Chapter forty-one
Nothing happens.
After two hours of sitting across from Micah with the cauldron between us, there’s no fire to be found, and I’m exhausted and discouraged. I can apparently boil an ocean but not a pot of water. “It requires more control to hyperfocus on one little cauldron,” Micah assures me.
I reject that idea with a deep dive of my brows. “That makes no sense to me. It was the ocean. I made the ocean boil. Or maybe I wasn’t the reason the water boiled. Maybe fire isn’t my asset at all.”
Micah helps me to my feet and brushes off my doubts. “I told you, Ember, you have fire in your eyes. You have fire in you.”
“Then why can’t I produce it now?”
“You were probably feeding off the energy field created by the blood horizon last night. Fire’s a rare skill, and it takes time to master. And you must start by believing.”
He’s right about my self-doubt, and I need a confidence boost. “Can we go fight monsters in the forest now?”
The energy field disappears, the cauldron with it. “We’re going to start in the lighthouse, working on your combat skills for a few days.”
“What happened to the forest?”
“We’ll get there.”
“We don’t have time to ‘get there,’ Micah.”
“You know time moves differently here. We have time. Lots of it, and we’re taking it.
You heard what Gabriella said. You have to master your skills to control the serpent, Ember.
Nothing we do matters if you leave Elysium to be overcome by the serpent.
I have Silas and Gabriella set-up to train with you this afternoon. ”
“Can we at least go to the forest for an hour? Show me how to deal with the trees.”
“When you stop running, they’ll stop mocking you. It’s that simple.”
“I didn’t even have a weapon, Micah, and we both know you weren’t trying to get me to fight. You wanted me to rift.”
“And you were too damn stubborn to actually do it.” He disappears.
I glower at the empty space and rift to the overlook where he’s waiting on me, approval in his eyes. “You’ve got the running and chasing down perfectly.”
“You’re such an asshole.” I disappear again and reappear in the library, where I make the mistake of asking the house for every book that references fire.
I end up with books on every inch of the floor around me.
I amend my request to every book about spellcasting fire and end up with a table filled with a dozen books.
Still too many, but it’s better than my prior options.
I sit down and choose a book, with the house aiding my efforts by flipping to pages. Micah appears in the chair beside me. “What are we looking for?”
“Fire,” I say, more than a little pleased he’s followed me, though not sure how he knew my exact location. “How did you find me?”
“If you try hard enough, you can find me, too, through our mental link. There are limits, but from what I can tell, at least while we’re here, I can track you and you me.”
“Because of the connection to this place?”
“Yes. And you don’t need the books to help you with fire. Practical asset management is something I and our team can help you with.”
“What happened to your insistence I read for myself?”
“That’s referencing passages that can be interpreted many ways. Gabriella can control water, also a unique asset. She’ll help you learn to control fire.”
“You think that translates?”
“She might not wield fire, but she knows how to focus her magic.”
“Does everyone have some unique asset?”
“No. You’re special. But we already know that.”
“I don’t feel special. I feel dangerous. Why does Gabriella have a unique skill?”
“As far as our world is concerned, it’s random. I’m sure there’s a reason, but no one has ever figured it out.”
“You didn’t react well to my fire. I’m kind of surprised you told Gabriella.”
“I gave that some thought. In the universe, there is always an opposite. Good versus evil is a prime example. Water versus fire makes sense. You and Gabriella are supposed to know one another, and you not only need to learn to use your fire, you need to counter each other in battle. Think of the freedom you have if water follows your fire.” A book appears in his hand.
“Read this one. We’re all having lunch at the lighthouse at noon.
” He disappears after what amounts to not one but two commands.
Read the book. Be at the lighthouse at noon.
A book falls on the floor at my feet and opens.
The house seems to have its own opinions.
I pick up the book and read the first paragraph:
Fire destroys the most powerful of Nephilim, Seraphim, and demons alike when nothing else will. Those who wield the flames are immune to its destruction.
In other words, if I master my fire, I could kill Jeremy, but what of the serpent I feel inside me?
Will killing him really kill it? If not, will Jeremy live on and use me to destroy the world?
Will I become possessed outside this world and help him freely?
My rejection is instant. No. No, I will not let that happen.
I will kill Jeremy and the serpent. It’s not impossible.
If I work hard and study hard, I can win this battle.
I’ve always been a determined person, willing to face the impossible cases and win.
Even that man I thought was my father found that out when I worked for him.
With determination, I start searching the book for the best way to kill Jeremy and the serpent inside me.
I search. I read. I repeat. And hours later, even with the house helping me, I find nothing.
Absolutely nothing.
