— Rutrogar Drugal, “Insectoids of Ageria: Volume Two,” page 68
Emily sat on the grassy hill. The callouses on her bare feet brushed against sun-baked earth.
Her skin was slick with sweat. It trickled down the curve of her cheek and dripped from her chin. The braid she’d tied her hair into that morning had mostly unraveled. Her shirt clung to her back, soaked through and plastered to her skin.
Her body was aching in places she didn’t know could ache. Her shoulders were as tight as rope, and her thighs were still trembling with exhaustion from the rigorous exercises Mina had put her through today. Her hands were raw and dotted with tiny blisters. Even her fingers felt sore.
But, of course, the day wasn’t over, and that meant more training. She was alone this time, forced to meditate until she learned to be one with the dirt.
She closed her eyes and breathed deeply. Inhale. Exhale. Let the tension melt. Let the thoughts pass like clouds. Let the noise of the world become background hum. The earth was under her. That was enough. She didn’t have to move it. Not yet. She just had to listen.
But she still heard nothing. After an hour of trying, frustration started bubbling in her gut again. It felt hopeless, like she was never going to get the hang of it.
Just before she was about to try again, though, someone approached. She could hear grass rustling under their footsteps.
Emily opened one eye, expecting it to be Henrik or Violet, but it was Lux. She approached barefoot, with a basket of apples hooked over one arm, and with her other hand, she was playing with the end of her long, golden braid. Just from one look, Emily was fairly certain that the particular robe she was wearing was meant for temple ceremonies. Yet, she treated it like ordinary clothes.
“You look like shit,” Lux said cheerfully.
Emily laughed and wiped the back of her hand across her forehead. “Thanks. I feel like shit.”
“Then I’ll consider it an honest look.” Lux grinned and tossed an apple to her. Emily caught it on instinct, but winced when it landed in her blistered palm.
Lux plopped down beside her without asking, folding her legs. She leaned back on one hand, setting the basket between them.
“So,” she said. “What exactly are you doing?”
Emily took a bite of the apple and chewed slowly, savoring the crisp, sweet flavor. “Meditating.”
Lux raised an eyebrow. “Meditating? You look like you just went for a swim.”
“I was training with Mina earlier.”
“Ah. So this is the moment where you pretend you didn’t almost pass out.”
Emily gave a sheepish shrug. “It’s supposed to help me connect with the earth. It’s part of learning geokinesis.”
Lux tilted her head. “By… sitting?”
“And listening,” Emily said defensively. “It’s more than just sitting. It’s about grounding. Being present. Feeling what’s beneath you and letting it feel you back.”
Lux blinked. “That’s the most romantic thing I’ve ever heard you say, and it was about dirt.”
Emily choked on her apple.
Lux leaned in a little closer. “Go on. Tell me more about how you and the soil are forming a deep emotional bond.”
Emily coughed. “Oh my gods, shut up.”
Lux laughed and nudged her with a bare knee. “No really, tell me.”
“It’s nothing special, really. It’s like meditating with Violet, only harder. Henrik says if I want to wield geokinesis properly, I need to have a connection to it. You can’t control something you don’t understand.”
“Who?”
“The knight that’s been visiting.”
“Oh, you mean the big stoic guy?”
Emily nodded.
Lux laughed. “He looks like the most serious person in all of Ageria.”
“He is, but he’s helping me. He’s a really skilled warrior, so I trust him. I don’t know if his methods are working for me, though. I’ve been sitting here for a week now, but I can’t feel anything.”
“Huh.” Lux rested her chin on her palm and studied her. “Well, you always did like making things harder than they need to be.”
“I think this is the easier path, actually.”
“For you, maybe. You’re weird.”
Emily snorted. “You’re just jealous because my bond with dirt is stronger than your bond with your ancestors.”
Lux gasped, holding back a laugh. “You take that back.”
“Nope.”
They sat there for a moment, and Emily took the time to finish her apple. It was refreshing enough for her to pluck another one from Lux’s basket.
“So… still hanging around with Violet, huh?” Lux then asked quietly.
Emily’s smile faded. “Yeah. She’s my friend.”
Lux grumbled. “I don’t understand why you’d want to get so cozy with someone like her.”
“What does that mean?”
