No reckless confidence. No certainty. Only that quiet, frightened apology.
"I'm sorry, Talia… I called it."
Talia's expression softened. She stepped closer and took Calenelda's hand.
"Then we'll deal with it."
Calenelda shook her head. "You don't understand."
"I probably don't." Her fingers tightened around Calenelda's. "But I'm still here."
The Diviner's lips parted, but no words came. Foxglove watched them both, her enormous ears twitching toward the ground.
"Perhaps we should leave," she said quietly.
Calenelda nodded. "Yes."
They moved back toward the temple entrance. Stonefang went first. His injured leg made every step uneven, but he refused to be carried. He was probably too heavy to be carried anyway. He kept looking back at Calenelda, as though making certain she was still following. Talia had tried three times to make him stop. Three times, he had ignored her. By the fourth, she had given up.
"You know," she muttered, walking beside him, "for something that supposedly understands me, you are remarkably bad at listening."
Stonefang flicked one ear backward. Calenelda laughed.
"He heard you."
"That isn't the same as listening."
"He's deciding whether you're worth listening to."
Talia glanced at her. "Whose side are you on?"
"My own."
"That wasn't an option."
"It always is."
Foxglove, walking a short distance behind them, gave a quiet snort. Talia looked back.
"What?"
"Nothing."
"You're laughing."
"I am not."
"You are."
Foxglove's ears twitched.
"I am merely becoming accustomed to the strange behavior of my rescuers."
Calenelda tilted her head. "Strange?"
"You rescued me from an ancient temple while wearing almost nothing."
Talia's face immediately warmed. Calenelda grinned. Foxglove continued.
"Then you spent the next several minutes flirting with one another in front of a wall depicting the end of civilizations."
Calenelda's grin widened. "I wasn't aware you could see in the dark."
"I have enormous ears."
"Fair point."
Talia groaned. "Please don't encourage her."
"I don't think I could stop her."
Stonefang gave a low, exhausted rumble. Foxglove looked down at him.
"And I think he agrees."
Calenelda reached forward and scratched behind Stonefang's ear.
"He's just jealous."
Stonefang's ears flattened, which caused Talia to laugh. For the first time since they had entered the temple, the sound felt easy. No council. No cult. No ancient gods. No Colossus. Just the four of them together. For a little while, that was enough.
The moment they stepped outside, the heat struck them. The desert was still. Far too still. No wind. No distant calls. Not even the usual shifting of sand. What was more unsettling, there was no trace of the Colossus or the Draconians. Talia looked toward the horizon.
"Where did they go?"
Calenelda didn't answer immediately. Her head tilted. She listened. Then frowned.
"That's the problem."
"What?"
"I can't feel them."
Talia's expression hardened. "Could they have left?"
"Maybe." Calenelda pressed her palm against the sand. "Or they're somewhere I can't reach."
Stonefang growled. Talia looked down at him.
"You agree?"
The wolf stared toward the distant dunes. His ears were forward. Calenelda felt his tension through the ground.
"So do I."
They returned briefly to the temple entrance so Talia could properly tend to Stonefang's injured leg. The wolf tolerated it with the long-suffering patience of a creature who had already decided humans were incompetent but occasionally useful.
"You're lucky," Talia murmured.
Stonefang looked at her.
"Don't look at me like that. I know you don't like being fussed over."
His ears twitched.
"But you're going to let me do it anyway."
Stonefang sighed. Calenelda sat nearby, listening to them.
"You're getting good at that."
"At what?"
"Understanding him."
Talia glanced at her. "I've had practice."
"He doesn't trust many people."
"I know."
Calenelda smiled. "You're one of them."
Talia's hands paused. The silence lasted just a little too long. Foxglove noticed. Of course she noticed. She looked between them. Then very deliberately looked away. Talia cleared her throat.
"I suppose I am."
Calenelda's smile softened. She reached down and rested her hand against Stonefang's neck. The wolf leaned into her touch.
"You were scared of losing me."
Talia looked up. "I was."
Calenelda didn't tease her. That was what surprised Talia. Instead, the Diviner simply nodded.
"I know." She paused, fiddling with her fingers. A sign, Talia had learned, meant she was a little nervous. "Thank you."
Talia looked down at the bandage she was wrapping around Stonefang's leg.
"You don't have to thank me."
"I do."
Calenelda's voice was quiet. "You've been doing it a lot lately."
"Doing what?"
"Staying."
Talia's fingers tightened around the bandage. "I'm not going anywhere."
Calenelda smiled. "I know."
Foxglove glanced over. For once, she didn't make a joke.
Later, when the heat began to soften, Foxglove finally spoke. She had been sitting beneath the shade of a broken pillar, wings folded tightly against her body.
"Why?"
Calenelda turned toward her. "Why what?"
"Why did you save me?"
Talia looked over. Foxglove's enormous ears lowered slightly.
"You had no reason to."
Calenelda tilted her head. "We had a reason."
