Page 139 of Of Serpents and Ruins
"An in-vest-i-gator."
"If it weren’t in such bad taste, I’d be tempted to seriously threaten you or push you off Buttercup into the river," he grumbled as he kissed my neck.
I tipped my head back and grinned at him. "You know where hamburgers go dancing, right? The meat ball."
The look he gave me made me cackle. I really didn’t have much hope that we would make it out of this alive, but I did love to make him laugh and groan. The Gola Resh had taken quite a lot from us, but she would never take away this.
STELLA
All too soon, we boarded the ship. Kine went ahead to speak with the captain to inform him Elias would not be returning. Some of the crew swore when they heard. Others muttered. All bowed when Brandt and I stepped on deck.
I kept my gaze fixed ahead of me, a little self-conscious. There was one thing I needed, though, and that was to speak with Auntie Runa before we reached the Ember Lord’s Crest.
The captain had a water mirror in the map room. As they cast off, I entered the dimly lit room. The swinging metal lanterns cast flickering shadows all about as the windows were covered up. Oiled and framed maps lined every inch of the walls. In the center of the room, a slab oak table had been fastened to the floor. A simple white map with chalk markings indicated our current course. Everything here smelled of tobacco, chalk, and ink amidst all the salt water and kelp.
In the back of the room stood the stand with the water mirror in it. The silver basin glowed softly, the waters shimmering and reflecting off the wooden ceiling. I crossed to it at once, letting the door click shut behind me.
Now in silence, the gloom threatened to overwhelm me again. That horrible vision that Elias had stolen filled mythoughts, a vision poured out in oils, one of the most vivid expressions of a vision possible.
Old memories guided me in drawing the connection through the water mirror. I desperately hoped that Auntie Runa had not cut off all magic as she had previously.
For a moment, the waters shimmered.
I held my breath.
Then her face appeared, wobbling within. "Stella!" Her murky eyes brightened, and she leaned closer, that wonderful smile lighting up her face. "What’s happened? We don’t have much time. The magic has become even more unstable. I don’t think I can join the mirrors again after this."
As soon as I saw her, I found myself on the verge of tears. I told her everything.
"Auntie Runa," I whispered hoarsely. "I didn't know that was what he was going to show me. I swear I didn't, but then when he told me I could look away, I didn’t. I wanted to know."
She did not look at me. Her mouth pinched. "There is nothing I can say regarding it now," she said tightly. "That vision was not meant for your eyes. Those who needed it have received it. You knowing it—" The tightness in her jaw intensified so much it seemed it might crack. "Stella." She pressed her hand to her temple. "You need to put that vision out of your mind. Put it out of your thoughts. You cannot rely on it to shape any decision that you make."
Even though she said that, we both knew I couldn't. How could I forget something so vividly depicted? Or the sight of the two forms disappearing into the lava as they embraced one another in their final act of doom?
"Do Brandt and I have to sacrifice ourselves? When I look at the future, all I see is darkness. Death."
"Stella, stop." Auntie Runa's mouth pinched again. She closed her eyes, then shook her head. Some of the herbsstarted to slide from her hair with the movement. "You don't understand just how bad this could be. Sweet girl, remember the kind of seer you are. You were never the one to receive grand visions of the future, and that is no slur against you. You would not see the images of how this ends. Your intuition has always been in sensing and impulses. What you see is general until the moment is at hand. It’s why drawing them is so difficult for you and all you do is sensation and shapes."
Tears rolled down my cheeks.
"I could skin that fool. Damn Elias!" Auntie Runa said. The ripples in the water mirror intensified as if she had struck the table. Her voice distorted, becoming deeper. "Whatever you do, Stella, you must not share that vision with anyone else, especially not Brandt. Visions are dangerous when they are not treated with the proper care. Do you understand me?"
I nodded, but I had no more words left to speak. If there was anything good—any great force in all of these worlds—I prayed that this vision would not be so. My shoulders sagged. All I wanted to do was curl up beneath the blankets and hide.
"If this is the end, though, I want you to know how thankful I am to you."
Auntie Runa hissed, dragging her hand over her face. "Don’t speak like that, child."
Even through the water mirror, I saw her pain. The uncertainty. The same uncertainty I’d seen when I was recovering in the channel.
"Just remember to use your mind, darling girl. Do you hear me? Remember what love is. Remember what it requires and what your purpose is. Remember what the Gola Resh wants above all else, her priorities, and her needs, and don’t forget that you do have a choice in all this. Prophecies and visions do not tell the full story. On some rare occasions, perhaps they speak of a true final point or an immovable aspect, but that is not this. Yourchoices matter." Her hand pressed tight over her mouth. "Do not forget that, Stella. If it robs you of choice, it is wrong."
The floorboards creaked beneath my feet as the ship continued its steady progress. The silver basin was smooth beneath my fingertips.
"Is there anything else you can tell me?"
"Whatever else I have to say to you, I will say when I see you in person." The corners of her mouth shook. "Except…I’m proud of you, Stella, proud of you and Brandt. Oh!" Her reflection shuddered. She fell back. "Earthquake—"
