Then Calenelda said quietly. "Foxglove is still in there."
Talia froze. Then slowly looked back. Of course that was what lingered on Calenelda's mind.
"No."
Calenelda sat up despite the pain. "We have to go back."
"No."
"There are more draconians."
"I KNOW." Talia pressed the palm of her hand to her forehead. "Gahh, you can be so infuriating."
"They'll kill her." Calenelda almost whispered.
"And they almost killed you!" Talia lashed out with an anger she wasn't aware she was holding back.
Silence followed. Heavy and painful silence.
Calenelda looked away first. "I promised the Nyxir."
Talia laughed. Not because anything was funny, but because she was angry.
"So that's it?"
Calenelda frowned. "What?"
"You promised him."
"Yes."
"And that's worth your life?"
Calenelda hesitated. That in itself was answer enough. Talia's expression hardened.
"There it is."
"Talia—"
"There. It. Is."
The noblewoman took a step forward. "You always do this."
Calenelda blinked. "Do what?"
"You decide everyone else matters more than you do."
Calenelda looked genuinely confused.
"What are you talking about?"
Talia stared at her in disbelief. Then in frustration. Then something deeper.
"Do you know what I saw when I found you?"
For once Calenelda remained silent.
"I saw someone who would die for a promise." Talia's voice cracked. "I saw someone who would die for strangers." She took a step forward. "I saw someone who would die for me."
Calenelda swallowed. "Talia—"
"But never someone who thinks she's worth saving herself."
The words landed hard, because they were true. And Calenelda knew it. The silence stretched. Then she looked away.
"I don't know how."
Talia blinked. "What?"
Calenelda laughed softly. A broken laugh.
"I don't know how." Her hands clenched. "Everyone always needed something." Her voice grew quieter. "The patrols. The city. The temple. The arena. Stonefang."
The names kept coming. "The refugees. The pilgrims. The children. The wounded. Talia."
That one hurt most. Calenelda stared at the ground.
"I know how to help. I have the power to help." Her voice was barely above a whisper. "I know how to protect people. I know how to carry things. I know how to keep promises."
She looked up, and for the first time Talia saw the wetness in her eyes. A fragility she didn't know Calenelda was capable of.
"And if I stop..." The vulnerability in her eyes nearly broke Talia. "Then what am I?" She paused for a long while. "If I stop… I am my parents." Another pause. "I can't be my parents Talia. I can't become that person."
For a moment neither moved.
Then Talia whispered. "Calenelda..."
And finally she understood. Not the Diviner. Not the hero in the alley. Not the arena champion. Just the woman.
The woman who had spent her entire life earning her right to exist through sacrifice. The woman who genuinely believed her value came from what she could do for others. And nothing else. Talia's anger softened, only slightly.
"You're an idiot."
Calenelda blinked. "What?"
"A stubborn idiot." She flicked Calenelda's forehead.
"Talia—"
"A reckless idiot." Another flick followed.
"I—"
"A self-sacrificing idiot." A tap this time.
Calenelda couldn't even argue. Because it was true.
"You can't become your parents." Talia folded her arms. "I know you. We've been through enough together to know who you are. And it's not that kind of person."
Then another frustration surfaced. One that had been festering for weeks. Months. Maybe longer. Talia thought back on what Captain Laskaris had said. Talk to her.
The desert wind swept over the dunes, carrying distant echoes from the ruins. Before Talia could say anything about what happened between them, Calenelda broke the silence.
"We need to go back."
Talia groaned. "Of course that's where your mind goes."
"She'll be terrified."
"You're injured."
"She'll be terrified and I'll be injured."
Talia pinched the bridge of her nose. "You are impossible."
Calenelda smiled faintly. "I've been told that."
"By me."
"Mostly by you."
Despite herself, Talia smiled. Then her expression became serious again. The reality of their situation settled over them.
"Let's assume you're right," she said. "Let's assume Foxglove is alive." Calenelda nodded. "Then what?"
The question lingered. Talia looked toward the distant ruins.
"The draconian you killed wasn't an initiate."
"No."
"There are more."
"Yes."
"Many more."
Calenelda was quiet. Then she nodded again. "Probably."
Talia folded her arms. "And even together..." She hated admitting it. "...I'm not sure we win."
Calenelda didn't argue. That alone was concerning. Talia noticed.
