The Forsaken Hero

The following day, I couldn’t sit still. I kept looking over my shoulder, jumping at every shadow. Every time R’lissea called me, or Elise asked me for some advice on a spell, I couldn’t help but examine their soul closely, making sure it wasn’t really Jessia in disguise. She had to have been waiting on purpose, dragging the day out as long as possible.

When dusk streaked the sky, I’d nearly given up, exhausted from the constant jolts of stress and adrenaline. I sat in front of the tent, waiting for the first star to appear. It had become something of a habit, a time to relax and reflect. Normally, I pondered my fate and the path I’d chosen, yet today my mind was on Jessia.

Just what had she meant by her little ’hint’ before? Had she been referring to the teleportation ring? She was never one to fiddle with anything except her dagger, so it wasn’t likely to be a coincidence.

So what connection did King Alverin have with the teleportation ring? The circle had them, and the Apostles had them, but the church didn’t. Did that mean they came from the demons?

We’d had vague hints that the circle was associated with the demons, but I had a hard time envisioning Luke entering an agreement with them. He hated them almost as much as I feared them.

So another demon faction, then. As far as I knew, only the Devoted and Rash’alon stood apart from Luke. It couldn’t be the devoted, but what would Rash’alon gain from letting the Circle use rings? The only thing he was concerned with was...me...

I groaned, rubbing my horn. It all felt so close to clicking together, yet there were still so many questions, so many assumptions I could make that might end up being wrong. Like, was Jessia really just investigating another faction? Maybe they wanted to know what Rash’alon was up to, or they hadn’t realized he was behind it yet. Could the origin of the Circle’s rings be the information Jessia wanted to trade with me? But if it regarded the faction war, why didn’t Luke know Jessia was in Brithlite? He had acted surprised when he learned she was with Alverin.

It was maddening, forcing me to question everything I thought I knew. The motives of the circle, their fierce desire to possess me, Jessia’s intentions...it was all too much. I felt a headache coming on.

Suddenly, Fable’s ears pricked. He sat up, looking toward the grove. I turned, holding my breath, and saw...Jessia. She was dressed in her usual black leather armor, a cloak fluttering around her heels. I looked around, wide-eyed, but it was just her.

"You look a little tense," she said, plopping down beside me.

She made a move to pet Fable’s tail, but it slithered away from her, wrapping around me instead. I relaxed against his flank, grateful she hadn’t found me when I was alone.