When She Finally Lets Out

Wren closed her eyes. She put her hands on her ears, covering them.

For so long now, the sounds had been pressing in on her. The voices of the people. The officials. Their complaints. Their demands. But now, with her hands over her ears and her eyes shut tight, the noise began to fade. It all went muffled, distant, like the world was sinking underwater.

But her hands were shaking. The feeling of being watched by so many eyes was not going away, even with her eyes closed. She could feel them on her skin, waiting, judging.

What is Wren even doing? Closing her eyes and ears in front of this crowd? The crowd that is demanding answers?

She felt a touch on her shoulder. Probably Bellweather. She ignored it. She closed her eyes tighter.

She is going to get in trouble after this.

Wren took deep breaths in and out, trying to calm herself. The air came slow and uneven, but it came. Her hands were still shaking, but the trembling was beginning to ease. Her fingers uncurled slowly, the tension bleeding out of them inch by inch.

Now what? What should Wren do?

The memories of Joss flashed in front of her eyes. The older sister she used to look up to. The sister she grew up watching but now couldn't remember. Joss, with her golden hair and her light Cant and her arms that had carried Wren home from the cave.

What would Joss do if she were here?

She asked herself the question. And the answer came, clear and certain.

It's obvious. She would put her heart out. She would do everything in her reach to protect the ones she loves. Her hands wouldn't be shaking like a certain someone.

The face of Sofia Haul passed through her mind. Sofia, who had stood between Rowan and the world. Sofia, who had spoken Vows to shield her companions even as the fight turned against them. Sofia, who had died with her voice silenced but her friends alive.

Sofia also would stand before the crowd. She would face them. Help her friends. Just like she helped Rowan.

The face of Ysolde passed through her eyes. The girl who had once been just like Wren. A small town. A little sister. A power she never asked for. And now she was up against the whole world, fighting for people who didn't even remember her.

Even if what Ysolde is doing now is wrong... before, she was just like Wren. And now she stands against everything, refusing to break.

Wren thought about Rowan. The way he had held her in the ruined house. The words he had spoken, steady and sure. I'll be there. I'll follow you.

Wren promised him they would escape this whole thing. He wouldn't like seeing her shaking. Or would he?

She didn't know. But she knew he would want her to stand. He would want her to fight.

The voices of Pryce and Della rang in her ears. The warmth of Della's hug. The steady presence of Pryce's hand on her back. The promise she had made to herself in the room, holding Della close.

Wren will protect you. The smiles on your faces... Wren... I swear I will protect you.

The words built in her chest, pressing outward. The old wall of hedging and hiding was cracking. The deflections, the careful distance she had built over six years. It was all starting to give way.

I... I... am sorry everyone. Wren... I have been a burden up until now. But... but... now I... will not hold you back. I am going to face them. Face myself.

Wren opened her eyes.

She removed her hands from her ears.

For a moment, she wasn't able to hear any sounds. The mouths of the crowd were moving. The officials were speaking. But no sound was reaching her. The world had gone silent, and in that silence, she found something steady.

In front of Wren was Rourke. Her eyes met his. There was a sorrow in them. He was watching her break or bloom.

Wren nodded to him.

"Yes. My team and I went on the mission. But halfway through, me and Rourke got separated."

A voice came from the crowd, interrupting. "We also received information that someone else was with you. Who could that be?"

Wren swept her eyes over to him. She took a deep breath in, trying to steady herself. And then, in the corner of her eye, she saw someone. A figure with grey hair, eyes closed, sitting at the edge of the crowd. Her heart stuttered. She tried looking again, but there was no one there. She couldn't find him again. Only shadows and faces and the cold light of the hall.

"That was Silas. He came to help me."

"Silas who?" Bellweather's voice was sharp.

"The Blind Creator of Chaos. The one who is wanted."

The whole crowd's eyes widened. Officials shifted in their seats. The Verdian king leaned forward slightly, his interest sharpening.

"We were trapped on the way. He was the one who helped us until we reached the stronghold." Wren's voice came out steadier now.

"Was Rourke with you? Did he also know that Silas was traveling with you?"

"No. No, he didn't." Wren shook her head quickly. "That was Silas. He... it was only me who knew. No one else is at fault."

Some tears rolled down Rourke's eyes. Bellweather frowned, her expression darkening. "So you took a wanted criminal with you without informing your own handler?"

Wren didn't reply. She couldn't. The truth was damning enough on its own.

She continued, her voice quieter now. "And then, when we came out, we were cornered by the Hollow Choir. They asked us to come to the stronghold to talk."

She paused.

"Wren... I agreed to the demand, dragging Rowan along with me. Inside, we met Ysolde. You all must know about her."

The whole front row of high-ranking officials, the ones who had served the kingdom the longest, shifted. Whispers broke out like rustling leaves, quiet and urgent. The name moved through the hall.

Wren's eyes met the queen's. The queen was calm. If the name meant anything to her, she did not show it. Her face was still as stone, her hands resting lightly on the arms of her living throne.

