Chapter 4

Blade led us down the street, and for a moment I forgot about the Varg and everything that had happened. Even though travellers used to pass through Greymor and I knew how foreign they dressed, I hadn’t imagined their towns would look so different as well. Where Greymor had low houses, here they stood two stories high with balconies and porches, and the few people I saw wore cloaks woven in bright colours. I stared at them until I realised the Valkyrie were already at the end of the street and I hurried after her. I really hoped there would be a tavern here that would allow me to stay.

She led me around a corner, and we came out on the village square. She seemed to know the town. I guess if she was used to travelling, she must have been here before. On the other side, I could make out a stone house with a large Star of Amara on its wall. Many travellers spent the night in the temple instead of lodging in a tavern. It was an old custom, dating back to long before the war, that allowed anyone to seek shelter in the House of Amara, as everyone was her child. Maybe they would even know a place where I could stay.

As we came closer, I could see a statue carved from grey stone standing by its gates. I shivered. Wandering Star… Her monuments were common, we even had one in Greymor, but it was the first time I'd seen one since I left. Her hand was raised into the air to cast the barrier that had come to protect this world, and I could almost hear the spell she’d spoken. No… I’d spoken… The Valkyrie walked over to it and halted at its foot, bowing her head to the hero she believed Wandering Star to be. I didn’t dare to tell her who she’d been before she set out on a quest to save this world.

Moments later, she gestured for me, and I glanced at the statue before walking over to the gates. She pushed the heavy wooden door open, and I followed her inside to an austere hall. Candles flickered on the walls, and there were long tables and wooden benches set in rows, but apart from that, it was undecorated. A young girl and a wolf boy sat at the far table, playing a game, and they turned when they heard us. The girl ran over to us as the old boy called,

“Uncle, we have guests!”

“Blade, you came back!”

The girl skidded to a halt next to us and hesitantly glanced at me.

“Who are you?”

Before I could answer, a door opened further down the hall, and a young man wearing a priestly robe stepped through. He hesitantly raised his hand in a blessing.

“Welcome... children..."

“You need to make it properly, like Grandpa did," the girl interrupted him.

She bowed deeply, placing a hand on her heart while dramatically extending the other towards us.

“Welcome, children! May you…may you…"

She paused, looking around, suddenly not sure of herself.

“May you find peace and rest in the House of Amara," the wolf boy finished, running over to her.

“Go, children. Go and bring some food.”

The young priest waved them off, and I watched them rushing out the door.

“Happy to see you back, Blade. Can I help you? Well, probably not… You know where you can stay…”

He turned to me.

“Welcome, traveller. What is your name…?”

I hesitated for a moment, remembering the statue outside.

“Zoe…”

“I'm Deryl…”

He smiled, glancing at the horn in my hand.

“Did you come to claim a bounty?”

“Yes..."

I glanced at Blade. She was standing by the window, watching out onto the street. Deryl walked over to a small table in the corner, picked up a scroll, and handed it to her.

“Here are all the reports that have reached Waymeet since the last time you were here.”

He hesitated.

“Grandpa passed away last month. I…I'm the head priest now."

She watched him for a moment before murmuring,

“I’m sorry.”

She took the scrolls and began to read through them when the door at the back of the room burst open, and the boy and the girl ran in, carrying a heavy-looking pot between them.

“Liv, Bataar!" Deryl called for them to stop running, but to no avail.

They put the pot on a nearby table and ran back, returning moments later with plates, bread, and cheese.

“Come, before it goes cold,” Liv called, sitting down by the table.

I glanced at the window, but the Valkyrie had already left.

“Not to worry,” Deryl sighed. “She’s like that. Come and eat with us.”

I sat down at the table. I wasn’t very hungry, even though I’d barely eaten anything today.

“I’m sorry for your loss,” I said, not knowing what else to say.

Deryl sighed.

“He had a good life. He did a lot of good deeds for this town.”

“He helped Vargs and humans live together,” Liv said.

“But we still don’t spend so much time together. That’s boring…” the wolf boy filled in. “That’s why we want to become priests when we are old. Then we can fix it!”

I must have looked confused because Deryl said,

“When the Vargs came, Grandpa welcomed them and created laws that people still respect today.”

He glanced at the wolf boy.

“We are still mostly living as separate communities, but we are all children of Amara.”

I tried to nod. It was my fault the demons had come, and the Vargs had chosen to stay here… If it hadn't been for that, people could still have lived as they used to. I glanced at Liv and Bataar prattling about a bird they had seen earlier today. Could I help people, just like the old priest had done? Would Amara allow me to make up for what I’d done? I shook my head. No, how could she… But… I sighed, remembering what Elise had always told me. Amara judged us for our efforts and intentions. Would it be enough if I tried….?

Once we’d finished eating, Liv and Bataar collected the dirty plates and carried them to the kitchen, and Deryl sat down by the table with a set of scrolls next to him, trying to find out how much my bounty was worth.

