Page 159 of Fortress of Ambrose
“But if our world survives, you could wait adecadeor more before she can master it.”
The dead thrashed around him. More joined them, looming so tall he had to tilt his head back to see them fully.
“I have an offer.” Power had corrupted Jordan like it did everyone. He was unsavable. He would self-destruct eventually. At least this let his life amount to something good. But as the words tried to form in Yagrin’s mouth, he couldn’t get them out. He was committing to steal his brother’s heart, which would kill him. He glared at the ground. This would haunt him. Doing this would never be something he could forget.
But I have to.
“I can get you a heart with robust toushana. The Dragunheart has allof the Sphere’s magic inside his body. He has a heartfullof dark magic.”
The circle of darkness tightened around him. Yagrin watched the snow, waiting for their answer.
What do you ask of us
His heart thudded faster. “Release Nore’s heart from the Pact. Give it back to her.”
The darkness watched him intently with hollow pits for eyes.
When he dies
That wasn’t his problem. But it was Nore’s, which made it his problem. He chose to love her fully, which meant helping see this ancestral House through.
“You can keep the heart even after he dies. It should still possess power. If it doesn’t, I’ll get you a skilled Darkbearer.” He would harvest hearts from every Darkbearer in the world if that’s what it took to make Nore whole again.
Seal it in blood
Yagrin hesitated. The shadows writhed, writing in the snow furiously.
Now
Yagrin held out his arm. Darkness grabbed him. Something sharp ran across the inside of his wrist, and warm blood poured from him, dripping in the snow. When it was over, he opened his eyes and the shadows were gone. A dark glove covered in shadowy mist was beside him on the ground. He stuffed it in his pocket. There was no turning back now. He could hardly breathe as he ran inside.
He’d found a way to rescue Nore.
It just meant he had to kill the only other person who’d ever loved him.
He found Norein her bedroom reading a letter. There were books and papers everywhere, stuck to the windows, covering the fireplace. Large posters were lying over the seats in her room. Her bed was covered. The floor was hardly discernible. She rushed to him, gripping him by the shoulders.
“Necrantomy!”
“Never heard of it.”
“But it existed.It’s all here.” She turned a page, stabbing it with her finger. “This isancientmagic!”
“Does it say how it works?”
“That is hardly what matters.You saidthe Immortality Scroll was found ages ago by someone on their deathbed. Why get the Scroll at that point if they’re not going to use it?”
“Right. But that would mean…”An immortal exists. Today.
“Where have you seen a magic so old it is hardly recognizable to us? Magic only talked about in old dusty books? Ancient magic from anancientbeing?”
“The body at headquarters. And here.”
“The common denominator is—”
“The Dragunhead.”
“He’s immortal! If you think of how Ellery has been able to do all kinds of things, like getting the ancestors to cross thresholds, enter other Houses’ estate grounds. He didn’t learn that magic here. Someone ancient helping him makes it all make sense. It’s the only plausible conclusion.” She shoved her hair out of her face. He could feel her panic. And he didn’t know how to comfort it. How could they defeat someone who could not die?