"Continue on with the report."

Wren turned to face Bellweather. "For those of you who don't know, Wren... I am talking about the Ysolde who was a small-town girl. Who was used and erased by the Crown. Erased from the face of the earth like she didn't exist."

"What did she tell you? What words did she feed into your mind that you are ready to betray the Crown?" Bellweather's voice rising.

"Who says anything about betraying the Crown? W... I am just going to tell everyone here who she is. What she wants to do." Wren's hands were trembling at her sides.

She faced the crowd. The faces stared back at her, unblinking.

"For those of you who don't know, Ysolde was a Wholevoice. She was bound to the kingdom. But the Crown forced her to make a Vow that made her lose everything. And now she wants to save all the Wholevoices."

A voice arose from the crowd. "She wants to help by destroying entire villages? By leaving behind no bodies to grieve? That's what you call helping?"

Wren turned toward the voice. "I understand. She is wrong. What she is going to do is also wrong. But she was a normal girl once. So we should question the people who made her this way. After we question her."

The hall stirred. Murmurs broke out, then faded.

"What is her plan? What does she want to do?" A man's voice carried from the upper seats.

"You must be a Wholevoice," Wren said, looking up at him.

"Yes."

"Then you know why a toll is taken from us after every Vow."

"We pay a price for the power we use," the man replied.

Wren smiled a little. It was a tired smile, but there was truth in it. "You are half right. Half wrong. The toll we pay is used to maintain the seal."

Wren glanced toward the queen. Her expression was changing. Whispers arose from the crowd, spreading.

"What seal?"

"What is she talking about?"

Wren added, her voice cutting through the noise. "The seal that holds the Unshaped. It is not permanent. It requires fuel. And that fuel is the toll of the Wholevoices."

The whole room went silent.

No sounds came from the crowd. The whispers died. The shifting stopped. Every face was still, turned toward her.

The queen's expression was changing rapidly. Her calm was cracking. Wren could see it. The queen was putting the pieces together.

"So what does Ysolde plan to do?" Bellweather's voice came from beside her.

"She plans to undo the seal. To release the Fatebinders from their suffering." Wren paused, then corrected herself. "That is what she says. But she's wrong about the cost."

She faced the crowd again.

"That would release all the Unshaped. What is she even thinking?" The same Wholevoice from before spoke again.

"That's where she is wrong. She told me the seal will not break. But she is wrong. And that's why we have to stop her." Wren found strength she didn't know she had.

"To save humanity."

Just as Wren finished, the queen stood up. But the crowd wasn't able to pay attention. Murmurs were spreading all across the room.

Then, from the front of the room, under the throne, a sound arose.

Clap. Clap. Clap.

It was Rourke.

The sound began from him, slow and deliberate. His hands came together once, twice, three times. And then it spread. All across the room, officials rose from their seats and began to clap.

They were clapping for the woman who had just delivered them information they had spent years trying to find.

At the corner of her eyes, Wren saw him again. The closed eyes. The grey hair. Silas was standing at the edge of the crowd, clapping too. And this time, he met her gaze. His lips curved into something that might have been a smile, or might have been pride.

Then a sharp voice cut through the room.

"Silence, everyone."

The clapping stopped. Every hand froze mid-motion. The hall went still.

The queen stepped forward from her throne, her eyes moving over the crowd before settling on Wren. "So she told you all this." She paused, her gaze narrowing. "Wait a minute."

The queen was in deep thought. Her expression shifted, pieces clicking into place behind her eyes. Then she spoke again, and a smile spread across her face. It was not a warm smile. It was the smile of someone who had just solved a puzzle.

"The reason your town was attacked. The girl was kidnapped. The convoy was ambushed on the way to the capital. And she called you inside, told you all of this, and then let you go." She paused, letting the weight of her words settle. "It's because she has a use for you...... You can undo the seal. And that means you are the Fatebinder of legends. Born once every generation."

She started laughing. It was a light, airy laugh, entirely out of place in the heavy silence of the hall.

"Ha ha ha. Tell me, Wren Calder. Are you the Fatebinder of the legends?"

Wren took some deep breaths. Her chest was heaving, her vision swimming at the edges. She looked toward Rourke. He was shaking his head, a sharp, desperate motion. No. No. Don't say it.

She nodded at him. And then she gave him a big smile. An exaggerated smile, stretched too wide across her exhausted face.

"Yes. I am what you think I am."

The queen's laughter echoed through the hall. "Ha ha ha. Ha." She straightened, her composure returning in an instant. "Guards, restrain her. Lock her in her room. She is not to leave."

The guards moved forward, their boots heavy on the stone floor.

"And officials, this is our time to strike back. Get the forces ready. We are going to eliminate every single member of the Hollow Choir. The forces will move out. Find their location."

The guards reached Wren. Their hands closed around her arms, firm and unyielding.

But before they could move her, Wren's legs gave way.

She fell. Her body went limp, her head lolling forward, her eyes fluttering closed.

She had truly asked so much of herself. And now, there was nothing left.