"You agree."
"Against enough of them?" Calenelda admitted. "Without my magic at full disposal… Yes."
The answer surprised even her. The younger Calenelda would have charged forward regardless. The woman sitting beside her now looked genuinely troubled. In that moment Talia also realised that Calenelda had fought and survived against impossible things.. Seven foot tall scaly muscular things. And she had done so while being exhausted and her magic reserve nearly drained. For a split second, that realization filled her with a sense of awe.
"We need help." Calenelda admitted.
Talia laughed softly. "From who?"
Neither answered immediately. The names came and went. Laskaris? Too far away. The Vanguard? Not enough time. The Council? Absolutely not. Stonefang? Already injured.
The conclusion was unavoidable. There was nobody. No cavalry. No rescue. No convenient ally waiting just beyond the horizon. Just the two of them. And even together they might not be enough. Calenelda looked toward the ruins. Her expression darkened.
"There's something else."
Talia immediately picked up on the change. "What?"
Calenelda hesitated. Then slowly answered. "The energy."
"What energy?"
"The ruins."
Talia frowned. Calenelda's fingers brushed the sand.
"I can feel it."
"The same way you sensed things in Tan'thalon?"
"Similar. Like that time we faced those assassins on the rooftop."
The wind shifted around them. Calenelda's expression grew thoughtful.
"Not identical. But familiar."
Talia waited. Calenelda looked toward the distant silhouette of the ruins.
"It's the same feeling I had in the temple."
That got Talia's attention. "The temple?"
Calenelda nodded. "In Bahk'Ehmet."
"The one beneath the dunes."
"The place where I first felt..." she paused. "...something watching."
A chill ran down Talia's spine. The temple had changed everything. The change in both of them. The fear it took away. The growing mysteries surrounding May'Jahan. None of it had started in Tan'thalon. It had started there. And now Calenelda was sensing the same presence again. Which meant the draconians might not be searching for Foxglove at all. Or Lazulli. Or treasure. They might be searching for something much older. Something sacred. Or dangerous. And they might find something else entirely… Ba'Ham.
Talia was still considering that possibility when another realization struck her. She looked at Calenelda. Then looked again and blinked. Calenelda heard the sequence.
"What?"
Talia gestured vaguely. "Are you..." She gestured Calenelda up and down. "...aware of your current situation?"
Calenelda looked down, or more felt herself down. Tugging at what remained of her tunic. That was enough to snap one of the strands still in existence. Talia had long noticed that Calenelda wasn't wearing any undergarment, which made it hard for her to keep her blushing to a minimum. She had thought it odd since she found out that this woman was a noble. Nobles usually did wear things under their clothes. Perhaps this was a silent form of protest. Calenelda only shrugged.
"Yes."
"That's your response?"
"What should it be?"
Talia stared. "You're practically wearing bandages and optimism. In fact, you're wearing more bandages than clothes."
Calenelda looked genuinely confused. "So?"
Talia opened her mouth. Then closed it again. Because somehow Calenelda truly didn't seem bothered. Not embarrassed. Not self-conscious. Not even slightly uncomfortable. She simply existed. Entirely unbothered by how much skin she was currently showing. Talia couldn't decide whether that was confidence or madness.
"Most people would be mortified."
Calenelda snorted and waved a hand in front of her eyes. "Most people can see themselves."
"...that's not the point."
"Maybe not."
Calenelda stretched carefully before immediately regretting it. Then she smiled.
"I don't care."
Talia blinked. "What?"
Calenelda's expression softened. "I stopped worrying about what people think a long time ago." The answer came simply. Honestly. "No matter what I do, someone always has an opinion." She gave a small shrug. "They can have it." Then shrugged again. "They'll have to take me as I am."
Talia studied her. The certainty. The acceptance. The lack of shame. And suddenly she wondered if that was the real difference. Not confidence. Freedom. Calenelda wasn't afraid of being seen anymore. Not by strangers. Not by friends. Not even by Talia.
She had spent so much of her life hiding pieces of herself. Now she didn't. And there was something beautiful about that. Dangerous and terrifying, but beautiful. Talia looked away before Calenelda noticed. Or rather, pretended not to notice.
Then another thought surfaced. A strange one. An impossible one. She looked toward the ruins. Toward the draconians. Toward whatever they were searching for. Slowly, a smile appeared. Calenelda immediately became suspicious.
