Legacy of Orïsha, #1
Children of Blood and Bone
by Tomi Adeyemi
Contents
Chapter Forty-Eight: Zélie
Overview
Inan lures the masks into the open by feigning a trade, then returns the sunstone to Zélie. Empowered by the relic and a vision of Oya, Zélie summons an army of the dead to assault the camp. The gambit escalates their rescue attempt and solidifies Inan’s active defiance of his father’s creed.
Summary
Zélie and Inan creep to the masks’ camp to rescue Tzain and Amari. Doubting the plan and Inan’s loyalties, Zélie resolves to try anyway. Inan, disguised in black, walks out to negotiate, drawing out numerous masked guards and archers.
Claiming to trade, Inan displays the sunstone, provoking awe. When the female leader demands his surrender first, Inan refuses, then hurls the sunstone back toward Zélie. Zélie leaps, catches it, and is flooded with its intoxicating power and a vision of Oya.
Supercharged, Zélie amplifies surrounding spirits. Their call drowns out the living as she channels ashê into the earth. She fractures the ground and summons an army of the dead—twigs, rocks, and soil forged by silver light—and orders them to attack the masks.
Who Appears
- ZélieProtagonist; catches the sunstone, channels Oya’s power, and raises an army of the dead to attack.
- InanPrince-turned-ally; lures the masks by feigning a trade, returns the sunstone to Zélie, defying his upbringing.
- Masked female leaderLeads the camp’s response; orders Inan to kneel before trading and draws out fighters.
- The masksPoacher fighters guarding the camp; swarm out with weapons and archers to seize the sunstone.
- OyaOrïsha of Life and Death; appears in Zélie’s vision as the sunstone surges, guiding her power.