There has to be a way to rid myself of both demon and serpent.
There is a way, or the prophecy wouldn’t say I either save or end the world. It would simply say I destroy it. I’ve always found my answers in books. The prophecy is in a book. The answers I need are, too.
I start reading again.
I arrive at lunch to find everyone but Zeke and Braylon present, and the seat next to Micah open for me. I claim my seat, murmuring friendly greetings to everyone, thankful for the same in return.
“Where’s Zeke?” I ask.
“I sent him on an errand,” Micah says, offering nothing more, and I can’t help but wonder if he’s off hunting yet another Knowledge Keeper.
Perhaps Micah doesn’t feel our proposed plan is a good plan at all.
The idea is disconcerting, but I’m not about to express my unease and invite it from everyone else.
“I heard you went to the bay this morning,” Gabriella says with her eyes alight. “And the butterflies love you. I’m so jealous. I’ve tried to so many times.”
Silas grunts and stuffs his burger in his mouth. How does he live on burgers? “It was spectacular,” I say, but my voice lacks the excitement it would have had only hours before.
What’s wrong? Micah asks, reaching for the path that connects us.
Nothing, is all I say without looking at him.
Now is not the moment to discuss my frustrated hunt for a needle in a haystack with thousands upon thousands of books to read.
Micah has had centuries to hunt for an answer that we now have only days to locate, and this has me wondering if the proper book with our answer is even in this library, rather than another.
And he’s not found what I need to find without that luxury of time.
At present, I focus on my empty belly and food.
With a quick scan of the table, it seems everyone has provided their own spellcasted meal.
Micah is eating tacos. Gabriella is enjoying a sandwich, and Silas is once again chowing down on McDonald’s.
I treat myself to mac and cheese from my favorite steakhouse, since apparently dying of a heart attack isn’t in the cards for me.
“And Braylon?” I ask, still not looking at Micah.
“Checking on the garrison,” Micah explains.
Concern rockets my gaze to his. “Is there a problem?”
“I sent him to place Celine on alert in case Jeremy comes looking for you.”
I shift in my seat and angle toward him. “What if there is a problem? How will you know if you’re here?”
He turns his hand over and shows me a small star on his wrist. Gabriella and Silas do the same. “It’s a magical blood bond, and those who wear it can communicate and find each other regardless of location. I have a small group of people, all of who you have not met, who can reach me.”
“Shouldn’t we link in Ember?” Gabriella asks.
“No!” I say way too sharp and fast, and I’m left with honesty as my explanation.
My hands plant on my legs beneath the table.
“I love the idea of being able to find you all and communicate, but we all know I’m the Aza.
We all know what that means. If I turn, I want you to kill me, not the opposite way around. ”
“Ember,” Gabriella says softly. “That’s not going to happen.”
“Agreed,” Silas says. “Stop that bullshit.”
“You barely know me,” I say to them all. “I barely know me.”
Micah reaches under the table and captures my hand. “I know you, Ember. We’re both a part of Elysium, and it knows you, too.” He glances around the table. “Ember and I are going to train together this afternoon. We’ll reschedule your sessions.”
“No, I want to train with them. I want to stick to the plan.” I turn to Micah. “I’m fine. I need to be ready when we go out there.” I reach for our connection and add for his ears only: I want to train with Silas and Gabriella. Please.
You’re not in the right state of mind. I think you need me.
He’s not wrong, but he’s also no different than them in that we all need to know me better before we place trust in me. Then let me show all of us, them included, that I’m worthy of standing by your side.
He draws in a slow breath and gives a short nod before he faces forward.
I straighten in my seat, and Gabriella and Silas are staring at us, as if they know we were just talking to each other through a mental path.
They look astounded, and it’s only then that I think this isn’t a normal thing, but it’s this place, it’s the prophecy.
“Her life is your life,” Gabriella whispers, and I can see her mind working, cataloging the butterflies accepting me and Micah speaking to me in his mind.
Silas snorts, clearly not in the know, as he says, “Her life is all of our lives, so we need to teach her to bitch slap a demon.” He points at me. “I’m going to work you like a bitch, and you’ll hate me today and thank me later.”
“I’m ready,” I say, for the same reason I told Micah I want to do this, and that’s the first paragraph of the book he left for me today that reads:
The Aza will, even in concept, be seen as a terrifying mix of good and evil that will one day be only one of these things, but she is in fact a celebration and dramatization of how both human and Nephilim are alike.
If she chooses right, her light will illuminate a path that washes away the blood of war.
I cannot be afraid of my power. I simply have to choose to use it responsibly. And to do that, I have to start by finding a way to defeat the serpent.