is as real as the truth because you believe it.”
I wiped at my eyes, my throat burning from trying to hold as much of my heartbreak in as I could. I didn’t even want to explore the possibility of what Soran was suggesting. It was far too painful.
“Tell me how I got here,” I managed to whisper, not wanting to argue about Calix any longer.
“Kellin had been tracking you. He’s a Sentry. I’m sure he’s told you that. You sent him a message, and the moment you arrived at the cliff, he was able to locate you. We rushed there as fast as we could.”
“You were there?” I asked, surprised at the news.
“Of course I was,” Soran scoffed. “If my baby sister says she’s going to kill herself, you’d be crazy to think I wouldn’t be there to prevent it.”
“But I did die, Soran. Calix saved me. He brought me back.”
“Wait. What?” He snapped his gaze to me and fixed me with his bright blue eyes. “What do you mean you died?”
“I mean, I jumped off that cliff. I died. I was in the darkness, wandering. Calix sacrificed himself to bring me back. He found me in the darkness and pushed me to the surface. He wouldn’t come with me. I tried to get him to,” I sobbed as I remembered the blurry memory.
“Analia,” Soran breathed, his eyes wide. “Do you remember Calix saying anything to you? Anything at all?”
“He said words I didn’t understand.” I frowned, trying to recall them. “It was a different language. I saw them through a vision.”
Soran paled and licked his lips.
“Tas musa en primo, non finnas,” he whispered.
I nodded my head slowly, recognizing the words slip from his tongue.
“Yes,” I said. “Yes, that’s it.”
“Analia,” Soran said carefully, turning to face me. “I need you to be honest with me, OK?”
“Of course.” I nodded, wondering where this could possibly be going.
“Did you give yourself to Calix?”
“What?” I asked surprised and embarrassed.
“You heard me. Did you?”
“We-we slept together, but only once,” I mumbled, ducking my head.
“Oh, dear God, no,” Soran choked, his face paling further at the news.
“What? What’s wrong? I loved him, Soran—”
“You two gave yourselves to one another before each of you made a sacrifice. Do you know what this means?.”
“No,” I said, shaking at his sudden anger.
“It means, dear sister, that you are bound to him. I thought it all ended when Calix died, but he got to you before we could. I wondered why your powers were so strong when you awoke. This is not good.”
“What do you mean?” I stared fearfully at him, my heartrate picking up.
“Isn’t it obvious, Analia? We didn’t stop anything from happening. You knew, didn’t you? You knew you started the binding to Calixto. Why didn’t you say something?” Soran demanded, anger and something that sounded like fear biting his words. “You were the Oracle on your eighteenth birthday. All you needed was to begin the binding, and you did.”
“I-I knew,” I admitted softly. “I made a terrible mistake. Calix told me not to do it, and I didn’t listen. Now he’s dead, and I’m this Oracle. To make matters worse, I’m stuck in this world I can’t escape from, from a future I can’t run from, can’t hide from. I’m sorry. I didn’t want any of this.”
“I know you didn’t,” Soran sighed and rubbed his forehead roughly. “It doesn’t change what has happened though, Analia. You can’t change the past. All you can do is try to make a better future.”
I grunted a response, not wanting to argue with him.
“We’re all still in danger. I thought we might have some time, but I fear we don’t,” Soran continued fiercely. “Zaros will be looking for you. He’s angry he lost his last heir and his weapon, that much we’re sure of. We anticipated a retaliatory attack, but this? It’ll be much grander. He’s going to want you, Analia. Still, he’ll want you.”
“Oh, no,” I breathed, covering my mouth with my hand. “But what good am I? Without Calix, I’m nothing.”
“You’re still something. The Oracle controls Void, Analia. The fifth element. That’s where Calixto is. He dwells there, waiting to be released. If Zaros gets you, he gets the Mortae back. I can’t believe this,” Soran fumed again, his cheeks rosy with his anger.
I didn’t say anything as he chewed his lip in frustration. It felt like eons before he finally spoke, “We didn’t recover his body.”
“What?” I asked, bile rising in my throat.
“Calixto. We didn’t take his