I glance at Kilkenny. “So he says, but I don’t know how it works.”
“You can enter the dreams of others,” says Haruka. “See what they see, feel what they feel. For someone who’s not been able topractice and hone their powers, it’s natural to not be able to control it just yet.”
Carys and Callum pop into my mind, and I immediately force the imagery away and focus on what Haruka is saying.
“A practiced Dreamwalker can also interact with the person dreaming, and sometimes, influence their dreams. It’s called dreamweaving. There are also certain Mages able to distort another person’s dreamscape or even what they see while they’re awake.”
Gods… that’s terrifying. And so wrong.
“Have you had any strange experiences with dreams lately? When you weren’t wearing the dampener?” Haruka asks.
Clearly, Kilkenny or Alys already caught her up on the bizarre magic things.
Again, I push away the vulgar Callum-Carys dream and the menacing Kilkenny dream. I glance at him, and he averts his gaze. My heart sinks.
Haruka is still waiting for a response, so I clear my throat. “Apologies, yes… Well, I often can hear in my dreams, which is already strange. But when I dreamt about Queen Morwenna, the Good, she said something directly to me.”
“What did she say?” Alys asks.
“I’m not sure. Something in a different language. Somewhat familiar, like I’ve heard it before, but I didn’t understand it.”
The three around the table exchange expressions of an unspoken understanding between them. I shift uneasily in my seat. Osheen appears as confused as I feel, while Chiyoko sets her paintbrush and statuette down before leaning in attentively.
I wipe my clammy hands on my trousers before asking, “Should I be concerned?” Disquiet prickles my skin.
Haruka smiles a tad hesitantly. “No. It has just been ages since any of us met a Dreamwalker.”
A tiny huff of nervous laughter slips past my lips. “Until the night of the Feast, I thought magic was just folklore. Everyone in my village believes that magic can only exist through objects. I thought Mages were purged from Erleya centuries ago.”
“That’s what most believe,” says Haruka. “And, on the surface, it does appear that way. But look around.” She smiles and sweeps her hand in a circle.
“I thought powers were inherited. Neither of my parents had powers, as far as I know.”
Chiyoko steps closer, leaning her forearms against the back of the chair where her mother sits. “Sometimes it skips a generation… or a person,” she says. “Like me. Both of our parents are Mages of different powers and Tiernan is an Amalgam; he got powers from each of our parents. It’s like he took both powers for himself and left me Ordinary. Selfish bastard since birth, obviously.” She smirks bitterly.
Pain flashes across Kilkenny’s face for a heartbeat, but he presses his lips together and doesn’t face his sister.
“Wait, powers from each parent?” I regard Kilkenny as if I’m seeing him for the first time. I can still remember the sound of his voice in my head.
“It’s rare,” he says with a pained smile. “My da is a Mimic, so he can wield the power of another Wielder in the vicinity—like flamewielding and galemaking—but not mind magics like sorcery, skinchanging or… well, dreamwalking.” He shrugs. “Healing, I can to some degree. I haven’t had a lot of chances to practice and test the extent of my powers, but I can heal decently, thanks to Alys.”
She smiles warmly at him.
“And from Mam’s blood, I’m a Mind Whisperer.”
I gnaw on my lip. “What about Dark Mages? Aretheymyth or also real?”
Haruka, Kilkenny, and Alys say three different things, and I rub my temples, overwhelmed. They all look at each other, then Alys says, “They are real, but magic isn’t black and white. I suppose the most famous Dark Mages in Erleyan history were the Basduunai.”
That word sounds familiar. Chiyoko returns to her previous spot and picks up her work again, even as she seems to be listening to her mother’s words.
“Basduunai were Mages of ancient and dark magic,” Haruka says. “The name is literally translated from the old language as ‘death bringer.’ In the past, before magic was endangered, Basduunai were feared and usually executed if found. The Basduunai who chose to stay in hiding and suppress their dark abilities often went mad because of it. So that particular set of magical abilities has been extinct for at least a thousand years. Probably for the best, because the most well-known Basduun became corrupted by her own powers and sought illicit magic—opening portals and dabbling in the things of worlds beyond ours. She nearly destroyed our realm as we know it before she was banished.”
My head buzzes with theories. “She sounds like the Enchantress Queen Enidwen from my fairytale book.” The statement slips out.
Alys and Haruka nod. “The very one,” says Haruka.
I don’t remember the terms Basduun or Basduunai mentioned at any point in the book of fairytales. But who could forget Enidwen? The enchantress was mad enough to release a prince of the Underworld.
