"It’s true. Now, Phoebe," Luciana said, leaning closer to the camera with sudden intensity, "you'll need to enchant the anchor artifacts yourself. The purification magic must be tied to Pleiades blood to work properly. I can walk you through the process. It's complex but not dangerous, especially with the babies protecting your power."
"Great," I said dryly. "More magical homework while I’m the size of a small house."
"What do you need us to gather?" Mom asked as she shifted into efficient mode. Nina appeared at her shoulder, looking ready for anything.
Luciana's expression grew focused. "Tell me what supplies you have access to, and I'll give you the full list. We'll need specific crystals, purification salts, silver for the anchor bases,and several rare herbs. The enchantment ritual itself will take most of the night to complete properly."
"Nina, grab a pen," Mom said, pulling out her phone. "Luciana, start talking. We'll get everything you need."
CHAPTER 10
The moment Mom and Nina left to gather Luciana's supply list, the house settled into an eerie quiet that made my nerves jangle. Everyone else had dispersed to handle various tasks. Aidon insisted on reinforcing perimeter defenses before I took on this next task. It wasn’t as dangerous as the others because it wouldn’t directly taunt Lyra, but he didn’t want to take any chances.
Jean-Marc was researching anchor placement theories to make sure we had all the information we needed. The coven witches were maintaining ward rotations and talking of calling in reinforcements. That left me alone with Luciana's concerned face on the tablet screen and the triplets doing their best impression of hyperactive disco balls in my belly.
"Now that we have privacy," Luciana said, leaning forward on her end of the call, "tell me about these communications with your babies. This is unprecedented,cara mia. Even among the most powerful Pleiades bloodlines, direct prenatal contact like that is theoretical at best."
I shifted on the bed, trying to find a position that didn't make me feel like a brontosaurus with magical powers. "Clio taught me a meditation technique called soul-speaking. Honestly, Ididn’t think this was going to be much more than me getting quiet enough to identify the parasitic bonds. That was all she said to expect, really. But it was so much more. Their individual personalities were clear as day. We actually communicated! Well, through emotions and stuff, but they sent so much more than how they were feeling."
Taking a deep breath, I placed both hands on my belly and sank into the meditative state Clio had taught me. The familiar warmth spread through my core as I reached for each baby's unique magical signature.Hello, little ones. We're going to help fight the bad magic. Can you show Luciana something? Maybe more about the sacred site?
The response was immediate and enthusiastic. Melaina's golden threads erupted from my skin. It was followed by Thaniel's crackling blue energy and Nyssa's protective purple ribbons. They wove together above my stomach and recreated the detailed topographical map of northern Maine with impressive precision.
Luciana's gasp echoed through the tablet speakers. "Madonna mia... they're actively participating in magical workings. Look at the detail level. They're showing elevation changes, water sources, even the underground cave systems."
The projection shifted, zooming in on the corrupted ley line convergence beneath Mount Katahdin. Black veins pulsed through what should have been pure white energy streams. The babies highlighted specific points where the corruption was thickest, marking them with angry red pulses.
"They understand the contamination pattern," I murmured, watching in fascination as they traced the infection's spread through the mystical network. "Are those showing us the optimal placement points for the cleansing anchors?"
"This is beyond remarkable," Luciana breathed. "They're performing analysis that would take our most experiencedelders hours to complete. Your children are going to change the face of magic."
“I’m not putting that pressure on them,” I replied as the map dissolved. It was replaced by a new projection showing what looked like architectural blueprints. Detailed schematics of the anchor artifacts themselves, complete with measurements and material specifications.
“Of course not,cara mia. They will have wonderful childhoods, but when they are grown they will be something to behold.” Luciana was frantically scribbling notes on her end. "The silver base needs to be exactly seventeen centimeters in diameter. The crystal housing must be positioned at a forty-five-degree angle. Oh, I never considered placing those runes where they did."
The babies' magical light show continued for another few minutes. They became downright playful not long after they began. They started chasing what looked like tiny glowing animals around my belly. They'd created a magical zoo. Little overachievers were already showing off.
"Your children are going to revolutionize how we approach magical workings," Luciana said quietly. Her voice held that tone people get when they realize they're witnessing something that's going to change everything. "The level of magic they just demonstrated? Most adult witches never achieve that kind of analytical capability."
"They're definitely going to keep us on our toes," I agreed, rubbing my belly where I could feel them stirring with what I could only describe as smug satisfaction. Like they knew exactly how impressive they'd been. "Let's just hope they use their powers for good and not for convincing their parents to buy them ponies and sports cars when they're older."
Knowing my luck, these kids would probably figure out how to magically manipulate us into getting them whatever theywanted before they could even walk. Aidon was going to be a big pushover. At least I had some experience saying no to my kids.
Luciana laughed, but her expression remained serious. Uh oh. We were about to have a conversation I didn't want to have. "Phoebe, you need to understand what this means. If word gets out about their abilities?—"
"More people will want to use them," I finished grimly, because I wasn't born yesterday. I knew exactly where this was heading. "I know. That's why we're going to end this with Lyra permanently. No one else gets the chance to hurt my family." Not on my watch. Not ever.
The sound of the front door slamming announced Mom and Nina's return from their shopping expedition. "We’re back,” Mom called out.
"We found the blessed thistle at Meadow's shop," Nina called out cheerfully. "She practically threw it at us when she heard what we were dealing with. She said to tell you she's got your back, Mom."
Right. Sometimes I forgot that being the coven leader meant people actually looked to me for guidance. The problem was supernatural crises kept taking up my time, and I didn’t spend much with the coven. I needed to make time for them. Most had proven they would support me. No pressure or anything.
"Can you blame her for being eager to help the Pleiades?" Mom replied. "She knows the implications for everyone if we fail. Anyway, between her place and Marcus's, we cleaned them out of half their rare stock. Plus, Lilith donated what they didn’t have without question."
"And the silver?" I asked because none of those sources would have had that.
"Oh, that was easy," Mom said with a grin as she appeared in the doorway. "Daethie sent Chlora and Thicket to deliver it straight from the pixie mound. You know they were morethan happy to contribute to taking down the bitch who's been messing with the natural order."
