It was always dark.
And I was always in that lair…
Nothing about this cabin. Nothing about Grey knotting me. Nothing about hisbite.
I spin around, my mind racing with confusion, my heart pounding in my chest.
I’m panicking.
I… I know I’m panicking.
I need it to stop,I think, dizzy.I need to breathe!
Oracle, I’ve lost complete control. I just… I just need to…
I close my eyes and force myself to inhale.Focus, Ash,I tell myself.Focus.
There are defensive wards all around this cabin. I felt Grey bolstering them earlier while I was?—
My eyes flash open and I look down at my arm. “The rune…” I never finished it. I’ve been too busy worrying about Lunar Sector and Grey to focus on my task.
Foolish, I tell myself, shaking my head.
Then I focus on reigniting the protective mark.
I was so close before, just missed a single dash.
“You can do this,” I whisper. “Youhaveto do this.”
I wanted to learn these runes for a reason. And tonight might very well be that reason.
My finger shakes as I draw the magic across my skin.
“Come on,” I coach myself, pausing to take another deep breath.
Which is when that howl pierces the air, closer now.
Too close.
Why are the wards not firing? I wonder, glancing out the window at the setting sun.
“Don’t,” I chastise myself. “Rune first.”
Inhaling once more, I breathe out through my mouth, andfocus.
Dash. Cross. Point. Upward. Circle around. Pause. Another dash. Crisscross. Point.I consider the symbol, aware I’m missing a few details. It’s tedious and the order in which I execute each part of it is important.But I think… Yes!
The rune lights up in gold, sending a rush of sensation over my skin.
Oh, that’s new, I think, shivering a little from the static electricity rolling through me.Why didn’t I feel that when Grey did it?
“Does that mean I did it wrong?” I mutter to myself. “Should I?—”
A sharp pang hits my abdomen, causing me to double over on a wheeze of pain.
Ow. Ow. Ow.
What…?
