The Forsaken Hero

Korra stiffened at my offer, turning to give me a sharp look. I shrank back a bit, staring at her with wide eyes, uncertain of what she meant by it. I’d promised to share another vision with Luke in exchange for safe passage through Bluegate Keep. He’d kept his end of the deal; wasn’t it only natural I did mine?

She sighed and shook her head ruefully, muttering something about ”Let him come to us.” Oh, that was probably it then. I suppose I came across as a little too easy to offer my services like that. I wasn’t used to having bargaining chips or anything that anyone else desired beyond a shallow, lustful view of my body. There was an entirely new world beyond being a slave I had to learn, especially as I continued to grow in power.

”I had a few questions about that, actually,” Luke said, studying me with a small smile.

”Yes?” I answered in a small voice.

His smile widened marginally, and even Evla looked amused. Any hope I had that they’d overlooked our exchange vanished as his smile widened, and Evla covered her mouth with a hand, smothering a chuckle. Biting my lip, I quickly looked away with the hope of hiding my blush, but could do nothing about my twitching tail.

Korra coughed politely, though her glare was anything but. ”Get on with it already.”

”Yes, yes, of course. Forgive me,” Luke said, his smile vanishing, ”What can you see, exactly? Or rather, what can you show me?”

I grabbed the question gratefully, using it to pull myself out of my embarrassment. ”I...don’t know, to be honest.”

Korra sighed and rubbed her forehead. ”Xiviyah...that’s not how you do these things. Gods, if you’re going to be doing these kinds of things more, we’re going to have to have a chat.”

”What do you want to see?” I asked, trying to salvage some dignity and sense of control.

Luke stroked his chin, falling deep into thought. But despite taking several long seconds to think, his answer came decisively. ”My enemies, the gods. I want to see how I can make them suffer.”

I nodded slowly, watching Evla’s reaction from the corner of my eye. She didn’t seem particularly surprised, though I caught a brief flash of disappointment in her eyes.

”From what I’ve learned, fate is drawn to hopes and desires,” I said, returning my gaze to the Apostle of Curses.

”And what if it’s left directionless?” He asked.

I shivered, remembering the countless visions of war, bloodshed, and torment I’d suffered through. ”It seems drawn to major events driving the story of the world.”

”Interesting. And does it only show the future?”

”Most of the time, but sometimes I’ve seen the present or even occasionally the past. It’s hard to tell, though, and not every vision comes true. The future is by no means certain and can change in an instant. I’m...not very reliable. Sorry.”

”Nonsense. You were enough to save Evla,” Luke said, giving her a meaningful look.

”Yes, I suppose I haven’t had the chance to thank you yet,” she said, flicking her hair back. ”The church had a nasty ambush planned for me. Had Luke not arrived when he did, that water bitch might have gotten the best of me.”

”That’s enough,” Korra said sharply, glaring at her. ”Don’t speak of Grace like that.”

”What, friend of yours?” Evla raised an eyebrow. ”Not that I care, to be honest. You heroes are all the same, anyway. Pathetic slaves of the gods.”

I stared at Evla with wide eyes. She was completely different from how she’d acted, seeming to change the moment she opened her mouth. She came across as bored and a bit disdainful, inspecting her nails even as she insulted Grace. But it was her last remake that really bothered me, causing my tail to flick in agitation. Slaves of the gods.

”Please don’t say that,” I said softly. ”Not all of us chose that fate.”

Evla met my eyes and immediately looked away. ”Whatever. Sorry, I guess.”

Luke frowned at her, and she clasped her hands together, still unwilling to meet my gaze. Satisfied she was suitably chastened, Luke sighed and turned back to me, running a hand over his horn.

”Perhaps it would be best if we got on with it. Apostles and Heroes are like water and oil, it seems.”

Korra nodded. ”Finally, something we can agree on.”

I looked between them, still frowning. The conversation moved a little too quickly for me to fully adjust to, first being friendly and then very quickly souring. It didn’t seem like getting along was impossible, but our different patrons and backgrounds would undoubtedly make it a challenge. I didn’t dislike either of the apostles, though, and were the circumstances different; I might even be willing to try and befriend them. But fate had other plans, for now at least.

Luke stepped forward and held out his hand, offering it to me. I flinched, caught off guard by the sudden proximity. His soul seemed to blaze with mana, enshrouded by the familiar darkness of curse magic. He was the apostle of curses, of the magic that had caused me more suffering than anything in this world, and I found myself more aware of that than ever. I’d felt a false sense of security since recovering to seventh level and restoring Adaptive Resistance to its peak, but he was eighth level. What was stopping him from cursing me again, this time with a curse I would never be able to be free of?

The fear was irrational based on every interaction, but it brought out the fear I’d kept locked away for months. Shadowy bars flickered in the corners of my vision, and his hand swelled to fill the sky with darkness and power. Fable growled softly, echoing my terror, but I found the noise far from comforting.

”Xiviyah?” Korra’s voice broke into the small world I’d retreated to. ”Are you alright?”

Like a spell was broken, the illusions shattered, and I took a shallow breath, my chest heaving. ”Y-yeah, just...it’s nothing. Sorry.”

Swallowing my lingering fear, I reached out with a hand that wouldn’t entirely stop trembling and placed my fingers on Luke’s. I cringed, expecting the cold, slimy touch of curses, but found him warm and inviting. His fingertips curled against mine, the closest I’d come to holding hands with anyone, aside from Korra or Elise, in forever. A wave of warmth rushed down my hand and into my heart, stilling the anxious quivering of my body.

With a deep breath, I raised my head and met his gaze, startled to find his dark eyes deep with concern. Whether it was concern for my reaction or that I wouldn’t be able to fulfill my end of the bargain, I couldn’t say, but it was more than the distance he’d shown me before.

I opened myself to my mana, breathing deeply as it flooded my soul. It was as intoxicating as ever, washing the last vestiges of darkness from my heart. I lost myself in the ebb and flow, taking nearly half a second to remember I wasn’t alone.

”Ready?” I asked, my eyelids fluttering distractedly. When he nodded, I gripped him tighter and searched my soul, taking a few moments to remember just what it was I had done to drag him into my soulspace. I was exhausted from healing my soul, barely even able to stand, but I hadn’t been any better then, either. It had been a spur-of-the-moment last-ditch effort to save Korra, but if I had succeeded then, I could do it now.

”Okay, focus on your desire. Don’t fight fate; just let it pull you along like a river,” I instructed softly. ”It will show us whatever it deems necessary for as long as my power can sustain it.”

”I understand,” Luke said solemnly. ”Just show me how to make them pay. I ask for nothing more.”

With a final look at Korra, I activated the Oracle of Eternity. Instead of the usual murky mire of mana and fate, the ability came naturally to me, sucking us into the darkness of my soulspace with barely a thought. Was this difference caused by the changes in my soul?

I floated hand in hand with Luke, our perceptions limited to the bodies formed by our linked souls. Stars began appearing one by one, the lights growing to encompass us in a sweeping vista as beautiful as the night sky.

The first ribbon of light came suddenly, springing into existence just behind Luke’s head. More followed, thousands of them, and wove together a tapestry of fate, color, and sound. Time was meaningless in this realm, but it couldn’t have taken more than a heartbeat for the darkness to recede entirely, leaving us in a world of light.

My eyes widened, my grip on Luke instinctively tightening as I recognized the familiar stone and tile walls surrounding us—the Divine Throne. We were back in the Divine Throne.