“Magic is an honor,” they always said. “Honor is earned.”
With the Oracle’s words still ringing and the Veil before me, I realized I had no choice but to trust it.
To trust myself.
Out there were the answers I wanted. I had to risk everything to find them. What if this mark wasn’t a blessing, but a curse? What if it had always been meant to lead me here—to this impossible choice?
I tried to picture a life in Thalassia. Tried to force myself to want it—the quiet rhythm, the roles laid out like nets. Sing in the Choir. Accept the mate they chose. Smile, obey, forget.
The tighter I imagined it, the tighter my chest became.
I’d rot here. Drown—not in water, but in stillness. In sameness.
Deep down, I knew. If I stayed, I’d be safe.
If I left, I’d know the truth.
I found a quiet alcove in the reef where the season had dulled the color—faded golds, soft ambers, dusky purples of dying kelp. Brittle sea grass drifted in slow spirals through cooler currents, the scent of decay lingering faintly in the water. The ocean’s hum surrounded me as I hesitated, heart pounding with the shifting tides.
The stillness was deceptive—a fragile pause before I reached for magic I’d always been taught to use sparingly. The Tidekeepers had trained me in small enchantments, gentle coaxing of currents.
Nothing like this.
Nothing close to breaking the Veil.
I slowed my breathing and reached inward, feeling raw energy stir beneath my skin—untamed, impatient. The ocean’s pulse merged with my own, strange and familiar.
It was forbidden to draw too deeply. To risk the balance.
My hands trembled as the currents began to hum against my skin, their song both comfort and challenge. Time blurred as I shaped the energy into something clearer—stronger—more resolute than I’d ever dared. The crescent on my forehead burned faintly, urging me forward.
The Veil didn’t feel like a wall. It felt like a threshold.
When I couldn’t wait another moment, I swam for it—fast enough that the water tore past me like wind. My heart thundered, power coursing through me. The shimmering barrier came into view, its iridescent surface rippling like liquid light, almost daring me to come closer.
I pushed harder until—Pain.
Blinding, searing pain tore through me like molten fire along every nerve. My muscles spasmed. My chest clenched.
The Veil flung me back. The impact sent me spiraling through the water, vision blurring as darkness crept at the edges.
The rejection stung like betrayal.
Doubt gnawed at my resolve.Am I strong enough?A flicker of fear whispered that maybe the Veil was right to keep me out—
But frustration surged hotter, shoving the thought aside. I couldn’t let it stop me. Not now.
The Veil didn’t just repel me. It mocked me.
The sting radiated through every nerve, ears ringing with the force of it. Anger flared, heat rushing through my veins.
I will not let this stop me.
Again.
The moment I struck it, a searing force crackled along my skin—it recognized me and rejected me in the same instant.
The water churned violently around the barrier, vibrating with a wordless warning. The Veil’s hum rose, louder, taunting.
