“Please work,” I whispered. Squeezing my hands together, I released another burst of power. Seconds later, the ground below Jo opened up. I kept my hands clasped until the hole was the size of a body, and deep enough that animals wouldn’t bother her in her endless slumber. “Rest in peace, Josephine.”
All I had to do wasthinkthat her body belonged in the ground, and the ribbons did my bidding. Jo’s body slowly descended into the dirt until nothing but her cloak was visible. Then, and only then, did the ribbons of magic gently release her and come back to me.
A moment passed, then two, before a rumble shook the earth. The dirt itself moved, rearranging itself until Josephine’s body was nowhere to be seen.
Then, on my command, three bright red flowers bloomed over the fresh grave. They glowed despite the late hour, their radiant color a vivid contrast to the greens and browns of the forest.
I exhaled and the light slowly retreated into my skin as a feeling of pureliferushed through me. It was exhilarating. The magic was empowering in a way that I had never known existed. It felt at once like nothing I had ever experienced and something I could get lost in forever.
I stared at the ground. It wascalling tome, whispering my name.
Aileana.
Come to us, Protectress.
Stay with us.
Come.
Without thinking, I dropped to my knees. Spreading my fingers, I dug into the cool dirt beneath me. It felt like everything I’d ever needed.
Behind me, I could hear voices speaking, but I couldn’t understand what they were saying. Their words were nothing more than murmurs that brushed up against my consciousness.
At that moment, I wasmorethan just Aileana. I felt my consciousness stretch out of my body, until I was at once Aileana, and not. My heartbeat pounded in my ears, my skin grew tight against my frame as part of mebecamethe earth.
At once, I was the trees in the forest, the leaves they bore, the insects crawling over the ground. I was the dirt and the bugs and the plants. I was the roots of the forests and the birds that flew high above the trees. The foxes in their dens, the rabbits in their burrows, the bears resting for the winter.
Iwasthe woods themselves.
Knowledge and understanding of hundreds of thousands of beings within the forests across all of Ithenmyr filled me.
My fingers tingled as my soul flew over thousands of miles at once. Dozens of emotions flooded through me as the flora and fauna alike acknowledged my presence. They crowded around me, their presence pulsing through my veins. Their song was intoxicating as they drew me deeper into themselves.
Protectress.
Giver of life.
Welcome home.
I was myself, but not. And I could get lost in here forever.
Seconds passed, but they could have been minutes or hours. I knew at that moment that I could spendyearsconnecting to the earth. Decades. Centuries.
I could dive so deep into their existence that nothing else would ever matter again. I would never be the king’s pet again because I would bemore.
I would be life itself in Ithenmyr.
But… there was something holding me back. And so I struggled against the pull of the earth. Forced it to let me go.
Above me, thunder roared through the sky.
It snapped me out of my reverie. Like a ribbon being pulled taut and then released, I was back in my body. The grip of the earth was gone, and I was myself. Only myself.
I was Aileana and no one else.
Blinking, I wobbled as my legs seemed unable to support my weight.
“What was that?” Xander asked urgently. His voice still sounded far away, as though he was underwater. I felt his warm hand on my arm as he pulled me to my feet. He put his hands on my cheeks, drawing my face up to his. I stared at his golden eyes as he repeated, “Aileana, what was that?”