“By your manner, you’ve lived at least two centuries. In all these years, have you ever met a sorceress?” Lucenna watched his pensive eyes widen at the realization that he hadn’t. “Women are never allowed to leave the Magos Empire, and outsiders are never allowed in. It’s closed off from the rest of Urn to maintain the patriarchy that it’s established on. The Mage Code of Law.”
Why was she telling them this? She was spilling mage secrets, but she wanted them to know. The world knew nothing about what went on behind the walls of her home, and it infuriated her.
Rawn’s eyebrows knitted together. “I am unfamiliar with this law.”
“As am I,” Cassiel said.
A vivid purple mist danced on Lucenna’s palm. “The Mage Code is a regulation that oppresses sorceresses. It binds us, imprisons us. Our lives and our power belong to our fathers from the moment we’re born. We have no rights, and we have no freedom. All of our moves are monitored and all of our decisions are made. We must never learn spells or try to leave the empire. The Archmage will execute any who dare.”
There was no comment. Their breathing sounded loud in the shocked silence.
“It’s done by siphoning,” Lucenna continued. “Our Essence is as vital to us as air. Without it, we die. It’s the source of magic and the one thing every mage wants. They take it from their wives and daughters, merging it with their own to gain more power. Girls that have little power are sold in marriage before their first courses. Most of them die—from rape or in childbirth.”
Her throat caught with the tightness that gripped her chest. She had seen it happen many times in the empire, and she had been powerless to stop it.
The silence was so heavy Lucenna made herself look up. There was no mistaking the sincere dismay Rawn expressed. Cassiel’s expression hardened with sullen anger. Zev watched her from a distance, his ferocious yellow eyes luminous in the night.
Rawn pressed his fingers against his eyelids. “The mages I met in Greenwood had been kind. I am ashamed to have admired them. Their atrocities are unbeknownst to the rest of Urn.”
“Why would they speak of it?” Cassiel said. “They know the rest of the world would condemn them for it.”
“It’s awful,” Dyna said softly.
“Are any so fortunate to escape?” the elf asked quietly.
Lucenna sighed. “Of course, but the Enforcers capture most. Their sole purpose is to seize refugee sorceresses and return them to Magos, where they are publicly executed in the capital to discourage others from doing so. It offends mages that we would dare to aspire for independence. We are nothing more than property to them.”
“But not all mages can possibly believe that,” Dyna said. “Azeran didn’t believe that.”
Lucenna nodded, feeling a mixture of admiration and sadness. “No, he did not.”
“Three hundred years ago, Azeran formed a rebellion against the Archmage that led to civil war,” Dyna told Cassiel and Rawn. “That much is true. But the War of the Guilds wasn’t for his gain of power. It was for freedom.”
“When he ascended as head of the Lunar Guild, he fell in love with a Sun Guild sorceress and she with him,” Lucenna said. “But it is against the Mage Code to marry outside of our guilds. They eloped, and the Archmage had them hunted down. He forced Azeran to watch his wife be siphoned.”
Cassiel looked away, and Lord Norrlen lowered his head.
“And that led to war,” Cassiel murmured.
Lucenna nodded. “Azeran found he wasn’t the only one who wished to dismantle the Mage Code. Reyes Fuego, Head of the Sun Guild, joined his rebellion. Along with the thousands of mages in their guilds who wanted to fight for their families.”
“The Earth Guild remained in league with the Archmage,” Dyna said, standing beside her. “The war tore through the empire. Many died. With the Sun and the Moon against the Earth, Azeran had the advantage. They were winning, but…”
Lucenna clenched her fists. “But Andrez betrayed him.”
Dyna sighed, glancing at her sympathetically. “He was Azeran’s brother.”
Electrical currents seeped through Lucenna’s taut fingers. The Magos Empire hailed him as a hero. They built monuments in his memory and consecrated his name.
“The War of the Guilds was lost, but the Luna Medallion saved them,” Dyna continued, motioning at where it hung from Lucenna’s neck. “The Moonstone it once contained had the power to open portals. With it, Azeran and Reyes escaped the empire with as many mages and sorceresses as they could take. Each went their separate ways to establish the sanctuaries: The North Star Village in the south-east of Azure and the Sol Aubade Village in the north-west of the United Crown.”
The news sent a soft shiver through Lucenna. Most considered the existence of the sanctuaries as a legend. No one knew where they had settled and she never would have guessed they remained in Urn.
The early dawn grew cold with the passing wind. Invoking a bouquet of purple flames, Lucenna placed it between them on the ground. The enchanted campfire exuded soothing warmth, casting a hue on the grim faces of her audience. Zev didn’t join them, but he lay at a distance and she knew he was listening.
“The Archmage did not pursue them?” Lord Norrlen asked.
Dyna shook her head. “Azeran warded the sanctuaries from outsiders. They were free.”
