The Lion Soul by Amy Sumida
Chapter Thirteen
The Lion Camp was situated at the most northern tip of Stalana. Not that there was a peninsula there, it was the way the continent was divided that created the narrowed point. Inland, to the west, hung the mists of Varalorre, with the Lion Kingdom on the other side, in line with the Lion Camp. With its placement directly across from us and our camp in the narrowest spot of Stalana, travel to the Lion Kingdom took less than an hour.
We went by carriage, my teachers seated across from Kaelen and me, and the short ride was pleasant enough. But instead of heading straight into the mist, Kaelen had our group stop just before it. The carriage and horses would pass through just fine, but if they did, and I didn't, it could be calamitous.
So, we stopped, and Kaelen got out. I crouched in the doorway, about to follow him, but then glanced up and paused. The mists of Varalorre were famous all over the world, but even seeing them from afar, aboard a ship, didn't prepare me for the up-close experience.
To call it mist, or even fog, was practically an insult. The puffy clouds that formed a thick wall, stretching upwards and to either side across the land, were pulsing with power and glittering in the sunlight. I had a feeling that even in the darkest night, with the moon hidden by clouds, the mists would sparkle. They looked alive, but instead of scaring me, the sight excited me. The feeling of destiny settled upon me again.
“Rie?” Kaelen prompted me.
I climbed out of the carriage and stepped past him, never taking my eyes off the mists. Kaelen's guards, all but our carriage driver, were in their lion forms. They drew back, making a path for me to the billowing barrier, their great heads swiveling to watch me as I passed. It felt momentous, and I knew that whatever happened next was going to change the course of my life.
I stepped up to the mist, absently noting how it crossed the dirt road and flowed into the forest. The horses didn't seem bothered by the magic, but it still surprised me when a flock of sparrows came flying out of it just a few yards down from me. I took a deep breath and stretched out a hand.
The barrier went solid beneath my palm but had give, like pressing against a silk screen. My heart plummeted to feel that resistance, and I nearly drew back, but then, suddenly, my hand plunged into the sparkling clouds, and I stumbled forward with it. The hollow sound of lion roars followed me as I caught myself and strode forward. Bright mist surrounded me, hiding the grateful, relieved tears I shed and drawing me forward with a pulsing, cool welcome.
I stepped free of the mist, swiped at my eyes, and gasped in wonder.
The forest stretched out to either side of the road I stood on, but it went sparse rapidly, trailing off into tall grass that made a gentle shushing sound in the soft breeze. The blades were bright green and perfect, waving like the sea and scenting the air with a verdant freshness. Not that the air needed freshening; it was pure almost to the point of winter crispness. The road wound forward through the undulating grassland and in the distance stood the hazy outline of buildings. All of that sounds perfectly normal, but it wasn't. The world around me had changed drastically.
Aidan said he didn't see the difference at first, but he wasn't trained to notice his surroundings as I was. He wouldn't have picked up on the nuances in color shifts and scent or the way even the dirt seemed richer there. How every leaf was perfect and glossy and the very air seemed to shine. To me, it was glaringly obvious that I had left a lacking land and entered one full of magic.
A warm hand slipped into mine and squeezed. I didn't flinch or draw away this time. I'd heard Kaelen's approach and amid that moment of profound wonder, I didn't care about propriety. I wove my fingers with his and glanced at him to smile, incredibly pleased to be able to share the experience with him.
“See?” Kaelen grinned brightly. “I told you that you'd have no problem getting through. Ry'zaran may have altered you, but the Goddess touched you first. She claimed you first, and you are Fae, Rieyu Brimara. Welcome home.” His smile faltered with his last words but not with fear or sadness. His voice was tinged with reverent gratitude and a touch of wonder—the very things I was feeling.
“Thank you,” I said. “I'm honored to be allowed into Varalorre.”
“Honored?” He chuckled. “Didn't you hear what I just said? This is your home, Rie. The mist recognizing you proved that. This isn't about honor, it's about love. The Goddess loves you and so, Varalorre is yours.”
Love. He was right; that's what I felt pulsing through the soil. Not just magic, but divine love.
“My people have a word for it—ziru. The presence of the divine in nature. The way the Gods show us that they are with us.” I looked from my new home to the Lion Lord. “But I have never truly experienced it until now. This is ziru; your Gods are everywhere, in everything.”
“Our Gods,” he corrected me.
“Our Gods,” I said with a grin, closing my eyes and lifting my face to the sun.
A soft sound drew my attention back to Kaelen; he was staring at me.
“What is it?” I asked.
“Your smile. It's rare and beautiful. I wish it wasn't the former, but it's all the more precious because of it.”
“You have the heart of a poet, Lion Lord.” I let go of his hand and turned to see his guards gathered around the carriage behind us.
When they saw that they had my attention, they all inclined their heads to me in perfect, Nazakian bows. I bowed back to them, more than a little pleased that they had respected my old culture while welcoming me to my new home. Lightness filled my chest as I realized that all my worries had been for naught. All my feelings of alienation and loneliness were, in a way, unfair to these people. My people. They, like Kaelen, had chosen me and would stand by me.
I had found a new clan and a new home.
