He gestured for Florian to go first, so he took the lead and made his way into the castle. It felt warmer in the castle somehow, the heat pressing all the more intensely against the shroud that protected them from the Blight. Kade started to follow him, but when his feet passed the threshold of the castle, he winced, shielding his eyes.
“You okay?” Florian asked, frowning, only to watch as Rune did the same, immediately squinting and looking away. “What’s wrong?”
“This light isn’t killing you?” Rune asked, sounding equal parts bewildered and frustrated. Florian shook his head.
“It doesn’t seem any brighter to me,” he said, looking around for a light source. The castle entrance was a wide, expansive room, but whatever decorations might have once adorned the entryway were long gone. It was empty now, and Florian could make out hints of some sort of pattern on the tile floor, barely visible through dust and ash. The air certainly felt warmer, as if they were nearing the center of the Nova Blight itself, but he could see as clearly as ever.
“It’s definitely brighter,” Koji said, covering his eyes as he followed them.
“You don’t see it?” Kade pressed, peering down at Florian as best as he could, blinking hard against the light. Florian shook his head, confused.
“No, it’s—it’s normal,” he said, gesturing. “I don’t know why I don’t see it.”
They all stood there for a moment, sharing confused glances, until finally Kade just shrugged.
“I’ve stopped trying to make any sense of this old magic stuff,” he said. “As long as you can see, we’ll follow you.”
Florian nodded, but his chest felt tight with anxiety now. This was one more factor that they couldn’t account for: one more unknown in a long list of unknowns. He moved slowly throughthe entry hall, twice as alert now, knowing he was the only one who could see clearly.
While he had been unsure if Soleil was still in the castle when they’d approached, now that he was here, there was a familiar presence. Despite the stark emptiness of the castle, it felt like someone was home. She was here, he was sure of it—but he couldn’t even begin to verbalize how he knew it, so he kept the knowledge to himself.
At the far end of the entry hall, Florian could see an ornate staircase that led up to a landing that overlooked the entrance; beneath the stairs were a set of heavy double doors that led into the ballroom. Florian had a faint memory of the throne room being further within, but somehow he thought Soleil wouldn’t be far. She might even be in the ballroom—she had loved to host parties and found the throne room stifling, so the ballroom was often the center of attention at her court.
The heat seemed even stronger as they stood in front of the door. Florian lingered there a moment, then turned back to the others abruptly.
“Let’s check everything else out first,” he blurted out, nerves overtaking him. “I feel like something important is through here, so let’s investigate before we go in there.”
Rune and Koji exchanged uncertain looks, but Kade’s eyes remained on him.
“I don’t know how well we can look for stuff now,” Koji finally said, sounding self-conscious. “Maybe there’s a way we can make it less bright first?”
Florian sighed and looked back at the door. So much for that plan.
“What do you mean something important is through there?” Rune interjected, and Florian shook his head.
“I don’t know how to explain it,” he said. “It’s just a... sense I have. Like the memories of this place.”
For a moment, no one spoke, unsure of how to respond. Finally, though, Kade said firmly,
“We’re following your lead, Florian. Whatever you think is best.”
That didn’t make him feel any better, though he knew it was meant to be reassuring. “I guess you’re right. We can’t exactly look around if you guys can barely see. It’s okay. Whatever would have been in here probably got burned away a long time ago, anyway. Forget it.”
He gave a humorless chuckle that no one else echoed. Their expressions would have been grim, if not for how they were squinting in the bright light. Florian nervously scrubbed a hand through his hair, then turned to push the door open.
Heat intensified against his skin as the doors swung open, the light now burning his eyes. He could hear the others wince and gasp behind him, as if it had become even brighter for them, too. His heart was beating wildly against his ribs now, part fear and part something else—something that felt like recognition, even excitement. She washere.
The moment he had the thought, he could see her standing in the center of the ballroom and watching them as they entered. She didn’t look like how he saw her in Thaddeus’ memories: no, she looked every bit as tired and haggard as if she’d been standing there waiting for them for two hundred years. But something in her wary expression changed when her pale blue eyes fell on Florian, as if she, too, recognized him.
Florian blinked as the light dimmed, still bright but no longer blinding. His eyes were watering, Soleil swimming in his vision as he struggled to get his bearings.
“Shit,” he heard Kade hiss from behind him. “That’s her, isn’t it?”
Florian nodded, unable to speak. His throat felt tight. Then he realized his eyes weren’t watering from the light—he was crying, overwhelmed with emotion just from seeing her face again.
No, he wasn’t seeing her again—it was the first time he’d seen her. Thaddeus’ awareness was bleeding into his own, perhaps pulling him here all along. Wiping his eyes, he looked back at the others.
“Can you—can you see now?” he asked, pushing through the quiver in his voice.
