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“Are you going to behave?”
I nod my head as much as his grip will allow.
“Good.” He starts to peel back his fingers, but I rip my jaw out of his clutches and suck in a mouthful of air not marred with his stench.
“Relax, lass. Don’t embarrass yourself.”
His hold on me slips down so it no longer digs into my armpit. I stand under my own strength.
A quick glance above and behind reveals we’re on the edge of the forest. The trees are lit with a sickly light. A raised platform lies ahead, with sola bones at its corners. Beyond that ... darkness.
The rippling of many voices being shushed to silence washes through the clearing like a wave. My brows knock together as I try to understand.
I decide a whispered question is worth the risk. “What is this?”
The person behind me sputters out a grating laugh. “Your debut.”
My debut? I try to spin around to see him, but he jerks me to keep me where I am. “What are you talking about?”
Another man’s leering face comes into view on my right. He motions to the platform with his giant, stubbly chin. “Wait and see, sweetheart.”
Straining my eyes to pick out anything past the blinding bones, I see a person on top of the platform. He is robed in so many inky linens, I mistook him for the darkness itself. But the glow of his anemic hair is unmistakable.
My uncle.
He holds up his arms, his white hands reflecting sola light like mirrors.
A collective gasp emanates from the audience—presumably the whole of the Vale—as if he conducted them to do so. I look up to see what has provoked their speechless awe.
A vortex of ténesomni spirals overhead, visible even in this dense night. It is so thick, it’s a marvel there are any shadows left anywhere in the whole world.
I wonder at the purpose of it. The display unnerves me, I’ll admit, but I can’t shake the feeling Myrzeth is showing off. And that takes the edge off my fear.
How could this narcissistic man ever be related to my mother?
With a wave of his hands, he releases the shadows, to the delight of the crowd. Ténesomni rushes back to its natural place—everywhere except around me.
He nods subtly. I jump when the booming of drums eviscerates the silence. They rattle in my chest, as if it is a hollow cavern. Three drums to my left, three to my right.
“Welcome, valefolk.”
His voice projects unnaturally. Does the darkness carry it for him?
“You’ve been called here to witness the beginning of a new era in the Vale.”
Whispers slither through the air from the valefolk, and I don’t blame them. Even my curiosity is piqued.
The tilt of my uncle’s head shows he finds the reaction to his liking. He raises his hands and waits for the people to still once more.
“But before I get ahead of myself, I need to welcome our guests of honor.”
At first, I think he means me, but I am only one person. And I know he would never honor me. When he bows his head and mutters, I understand. He is summoning something.
Strange words escape his lips—a language that feels even older than Atsunic. After a beat, I hear something else. Something I’ve experienced before in the dead loneliness of the forest. Heavy footfalls.
This time, it’s not only from one huge creature. This sound issues from dozens.
41. Teron
