Page 167 of Gift from the Source
“I’ll walk you through step by step.”
Thank fuck for that.
V’s hooting laugh through my mind makes my lip twitch into a small grin. It’s a sound I’ve come to know and adore. Even when it’s directed at my thoughts he’s listening in on.
“The hard part is over. This will be natural for you,”he says as he leans forward and gently plucks the Gods Binding off the ground.“You’ll open the portal for me, and I’ll pass through it. You won’t have to fully come over with me. Instead, you can reach your hand through to the other side. Search through your knowledge for what it looks like in the Valorian Veil where this passage would lead.”
Closing my eyes, I call forward all the knowledge I have on the Valorian Veil. Starting with what this portal once looked like and the beings that passed through.
Beauty.
That’s the first word that comes to mind.
The way this little pool of water used to glow the most shimmering blue I’ve ever laid my eyes on. It was as though glitter had been dumped and swirled all through it. When the sun beat down on it, it’d look like hundreds of diamonds were sitting there at the bottom.
On the other side, you’d step out into a small wooded area much like the one we’re in now. The major difference is where my water is cool, theirs is a sparkling crystal-clear hot spring.
Passing through it would almost cleanse you before you stepped into another realm.
The land-made hot tub is surrounded by rocks, but when you step past the protective boulders, you enter a stunning meadow. The shin-high green grass flows with the wind and the wildflowers burst with color.
“I see it. The hot spring and meadow,”I whisper.
“Good, Willow. Now when you stick your hand through, imagine touching that grass. Feel the earth beneath your fingertips. I will alert you that I’m there and you will close the portals.”
I nod and look down at my hands.
My throat constricts when I see the dried black streaks running down my fingers. Underneath my nails is caked-up dirt. I shudder at the thought of what I was trying to do.
I wanted to destroy the beyond…
My water element flows through my skin and washes away the evidence that has me in a chokehold.
That wasn’t really me.
The deep breath that falls from my chest dries the water pebbling my hands and I turn them up.
Shifting my finger, I press my claw to my palm and start my design.
First, I slice the original design of the Nexus, but when my points meet, I make sure not to lift my finger. Then I retrace the design the other way.
In my mind, my mom’s instructions read clearly.
Putting the two designs together like that seals the connection that you’re leaving your blessed place.
I allow myself a couple seconds to gaze at the blood collecting in my palm. I won’t lie and say I wasn’t a little nervous. I’d started to imagine it coming out black. I’m relieved to find it as red as it’s supposed to be.
“Ready, V?”I ask.
“Ready, filia.”
Laying my hand gently on top of the still water, I draw out the Nexus mark while murmuring the spell needed to open it inElema Lingua Vetus.
“A passage created by the essence of my being. Through time and through space, deliver me from my desired place.”
I push my hand through the surface.
Small vibrations begin to pulse through the water, causing it to ripple as though something massive is walking toward it.