“I mean she’s vael’thaen, Emily. That’s not just a weird family quirk. It’s disgraceful. Especially for elves.”
Emily looked down at her apple. “But I’m not an elf.”
Lux sighed and leaned back on her hands again, staring up at the blue sky. “I’m not saying she’s evil or anything. Just… it’s different. Messy. You know what vael’thaen means, right? Half-breed.”
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“I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that. Violet’s really sweet. And kind. And really smart when it comes to magic stuff.”
“Smart enough to trick you, maybe.”
“She hasn’t tricked me. She listens. She actually helps.”
“She’s not like us, Em.”
Emily looked at her. “No. She’s better than you sometimes.”
Lux gave her a sharp look.
Emily turned her eyes back to the horizon. “Sorry. That was mean.”
Lux was quiet for a moment. Then she reached over, plucked a blade of grass, and twirled it between her fingers. “I forgive you. Because I’m extremely gracious.”
Emily laughed again.
The blade of grass snapped between Lux’s fingers. “Look, I don’t care if she’s sweet and kind, she’s disgusting. I mean, first and foremost, our abilities are what make us elves. Our connection with magic, our immortality, it’s all tied to our bloodlines. When elves have children with humans or dwarves, that bloodline is tainted, and we get vael’thaens. They are nowhere near as powerful as us, and they taint our bloodline.”
“Isn’t it also because elves and dwarves have always hated each other?”
“We didn’t always hate dwarves,” Lux said with a hint of bitterness. “According to my mother, thousands of years ago, we were actually allies.”
Emily glanced over. “Really?”
“Yeah. Apparently, there was this artifact that the dwarves dug up deep underground. No one knows what it was, just that it pulsed with power. Naturally, they got the elves involved to figure out what it was. We were the only ones smart enough to decipher the writing. Of course, we wanted to study it more thoroughly; it clearly resonated with magic, and the dwarves had no magical finesse. They just found it. They couldn’t use it. What was the point of keeping it?”
Emily hesitated. “I mean… maybe they thought it belonged to them since they discovered it?”
Lux gave her a flat look. “That’s like handing a wand to a goat because it tripped over it. Just because they found it doesn’t mean they could do anything with it. Honestly, it was selfish.”
Emily frowned. She could kind of see both sides. But she wasn’t going to argue with Lux, not while she was in this mood.
“Anyway,” Lux continued, “they tried to compromise. Typical dwarven optimism. ‘Let’s work together,’ they said. It went about as well as you’d expect. The dwarves got greedy, messed with the artifact when they weren’t supposed to, and boom. Explosion. Half a research team of elves gone.”
Emily’s eyes widened. “That’s awful.”
“It was a disaster. After that, the dwarves just gave it up and admitted they were out of their depth. They handed it over to us, finally, like they should have from the beginning. It was a complete waste of time and lives because they couldn’t stay where they belonged.”
Emily frowned slightly, unsure how to respond. Lux was making it sound so black and white, but if her interactions with Violet had taught her anything, there was always more than one side to any story.
Lux scoffed. “My mom told me that story when I was eight. Said it was important I understood the truth about dwarves. ‘You can respect their craft, but never trust them with power.’ That’s what she said.”
Emily raised her brows. “That’s... kind of harsh.”
Lux didn’t seem fazed. “She said if I ever had a child with a dwarf, she’d disown me.”
“Seriously?”
“Dead serious. She’s even talked about arranging a marriage for me someday, probably with someone back in Elkvale. Some cousin of a priest or something.” Lux rolled her eyes. “Just to keep the bloodline pure.”
“At least you won’t have to worry about dating,” Emily said, trying to add some levity to the conversation. “One less thing to stress about.”
Lux scoffed. “Right. I just get to skip to the part where I’m married off to a stuck-up wind mage who thinks books are for servants.”
Emily chuckled softly. “Could be worse. At least you won’t be executed.”
“Ah, well. That’s if I taint the bloodline. With a dwarf? Yeah. Some elven houses would kill their own children for that.”
“But not a human?”
“They may not be as magically gifted as elves, but they’re still better than dwarves. If I ever have a baby with a human, the worst my family would do is disown me.”
Emily laughed dryly. “Oh, good. So no big deal then.”
“There is a loophole, though. If I don’t have a baby, I just get a lifetime of being quietly resented.”
