17. Esmira
ESMIRA
W hen the glory of sunset graced the boat with crimson hues, turning the water into a sea of sparkling gold, I met Methrin on the deck for a lesson in Mirror Magic. We faced the water and Methrin held out his hands, palms facing out.
“When my father learned I had Mirror Magic, he gave me two options. Work with the sorcerers and healers in the palace to find a cure, or join the armies that secured the borders. I chose battle and blood because I wanted chaos and to test my power without limitations.”
Once again he was opening himself up to me, showing me the rawness behind who he was, the immortal, the prince. I copied his stance, holding my palms toward the water.
“The most important thing to remember is that you are in control. Mirror Magic is part of you but it does not control you. Don’t let fear guide your magic, use it with intention.”
I closed my eyes, sensing the magic there, buds unfurling, waiting, ready to be used. But one thing I did not understand. Prince Methrin mentioned the shadows, the voices, yet when I looked within all I saw was a halo of golden beauty.
“Mirror Magic is rare here because it was not created by Nocthera, nor does moon dust or moon light enhance it. Instead, it is based off reflections which surrounded us. At any time you can make a reflection solid and pull a shard of mirror out to use as a weapon.”
My eyes opened in surprise. “Is that how you fought off the Venators?”
“It is. Weapons are always available, in fact, you’ll rarely need to carry a knife.”
“I don’t know how to fight,” I admitted.
I didn’t want to fight; my stomach roiled at the thought of seeing spurts of warm blood arching through the air again. I wasn’t aggressive, I’d fight only for self-defense, to protect myself and those with me.
As though he sensed my thoughts, Methrin added, “I will teach you enough to protect yourself, so if the Venators ever attack you, or an assassin interrupts your breakfast, you will know what to do.”
An iron determination came over me. That, I could do.
“Look out at the waters,” Methrin instructed, a warm cadence to his lilting voice. “Imagine a mirror, see it there, right in front of you. Reach for it with intention, not to shatter it or go through it, to take a piece, a sharp shard, shaped like a knife. Hold out your hand. Take it.”
He flicked his wrist and something silver shimmered, blinking into existence. A jagged mirror sword. “Always envision a smooth hilt, otherwise you’ll cut open your hand, I’ve done it many times.”
Following his instructions I imagined a mirror. A silver outline flickered over the waters, but when I reached for it, it winked out of existence.
I refocused my mind, seeing the flares of silver, imagining the mirror in front of me. Again, when I reached for a shard of mirror, my concentration slipped and it vanished.
I tried again.
Failed.
And again.
“The more you practice, the faster and better you will become,” Methrin encouraged. “But only practice with me, and only at this time.”
“Why?” I asked after another failed attempt. Sweat beaded on my brow and my head throbbed.
“Mirror Magic drains your energy, sleep is the best way to rejuvenate.”
“Ah,” I grunted.
Steadying myself I focused again, erasing all thought from my mind except what I desired.
I ignored the incandescent beauty of the sky as night spread its wings, shuttering out the light.
I ignored the rocking of the ship, the way the waves splashed up against the hull.
I ignored the scent of salt and heat, the warmth from Prince Methrin beside me.
The ache inside each time he spoke. The longing to feel his lips against mine.
Again. Even though he’d just kissed me senseless.
A shadow flickered at the edges of my vision, a shape with ember-red eyes, its limbs nothing but inky ribbons, writhing back and forth. It floated above the water, moving steadily with the ship. A chord of fear struck, forcing me to yank a shard out of an invisible mirror.
Sharp pain laced up my arm. With a cry I dropped the mirror shard. It struck the deck yet stayed intact while blood bloomed across the jagged edges.
“You succeeded,” Methrin said, voice tinged in awe as he lifted my bleeding hand. “But there’s no hilt to your blade, hence the blood in exchange.”
My stomach churched as I looked at my palm, split open and bleeding. But when I met Methrin’s gaze there was no judgment in his dark eyes, only beguiling admiration.
A thrill went through me and my body warmed under his praise.
Cheeks flushed hot I turned back to the waters. The shadow was gone leaving only the rippling dark. Still, a chill shuddered up my spine and a question lingered. Was the shadow a figment of my imagination? My own dark reflection haunting me? Or the monster that Methrin had set free?
D ays drifted in a song-like cadence. More often than not, Lyra was with Lord Pelgrin and Lady Velune, while the guards roamed, keeping out of the way of the crew yet watching for trouble.
The constant movement of the ship took getting used to, but I loved leaning out over the railing while the sea spray dampened my face and the wind tossed my curls.
Peace filled me when I watched the waves roll to and fro and it was easy to believe everything would turn out for the best.
Methrin and I met on deck every evening after the last meal to practice.
I learned how to pull a shard from a mirror without slicing open my palm.
Methrin taught me how to fling mirror shards from my fingertips, like tiny arrows, and one evening we caught a pool of fish.
Methrin jumped in with the crew to collect the fish and they were roasted and eaten as a midnight treat.
I learned how to pull moisture from the air and encase someone in glass, freezing them in place until the spell wore off.
Finally, Methrin taught me how to find others based on the trace of magic left for them.
It was something those with and without magic could use but for me it was listening, sitting, meditating, being aware of those around me and their essence.
I found Lyra first.
With my eyes closed I could see the outline of her body, a green halo of magic surrounding her.
Methrin was harder to find, and he hid from me, instructing me to find him based on magic.
I sensed his essence, shimmers of gold that flickered, a pure, bright color.
But finding him was impossible. I had yet to link together the awareness of knowing someone had magic with also finding them.
