The Last Valkyrie

Slowly we arrive at the location where Cassian caught me. From the sky, we see a lot of destroyed buildings but one really stood out. While some walls in the near buildings were shattered, this particular building looked like something exploded from inside out.

"There, I point."
Even though it was probably more obvious to them.

We land, finally. Last day I have been more airborne than I'd preferred. I have a throbbing headache and as far as I'm concerned, the day can end already. Still, I manage to observe my surroundings. Ruins. And a huge slab in the middle. We look around but there isn't a lot to see. Finally, Rhysand comes to the bottom of the slab where there is a carving in the stone.

"The Last Valkyrie", he reads. "And the smaller text is a bit ruined. Something... Velaris. Can you maybe see what it says?"
"I can't read", I whisper, embarrassed of my shortcomings.
Cassian squints. "Sa... Hmm. Saviour? I think that's it. Saviour of Velaris."

Underneath the carving, there is a box. I reach for it but my weak hands can't open it. I sigh. Can't read. Can't open a stupid box. I hand it to Cassian with a pleading look in my eyes, if he can even see that much in the dark. He grabs the box and opens it without any problems. A letter and a necklace with a cerulean pendant. There is writing on the back of the letter.

"To my best human friend. I think it's for you." Cassian hands me back the now open box.

I stay silent. The last day has been one of the most eventful I've ever had and I was beyond processing everything. There is not a chance I'm getting good night sleep because of all of this either. But I needed to rest. Rhysand and Cassian look over the dusty, gloomy room and find no other hints.

"Maybe daylight will be kinder and we find some more clues then", suggests Rhysand. "I will ward the place so nobody can enter and then we can head back."
Cassian steps towards me and without a single word lifts me and lands on the street by the building. I stagger with annoyance sweeping through me.
"Could you not just do that? I've been in the air today more than on the ground", I say with a bothered tone.
"Oh. Sorry. I was in my thoughts. I didn't mean to startle you."
Rhysand lands next to us. "Okay, that should be enough. Basically, nobody but the three of us can enter that room. Let's head back to the House of Wind and get some rest."
"No. I am not flying back up there. I'd rather climb back into this tomb I was in than fly one more time today", I answer almost yelling, without any regard for my manners anymore. I don't care.

They stare at me, a bit baffled by my outburst. But I can't be timid anymore. I've played a role of a mousy, silent human for my entire life and the last year I've finally learned to be more open and voice my thoughts clearly. I don't have to be a punchbag anymore.

Cassian suggests, "I guess she could stay at the Townhouse?"
Rhysand stares at me with hesitation in his eyes and then he softens, "Sorry, my guard is up and my frustration is focused on the wrong side. You're the reason hundreds of lives have been saved today. You can stay wherever you want, of course."
"Where is this Townhouse? Can we just walk there?" I ask with hope.
"Yes, Cassian will show you the way, it is about 10 minutes from here. I have some other things to check out today", he says and then turns to Cassian. "In the morning come meet me at the House of Wind. We have to prepare for battle."
Cassian nods and Rhysand winnows out of our sight.

I sigh and rub my eyes.
"Please, give me a moment", I ask quietly as I try to relax my mind and do a couple of breathing exercises. After a few moments, I feel more grounded. I can even muster the strength to walk for a few minutes.
"Okay. Lead the way."

We walk in silence. I stare at my box as if staring will somehow make me develop reading skills. I glance at Cassian and he is already looking at me, with a sort of melancholic look in his eyes. I feel as if his eyes actually want to tell me something soothing. Hey, it's okay now. You can relax for a moment. I've got your back. For the first time, I actually take in what he looks like. Of course, I've noticed the size of him already, as he towers next to me. He has a black head of shoulder-length hair, almost as dark as mine. Hazel eyes are warm as if they want to express his kindness. His body is of a warrior, strong muscles can be observed under his armour. His wings are probably the most impressive thing about him. I see several stones that glow in the night. I stare at them mesmerised and without thinking I ask about them.

