Page 154 of Barbi and the Villain

I whip my head up, finding the High Priestess watching me intently.

Two things from my dream have come true. Herwa is a real person, currently sitting in front of us. And that jar? As far as I remember, it doesn’t house any artifact.

“Here,” the High Priestess says as she pushes the jar toward us.

Nykander moves to grab it, but she stops him.

“Not you. Her.” She nods toward me.

I frown.

“What are you talking about?”

“My orders were to deliver this to you,” she says cryptically.

“But he is the one who needs it.”

“Yet you are the only one who can open it,” she counters.

And to prove her point, she reaches for the jar and attempts to open it. The cap does not move. It does not even rattle.

“You may try as well,” she tells Nykander.

He grabs the jar, but it doesn’t budge for him either.

“Why me? Why would I be the only one to open it?”

“Open it and you shall see.” She smiles.

Nykander pushes the jar in front of me, urging me to give it a try.

I stare at her and gulp down.

In my dream, Lispera placed her daughter’s energy in this jar. Could I have been mistaken about it? Could it have been the artifact? Maybe my dream was incorrect…

I reach forward with my hands, cupping the sides of the jar. The moment I touch it, the material vibrates against my palms, a hum that travels down my entire body.

My breathing becomes shallow and my heart pounds in my chest.

“Open it,” the High Priestess commands.

With trepidation, I grab the cap, prepared to pull hard on it. But it only takes a limited amount of strength for it to move to the side.

A whoosh of air surrounds me, and I gasp against a sudden breathlessness.

My chest feels tight, my limbs paralyzed.

But that ends just as it starts. I remove the cap and place it on the table next to the jar.

Curious, I lean forward to glance inside.

“It’s empty,” I blurt out, looking at her in shock. “How can it be empty?”

“What?” Nykander asks as he leans in to take a look as well. He squints in confusion and we both stare at the High Priestess, waiting for an explanation.

A lopsided smile pulls at her mouth. Her gaze skips over me, settling on Nykander.

“The artifact you seek is nothing but a myth,” she speaks slowly, confidently. “The Ananke artifact is where it belongs. Within the House of Ananke and guarded by the current High Priestess.”

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