Page 16 of Gift from the Stone

“Repeat after me, out loud. Aperi conspectum meum ad terram antiquam, ostende fabricam Elementra explica.”

“Aperi conspectum meum ad terram antiquam, ostende fabricam Elementra explica.”

Open my sight to the land of old, show Elementra’s fabric unfold.

I grunt as my magic attempts to shoot out of every pore in my body. Balling my fist and commanding it to stay, the first drop of sweat slides down my temple, and my skin feels like it’s going to rip open.

Ignoring the pain and focusing on my task, the reality of what’s in front of me begins to shift. The beautiful sea of trees subtly vibrates before everything starts to move in slow motion. The landscape takes on a hazy blue hue, showing me the blueprint of Elementra. There are brightly colored, woven threads of magic flowing like streams through the ground, into the roots of the trees and into its branches. There’s an essence of magic floating through the air like smoke on the wind.

It’s pure and extremely powerful.

My limbs shake uncontrollably, and I’m drenched in sweat from the hold I have on my magic. Instead of giving me a power boost, the pure, unfiltered power flowing through the area in front of me is attempting to cycle my power, a give-and-take relationship that’s a natural occurrence, but right now I’m not giving anything. The effort to keep my magic from doing what it’s supposed to do is draining me rapidly.

“Hold your hand out in front of you. When you repeat these next words, slowly draw a circle in the air. Once the points of your beginning and end meet, pull right down the middle as if you’re unzipping the circle, then let go of your magic. Now, repeat after me, out loud. Haec fila coniungunt per tempus et spatium. Elementra, hunc mutuatum benedic locum.”

“Haec fila coniungunt per tempus et spatium. Elementra, hunc mutuatum benedic locum.”

Connect these threads through time and space. Elementra, bless this borrowed place.

My magic bursting from me is so powerful, it’s visible. A ray of light pours from my body in waves of silver strands, flowing directly into the circle I created. It’s endlessly pulling my magic from my chest, and just when I think the dimension will drain me dry, the pull lessens, revealing a swirling pool of silver, like liquid mercury, floating in the air.

“Place the bag of vials inside. Once you set it down, zip the circle back up and the dimension will close,” Gaster orders as he passes me the bag of healing vials.

I expect it to be cool and wet based on its look, but instead, as my hand passes through the silver pool, it’s a sensation of my own magic, the familiar glow and tingle I get every time I call it forth.

After pulling my hand out slowly, I zip the circle up, and suddenly, Elementra’s blueprint blinks out of existence. The connection I had ground in the soil snaps, and I fall hard on my ass as exhaustion hits me like a freight train.

“Here, child, drink.” Gaster uncaps both vials and passes them over to me.

“Did I do it?” I pant after chugging down the liquid miracles.

“Yes, Willow. You did it. Now when you want or need to access it, you’ll ground your magic, draw the circle, and unzip. It won’t be draining in the least going forward. It’ll be as natural as any other spell,” he says, gracing me with a loving, teary-eyed smile.

“Good, good. I think I’m just going to lie here for a bit, Gaster, if that’s okay.” I wheeze through my shortness of breath as I lie on the ground like a starfish.

“Relax, child. Your Nexus will be here soon.”

Three

Draken

Deep within the heart of the magical forest that surrounds the academy stands the ridiculous fucking structure we’ve dubbed Rebel Castle.

Only E.F. members with high enough clearance and who’ve been personally interrogated by our Nexus are allowed knowledge of where this location is. Much like the academy, the wards that surround the structure hide its view from nosy little shits and are enchanted to confuse anyone who comes too close.

Some strong enough, especially shifters with higher senses than most gifted, can smell the enchantments and fight through them, like Jarod’s stupid fucking wolf.

Sneering at the massive stone castle, I can’t help the bitterness I feel every time I come here. I’m not nearly as dark as Caspian in my beliefs of how the prisoners should be treated, but I can’t help but think they get far better treatment than they deserve for the crimes they’ve committed.

Far removed are the once dark and cold traditional dungeons where being cut off from the elements would eventually leave you an empty shell of a person. Now, they have comfy little cells, with a bed, a toilet, lighting, three meals a day, and even a small, enchanted window that gives the illusion of the outside world.

It’s bullshit. They should be tortured and then eaten.

Walking through the halls, the cell doors are made of two-way crystalline panels infused with blocking enchantments that cut off the prisoners’ access to their gifts and elements as soon as they pass through the invisible barrier. Once they’re in, a locking enchantment snaps in place.

Dickheads can’t get out unless one of us lets them out.

I easily get a sense of who here is nothing but the Mastery’s bitches and those who play a more involved role in this group. The people who are nothing but pawns are sniffling, shaking, scared weasels, screaming and begging for mercy as we walk past them.

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