“You’re focused on her, and not on accepting the magic!” shouts Aleksi.
The sudden frustration in his voice chastens me. If I am to honor her, Sofia, my Valtia, then I need to accept what she’s given me. I suck in a shaky breath. My legs are folded beneath me. My face is pressed to the stone. I spread my arms, palms up. Though I never wanted to say good-bye to her, I’ve been waiting for this day for as long as I can remember. With fear—and with eagerness. Finally I will know. Finally I will be complete, what I was always meant to be. A new Elli—no. A new person. One who is powerful. And useful. And vital. I’ll gladly take what’s left of my Valtia inside me. I’ll become someone who would make her proud. “I’m ready,” I say, my whole body trembling.
Aleksi and Kauko murmur their approval.
From above us comes a deep boom, and my ears pop. Aleksi and Kauko gasp. A wave of nothingness crushes me to the stone slab, so heavy that I can’t move. It forces the air from my chest. I can’t feel my legs or arms. Terror pulses in my veins as my vision goes black. My head becomes a roaring blank space. I squeeze my eyes shut. More than anything, I wish my Valtia would appear and take my hand. I wish she would tell me I’m hers, and that everything will be all right soon.
I push the thought away. Magic. I must focus on the magic.
I lose my grip on time.
Tears drip from my cheeks, from the tip of my nose. But gradually, my breaths come a little easier. The noise in my mind fades, moment by moment. My limbs tingle and my lips buzz with numbness. When I’ve finally gathered the strength, I push myself up, my arms shaking. Kauko and I stare at each other. His eyes are shining.
“It’s done,” he says, his voice tremulous. “Aleksi, call the others.”
Aleksi disappears into the corridor, and Kauko kneels at my side. “You did well,” he says. “How do you feel?”
I look down at my body, now in possession of a magic that can sink ships. Raise crops. Heal wounds. My heart beats in my chest, and I swear I hear it echo. Hollow, I almost say. “I—I don’t know. I feel . . . all right?”
His brows tent upward in puzzlement, and then a smile splits his round face as he laughs. “?‘All right.’ You feel ‘all right.’?” He stands up slowly, shaking his head. “Only the most powerful Valtia in all the ages would say that.”
Seeing his mirth draws a weak smile to my lips. I rise to my knees but have to catch myself as dizziness overwhelms me. My legs feel like wooden blocks dangling from my torso. “Maybe not so all right,” I murmur.
“You’ll need to rest for a few days. Your dreams . . . be prepared for the dreams. The ice and fire work their will while you slumber. It is a burden the most powerful wielders must bear, but as your magic finds its balance within you, they will subside.”
“Of course. Dreams.” I rub at my temple. My head feels like it’s been stuffed with wool.
The sound of thumping footsteps precedes a group of priests, apprentices, and acolytes. They crowd into the Stone Chamber and hover in the tunnel outside, trying to get a good look at me, offering kind smiles and bows. They’re depending on me. I sit up straighter, ignoring my echoing heartbeat, my numb legs, my tingling lips. I need to look like the queen I am.
Aleksi pushes his way through the onlookers and kneels before me. “Are you ready to accept your fate?”
I nod.
He takes a carved wooden box from his apprentice. I recognize it immediately. He sets it on my stone slab and opens it, revealing the cuff of Astia. “This is your ally, your sword and shield.”
He looks down at my right hand, and I lift my arm. It feels like a hunk of rock, but I hold it steady as Aleski fastens the cuff to my wrist. It glints in the torchlight, the same shade as my hair, deep and burnished and swirling with the bloodred runes that give it power. As soon as the clasp is in place, Aleksi releases my arm, which falls to my side.
“From this day until you take your final breath, you are no longer Elli,” he says, getting to his feet and gesturing for me to do the same. “That name belonged to a girl, and now you are a queen.”
It takes all my focus to get my legs to push me from the ground. I feel like a fawn taking its first steps. My arms rise from my sides to aid my balance. I draw in a breath. I am balance. Perfect balance.
Everyone smiles as I stand steady before them. Aleksi holds out his arms, presenting me. “From this day until you take your final breath,” he continues, louder this time, “you are the Valtia!”
I incline my head, and they clap. Kauko is grinning as one of the acolytes hands him a stout candle on a copper plate. It’s a perfect column of beeswax, never lit.