The Sleeper’s attention was wholly focused on me, and I swore I could see the piercing eyes behind that mask.
“Ask your question.”
“What is it that you intend to do with that abacus?”
The Sleeper paused, unmoving in the posture as the room went silent. For a moment, Iwondered if he hadn’t heard me, but before I could repeat myself, his hand slowly lowered, falling to his sides.
“More and more Converts flock to me each day, looking for guidance. They come because they feel the calling of that which has been denied them for centuries. But I am not the only one who is there to answer those who come asking. There are others who would lead them down darker paths. You’ve already experienced this yourself, there in the very heart of your church. But know this—that darkness is not the only being who thirsts for power. The Second Awakening has begun, but it is far fromfinished. The abacus will be kept safe till the time that it is required. And for all of our sakes, I pray that time never arrives.”
My head swirled, grappling with the onslaught of information. There were more creatures out there, like the Umbral? If one were strong enough to bring down the Cradle by itself, then the destruction would only multiply in horrific magnitude.
Would they come looking for the Source, just like the Umbral had?
I wanted to ask, but Reina planted herself between the Sleeper and me. “Where will you be going?”
“Wait, what if we need to contact you?”
The Sleeper took his seat behind the desk, reaching for a stack of papers piled precariously on the corner. “Not to worry, Saint. We’ll be around.”
“I’m not a saint,” I reminded him.
The Sleeper didn’t reply, instead humming a tune under his breath that sounded vaguely like a child’s lullaby. Recognition flared somewhere deep within my mind, but Reina snapped her fingers, drawing my attention once again back to her.
“I have other matters to attend to,” she said flatly. “Now, where would you like to go?”
I looked back at Bastien and Azrael, getting a final confirmation before answering.
“Paradise.”
Our door through space spat us out opposite Bastien’s flat. The artificial lights above were dim as if to emulate dusk. Reina stepped through after the three of us had cleared the portal, closing the door behind her with an audibleclick.
“Is this the desired location?” she asked, scanning the surroundings with a touch of distaste.
“Yes,” Bastien answered, already on the move with the compendium tucked under his arm. Azrael followed after him, his tail swishing to and fro. Despite our collective exhaustion, the excitement in the air was palpable.
“A moment of your time, if I could,” Reina said before I could join the others.
“Yes?”
“The Sleeper asked that I give this to you once we’d arrived.”
The woman held out a string of beads, each a different brilliant hue as they caught the light from above. There were seven in all, each with a carved symbol on the front, and it took me a moment to realize what they were.
“Prayer beads?”
Hallowed clergy displayed sets of beads like this on our formal wear, though Sancha told me that they were more commonplace in the early days of the Church.
“From the Sleeper’s collection,” explained Reina as I took the beads from her. “To help strengthen your new connection to the Source.”
As the cool beads touched my palm, the comforting warmth of the Source’s blessing responded, unfurling in my chest and spreading quickly through my limbs. I breathed a sigh of relief at its return, the worry I’d been harboring in the back of my mind dissolving.
It was still with me.
“Please pass along my gratitude,” I said, tucking the beads away in my pocket.
Reina nodded, turning back to the door, which had materialized into the side of the bakery. She knocked twice, the edges of the door glowing red, then twisted the handle, the door swinging open smoothly.
“If I could offer one last word of advice,” Reina said without glancing back. “Be sure not to find yourself standing in our way.”
