“Wait, Fay. We don’t know what these do. What if . . . what if something happens to you? What if you die or we awaken some beast meant to protect the knowledge here?” She worried her lip between her perfectly white teeth, concern etched in her furrowed brow.
I smiled tightly at my friend, but gently peeled her fingers from my arm.
“I have to know, Ellowyn. We’re here. We may never return. Part of learning is taking risks, of trying something new in order to gain comprehension. This”—I gestured to the rune of an eye—“is one of those times.”
Ellowyn withdrew but crossed her arms tightly, shaking her head once. “I don’t like this,” she stated.
My smile softened as I gently rubbed my friend’s shoulder.
“I’m not ecstatic about it, either, but it’s something we have to do. We’re getting desperate, Ellowyn. Weneedto find the last two artifacts, need to unravel the secrets and surround the gods and Meru if we are to defend Elyria and secure its future. That doesn’t happen without taking risks.”
My words hung heavy in the air, silence ringing between us as Ellowyn digested my declaration.
With a sigh and a slump, Ellowyn acquiesced.
“Okay,” she said quietly, suddenly less the godling and queen and more the frightened girl I’d met years ago.
“It’s going to be okay,” I said, but even I didn’t fully believe my words.
Ellowyn said nothing further as I quickly sliced open my hand. I let it pool in my palm before raising my arm, blood trailing down my wrist to saturate my sleeve, and smearing it across the three stones that seemed the blackest.
With a suddenthumpthat had Ellowyn screaming, magic instantly dancing in her palms, the wall shifted, and a small lever revealed itself.
Dry, stale air bled from the crack in the wall as I pulled the lever, opening the hidden door fully.
I poked my head just inside the entrance, refusing to step inside until I’d assessed the room. Ellowyn stuck her head around mine, clearly searching for threats.
“It’s . . . cozy,” Ellowyn remarked dryly once she was certain the room was just a room.
I barked a laugh before taking a singular step forward.
“That’s because it’s a Seeing Room, Ellowyn,” I remarked. Ellowyn’s expression reflected the awe and wonder in my voice. I took another step inward, cocking my head at the blackened stone on the inner wall.
My chest vibrated with intensity as I gazed at the singular stone, a thousand lives held in the blood there.
As if in a trance, I pressed my hand atop it, mixing my blood with that of thousands of others.
“Fay!” Ellowyn shouted as my palm made contact. My head whipped to hers just in time to see her eyes flash with panic as the hidden door closed, separating us with an ominousthunk.
“Welcome, granddaughter of Fate. We’ve been waiting for you for alongtime,”a voice purred in the darkness.
“Waiting for me?” I mumbled, desperately trying to see in the oppressive black.
The air shifted, cloying humidity sticking in my lungs before a wind whipped around my hair and clothes. The wind died suddenly, leaving the air dry and still once more.
“We’ve seen it in the stars, written it in our prophecies. This moment was always going to come to pass. You seek knowledge which is not yours to possess. Desire to separate the truths from the lies, toseethe future and its winding pathways.”
There was an edge to the voice, though I wasn’t certain it was altogether angry.
“I just want to save my friends, save my home,” I admitted softly. “If you could just show me where the artifacts are, I could?—”
“It is all, or it is nothing,”the voice admonished.
“Then all,” I quickly said, my heart fluttering as the air shifted again, growing warmer as it caressed my skin.
“A payment must be made.”
“What is the price?” I asked, voice shaking with a healthy mix of fear and anticipation.
