Page 142 of A Dawn of Gods & Fury

Agatha’s eyes widen. “Yes! The scribes have long suspected Neilina of using the elementals for her own whims. Now we have the proof in her own handwriting. We will have to dig up records of these casters and adjust their histories to reflect—”

“We do not have much time here,” Zander cuts in.

If Agatha’s bothered by his rudeness, she doesn’t let on. “Oh, are you heading back to Argon? How is the new Prime?”

I falter. Lucretia hasn’t filled her in. Why am I surprised by this?

“She’s fine. And no, we are heading to Cirilea to see what Malachi is up to. Do you have something for us?” Zander answers for me.

“A lot of somethings. Bits and pieces of this and that.” She waves a hand toward the huddled heads. “They have been working tirelessly, scouring, and translating, oh, I couldn’t even tell you how many texts. Each time we finish one, there are four more waiting!” But she doesn’t seem daunted by this. A new energy radiates from the travel-worn caster I met at the rift. “There is an entire section about these mystics who once occupied Ybaris. They had affinities to the elements much like us, except they were not born to the mortals.”

“Yes, Gesine told me about them. Does it say anywhere what happened to them?”

“We are still investigating. But!” She raises a gnarled finger. “We have just discovered an entire section in the back that I think bears closer investigation, about a people who could wield the power of the nymphs. They existed in our realm at the same time as the mystics, and it does not seem like they got along particularly well.”

“What does that look like?” From everything Gesine told me, whatever power the nymphs have, it’s also rooted in the elements, which is tied to the fates.

“It is not entirely clear yet. These conjurers, as they called themselves, did not idolize the nymphs directly, but they were devout believers in this concept of light and shadow—the light being the nymphs, and the shadow being—”

“The fates.” It clicks. Oredai called Agatha a shadow wielder because she has an affinity tied to a fate, however weak it may be.

“Yes. They talk about seeking light to balance the shadow.”

“The nymphs to balance the fates.” Or their effects on the realms, more likely. “But that would mean the nymph elders are, what, gods too?”

“I suppose … yes?” Agatha’s face wears the same uncertainty that I feel.

“Why do you sound so doubtful?” Lucretia appears suddenly. Today she has mimicked Zorya’s outfit and hair, right down to the legionary’s eye patch. “You have stood in the elders’ presence. You have witnessed their power. Why would you see them as anything but the deities they are?”

“I guess. I just never thought of them like that.” Two sets of gods who seem to work against each other, but who also balance each other out. “Do these conjurers still exist anywhere?”

Agatha shakes her head. “I have not seen anything in the seers’ visions, past or present, that spoke specifically of them. But we also never saw anything of this great city other than the two-crescent emblem, so perhaps there are hints that we have not correctly interpreted.”

“Lucretia?” I ask.

“There are distant lands where my old masters’ power is still revered,” she confirms.

“Can these conjurers defeat a fate?” Zander asks.

Lucretia laughs wholeheartedly, as if his question is hilarious. Sometimes I think she cycles through a selection of memorized reactions without knowing what they convey.

Zander rolls his eyes. “Then they are of little use to us and our pressing matters. Romeria, we must go.”

He’s right. “Okay, thank you for the update, Agatha. Keep looking.”

“Certainly, Your Highness. Be safe, everyone!”

“Zorya!” Jarek snaps his fingers at the warrior, who is casting daggers at Lucretia. “Feel the need to kill something tonight?” A peace offering for his thoughtless gibe earlier.

Her eye lights up.

“We will have no more than a few seconds of surprise before we lose the edge. Be ready to return us here at my command.” Zander settles a palm on my shoulder, the other gripping his sword. Everyone follows suit in a line, their weapons of choice drawn.

“Lucretia?” I call out. And wait. “I know you’re here.”

She materializes at my side, her hand on my other shoulder, though I felt nothing. She’s lost the eye patch, at least. “I can be of great use in gathering information, Your Highness.”

“I know. That’s why I’m asking you to come with us and find out what you can. But stay hidden.”

---