Gold armor glistened and creaked as the man who had dragged me out of the water sat next to me on the black sand. Together, we watched the water roll up to our ankles before passing back down, the tide constant, the measureless flow of waves without variation. “Taxus,” he finally said, raising his voice above the sound of the waves. Salt water dried on my lips. I licked them, my voice cracking. “What?” “Aemmory Percyval Taxus.” He dragged his gauntlets across the sand. “That’s my name.” I blinked, sand in my eyelashes. “You… you are…” When he looked my way, his yellow eyes tugged at my lost
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