Nor did I understand how to create a mirror at their location and step through to find them.
Methrin encouraged me, telling me it would come in time, but for the first time, I saw my future and understood his past. He’d led armies, all enemies had fallen on his feet because of his dominance, his vicious control of Mirror Magic.
In those days, the Everminati of the Moon had no enemies because he vanquished them all.
He was well-respected, honored both at home—for winning—and abroad—for his cruelty.
But once the campaigns were done and peace was secured, once arms were laid down and it was time to return home, boredom sank in.
He wanted to use it, to control it, to test the limits of his magic.
His actions became dangerous, often hurting citizens of the kingdom.
But he was still a prince, still a hero and there was a chance he might overcome the Shadow.
After all, no one had seen Mirror Magic as powerful as his.
They hoped until he became too chaotic, to volatile and cast him out.
I listened to his stories, aware they were a warning, a reminder not to sink too deeply into the use of Mirror Magic.
But it was all I had. It not only gave me protection, it also gave me a purpose, a reason.
Besides, I was good at it. Energy burned through my veins, filling me with a euphoria each time I was successful.
Even more satisfying was Methrin’s surprise.
I wanted to bask in his appraisal and become even better so that he’d be proud of me.
It was tempting during daylight and also because each time I used Mirror Magic, the shadow appeared.
Now when I turned my face toward it, it remained visible instead of flickering away. And it whispered in my mind. Daily.
I wanted to tell Methrin, but I was also afraid he’d make us stop, and I didn’t want to stop the one thing that gave me power, that made me feel close to him.
“ M orning Esmira,” Lyra called, weaving across the deck to join me.
In the early dawn, mist curled like fingers from the water and the crew fished, releasing the smaller fish while saving the larger ones for breakfast. They rolled them in leaves and cooked it with some bright orange fruit called a plantain.
As simple as the food was, it was the best I’d ever tasted, hot, delicious, buttery, and melting on my tongue.
I’d grown to love the early mornings, the cadence of song on the boat as the crew worked, the steady pacing of the guards and the ripples in the water as fish jumped.
Best of all was the endless sky a blend of colors that took my breath away. Gone was the hazy purple shimmer, the terrifying lightning from the Boundary. Instead was a slow shift of pink, gold all deepening into an impossible blue.
“Lyra.” I smiled at her and a warm happiness spread through me like the first ray of sunshine after a long, cold winter .
You don’t deserve to be happy. Not after you left them to die.
Lyra touched my arm. “What is it? You look at though you saw something disturbing.”
I didn’t want to lie to her but I wasn’t sure how to speak about the shadow.
“On mornings like these I feel happy yet guilty. Back home everyone is suffering, my father, my cousin, they must be worried about me. Yet I’m here, realms beyond realms with no idea how to get back home, but it doesn’t worry me. ”
“I have the same guilt,” Lyra admitted. “Father never wanted me to come here. I wondered if he was afraid of what I might discover or because there’s a reason he fled the realm with Prince Methrin.
But now that I’m here, learning from historians and the great seer herself, there’s nowhere I’d rather be. ”
“Even with this quest?”
Lyra frowned. “This ship is a reprieve from the quest, a chance for you to learn Mirror Magic and for me to understand the Everminati. I don’t think either of us know how dangerous this journey might end up being.
There’s an ancientness to the air, an old hunger and a discordant hum.
Unlike our realm which is balanced, something here is off, almost diseased.
I don’t know whether it’s the loss of magic causing the imbalance or something else, but I hear the hum.
Something is wrong here and it make me wonder. ”
It made me wonder too. “Lyra, what have you learned from the Everminati?”
She glanced around to ensure no one else was close enough to eavesdrop, then lowered her voice.
“Age has made them wise, it’s hard to attain clear answers to my questions but I’ve learned my father was eccentric, he experimented on those with magic, especially those with wild, volatile magic that couldn’t be cured. ”
Prince Methrin.
I lowered my voice. “Why did he leave? Were his experiments unorthodox?”
Lyra shrugged. “I hope not. My father has changed in many years, but they only knew him from before and they are careful not to speak too much about him. I also learned that Prince Methrin was a hero. Apparently he fought in many wars to clear the borders of their enemies. If fact, the common enemy of the Evermianti are the Soul Stealers. They live far beyond the borders, often across great bodies of water, however they are not immortal, but they have devised a way to live longer by drinking the blood of the Everminati.”
“That is despicable,” I gasped.
Lyra nodded. “Yes, there used to be trouble with them, whole cities falling to the bloodthirsty horde, until Prince Methrin waged war against them with Mirror Magic. It’s been seventy years since the last recorded death.”
Seventy years. It put into perspective Methrin’s agelessness. I leaned closer, eager for knowledge. “What else have you learned?”
Lyra pressed her hand over mine. “Beware of darkness. We are going to the Moon Temples where the priestesses give their entire lives over to the worship of Nocthera. Something is very wrong indeed if she has forsaken the Evermanti and taken their magic. Either they have done something to offend her or a terrible evil has befallen her.”
“But a goddess is all powerful,” I protested. “How could something evil befall her?”
Lyra turned her gaze toward the waters. “We will find out. I hope I am wrong but this feeling of wrongness, I can’t shake it. But enough doom and gloom, what about you? You’ve been training hard with Prince Methrin.”
“I’m learning, every day it’s easier.”
“And what about the madness?” Lyra prompted. “Have there been any vestiges of it?”
Now was the moment. “Sometimes I see a shadow, on the edges of my vision.”
“Tell Prince Methrin,” Lyra urged. “He will know how to help you.”