace, I wanted nothing more than a bath and a soft bed. Father went straight to the library with the runes and scrolls we had found, while I stayed behind to unsaddle my horse and ensure the guards led the rest of the animals to the stables.