Ellie POV
The first thing I learned was that the goddess’s power answered fear faster than it answered anger.
That realization frustrated me more than anything else.
I stood in the inner training chamber again, bare feet pressed to the cold stone, eyes closed, breathing slow and measured the way Alaric had taught me. The air around me hummed faintly, a living thing just beyond my skin.
I reached.
The sensation came immediately—a familiar warmth blooming in my chest, spreading outward in a controlled wave. It wasn’t violent. It didn’t surge or lash out. It settled instead, like a barrier sliding into place.
Invisible.
Unyielding.
Alaric circled me slowly, boots echoing softly against the stone. “Hold it,” he instructed. “Don’t push. Let it stabilize.”
I c
