"It's calling to me," I whispered, feeling a strange pull toward the light. The markings on my arms were now glowing so brightly they shone through my clothing like a beacon.
"Winter, wait!" Rook caught my arm as I took an unconscious step toward the edge. "We don't know what that is."
"I do," I wasn't sure where the certainty came from, but it filled me completely. "It's mine. Part of me."
Before anyone could stop me, I pulled free of Rook's grip and moved to the edge of the overlook. Below, the pocket grove was visible now, no longer hidden by whatever magic had concealed it yesterday. The ancient trees seemed to be bending toward the center of the clearing, where the column of blue light originated.
"I need to go down there," I was already looking for the safest path down the embankment.
"Not alone," Zane moved to my side. "We go together."
"All of us," Milo added, joining us at the edge.
Rook and Fenric exchanged a glance before nodding in agreement. Whatever we were facing, we would face it as a unit.
The descent was tricky, but we managed it without incident, helping each other over the steeper sections. As we approached the grove, the magical energy in the air became palpable, making my skin tingle and my hair stand on end.
The pocket grove had changed since yesterday. The moss still glowed with its light, but now the patterns it formed were more deliberate, spiraling outward from the central oak tree where we'd discovered the strange symbol. At the heart of it all, floating a few feet above the ground, was a perfect sphere of blue energy, pulsing with the same rhythm as my markings.
"What is that?" Milo whispered, voice filled with wonder.
"A nexus point," Fenric's voice was hushed with awe. "A spontaneous manifestation of pure prophetic energy."
I moved toward it, drawn by an instinct I couldn't explain. The sphere seemed to respond to my approach, pulsing more rapidly as I drew near.
"Winter, be careful," Rook cautioned, staying close to my side.
"It won't hurt me," I assured him, though I had no logical basis for this belief. "It's part of me somehow." Unlike when I absorbed the prophecies the Harbingers had been manipulating, I just felt peace.
When I was just a few feet from the sphere, it began to change, the perfect orb elongating and reshaping itself. Within seconds, it had formed a doorway of light, a portal that hovered in the air before me.
Through it, I could see something. A glimpse of a vast library, shelves stretching to infinity, books and scrolls containing knowledge beyond imagination.
"The Celestial Library," I breathed, recognizing it from my prophetic dream. "It's real."
"Winter, don't—" Fenric began but it was too late.
I had already reached out, my fingers brushing the edge of the portal. The contact sent a surge of energy through me, not painful but overwhelming in its intensity. The blue markings on my skin flared blindingly bright, and I felt myself being pulled forward, into the doorway of light.
Strong hands grabbed me from behind, Rook, Zane, Milo, and Fenric, all reaching for me at once. But instead of pulling me back, they were drawn in with me, the portal expanding to encompass all five of us.
For a moment, we hung suspended between worlds, between realities. I could feel them all connected to me, their energies intertwined with mine through bonds that transcended physical touch.
Then we were falling, or perhaps rising, through layers of existence toward a destination I somehow knew was waiting for us.
The last thing I saw before the portal closed behind us was the grove, peaceful and ancient, the symbol on the oak tree glowing with a golden light that matched the rising sun.
Chapter
Forty-One
Winter
The portal's edge closed behind us with a sound like the final pages of a book being shut, and we tumbled through nothingness. For a heartbeat, or was it an eternity, we existed in a void of pure potential, our bodies mere suggestions rather than solid forms. Then reality reasserted itself with jarring suddenness, and we crashed onto a polished marble floor.
I gasped for breath, the air thick and heavy in my lungs. It tasted ancient, like dust and forgotten knowledge, carrying whispers that seemed to brush against my consciousness before darting away. Around me, my companions struggled to their feet, their movements sluggish as if fighting against invisible currents.
"Is everyone okay?" I managed, pushing myself up on trembling arms.
