“What the elves seek to ignite must be extinguished,” she said. “What was once your duty must be again.”

That voice definitely wasn’t Alinda’s, and it not only spoke of great age and wisdom, but also never-ending regret and agony.

Could it be Rostin De Clari herself? Was Alinda some kind of channeler with a direct connection back to the only mage who’d ever wielded the sword successfully?

I swallowed heavily and said, “Pixies never guarded the sword or the other Claws. We were never responsible for the relics of the dark gods, only the light.”

“If that were true,” she said, “you would still be in the service of the gods. But this mess was started by one of your kind, and you must finish it.”

I blinked. “A pixie stole the sword?”

“Not just any pixie, but an Aodhán. An ancestor of yours.”

“Well, fuck,” Lugh muttered. “There goes the family myth that we were the innocent party in that whole sordid affair.”

It also meant Beira had either lied about not knowing the truth of what had happened or that she had, in fact, truly believed we were the innocent party.

But why would she call the theft of the Claws only a minor transgression? Especially given her comments only an hour ago that their use could affect the hags just as much as humanity itself.

The only way I’d know was to ask the source herself, and there was no guarantee she’d actually give an answer. She might be intent on helping us, but I was betting there was a whole boatload of stuff she wasn’t telling us.

I returned my attention to Alinda and the entity speaking through her. “What are we supposed to do with the Claws once we find them? Give them back to the elves to guard? Because that’s already proven unviable for weapons this dangerous.”

“They must not remain in this reality.”

“Meaning we destroy them?” I asked.

“You cannot destroy what the gods have made.”

“Then what the hell are we supposed to do with them?”

“You move them beyond mortal reach.”

I snorted. “Yeah, that’s going to be easy to do.”

“You are a godling. You can walk where mortals cannot. This is a destiny that has been waiting for your arrival into this world, and it is one you cannot avoid.”

“I may be the daughter of a storm god,” I growled, “but it’s not like he’s provided any sort of parental guidance on what I can and can’t do.”

“You don’t need his guidance. You have the goddess’s gifts. But beware—even the gifts of light can sometimes exact a bloody price.”

“Meaning what?” Why couldn’t these people just speak plainly.

She made no reply, and the omniscient presence in Alinda retreated. She blinked several times, reminding me somewhat of a dreamer surfacing to full consciousness.

“Well, that was definitely unexpected,” she said, her voice wavery and weak. “Channeling is usually at my request, not hers.”

“Does that mean it was Rostin De Clari speaking through you?” I asked.