Chapter 58
Blaze
The night air is thick with the scent of liquor and triumph.
We sit round the bonfire clutching cups of Fox’s grandmother’s juniper-berry gin.
She kept it for special occasions, which is why he thought it fitting to fetch a couple of dusty bottles from the kitchen cupboard.
I’ve lost count of how many toasts we’ve raised – to Queen Hydra, to Syla, to me.
I haven’t stopped grinning since finding the Eye in the Creek.
It’s back where it belongs now, hanging from the chain round my neck.
Flint and Spinner are in the middle of a slurred rendition of some ballad about a pirate and a prince, their voices loud and off-key.
Beside them, Sheen winces and holds out his hand for another bottle, which sails over to him, carried on an obedient stream of air.
Fox laughs and slides an arm round my waist.
The drunken singing falters as Flint breaks off mid-verse to glare at us.
Ever since his arrival he has left us in no doubt as to his opinion of our attachment.
Once Fox had finally managed to convince my brother that, firstly, he was not holding me hostage, and, secondly, that he truly was a Healer, he offered to tend to Flint’s burns.
Naturally Flint refused, but grudgingly accepted a vial of painkiller at Spinner’s insistence.
I notice he stays well back from the bonfire, angling the left side of his body away from the crackling flames. I also notice him stealing glances at Sheen.
I swirl the contents of my cup. The liquor is not nearly as strong as the relief that continues to cascade through me, intoxicating in its intensity.
‘I can’t believe we did it,’ I say.
‘You did it,’ Fox amends, tucking a stray curl behind my ear and ignoring Flint’s low growl of protest.
I smile as I pinch my chain between thumb and forefinger, letting the talisman swing back and forth like a pendulum before adding thoughtfully, ‘It’s strange, though.’
‘What is?’
‘Only that the first time I found the Eye, touching it felt like being struck by lightning,’ I muse. ‘Except this time – nothing. It’s just as cold as when I threw it into the portal.’
‘What?’ Fox asks sharply.
I glance up at him, startled by the edge to his tone. ‘When I touched it before, it was incredible but agonizing too. I remember seeing stars. I thought I might die from the pain. I could feel the power racing through me, as if it were in my blood.’
‘You’ve never mentioned that until now.’
‘Didn’t I?’ I arch a brow and take another swig from my cup. ‘Well, it makes a nice change – knowing something you don’t.’
Fox jerks his chin towards the Eye. ‘Can I see that a moment?’
I shrug and pull the chain over my head. As I drop it into his palm, I attempt to translate his curious expression.
‘I know!’ Flint announces. ‘Why doesn’t Blaze give us a show?’
I turn to him. ‘What d’you mean, a show?’
‘Oh yes,’ says Spinner. ‘Let’s see what the Eye can do, Blaze.’
‘I don’t actually know how to use it yet,’ I admit. ‘Returning Elva’s gifts was an accident.’
‘What about the third trial, when you summoned that storm?’ Flint asks.
‘I suppose I just sort of … willed it to happen. I asked for my power to be returned to me and it was, though that power was already mine to begin with. It’s complicated. I’ve still got a lot to learn. Fox says it took him years to figure out the complexities of Sifa’s Eye.’
‘Oh, come on, Blaze. What’ve you got to lose?’
I sigh and scramble to my feet. ‘If I agree to try, will you stop pestering me?’
Flint nods sagely. Spinner leans forward eagerly, but Sheen’s gaze is fixed on Fox, who tosses me back the Eye.
‘Here.’
I catch it, wobbling slightly, my reflexes somewhat clouded by liquor. Furrowing my brow, I begin to concentrate.
A whole minute passes. Then another.
‘Are we sure it still works?’ Spinner whispers loudly.
Flint shushes her.
At that moment the bonfire suddenly glows bright blue, the flames leaping higher and higher, spitting out sparks that glitter like sapphires.
Flint lets out a whoop while Spinner bursts into raucous applause.
Even Sheen raises his cup in approval. I blink several times and the enchantment comes to an end.
I stare at the carpet of powdery blue ash round my feet and feel my face split into a triumphant smile, but it fades abruptly the moment I catch sight of Fox’s expression.
‘What?’ I ask. Then, more defensively, ‘Not impressive enough for you?’
‘It’s not that.’
‘Then what is it?’
The others have turned to stare at him too.
He fights to keep his voice neutral. ‘A … complication.’
Flint frowns. ‘Spit it out, Earth Cleaver. What’s the problem?’
‘The problem,’ he begins slowly, ‘is that Blaze just cast an enchantment without using the Eye of the Soul.’
‘What’re you talking about?’ I brandish the talisman in my hand. ‘It’s right here.’
‘No, it’s not. You’re holding the Eye of the Past.’ Fox gestures to the talisman round his neck. ‘This is Syla’s Eye.’
I cross my arms impatiently. ‘I’m not following.’
‘I swapped them.’
Flint makes a derisive sound.
‘Why would you do that?’ I ask, perplexed.
‘Because of what you just said about the first time you touched the Eye. The way it felt. How it’s felt ever since.’ Fox glances away and murmurs, ‘Why didn’t I see it before?’
I throw up my hands in frustration. ‘See what?’
‘Most things I put down to you being Demari,’ he continues.
‘Surviving that snake bite, turning the forest to ice. And the portal from Brava. The Aquatori spend years learning how to use portals, and yet you got us here, safe and sound, on your first try. But it didn’t all fit.
Take the Eye of the Past, for example. It took me a long time to figure it out – you just said so.
Even now there are things I miss, memories I can’t seem to find no matter how hard I try.
Only you got it to show you exactly what you wanted to see – your entire history, just like that. ’
My skin tingles nervously.
‘Then there’s Elva,’ Fox goes on. ‘The night you returned her shadow magic, you told me you’d cut yourself.’
‘What’s that got to do with anything?’ I demand.
‘I could feel the power racing through me, as if it were in my blood,’ he repeats.
‘Well, what if it was? What if the source of the Eye’s power wasn’t sitting round your neck but running through your veins?
Elva bandaged your hand, remember? She didn’t get her gifts back because she touched you – she got them because she came into contact with your blood. ’
My gaze flickers.
‘Think about it. Both Sifa and Seera tried to hide their Eyes so they could never be wielded by another, but they were still discovered. Doesn’t it make sense that Syla’s last enchantment was not only designed to hide her talisman but to ensure that it would never belong to anyone else?
’ Fox pauses. ‘That is, except for someone she had chosen.’
I’m shaking my head, but as his words land each new realization pummels me in the ribs before slotting into place.
‘The Eye called to you. It wanted you to find it. Not so you could possess it but so it could possess you. When you touched it, all that power – it must’ve been … transferred.’
My voice is barely a whisper. ‘What are you saying?’
Fox takes a long, deep breath. ‘Blaze, I think … I think you are the Eye.’