Page 17 of The Oracle of Dusk

“Shockingly, no. Both the empress and high priestess already understood why we despised each other. I was furious that she had wild magic, pretty clothes, and a hundred friends, even though we’d both arrived at the wellspring at the same time. She was envious that I could be anything I wanted, do anything I pleased, and go where I wished without always being followed or being on display. I think Her Majesty thought it would be a good lesson in humility and compassion for Fae to understand a commoner’s problems. I don’t think anyone expected us to become friends after that, but for Fae, I was probably the only one outside her family who treated her like a normal little girl.”

And for all their differences, Phaedra had proved to be the truest friend Aurora ever had. Where either faltered, the other was there to pick them up. When Aurora spiralled into gloom, Phaedra was ever her light. When Phaedra thought to take one prank too far, Aurora was there to pull her back from her worst impulses.

“If you don’t mind my asking, what drew you to study the past rather than become a merchant or the princess’ lady’s maid?”

“The last king of Aureum—King Theron.”

“The one who attacked the avatar during the first calamity?” Silvanus asked, amused.

“The very same! His biography is our only written record of the first calamity. And he’s so much more interesting than the playwrights make him out to be. My thesis focused on our interpretation of one of the ancient temple tongue words used to describe his bride. It turns out she was a princess!” Aurora gushed.

Oh, the older scholars tore her to shreds for that reinterpretation for months, but eventually a re-examination of the original text proved she’d been right. It was that academic victory which had persuaded Orithyia to let her prove herself on this dig—to become a full-fledged scholar.

“Well, as long as you don’t intend to reenact certain parts of his story…” Silvanus smiled wryly.

“Best not bring it up with Fae.” She laughed.

“Hmmm,” he agreed. “Do you know the name of the first hero of the holy sword?” he asked quietly.

Aurora shook her head.

“No, only his title is mentioned in the king’s biography. Nothing else that’s survived the millennia bears his name.”

But as the quiet hush of the desert began to fill with music, her moment of distracted happiness slipped away. She should have focused on her magic, not the past.

“We’re close,” Silvanus said.

Maybe this time Aurora would awaken the wild magic she should have awakened when she and Phaedra found the Viridian wellspring. She felt the pull again, the trance. This was different, though. It wasn’t nearly as strong. It didn’t warp and blend her senses. It sounded like sand slipping through her fingers, like the call of wild animals, like blood rushing to her ears.

“You hear it now?” Silvanus asked.

“Yes. But not as strongly as when I was a child,” she answered.

He didn’t comment again. Probably for the best, as the closer they got, the more insistent the pull was. Once more, the melody was a full-body experience unlike any other. Afternoon sun warmed her skin despite the early hour, sweet pomegranate tantalized her tongue, the scent of cinnamon filled her nostrils. Suddenly she was off the saddle, allowing the wellspring to pull her in, to seduce her. Aurora didn’t know how long she walked, only that every step she took brought her closer, intoxicating her senses and filling her ears with a melody of the wild magic infusing this place.

It drew her to a large rock standing alone in the landscape. Aurora placed her hand on its cold, rough surface, but she knew this was different. The magic was not as compelling here as it had been in Viridis. The wellspring was entrancing, but she didn’t feel as though some part of her needed it to be whole, as if it were some secret key to her soul. As Aurora stood there, hand to the rock, the music slowly faded, as did her hope.

She turned to Silvanus and shook her head.

“I’m sorry,” she said.

“Don’t apologise. We simply need to find the next wellspring.”

“You make it sound so easy. They could be anywhere in Trisia.”

“True, there is only one wellspring for each province, and they can be anywhere in that province at any given time. But Her Majesty began mobilizing scouts before I even set out from the capital. By the time we reach the province of Gilvus, I suspect someone will have already located it,” Silvanus explained, leading her back to their loper. “Don’t think just because we’re expected to face Drakon, that we’ll do any of this alone. I imagine it was much more difficult in ages past when Trisia wasn’t united as an empire, but this age is different. Take heart in that.”

She’d not known that about the wellsprings. Another glaring example of her cultivated ignorance.

“I…I will try. Thank you.”

They mounted and headed back for the camp. The sun was now high enough to bathe the desert in a rosy glow.

“How did you awaken your magic?”

“I’m not sure I did. Once I visited the Nivean wellspring, all of a sudden, it was there. Not that I had much control of it, or any idea of what to do with it.”

It was much the same for every person Aurora had ever asked about the subject. From one breath to next, magic was theirs, as tangible as a limb. She sighed. Another strange feeling of déjà vu crept up on her as she watched the loper’s ears twitch as it trotted along the rocky path, rose gold rock interspersed with long, midnight blue shadows marking every pebble and dune.

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