Page 41 of Mountains of Mist and Magic

“I'm...excited. Nervous, too.”

“That's to be expected. I was nervous as well, when your mother was pregnant with you.”

Renya glanced over at her own mother, who was thumbing through another book. As worried as she was about being a good mother, she knew she would never abandon her child or resent them over magic. If they took her powers, so be it.

Almost as though he sensed her thoughts, Cyrus put his arms around her. “You're going to be a great mother.”

Cressida mumbled something snarky underneath her breath, but Renya ignored her.

There was a loud crack in the air, and an elderly woman appeared, her pale skin nearly transparent.

“You!” The woman screeched, looking at Cressida.

“If it isn't the Libera, the Keeper of the Knowledge,” Cressida jeered.

“You allowed her here?” Libera looked at Cyrus, her mouth open and eyes wide.

Cyrus nodded. “She can wield no magic here.”

“She can still do other things...” Libera complained. Her eyes were flashing with annoyance, and she seemed impossibly large, like her anger enabled her to grow several feet. Renya wasn't sure if it was a trick of the light or if it was some kind of magic she possessed.

“I'm sorry, but who are you?” Renya asked.

“Forgive me, Renya. This is Libera, she oversees the vast knowledge that we've acquired over the years.” Cyrus said. “And Libera, as of right now, our goals are aligned with the exiled Shadow Queen. I've allowed her access to our library. She says there's a book here that will tell us everything we need to know to restore the magic.”

“You were always so simple, Cyrus. It's not going to tell us everything, but enough. Enough to get to where we need to go.”

“Stop talking in riddles!” Renya yelled, her hands going to her temples. “It's enough. Just tell us plainly.”

“Fine. Ignore my desire for showmanship. There's a book here that was written at the same time as the scrolls. It speaks of the location where the Gods left our world, where the magic originally came from. The book is mentioned a few times throughout the scrolls, but never by name. The only identifying feature it gave was a mention of the phrase 'origo.'“

Libera gave a slight gasp of surprise. “Origo Magicae?”

Cressida nodded excitedly. “You know it?”

“Yes, but up until now it's never been deciphered. It's in an unreadable language.”

“Not a language. It's a code. The Sun Realm Scrolls hold the key.”

Finally, they were getting somewhere, Renya thought. And perhaps, her mother was telling the truth, especially if Libera agreed.

“Let me summon it,” Libera said, moving with grace to the bookshelf, despite her age. She picked up a book and opened it, turning to a page and closing her eyes. The bookshelf trembled, and then turned into a door.

“What is going on?” Renya asked, shocked at the scene before her.

“Forgive me again, Renya. I'd forgotten you hadn't been in our library. The bookshelf is just a way to access our stores.”

Renya felt a surge of hope; initially she was disappointed when she followed her father to their so-called 'grand' archives.

Libera opened the door, heading inside, and Renya followed, with Cyrus keeping a close eye on Cressida.

Renya's mouth dropped as she stepped into the chamber, shocked at both the sheer elegance and size of the library. Row after row of books spread as far as the eye could see.

Cressida made a beeline for the small desk in the center of the room.

“Yes! This is it!” Her excitement was palpable. “I'd almost discovered it right before our bond was broken and I was forced out of the Sun Realm.” She shot a menacing glance at Cyrus, who just ignored her.

Renya moved closer to examine the book. It was older than any book she'd ever seen. The green cover was tattered, and the pages weren't even attached to the binding. It smelled of must and mildew, and faintly of sea water and...burnt papyrus.

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