Prologue

PROLOGUE

5 00 years ago

Arie’s pace quickened. A loud rattling sound interrupted his casual walk into the grand entry hall of the temple at the top of Mount Bury. He broke into a jog, hastening to the open circular room with the four gods’ altars when the noise grew louder. He was early to meet Zrak and hadn’t expected to encounter anyone else. Arie paused to survey the room he entered. Offering plates before four statues decorated its interior, one set at each cardinal point. The path he’d come down placed him at an ordinal point. Above, the open sky decorated the roofless temple, designed to make the worshiper feel withdrawn from the continent. Nothing seemed out of place.

Arie was always impressed with the offerings here. The mountain trail was a challenge. He always flew. He couldn’t picture the human—or now, fae—that could endure the hike to the top. His gaze caught on an opening in the floor in the center of the room. Tilting his head, he walked toward the unexpected hole and looked down. A gilded, spiral staircase unfolded below him into the heart of the mountain.

This must have been the source of the noise. How had it opened? Down, down, down it circled. He couldn’t make out what lay at the bottom. Arie spun on the spot, searching again to see if anyone else was in the room. This stairway hadn’t been here previously, and as one of the gods honored here, he considered himself an expert on the temple. Confirming he was alone, he shrugged and began his descent.

Each step took him deeper into the mountain. His pace slowed as he realized this was no quick walk. Whatever lay below was still out of sight. Meaning he would be going down these stairs for a long time. Suddenly remembering he was a shapeshifting god, Arie transformed into a large, black bird and glided toward the bottom.

Ever since the Flood, the disaster that overtook the continent the last time the gods sought selfish gain over protecting those under their care, Mount Bury had boasted more wild magic than most. He wasn’t sure what it meant, but his feathers tingled as he got closer to the floor of the cavern. Finally, the shape of a figure in the middle of the open room came into view.

Zrak was directing his wind to shape a cavern rock into a table. Arie’s eyes lit up as Zrak repeated the process twice more and then placed a small glass vial on each of the three tables he’d created. Arie’s gaze locked on the table in the center. The vial called to him. Intrigued by what Zrak was up to, Arie prepared to make himself known.

“About time you showed up,” Zrak said without turning to look at the bird.

Arie shifted into his human form, and the wild magic hit him harder, his skin aflame as if his fire magic had been set free to dance beneath it. “What are you doing down here? What is this place?” Arie asked.

“I’m glad you followed me. This is why I asked to meet—what I wanted to show you.” He turned and gave Arie a pointed look, his face cast in shadow. “You will need to know about this when I’m gone.”

Arie sucked in a breath. He still hoped to find a way to stop Zrak from going through with the sacrifice. They could find another way to maintain the balance.

“There is no other way,” Zrak said, answering Arie’s unspoken question. “Wipe that sad look off your face. We all agreed, and I intend to go through with it.”

Massaging his temples, Arie buried his objections and gestured to Zrak. “By all means then, please tell me what I’m looking at and why we’ll need it.”

Zrak’s lips quirked up at the corner, trying to hold back a smile. “That’s more like it,” he replied flatly.

How dare he take this so lightly? How dare he be so cavalier about removing himself from the continent? Arie wanted to shake him. Fire danced under Arie’s skin again as the wild magic amplified his power, inflaming his rising anger. “What is this place?”

“I can see the wild magic is already having its way with your fluctuating emotions.” Zrak’s gaze raked over Arie as he tried to shake off the magic.

“Is it not affecting you?”

“It seems to choose only one power at a time,” Zrak said, his hands resting on his hips.

Arie shook his head. It was so typical. Zrak always had to know how things worked. “You’re trying to distract me,” Arie replied, balling his hands into fists.

Zrak stepped forward, a sliver of light in the cavern falling across his face. He looked his age—which wasn’t a compliment to an immortal god. His usually vibrant skin seemed dull, and the laugh lines around his eyes and mouth were downturned. He was still breathtaking. Not even a bad day could ruin Zrak’s otherworldly beauty. It was a small comfort to Arie. No matter the front Zrak put on, this decision, this direction from Aurora’s compass, was clearly wearing on him.

He raised his hands in a gesture of peace. “I didn’t mean to. I’ve found wild magic in a few places across the continent, and I’m simply intrigued by it.” He paused, remembering what Arie asked him. “But to your question—yes—I believe in our plan.” He gestured to the tables behind him. “I also believe in contingency plans.”

Arie couldn’t hide his smirk. Of course he did. Zrak had more plans and backup plans than a fire had embers. “And what, may I ask, is this particular plan we’re working on?” Arie stepped forward to inspect the center vial—the one that called to him.

“Be careful with that,” Zrak chided. “Each contains a remnant of yours, Aurora’s, and Aterra’s magic.”

Arie wrapped his fingers around the glass tighter as he felt the essence of his magic within. He held it to the light and saw flame dancing within. Anger bubbled inside him. He wanted to smash it. “You took some of our magic when we created the fae courts?” Arie asked.

“I siphoned a tiny amount for this trial,” Zrak said offhandedly as he gestured to the tabletops before him.

Arie wanted to scream or laugh at how casually Zrak had violated their trust during the Creation. He let out a long breath. His trust in Zrak was absolute. Though the others would likely not agree. “And what is this trial? What is it for?” Arie set the vial back down.

“It’s for when things go wrong.”

Well, that was reassuring. “Are you expecting things to go wrong?” Arie asked.