“He seemed to have done a lot for this town,” I tried.

Deryl looked up from his scrolls.

“Many see him as a hero. He united the people when the demons came, and he kept our hopes alive during those long nights. I’m sure they would like to raise a statue for him, but he wouldn’t have approved of such things,” he chuckled.

He fell silent for a moment before continuing.

“But times change. I was a boy when he took me, but I still remember how this temple used to be the heart of this town, sharing meals together, and many people slept here. They felt safer than in their own house. But ever since the war ended, fewer and fewer people have dined with us, and now, only mercenaries come to collect a bounty. And Blade, of course…”

He tried to smile.

“But Grandpa always said that children who feel safe don’t need to hold on to their mother's skirt...”

He got up.

“Get some rest, Zoe. You look really tired. Come, I will show you where you can stay."

He put his scroll aside, and I hesitated, remembering the old priest. Could I really help others and make up for what I’d done? Would Amara be happy for that? I glanced at him.

“Deryl... May... may I become a Wandering Priestess?"

He frowned.

“Wandering Priestess?”

He sat down again and gestured for me to join him.

“How old are you?”

“Fifteen," I murmured, shuffling closer.

“Why would you want such a thing? You’re young."

I glanced at him, and he continued,

“Whatever has happened to you, no one will judge you in the House of Amara.”

He tried to smile, but I couldn’t meet his gaze. He couldn’t know what I had done.

“You are welcome to stay here with us,” he said. “You can still help people if that is what you wish to do.”

I shook my head. I didn’t deserve such kindness… He sighed.

“If that is what you wish. Your willingness to walk this path is enough, but it's a custom for those who do so to wear a white star. It will mark you as someone dedicated to helping others without asking anything back."

I glanced at him. That’s it? Could I really ask Amara for forgiveness for everything I’d done by helping others? Deryl took the blue star of Amara hanging around his neck, and Grace filled the room, turning the priestly star white. He handed it to me.

“It belonged to Grandpa. It guided him through the Long Night. May it guide you on your path.”

I stared at it, but I didn’t dare refuse it as he helped fasten it around my neck.

“May Amara guide you on your path."

“Thank you…”

“Now, what will be your new name? It’s an old custom for those who choose this path to leave your name behind and choose a new one."

“A name...?”

I hesitated. I hadn’t thought about that… I looked down on the pendant resting on my chest.

“White Star…” I whispered. “I want to be called White Star."

He smiled and got up.

“A fine name. Come, I’ll show you to your room.”

He gestured for me, and I followed him to the end of the hall and down a passageway where he halted by a door.

“Blade often sleeps there,” he said, pointing to the room next to it. “But you can stay here.”

He opened the door, and we stepped into a large room filled with rows of beds.

“Choose any bed you’d like. We don’t expect any more visitors tonight.”

He pointed at the basin in the corner.

“You can wash yourself there. If you need anything, I will be upstairs.”

He left, and I slumped down on one of the beds. My body ached after the long walk and sleeping on the hard ground, but I guess I would need to get used to it now. Tonight would be the last time I slept in a bed for a while. I glanced around the room. I hadn’t thought about how I would go about it, though. Should I just start to walk and see who I could help? Maybe Amara would guide me, now that she knew I wanted to make up for everything I’d done.

Only then did I realise I was still wearing Blade’s cloak. I had to give it back. She might have left by the time I woke up tomorrow. I stepped out into the hallway and hesitantly knocked on the door next to mine that Deryl had said was Blade’s room. There was no answer, and after a moment of hesitation, I carefully turned the handle and opened it.

She was standing by the open window, gazing into the night, and her cyan eyes seemed to shimmer in the darkness. Her tunic was gone, exposing her pale skin to the cold air, and I looked away, but she noticed me and pulled a blanket from the bed, wrapping it around her.

“I'm sorry," I murmured and turned to leave.

“You can stay."

Her cyan eyes seemed to glow when she looked at me, and I hesitantly walked over to her.

“What are you doing?” I asked.

She turned to the sky once more, and I followed her gaze. I could see the shimmering barrier protecting our world when purple flames suddenly ignited, travelling between the stars before fading.

“Beautiful…"

Wandering flames were a rare sight, and I remembered all the summer nights I’d spent on the roof of our home gazing at the dark sky in the hopes they would appear and paint the sky with their light. Blade glanced at the white star resting on my chest, and a rare smile appeared on her face.

“You’ve chosen a path."

I smiled.

“I have…”

“Get some rest. You never know what the next day might bring you," she said.

“And you?”

She shook her head.

“When the Grace in me is replenished, I'm not tired."

I took off the cloak and offered it to her, but she only smiled.

“You can keep it."

I frowned.

“But you need it too."

“You will need it more than me."

She turned back to the wandering flames, and I walked to the door and then hesitantly turned.

“Thank you…for everything…”