I studied the page.
My breath hitched.
A whole passage all about the megalomaniac in question.
Ruxnoth: The Celestial Infidel.
“This was a gift from Cassius to Ariana. Mostly used as training years ago, but also to give her some insight into her heritage. It’s been used at Haven Initiative for the children too. Now they’re grown, it’s with me. A lot is still shrouded in mystery, something Ketheron assists with because of his makeup connecting him to the knowledge base of several True Celestials on the Celestial Plane. But this being is infamous, so there’s actually information on him in here. He’s the only True Celestial to ever break the binds of theirs through perverting his magic to such a fucked-up degree that it essentially degraded the binds themselves, and he was able to operate freely.” He eyedme. “Clearly, he escaped the Severance. The only one who could with the binds broken.”
“It was discovered the day you’re referencing. Of Winter’s abduction.”
“He wishes to use Winter’s unkillable nature to power whatever construct he’s created?” Off my look, he said, “The only way his presence hasn’t been detected in all this time would be through creating something along those lines. Where is it?”
“We don’t know. And it’s not just him.”
He cocked an eyebrow. “He’s the only one who could have escaped.”
“He’s enlisted the necromancers who disappeared during Morien’s culling.”
He jerked back, a choked curse slipping from his throat.
“Kai, if this gets out beyond you—”
“You’ll use that Celestial magic you’ve got there—and my own fucking spell—to stop me from leaving here?”
“I’ll do what I must. No matter how distasteful. Despite what you’ve said about your connection and care for Sylas—and Winter by extension—you are also the love of Ariana Martel. Her father being Ryker Morgan, and let us not forget also Jaxon Silver, Lucian Black, her mother even Mia Snow. Her grandfather, Cornelius Martel. And it may have also come to my attention that you have an agreement about not keeping secrets with your loves.”
He stepped up to me, just shy of breaching my personal space.
I hissed.
He glared.
And then he said, “We are both calculative motherfuckers. Knowledge is important to us. But there are times when knowledge in the wrong hands, or given at the wrong time, can push a tipping point into a disaster.”
My eyes narrowed. Trying to read him… I’d never encountered anything like it.
His lips quirked, clearly noticing that fact—and relishing it.
But then the grave nature of the situation returned in full force, as he told me, “For the record, there are secrets I do keep, that I have to keep. I have parameters, because of past… issues. This is obviously complex.” His gaze hardened. “But like I said and explained in far too much detail to make you understand, I owe Sylas.” He added pointedly. “I owe my brother.”
“How does this work in concrete terms?”
“You intend to use my spell against Ruxnoth, yes?”
“It won’t be enough on its own.”
He smiled. “Very good. It won’t. The necromancers aspect also complicates matters. Especially considering what Sylas might do.”
“Try to siphon their power?”
“Yes. Brilliant deduction,” he said, now the subterfuge was done with, a whole lot of pride shining forth from him. He dematerialized the book, hiding it away with a spark of his magic. “As for the spell, the only way it will be strong enough to do more than make him bleed and briefly incapacitate him will be if I perform it, while it’s fused with the Celestial magic you have access to. But Ruxnoth possesses warped Celestial power. And that’s where you need my help more than any of the rest.”
“You’re offering to write a spell with me? Of this magnitude?”
“Yes.”
I smiled. “That’s really something.”
