Page 39 of Wings of Death

“Why do you do that? Avoid tough questions?”

He pauses at the door and turns to me. “It was your mother’s. I saw her wearing it once. It’s a powerful ring. You need to be careful.”

I sit up straighter, leaning towards him. “Where can I find information about it?”

He shrugs. “You could try the Great Library, but I don’t know if that’ll get you far. The ring would have to be ancient for someone to have written about it. Take care, Zarla.”

After a quick shower, I dress in my guardian leathers, leaving my hair hanging in loose waves down my back, and make my way to the Great Library. It’s beautiful in here, one of my favourite places in the entire castle. Knowing my mother loved it too makes it feel that much more special to me.

The ceilings are impossibly high, and the large circular glass roof allows light to stream in, illuminating the library in a bright glow. The shelves are designed to shade the books from the incoming light to prolong their lifespan. Every detail is so well thought out. The flooring is polished marble, with thick rugs in sections around the reading stations with desks and comfortable couches spaced around.

A staircase winds its way around the edge of the interior walls of the circular building, leading to the higher levels with more books. There’s a special reading area near the top of the roof, but angels rarely go up there as it’s a bit of a climb to make it to the top. And no, you aren’t allowed to fly around in here, so that option is out of the question.

Suda, the librarian, is sorting books behind the desk when I walk in. Her grey hair is tied back in a loose bun, which matches the grey jumper she is wearing. She glances up as I approach her.

“Well, well, well… If it isn’t Guardian Zarla,” she says with an arched brow. “Has a nice ring to it, doesn’t it?”

I laugh. “Hi, Suda.”

“How can I help you, dear?” She smiles and repositions her glasses on the bridge of her nose.

“I need to find some information about this ring,” I tell her, holding my hand out. “I’m not sure whether it exists, but?—”

Her eyes widen as she grabs my hand. “Where did you get this?”

“It was my mother’s. It’s the reason I’m here?—”

“Follow me,” she interrupts.

She heads to the stairs and hurries up them. I follow close behind her as we wind our way up past each floor until we reach the third level. There’s no one around, and something tells me that was the idea behind coming up here. There’s a door near the edge of the wall, and she pulls a set of keys from her pocket and glances over her shoulder as she unlocks it.

The room is dark and fairly small. There’s a desk in the centre with several books stacked up on it, and thick wooden bookshelves line the walls. She flicks on an old lamp near the edge of the desk and closes the door once I’m inside.

“Zarla, do you have any idea what that ring is?” she asks in a hushed voice.

I glance around, unsure why she’s being so cautious when we’re alone. No one can hear us in here.

“All I know is that it was my mother’s. I’ve also seen it glow, but I don’t know why it does that.”

She turns to a shelf of books behind her and lets out a long breath as she runs her finger along the spines of them before stopping at one. She pulls the large leather book from the shelf and drops it on the desk. It lands with a thud, sending a cloud of dust into the air.

“That ring is powerful. More powerful than you know. I have heard stories about it, read things throughout history,” she says with an eerie intensity as she opens the book. “I’m forbidden to allow anyone to read this book. But…” She glances up at me as if deciding what to do.

“But I already have the ring,” I say, finishing what I imagine she is thinking.

She nods. “Your father won’t be happy. He instructed me long ago to hide this book. I don’t believe anyone knew your mother had it. No one can know about them.”

I furrow my brow. “About what?”

She flicks through the book and points to a section. I lean in to read it in the dim lighting.

“The weapons of the gods,” she says.

The hairs on my arms rise as my skin prickles. There is a drawing of my mother’s ring in the book, under the title “The Five Weapons of the Gods.” My breath catches as I read through the section beneath it.

The Ring of Rykel, handcrafted by the gods. Possesses the power to warn the wearer of imminent danger. The red diamond glows when danger is near. Wearer be warned: the ring has a mind of its own, and can interfere with one’s sense of reality, whilst also being one’s greatest weapon.

This ring will harm those who are unworthy and try to take it from the wearer.

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