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“The two of us?” I asked, wondering if he was also experimenting on David.

“You don't need to know the details,” he replied and walked past me to the next table, where he opened his bag and began to unpack some empty vials that were definitely not part of the lab equipment.

I ignored his hostile comment and instead eyed the vials, which I had last seen in one of the desk drawers of his university office.

Images came to mind. Images of his well-trained, naked torso, of broad shoulders and veins that stood out... of black eyes.

“The other day, your eyes turned black,” I began cautiously, and he paused, but did not turn to me. “And your veins stood out.”

It had been like with a Senseque.

Quentin chuckled softly. Then he turned around.

“I assume you're talking about your first break-in into my office?”

I swallowed, then nodded sheepishly.

“When we use Umbra, it draws heavily on our neurological resources and our inherent paranormal energy, which manifests itself in physical side effects because the body has to compensate somehow. Umbra needs our body's own paranormal energy, but even more so our mental capacity for it, which we only possess to a limited extent. It's as if Umbra overloads our system.”

I nodded, catching myself hanging on his lips, and not just metaphorically.

“It's something higher, which we must consume and use with caution. Think of it as a computer attempting to execute a program that exceeds its processing capacity, leading to resource exhaustion, thermal stress, and eventual system failure.”

Now I finally had a simple explanation for why the Quatura weren't allowed to use it, even though the question remained as to why the Councils made such a big secret out of it. They practically turned it into a forbidden fruit.

“That's why it's been banned,” Quentin gritted out through clenched teeth. “Because Quatura, in particular, can't control themselves.”

He looked at me as if he meant me, and for a moment, everything he said felt true.

I already had no control without the Salma. Should I even think about using Umbra?

“What's truly dark about Umbra is not what you can do with it.” Quentin packed the books into his leather bag, along with the iPad. “It’s what it does to you.”

I stepped closer as he took off his lab coat.

I had almost forgotten how good he looked in slightly tighter light blue shirts. And the gray vest...

Julie. Concentrate.

“What are those dark practices capable of if they don’t influence the elements?”

I gave Quentin a questioning look.

“Oh, they can.” Quentin gave a quiet chuckle. “However, these are complicated processes and still nothing compared to what Umbra is actually capable of.”

Quentin ran his fingers through his slightly wavy, almost straight, champagne-blond hair that had fallen across his forehead, pushing it to the sides.

“Ancient Umbrien texts describe Umbra as ravan-asha. The Psychic Arts.”

I nodded, fascinated by the term and with growing expectations.

“It's what people talk about when they refer to witchcraft in ancient texts.” He raised the right corner of his mouth almost imperceptibly. “Precognition. Mediumship. Telekinesis, which is different from elemental air powers, mind you. Clairvoyance. Incantations. Curses. Interference with electromagnetic fields...”

The fascination in my chest threatened to overflow.

So witchcraft really did exist?

An answer to the question of why Umbra was forbidden dawned on me. What if it wasn't the danger of self-destruction that was the reason? What if these psychic arts were simply too powerful and not really controllable? What if the Councils feared it? Was that the reason Quentin was studying the dark practices?