The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms (Inheritance Trilogy, #1)

by N.K. Jemisin

so there were no stormwinds for me. I did not mind so much.

Sieh had been careful to conceal that side of himself from me, but I had seen the signs of a crueler streak within him. There was very old, very bad blood between these two, and such things were rarely one-sided.

thought of Nahadoth lying with his own children. But the Three had been siblings, after all. The gods did not live by our rules.

“Love can level the ground between mortals and gods, Yeine. It’s something we’ve learned to respect.”

“He doesn’t love me.” Sieh rolled his eyes. “I love you, Yeine, but sometimes you can be such a mortal.”

“What do I taste like?” Sieh sighed, snuggling against my shoulder, his arms looping around my waist. “Soft, misty places full of sharp edges and hidden colors.”

“To see if she was a true Arameri,” Dekarta said very softly. His eyes drifted back to mine. It took three full heartbeats for me to realize what he meant, and the blood drained from my face as I did.

“You thought I killed her,” I whispered. “Father of All, you honestly believed that.” “Murdering those we love best is a long tradition in our family,” Dekarta said.

Huh?

The lump shivered. For just an instant, a perfect, beautiful silver seed floated there before fading back into the dark lump.

There is a held breath of silence, at her words. It is not shock; it is rage. Sieh breaks it first, growling out soft, bitter laughter. “I see. You killed Kinneth.”

the moment of Itempas’s manifestation was also the moment of Viraine’s death. Had he known it was coming? So much of his strangeness became clear, in retrospect.

I do not regret, Daughter, Little Sister, worthy heir. Neither should you. I only wish… I know your wish. Do you really? Yes. They are blinded by pride, but underneath there is still love. The Three are meant to be together. I will see it done. Thank you. Thank you. And farewell.

Next I noticed scent. My body had become something else, less a body than an embodiment, but its shape for the moment was still human, as were my senses.

Just one kind word might have speeded Itempas’s healing.