Page 23 of Death Will Follow

“What else can you do? Besides the Light?” Bryn asked, catching Nova off guard.

“What do you mean?”

“Well, your father can read thoughts. Bend others to his will. Portal through shadow.” Bryn held her hand up, counting off on her fingers. “Aren’t you curious whether you can too?”

Nova bit the inside of her cheek. Despite months of earnest effort, she was only able to communicate mentally with Nox. At times, she imagined she could sense Callan’s emotions, but perhaps that was simply another side effect of their bond. She’d once seen Fawn conjure a portal using a powder of some kind. Was Bryn suggesting some folk could create portals out of thin air? Nova shook her head, attempting to banish her curiosity.

“Those are dark abilities,” she replied dismissively.

Bryn shrugged.

“Power is power. Pure and simple. It’s how you wield it that makes it good or bad. Your ancestors thought the Light of Illora should be destroyed, but you used it to save me. Should I never shift again because Omen used my ability for his own dark ends?”

“I don’t know,” Nova murmured, nervously spinning her ring. Bryn turned to face her, her impish features fixed in a solemn expression.

“If it comes to it, Omen will use any power at his disposal to end your life,” she said firmly. “If you’re smart, you’ll develop any abilities you have, wherever they come from.”

Nova considered for a moment, eyes tracking a single wispy cloud as the wind chased it across the sky. “I wouldn’t even know where to begin,” she said finally.

“You can practice on me.” Bryn sat upright, settling into a position with her legs crisscrossed. “Block out everything else and focus your mind on my thoughts.”

Nova sat up and shifted on the stone to face her new friend, shaking out her arms and closing her eyes. Her mind fought her for several minutes, trying to latch onto anything and everything. The wind blowing freely across the meadow. The sun warming the dark fabric of her cloak at her back. Nova squeezed her eyes tighter. Her inability to quiet her thoughts had often hindered her sessions with Nox. A blocked conduit. Remembering her uncle’s instruction, Nova focused her attention on the steady rhythm of her own breath.

In and out. In and out.

After a time, the noise of the world around her faded until all that remained was a low hum. Nova envisioned herself sitting across from Bryn and imagined the bright light the healer Eir had seen swirling around her. Finally, Nova pictured her light reaching out toward Bryn, like a hand.

For a moment, there was nothing.

Then, suddenly, a flash of vibrant green. A dense canopy of leafy green trees. The scent of wet soil and the soft patter of a gentle rain. The twang of a bowstring pulled taut.

Nova’s eyes shot open as she returned to herself, breathing fast. She gripped Bryn by the forearms. The sensations were so vivid; Nova had felt as if she’d been transported to another place.

“I saw a forest—not like this,” Nova gasped, gesturing wildly at the evergreen trees with their coarse needles. “Green leaves.”

“Hunting in the forests of Maedwen,” Bryn said, one corner of her mouth quirked up at the memory.

“May I try again?” Nova gripped Bryn’s arms tighter.

“Have at it.”

Nova repeated the process, and all at once, the roar of wind rumbled in her ears. The steady pressure of it beneath her wings, keeping her aloft. The world stretched out like a vast oil painting far below.

“Flying,” she said with a short, giddy laugh as she snapped back to herself.

“You’re a quick study,” Bryn said.

“It’s only flashes.” Nova waved a hand dismissively. “I wouldn’t say I’m actually reading your mind.”

“Yet,” Bryn said, holding a finger up in the air.

Nova held back her smile and tempered the excitement building within her chest. “What was it you said my father could do? Portal?”

“Yes. It’s how he spirits his prisoners away to Raven’s Isle.”

“How does it work?”

“Have you traveled by portal before?” Bryn asked.