"You're smiling funny, aren't you?"
"I have an idea."
"Oh no."
Talia ignored her. "The draconians came here looking for their lineage. A dragon."
Calenelda froze. "...yes."
She had come to that exact same thought as well.
"They believe something ancient is buried beneath those ruins."
"Probably."
Talia's smile widened. A dangerous smile. The kind Calenelda usually wore. Which should have worried her. Instead it intrigued her.
"Talia."
The noblewoman pointed toward the horizon. Far beyond the dunes. Toward the distant sleeping shape that both of them knew existed somewhere in the desert. The ancient giant buried beneath the sands. The one Calenelda had rescued her from. The impossible thing. The Desert Colossus.
Calenelda's eyes widened. Then widened further. Then widened further still.
"Talia."
"If the draconians are looking for a dragon..."
"Talia."
"...why don't we give them one?"
Silence followed. Stonefang slowly lifted his head. Even the wolf looked concerned.
Calenelda stared at her. "Talia."
"Yes?"
"That's either the best idea you've ever had." She paused, long enough to make her doubt. "Or the worst."
Talia grinned. "Then it's a good thing we're going to find out."
For the first time since waking, Calenelda laughed. A genuine laugh. And somewhere beneath the dunes outside Tan'Thalon – something colossal stirred from its slumber.
As the sun climbed ever higher, it warped the shadows cast by the ruins. Talia and Calenelda had retreated to a safer distance from the Draconians. They couldn't afford a direct confrontation with them. They needed a plan first. A plan on how to call the Colossus. They had been amused by how Talia started to sound more like her, which had caused Calenelda to burst into laughter. When her laughter faded into a thoughtful smile, Talia's expression changed. She had been watching her carefully. Too carefully. She thought back at how little gusts of wind swirled around Calenelda's unconscious body. Back to the alley when she had rescued her and fought the ember seeker with only earth magic.
And Calenelda noticed. "What?"
"There's something I haven't told you." Calenelda's smile disappeared. "That sounds ominous."
"It is." Talia sounded cautious.
"Excellent."
Talia sighed. "You're double awakened."
Calenelda stared at her. "...I'm what?"
"Double awakened." Talia pronounced each word separately and clearly.
"I heard the words."
"Good."
"I just don't know what they mean."
Talia's eyebrows rose. "You don't know?"
Calenelda shrugged. "I'm self-taught."
"I know."
"I learned earth magic because the ground doesn't require me to see it."
"Calenelda."
"And air because apparently nearly dying in a sandstorm is educational."
Talia stared at her in confusion. "That's not how elementalism works."
Calenelda pulled her shoulders up. "Worked for me."
"That's exactly the problem." Talia pinched the bridge of nose at this impossible woman.
Calenelda frowned. Talia moved closer.
"In the ruins, you used earth and air."
"I know."
"Together."
Calenelda's brow furrowed. "I've always used them separately."
"I don't think you realised or noticed, but you illuminated the dark at times with flashes..." Talia was very careful in her wording. That made Calenelda pause.
"I did? But how?"
"Lightning Calenelda. You created lightning." Talia paused.
Calenelda looked away. "Wonderful."
"That's not the part you should be worried about."
"What part should I be worried about?"
Talia's voice softened. "The fact that you shouldn't be able to do it. No study has ever reported elementalists that could create lightning.. Not alone."
Calenelda was silent. Talia continued.
"Elementalists normally awaken to one element. That's it. Most spend their entire lives mastering that one connection."
Calenelda nodded. "Yes."
"You awakened earth."
"I know."
"And then air."
"I know that too."
"Under extreme stress."
Calenelda's expression slowly changed. "The sandstorm."
Talia nodded. "You were protecting me. The patrol. You pushed your earth magic until you were nearly dead."
Calenelda's fingers tightened around the edge of the cloak she had commandeered from Talia to protect against the sun. "And that's when it happened."
"I think so."
Calenelda looked down towards her hands. "I thought I was just... doing something different."
"That's because you have apparently spent your entire life teaching yourself magic without bothering to learn what the rest of the world already knows."
Calenelda looked offended. "I had books."
"Apparently not enough books."
"I had several."
"How many?"
"...three."
Talia stared. "Three?"
"They were very good books."