“Well… that’s not as bad.”
“Yeah,” Lux laughed. “Speaking of disappointing our parents, you wanna sneak out tonight?”
Emily raised an eyebrow. “Sneak out?”
Lux smirked. “Mhm. We’re throwing a party.”
Emily straightened up a little. “A party? What for?”
Lux shrugged. “No reason. Sometimes it’s fun to celebrate nothing at all. The stars are out tonight, Ophelia got her hands on a whole armload of firewood her dad made her chop, Cedric says he has pork, probably stolen, let’s be honest, and Tristen’s bringing his playing cards and dice.”
“Are we all meeting at your house?”
“Gods no,” she chuckled. “Can’t have a good party when your parents are around. There’s this abandoned shack we go to sometimes. Just past Star Lake. Hidden enough that nobody’ll hear us unless we’re screaming.” She grinned wickedly.
Emily blinked. “That’s not creepy at all.”
“Come on, it’ll be fun. You ever gamble?”
“You mean on anything besides my life? No. Never had the money for it.”
“You don’t need money to gamble,” Lux said, smiling mischievously. “You could bet anything you have. Books, an old toy, makeup, and… I don’t know… maybe your clothes?”
Emily rolled her eyes. “Yeah, right.” She playfully shoved Lux’s shoulder.
“I’m kidding, I’m kidding! Mostly. None of us actually has any coin, unless we get brave and sneak some from our parents. Ophelia tried that once. Her dad caught her and made her clean out the goat pens for a week.”
“Because nothing goes wrong when you steal from your parents.”
“So… you’ll join us?”
Emily hesitated. Guilt built up in her stomach. Mina had told her that one of the only rules was not to go out at night. Sure, Emily had done it a few times before, but she still felt guilty each time she did it. She was worried that one of these times she would get caught. But she had been practicing her stealth. She had been getting better and quieter. Mina hadn’t noticed the last few times she snuck out.
Still… she hesitated.
Lux nudged her gently with her knee. “Come on, Em. You’ve been all work and no fun lately. You deserve a night out. You killed a monster, didn’t you?”
Emily looked down at her hands. She had been working hard. Training every day, meditating, studying. She hadn’t taken a break in weeks, and it showed in the bruises on her arms and the exhaustion that ran her body out every night.
She deserved a night. Just one.
“Alright,” Emily finally said, the smile sneaking onto her face despite herself.
“Yes!” Lux cheered. “I knew you had a little rebel in you.”
“Don’t make me regret this.”
“Oh, I absolutely will,” Lux said brightly. “Oh, hey, do you think you could bring cigarettes?”
Emily blinked. “What? I don’t have any.”
“But your master does. I see her smoking all the time. She’s gotta have some stashed away somewhere.”
“You want me to steal from Mina?” Emily asked incredulously.
Lux grinned. “Borrow. With intent to return… ashes. Come on, she won’t miss a few.”
Emily gave her a flat look.
Lux tilted her head, batting her lashes. “Please? For me?”
Emily groaned. “I’ll check, but if I get caught, I’m telling her you forced me.”
“That’s fair. I am very persuasive.”
Emily snorted. “Delusional, more like.”
Lux giggled and rose to her feet. “Anyway, after sundown. We’ll meet you at the abandoned shack.”
Emily nodded. “Got it.”
“Oh, and wear something cute.”
Emily looked down at herself, frowning. “I can’t just go like this?”
“Of course not. And take a bath so you don’t smell like sweat.” She took the basket of apples and hurried away.
Emily stared after her, flustered, unsure whether she was annoyed, flattered, or just confused. Lux always left her feeling like she’d been in a whirlwind and only realized it after it was over.
She sighed, closed her eyes again, and tried to return to her meditation. But it was no use.
The thought of sneaking out and just having fun for one night pushed away all thoughts of peace.
Emily bit her lip. She’d have to get past Mina. That wouldn’t be easy, especially if she was still awake when the sun went down. From what she knew, Mina didn’t have any plans to go anywhere tonight. She would likely be in the living room, polishing and cleaning her weapons like most nights. Or, maybe, if she was lucky, Mina would have some errand to run for someone in Cresthill.
One way or another, she was going to have to find a way to sneak past Mina. That was easier said than done.
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