"You barely knew me."
"We didn't need to."
Foxglove frowned. "Then who told you?"
Talia exchanged a glance with Calenelda.
"A Nyxir," she said.
Foxglove's ears immediately rose. "What Nyxir?"
"He was in another temple," Calenelda explained. "The one at Bahk'Ehmet. He was dying."
"He had forgotten almost everything," Talia continued. "Even his own name."
Foxglove stared at them.
"He told us you were here."
"He asked us to find you." Calenelda smiled faintly. "He couldn't remember what you were called."
Foxglove looked down. For the first time, something vulnerable crossed her face.
"He forgot me?"
"Not you." Calenelda shook her head. "Just your name."
Foxglove was silent.
Then she asked: "What did you call me?"
Talia looked slightly embarrassed. "Calenelda named you."
Foxglove looked at the Diviner. "Why?"
Calenelda shrugged. "I needed something that suited you."
"And?"
"You're beautiful."
Foxglove blinked. Calenelda continued matter-of-factly.
"Poisonous." Foxglove's mouth opened slightly. "And difficult to forget." A faint smile appeared on Foxglove's face.
"Foxglove."
Calenelda nodded. "Foxglove."
"That is… surprisingly appropriate."
"I thought so."
Foxglove looked toward the desert. "His name was Noctis."
Talia's expression changed. "You remember?"
Foxglove nodded. "He called himself Noctis."
Calenelda's fingers curled slightly. "Noctis…"
She repeated the name as though committing it to memory.
Foxglove looked at her. "He asked you to save me."
"He did."
"Then I owe him."
Calenelda shook her head. "No."
Foxglove frowned.
"You owe him nothing." Calenelda's voice softened. "He already did what he wanted to do."
She glanced toward the ruined temple. "He made sure someone remembered you."
Foxglove was silent. Then she smiled faintly.
"I suppose he did."
The day progressed, casting various shadows over the dunes. Calenelda sat at the entrance of the temple. Staring out at the dunes with her hands splayed beside her. Listening. Foxglove had taken the opportunity to get some rest and slept with her wings folded tightly around her. Stonefang rested beside Calenelda, though his ears remained alert. Talia didn't sleep. She looked toward Calenelda. The Diviner sat cross-legged beside Stonefang, one hand buried in his fur.
"You're doing it again," Talia said.
Calenelda tilted her head. "Doing what?"
"Listening to the ground."
"Yes."
"Why?"
Calenelda's fingers slowly moved through Stonefang's fur. "Because it feels different."
Talia sat upright. "How?"
"Everything is quieter."
She frowned. "Not literally. The desert is never quiet."
"What do you mean?"
Calenelda looked toward the darkness. "After the temple, I can feel things more clearly."
Talia remembered the strange glow beneath Calenelda's skin. "You're worried."
"A little."
That answer alone was enough to make Talia sit closer. "You don't have to hide it."
"I know." Calenelda smiled faintly. "I'm learning."
Talia watched her for a moment. "You really have changed."
Calenelda nodded. "I know."
"And you're still figuring out what that means."
"Yes."
Talia leaned back. "Then don't figure it out alone."
Calenelda turned toward her. "I wasn't planning to."
For a moment, neither spoke. Then Calenelda smiled.
"You know, you're becoming very good at this."
"At what?"
"Keeping me alive."
Talia smiled. "Someone has to."
Stonefang gave a soft groan. Calenelda giggled.
"Even he agrees."
Talia looked down at the wolf. "I think he's just tired of listening to us."
Stonefang opened one eye. Then closed it again.
Foxglove emerged from beneath the blanket, ears twitching.
"What do you feel?"
Calenelda's palm remained against the earth. "The juvenile is moving. I've found it."
"Toward us?"
"No." She frowned. "Toward something."
Talia saw a change in Calenelda's expression. Concern.
"What is it?"
"The Juvenile." Calenelda answered. "It's afraid. It's afraid because they're hunting it." She swallowed. "Because I lured it here."
She got that look in her eyes again. Talia recognized it immediately and sighed.
"You're about to jump again, aren't you.."
Calenelda just smirked. "Can't help it. We need set this right!"
Soon enough they climbed the nearest dune. The desert stretched endlessly before them. For several moments, there was nothing.
Then Foxglove pointed. "There."
A dark shape moved along the horizon. The juvenile Colossus. Even from this distance, it was enormous. It was retreating. Behind it came the Draconians. They were pursuing it across the dunes, shouting and throwing spears whenever they came close enough.
Talia stared."They're chasing it."
"They think they can kill it," Foxglove said.
Calenelda's expression tightened. "They're driving it somewhere."
The juvenile suddenly changed direction. The words disappeared into the desert.
Calenelda froze. The vibration came again. Slow. Deep. So deep that it seemed less like movement and more like the earth itself remembering something.
Talia looked at her. "Calenelda?"