"That's not enough.." Talia slapped the palm of her hand to her forehead.
"Hey! It's not my fault there aren't many books that I can read." Calenelda looked even more offended. "I know it's easy to forget, but the world isn't always built for the blind."
Calenelda crossed her arms and huffed.
"Why didn't you ask anyone for help then?"
"I'm independent."
"May'Jahan preserve me."
Calenelda smiled faintly. "She seems to be trying."
The humor disappeared quickly. Talia crouched in front of her.
"This isn't funny." Talia tried to get her to take this seriously.
"I know."
"No, you don't." Talia's voice carried something deeper now. Fear. "If the cultists learn what you are—"
"They already know I exist. I stopped plenty in the city."
"They know you're an elementalist." Talia pointed at her. "That is different."
Calenelda's expression tightened. "How different?"
"Because a double awakening isn't just rare." Talia hesitated. "It's something people have written prophecies about."
Calenelda tilted her head. "Prophecies?"
"The Event Horizon Child."
Calenelda's face went blank. "...that sounds dramatic."
"It is."
"Who writes these things?"
"Ancient scholars."
"Of course."
Talia ignored her. "The prophecy speaks of someone who awakens repeatedly under extreme conditions."
Calenelda's humor faded. "And then?"
Talia looked directly into her pale green eyes. "Eventually, all four elements. Someone who crosses what they call the elemental event horizon."
Silence ensued. Calenelda looked toward the distant ruins. "That's impossible."
"Maybe."
"But you're worried."
"Yes."
"Why?"
"Because you've already done it twice." Calenelda swallowed. Talia continued. "And you keep putting yourself in situations where you're almost killed."
Calenelda gave her an annoyed look. "That isn't intentional."
"It certainly seems to happen frequently."
"Perhaps the world has something against me."
"Perhaps you have something against living."
Calenelda's expression hardened. "That's unfair."
"Is it?"
"Yes."
"You nearly died today."
"I was trying to save Foxglove."
"You nearly died in the sandstorm."
"I was trying to save you."
That stopped Talia. The words sat between them. Calenelda realized what she'd said. Her expression softened. Then hardened again.
"And you kissed me."
Talia froze. There it was. The thing neither of them wanted to touch. Calenelda looked away.
"And afterward you decided duty was more important."
Talia's jaw tightened. "That's not what happened."
"It felt like it."
"You don't know what I was thinking."
"No." Calenelda's voice was quiet. "Because you wouldn't tell me."
Talia looked down. The silence hurt.
Calenelda continued. "So forgive me if I'm not particularly interested in being told what I should fear now."
Talia looked back at her. "I'm not trying to control you."
"You're doing a remarkable imitation."
"I'm trying to keep you alive."
"You keep saying that."
"Because you keep making it necessary!" The air stirred. Sand lifted around them. Calenelda's eyes narrowed. Talia didn't back down. "If the Circle of Veils discovers you're double awakened, they'll watch you."
"The cult?"
"The Circle. Ba'ham's people. The Wardens. Possibly the council."
Calenelda's face tightened. "And if they believe the prophecy?"
"Then you won't be a person anymore." Talia's voice dropped. "You'll become a possibility."
A weapon. A symbol. A threat. A prophecy waiting to happen. Calenelda understood. She looked toward the ruins. Then toward Talia.
"So what do you want me to do?"
"Stop throwing yourself into danger."
Calenelda gave her a flat look. "You're asking the wrong woman."
"I know."
"And if Foxglove is still alive?"
"Then we make a plan."
Calenelda considered this. "A plan involving the giant monster?"
Talia smiled faintly. "The dragon."
"The thing that will probably kill us."
"That too."
Calenelda shook her head. "You're impossible."
"You love me."
Calenelda went completely still. Talia did too. Neither of them spoke. Then Calenelda's mouth curved into the smallest smile. "Apparently."
Talia looked away, cheeks warming. "Don't make me regret saying that."
"You already regret everything."
Talia's eyes snapped back toward her. "Calenelda."
"What?"
"You are infuriating."
"And you're still staring."
"I am not."
"You are."
Talia looked away again. Calenelda smiled. For a moment, the tension between them softened. But neither forgot what Talia had said. The Event Horizon. The cultists. The possibility that Calenelda's second awakening was not the end. Only the beginning.