Total pages in book: 161
Estimated words: 162269 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 811(@200wpm)___ 649(@250wpm)___ 541(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 162269 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 811(@200wpm)___ 649(@250wpm)___ 541(@300wpm)
Her voice dropped when she continued.
“You do not kill a weed by picking off its leaves. You must dig it out of the dirt. We must know who our enemy is, Farah. All of them.”
Farah could not argue that point, so she didn’t.
But Elena entered the conversation.
“Serena has become quite skilled at being a spy.”
“She is very well known by this faction,” Fern replied. “As such, it would be difficult for her to spy.”
“She is very well known everywhere, but she still managed to strike a crippling blow to The Rising,” Elena replied.
“I will consider this,” Fern murmured.
“And consider using her lover, Chu,” Elena added.
Fern’s chin lifted. “We need no man.”
“He taught Serena much of what she knows. And Serena has a crew. Two gnomes. And everyone knows that gnomes are exceptionally skilled at espionage.”
Fern appeared most interested in this idea.
“Someone must volunteer to track down the Beast,” Melisse noted at this juncture, her eyes on Rebecca and Nandra. “It will be dangerous, and Lena and I can join in the search when we’ve completed our assignment. But we cannot delay in searching to ascertain if he has, or has not, come to ground.”
“I will do this,” Nandra declared.
“As will I,” Rebecca stated.
Melisse nodded and carried on.
“As it is, and as most of you know it is, our recent losses have caused great mourning,” she stated softly. “But they have also released great amounts of magic. It goes without saying we, all of us, would wish the witches who bore that magic to be amongst us, using their gifts to fight our foes. They are not. Thus, we must endeavor to use what they have left for us. Use it in their honor and use it to ensure their lives on this earth, and their deaths for a righteous cause, were not in vain.”
“I am uncertain if this is a good idea,” Rebecca said worriedly.
“It might not be,” Nandra replied. “But drawing down that amount of power would be useful.”
“I don’t understand what this means,” Silence murmured.
“We must draw down Mum’s, Jasmine’s, Rose’s and the magics of all the other Nadirii who fell,” Elena explained.
“And it must be yours,” Melisse told the prophesied. “The four of yours.”
“I would include Serena,” Elena said.
Melisse inclined her head.
Ha-Lah was glancing around before she asked, “Is this not normally done?”
“It is avoided, unless needed, such as in a time like this,” Rebecca shared. “We, all of us, absorb magic naturally. It is not done to make maneuvers to take more than we can organically absorb. But beyond that, it is generally agreed it is not right to take more than our fair share. But mostly, too much magic is a burden to bear. It can get unwieldy. It can make your command of it unreliable. And unreliable magic is as you would expect, not good, especially for those who try to use it.”
“As my command of it is already unreliable, is this wise?” Farah asked.
“Risks are never wise, but that doesn’t mean they shouldn’t be taken,” Nandra answered.
“And I would assume, as you are the prophesied,” Melisse put in, “that you would be able to wield much more than most.”
Although this made sense, none of the women at the stones looked comfortable with that.
But none of them said a word against it.
“And thus, we have a plan,” Melisse decreed.
All nodded.
“We understand our assignments?” Melisse pressed.
All nodded.
Melisse looked amongst them.
And then she whispered…
“So mote it be.”
137
The Shimmering
King Mars
Guest Bedchamber, Sky Citadel, Sky Bay
AIREN
“I do not like this,” Mars growled to his wife who sat astride him in their bed as he rested his shoulders against the headboard.
She was wearing far too many clothes.
This being naught but a nightgown.
Though she was also wearing his marital chain, which soothed him.
But after she had shared what she had shared that she’d learned from the Great Coven, even his chain she wore so proudly, something he loved immensely, did not provide enough comfort.
“They think it’s the right thing to do,” Silence replied.
“You are admirable with your magic, bellezza. But it is new to you. Is it not important you have a firm grasp on what you have before you take in more?”
Silence put her hands on his chest and leaned down to get closer to him.
“I think that evidence suggests that the Beast has risen, Mars. And if he has, I think we need all the power we can get.”
Mars looked beyond her, the feeling in his stomach not one he enjoyed, even if the words she said were right.
She tugged on the point of his beard and his gaze came back to her.
“We are prophesied,” she reminded him.
“The prophecy is that we are the only ones who can fight this creature with any hope of victory. There is no guarantee of defeating it,” he reminded her in return.
“We are formidable,” she whispered, using his own words of months ago as to what he felt of their union.