The Diviner didn't answer. Her head was tilted. Listening. Not with her ears. With everything.
"There."
"What?"
"The juvenile."
Foxglove's ears turned toward the horizon. "I can't hear it."
"You wouldn't." Calenelda slowly stood. "It's afraid."
Talia glanced toward the distant dunes. The juvenile was barely visible anymore. Only a dark shape moving between the dunes. Behind it, the Draconians continued their pursuit. Their spears flashed in the sunlight.
"They're driving it toward the Mountain."
Calenelda's face tightened. "That isn't what I intended."
"You didn't know its mother would come."
"No." The Diviner's hand curled into a fist. "But I knew something would happen."
Talia stared at her.
Calenelda lowered her head. "I should have thought farther."
For once, there was no excuse. No joke. No teasing remark. She had called the juvenile because Foxglove needed to be rescued. It had worked. Foxglove was alive. The Draconians had been drawn away. They had escaped the temple. But the consequences had followed them. And now something ancient was approaching. Something that had been walking across this desert long before Tan'Thalon had been imagined. Before the Arc Wall. Before the Council. Perhaps before humans had ever crossed these sands.
Calenelda swallowed. "I need to get it home."
Talia's eyes widened. "You can barely stand."
"I know."
"You've spent nearly everything you had."
"I know."
"Calenelda."
The Diviner turned toward her. Talia's expression was no longer stern. It was afraid.
"You can't keep doing this."
Calenelda gave her a tired smile. "I know."
She crouched. Stonefang immediately moved toward her. The wolf placed himself between Calenelda and the ground. She reached out and touched his muzzle.
"I have to."
Stonefang gave a low growl.
"I know." Another growl. "I know." A third.
Calenelda sighed. "You're very persuasive."
Talia almost smiled. Then the earth moved. The humor vanished from all three faces. The tremor was stronger this time. Sand shifted around their feet. A small ridge collapsed somewhere behind them.
Foxglove's wings spread instinctively. "What was that?"
Calenelda didn't answer. Her palm pressed harder into the sand. And then she felt it. The juvenile. Its vibrations were frantic. Its body was exhausted. She could feel the pounding rhythm of its legs through the earth. Behind it came the Draconians. And beyond them—
something else. Calenelda's expression changed.
"It's almost here."
Talia looked toward the horizon. "Then let's go."
Calenelda shook her head. "No."
Talia stared. "What?"
"I need to guide the juvenile."
"Calenelda, you just said it's almost here."
"Exactly." She shifted her weight. "If it reaches the Mountain while it's still being chased, the Draconians will follow it."
Talia understood. "They'll lead them straight to it."
"Yes."
"And then?"
Calenelda's mouth tightened. "I don't know."
That was perhaps the most frightening answer she could have given.
She lowered herself onto the sand. Both palms pressed against the earth. Her breathing slowed. She searched for the juvenile's rhythm. There. Thirty enormous legs. A stagger. Another. A stumble.
Calenelda winced. "Easy…"
The creature couldn't hear her. But it could feel her. She sent a vibration through the sand. Slow. Gentle. A pattern, not a command. A direction. The juvenile stumbled. Stopped. Calenelda sent the pulse again. This way. The juvenile turned.
Talia watched the distant shape change direction. "It heard you."
Calenelda smiled faintly. "It feels me."
She pushed another pulse outward. Her body immediately reacted. A sharp pain ran through her arms. Her breath caught. Talia saw it.
"That's enough."
"No."
"You're already exhausted."
"I called it."
"You called it to save Foxglove."
"And now I need to make sure it gets home."
Another pulse. The juvenile turned again. Calenelda's breathing became heavier. Stonefang whined. She ignored him.
"Come on…" Another vibration. "Come on."
Her shoulders began to shake. The sand around her palms trembled. Talia crouched beside her.
"Calenelda."
"I've got it."
"You don't."
"I do."
"No, you don't."
The Diviner's head snapped toward her. Talia placed both hands on her shoulders.
"You don't have to prove anything to me."
Calenelda went still. "I know."
"Then stop."
Calenelda looked toward the horizon. "I can't."
"Why?"
"Because it's scared."
Talia stared at her. Calenelda smiled faintly.
"And because I know what that's like."
That was enough. Talia released her. She understood. Calenelda turned back toward the earth. The next pulse was weaker. Then weaker still. Her magical reserves were nearly gone. But the juvenile was getting closer. The vibrations beneath the sand became more familiar. Its frantic rhythm was slowing. The Draconians were still behind it. But the juvenile was no longer running blindly. It knew where it was going. Home.
Calenelda's hands began to shake violently. She gasped. Talia caught her before she fell.
"That's it."
Calenelda's forehead rested against Talia's shoulder. "No…"
"You're done."
"Almost…"
"Calenelda."
The Diviner lifted her head. She could feel it. The juvenile was there. At the edge of the Mountain's shadow. She sent one final pulse. A gentle one. A farewell.