“We already failed once, and look where that got us.” Zrak gestured around them. The cavern, this meeting, and Zrak’s appearance were all reminders of the cost of their failure. Zrak would pay the price for their selfishness. “This time,” he continued, “we must plan for everything, even if we don’t want to look too closely at what events would lead to certain paths.”

That felt like a condemnation to Arie, but he couldn’t figure out what it was for. He walked slowly around the three tables. The only reason to need samples of their magic would be to compare against a future, flawed iteration.

“So, this particular hypothetical path…” he started, his hands slipping into his pockets. “We’re assuming one of the remaining gods’ magic has been corrupted…and this test would identify which one?” he mused. “You’re expecting one of us to do something to upset the delicate balance we’re sacrificing so much to preserve?” Zrak didn’t interrupt. He just held Arie’s gaze as he completed his thought. “Isn’t that why we created the fae courts? Shouldn’t they be able to restrain us?”

“How are the fae courts to know one of the gods has upset the balance?” Zrak asked. “By the time they see signs of corruption on the continent, it may be too late.” Zrak shook his head. “No. You three must be the first line of defense.”

That was fair. It’s not like the gods had to present themselves to the fae leaders with any regularity.

“So, we test each other and then notify the Compass Points? And they unify to take care of it?” Arie laughed to himself. It was a dark laugh, though, devoid of humor. Maybe this plan did have holes in it. “Have you checked in on the fae courts and their leaders? It’s been only weeks since Creation, and already, they isolate themselves. I’m sure they would have fled to the four corners of the continent, putting as much distance between themselves as possible, if we hadn’t made their seats of power at Compass Lake.”

Zrak shrugged as if he had not a care in the world, instead of days left of existence. “They need time to adjust to their power. We can’t expect them to be benevolent from day one. Think about what we did with ours.”

When he put it that way, Arie realized his point. The Compass Points only had a fraction of the gods’ power, but the gods had also done much worse with theirs. The fae would go through phases. First, hoarding and protecting their power, then hopefully figuring out how to use it for the good of the continent.

“Fine.” Arie waved his hand at the vials. “So, your assumption is”—he started listing items off his fingers—“first, we create the fae, giving the continent the means to unite and overpower a god should we abuse our position again. Second, you sacrifice yourself to correct the balance.” He flicked out a third finger. “Third, one of the remaining gods ignores said sacrifice and continues to pursue self-interest and power, sending the continent careening toward untold devastation…again.” He looked around the cavern. “When that happens, you want me to bring Aterra and Aurora down here for a little get-together, so we can find whose magic has been corrupted. Do I have that right?” The pitch of his voice rose in exasperation with his speech.

“That sums it up nicely. Very astute,” Zrak said. His lips were pushed together in a flat line, like he was desperately trying to fight another smile.

“This isn’t funny!” Arie shouted. “How could you think we’d be dumb enough to need this test when you’re literally giving your existence to prevent something like this from happening?” Arie’s voice echoed through the mountain cavern around them. “Forget about the fae for a moment. Why would one of the gods risk it? We just saw what our selfishness caused.”

Zrak moved to take Arie’s shoulders, his long fingers digging into the muscle. He gripped tight until Arie raised his eyes to meet Zrak’s. “I don’t think this is funny, Arie, but it is necessary. I want to believe this plan won’t be needed, but as you said, I’m sacrificing my existence on this plane. I will not leave it to chance.”

Arie nodded. He supposed that was Zrak’s right. His shoulders strained to sag in Zrak’s hold, but Zrak’s fingers dug in, forcing him to maintain eye contact for a little longer.

“How do you know it won’t be me then?” Arie asked quietly.

“Oh, Arie.” His smile was soft. “I’m not sure you’ll be capable once I’m gone.”

Arie wondered at that. It spoke to a depth of understanding between him and Zrak. Arie liked to play flippant but felt his friend’s impending sacrifice like a wild animal gnawing in his stomach. There was no way he’d continue on their selfish path once Zrak was gone. Part of him was glad that Zrak knew it too. “But you’re not sure about Aurora and Aterra?” Arie couldn’t help but ask.

“I know what Aurora means to you and I’m glad you two finally found each other. This isn’t a moral judgment on her or Aterra. It would simply be remiss not to have contingencies in place.”

Zrak’s gaze drifted from Arie’s. The thousand-yard stare he’d perfected usually meant that he knew more than he was saying.

Arie squeezed his eyes shut as if wishing the conversation to end but knowing he should prepare for the worst. “What do you need me to do?”

“Bring them here when the time is right. Ensure the test is taken by all three of you at the same time.”

“And how exactly do we take this test?” Arie asked, looking at the vials again.

“All three of you stand together over there.” Zrak gestured toward the staircase. “Call your magic. The one unable to do so will be the one who’s corrupted.”

“How do you know that?” Arie asked.

“The wild magic you’ve felt here? That amplification of your power? It’s a remnant of our misuse of magic. It can’t be controlled, and it is selective in how it affects us. It is born of instability, and is thus drawn to volatile magic.” A look of concern crossed Zrak’s face as he continued. “It’s, of course, dangerous to use in this way. It will be difficult to control should it find corruption, but it’s all we’ve got.” Zrak gave Arie a stern look. “Make sure no one is in the temple or on the mountain should you take the test.”

Arie nodded. After feeling the fire beneath his skin, he didn’t doubt Zrak’s words. Over their existence together, Arie had learned Zrak’s knowledge of magic was greater than most.

“What will the Compass Points do with the god or goddess who has disrespected your sacrifice? How will they stop them?” Arie asked.

“We’ve given them the ability.” Zrak looked tired, finally releasing Arie’s shoulders from his hold. “The execution is something they will need to figure out together.”