Page 15 of Shrine of Fire

Stefan grinned. “Morning, brother. How was breakfast?”

“It was great.” Nikki’s hair was getting shaggy, especially around the neck and ears, and I wondered if his refusal to have it cut was some small rebellion against his father.

After Nik, Valens came through. Valens was dressed for war, his twin swords on his back and his leather armor bracers on his thick forearms. It was how I’d met him, almost a year ago when he’d picked me up to bring me to the Omega Sanctuary after the death of my pack.

I glanced at Aki, who was dressed the same as Valens, twin swords sticking out of their scabbards on his back and dressed in tight-fitting leather armor.

Just looking at him sent desire flashing through me, and I wondered how long it would take to peel Aki out of that armor. His black hair was pulled into a tight ponytail, and his face was as hard as stone as he stood there, ever watchful. I wanted to throw myself against his walls, even if it left me shattered at the end.

Zara came through next, with Asano, her other packmate, another omega.

“Nova!” Zara pulled me into a tight hug like it had been weeks since we saw each other, not just a few days. “How are you holding up?”

I’d expected to find pity in her eyes, but instead there was just interest.

“Good,” I sighed, letting out a breath. “A little nervous, but good.”

“I would be worried about you if you weren’t nervous.” Zara gave me one last squeeze. “Kivai and I have been back and forth in the spirit realm, talking through the bonding process with the Bone Lady. This should work.”

“Should?” I couldn’t help but tease. “I’m filled with confidence.”

Zara grinned. “I mean, it will be the first time I’ve bonded another omega to a Shrine, and you don’t have spirit magic, like I did to help the process.”

“How is that going to work?” Hashir said, clapping his hand against Valens’s shoulder. Valens and Aki fanned out, like they expected to be ambushed.

“No one else is here,” I said.

“Can’t be too safe,” Valens muttered.

“Good question. Short answer,” Zara said, “I connect Nova’s fire magic to the fire magic of the Shrine. Just like any living creature, she has a small amount of spirit magic inside her.”

“Sounds good,” I said. My stomach fluttered, and I wondered how much harder it would be to control magic with the connection to an elemental Shrine.

But if we didn’t allow spirit magic to flow in and out of the Shrines, magic would build up again.

As badly as she’d gone about things, Yvenna had the right idea. Spirit magic building up because it couldn’t flow between the two realms just meant that we were destined for an explosion.

I led the party back upstairs, heading from the heart of the Shrine.

“And a spirit guide?” Hashir said, giving Zara a sideways hug.

“Is gonna take time,” Zara said. “The spirit guide will help you with the flow of magic. But it’s still early stages, so you’ll have time to get to know the spirits attracted to the Shrine.”

I let out a breath of relief. I wouldn’t have to bond with a spirit I didn’t know. Zara was off the hook when she bound the Shrine of Cleansing Rains because she had Kivai, a shaman who had been stuck between worlds until she found a way to bring him more fully into this world.

“In the meantime, if you need help, Kivai or I can assist.”

We reached the top of the Shrine. Dome shaped, the ceiling curved upward with shining black rock, smooth as polished glass. The walls were covered with murals. People were shown as black outlines, depicted in their daily life. Building a fire, cooking, dancing around a bonfire.

In the center of the room was the altar itself. A black table carved from a basalt large stone, it was round and came up to my hip. In the center was a small metal box.

The anastasis box was what the ancient shaman had created to attract spirit energy to this place and create the Shrines. It’s also what Yvenna had used to sever that connection.

Zara had fixed the one at the Shrine of Cleansing Rains near the Omega Sanctuary, but the anastasis box here was only partially connected to this Shrine. Zara didn’t want to seal it all the way, since our plan wasn’t to seal magic away again, but to allow it to flow.

Like a dam, letting water move when the pressure built up.

Zara looked at the others. “Can you guys give us space? I want to have plenty of room to work.”

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