"What are those?" I ask pointing to the glowing stones.
He frowns as if my voice broke some sort of spell. "You want to know about Siphons and you didn't even bother to tell me your name yet."
"Right", I sigh and ponder my reply. "Your name is Cassian and it is your own. Your parents gave you that name and it probably wasn't given lightly. It was at least thought about", I say and take a break to steady my voice. To prepare myself for the next part. "As you can already guess in all the craziness today, I was born a slave. That means my mother didn't give me a name, I got a name from a slave that died before I was born. I was painfully made aware that this name isn't mine to get or keep, I was simply borrowing it for a while. Because when I die, this name would go to another slave and I would be disposed of with no one to remember me. So it is pointless to get my own name. I am irrelevant."

My heart is pounding in my ears. I've told this story once before and then I was in tears. I have no intention to cry in front of anyone today. I calm myself once more and I'm grateful Cassian is giving me time to tell this hurtful tale.

"My slave name is Sevak. It is actually a male name, but that doesn't matter when you're a slave. So yeah. I guess the simple answer would just be Sevak and I could've told you that hours ago. But for the last year, I have been living and fighting alongside the Valkyrie. They never called me that and I prefer every other silly thing they have called me. Just not Sevak", I look him in the eyes. "Sevak is dead."
He nods and smiles at me, "Yes. Sevak is dead."

There is no pity in his eyes and for that I am grateful. I don't need anyone feeling sorry for me, or my fucked up story. I'm trying not to be a broken shell of a person. I've lived with Valkyrie, trained with them, even learned something. I'm not as thin and scrawny as I was. Though, I wouldn't go as far to call myself strong or muscular or anything remotely close to what Valkyrie were. But I did improve.

"So, what did the Valkyrie call you?"
"It was mostly silly. I've told them this story and a lot of others and they knew life wasn't that kind to me. At times I thought they made it their goal to put a smile on my face so they called me the sillies things like flower or pecan pie, lily-rose, buttercup or whatever they thought of at the moment."
He smiles. "I did know a lot of them. They were the toughest warriors I've ever seen but I knew some of them had hearts of gold even though it was unthinkable to show that trait in front of an Illyrian."

I don't want to talk about my Valkyrie friends. The wound is too fresh. They might have died 500 years ago, but that was just yesterday for me. I shiver and again feel the turmoil inside of me. As if I will burst. To distract myself I decide to ask about him.

"What do you do, Cassian?"
"I am a General and Commander of the Night Court", he says simply, as if he were a secretary.
"Woah", I say suddenly mindful of what a huge task he has. He is not just a warrior. He is the warrior. "So my mortal human ass was saved by the General?"
He chuckles. "I would've done that for anyone, no worries."
"Thank you. I really mean that. For catching me. For letting me tend to the wounded. It was all I could do not to lose my mind. So thank you."
He laughs at my words. Not mockingly but my words did amuse him. "You are thanking me for letting you save lives."
I smile at him knowing my next thought is a bit darker, "I am thanking you for letting me choose what I want to do."

With his fingers, he removes a strain of my completely messed up hair, smiles gently and nods at me. As if wanting to say he understands. Maybe he doesn't completely understand what is it like to be a slave, but perhaps he does understand not having a choice. Who knows what...

"We're here", he announces, interrupts my thoughts and leads me inside.
Preoccupied with our conversation and my never-resting thoughts I don't even notice that we'd arrived or what the house looks like. I see a seating area and a neat dining room. With not much hesitation, I lean my back next to a wall and sit down.

"We do have chairs, you don't have to sit on a floor", he points while hovering above me.
"I'm filthy, bloody, dirty... And this place is too nice for me to mess it up with my current state."
"I'll show you to a bathing room. You can take a bath, relax a bit, try and clear your thoughts?"
"While that sounds breathtaking... I have a favour to ask from you. Please, sit next to me?" I ask because the thought of him standing over me makes me nervous. Makes me even more aware of how big he is.
"How may I assist the Saviour of Velaris?" he asks as he sits next to me.
"Ugh, no. Maybe not my favourite nickname."
"Still, it's what the Valkyrie named you. And it is what happened. You did save Velaris."
"I only maybe assisted a little. But hardly saved it myself. I've seen them, the Fae in that house. They all fought and saved it", I say not wanting any credit for the celestial lights I didn't control.
"You helped more than you're aware. I saw it. Trust me. Now. A favour?" he asks.
I hand him the letter out of the box. "Please, read this to me. Slowly."