Page 25 of Bound Paths
That sounded like a terrible idea to Andie, but another part of her wanted desperately to go beyond the veil. This feline she’d bonded with, she felt its urge to return to its home—to fulfill its purpose. The spirit needed to be led. The veil cat could no longer complete its task because of Andie’s interference.
The spirit floated over to Andie, its hand reaching for the scruff of her neck. She shivered in anticipation, realizing what would happen next as the spirit’s hand settled in her fur.
She felt it.
The spirit wrapped its fingers deep in her scruff and allowed Andie to lead them back to the original position on the river bank. She was no longer sure what she was doing. Her feline body was moving of its own accord. Like a moth to a flame, she let it take her on this new adventure.
“Yes, Andie, good,”Cee said.“Do you know how to travel there?”
Andie didn’t know how to respond. She wasn’t sure if she could bring Cee with her, but she knew she had to take the spirit. Her body sank onto its haunches, her gaze drawn to a brief fluttering above the river—their target. Somehow, she knew it. The spirit’s grip on her fur tightened as her body readied to leap.
She sprang forward, soaring over the river and falling through the veil between realms. Darkness consumed her, but she wasn’t afraid.
CHAPTER TEN
The cave didn’t get any warmer as the Compass Points walked deeper into the maze of tunnels. Rose shivered, especially after the onslaught of wind on the ridge, and she wished she’d brought a cloak.
They walked for another mile. Making this maze of caves difficult—even for the Osten—was unnecessary, one more item on a long list of things to hold against Zrak when they finally spoke to him. Conceptually, Rose knew Zrak was a better option for the continent than Aterra. She couldn’t help but wonder about the impacts of switching their places. If the Osten had to do this ritual to stabilize their magic with Zrak beyond the veil, would the Suden have to do something similar with Aterra there? Surely, Luc wouldn’t need it with his demigod nature. She shook her head. They wanted to build a sustainable future for the continent’s people though. They’d need to think about how their actions impacted Luc’s successor.
She rubbed her sternum as she thought about Luc and the boost of magic she’d received when she needed it most on the ridge. The crossing, though terrifying, had unlocked more details from her dream. The black stone was the lakebed of her magic now. The earth magic she felt—Luc was trying to breakthrough, just like he had tried… She was more certain than ever that last night’s encounter wasn’t just a dream.
Before, she’d felt a devastating emptiness, a gap where she knew his magic had made itself at home. Now she felt a pulsing ache like knocking against a door, trying to enter. She wanted to let him in—she just didn’t know how.
“Rose,” Juliette’s call interrupted her thoughts. “Are you coming?”
Rose looked up. She’d been rubbing her chest and had stopped walking. Ahead, dimly lit by Carter’s fire, the path ended. The tunnel opened into a large cavern. She jogged to where Juliette and Carter stood at the entryway.
It was an oddly circular room, like a half-dome. The eerie purple glow of the cave walls was even more prominent here. “This is it,” Rose said, and Juliette nodded. The wild magic was alive around them. Her skin tingled as it made itself known.
“Can you feel it?” Juliette asked.
“Definitely,” Rose replied. “I know you said it was present, but this feels…” Rose took a deep breath. “Stronger even than the Lake of the Gods.”
Juliette nodded. “I don’t know how Zrak found this location, but I realized its similarity to Mount Bury as soon as we arrived there.”
“What do we do next?” Rose asked, her gaze shifting around the room before finally landing on the Osten Point. Juliette seemed to be keeping expectations of Zrak low, but it made sense to at least try to speak with him before she and Carter blindly crossed realms.
Large stalactites fanned out around the flat circular section. The rock formations seemed to guide the eye to this specific patch of wall. The jagged columns from the ceiling led directly to it. Rose swore something almost shimmered in the air. Carter’sfloating flames drew nearer to the area as Juliette led them in, making the purple hue of the cave even more prevalent.
“This is where he would appear,” Juliette said, gesturing to the flat space on the wall. “He appears like an outline, a shadow, when present. I will perform the ritual, but I’m unsure what to expect after the brute force approach on the planes outside Sandrin.”
Rose nodded. Juliette was telling her not to get her hopes up. She appreciated the practicality. As the Osten Point prepared for the ritual, Carter prowled the cave in a movement Rose could only call feline. He kept sniffing the air and folding into himself like he was struggling with something.
“You okay, Carter?” she asked. Rose could hear the strain in his voice as he spoke.
“I’m fighting the change now,” he said.
Juliette glanced at Carter. “I think Zrak’s continued visits here have thinned the space between the realms even more than the magic enacted under Mount Bury had,” she said.
“I agree with that assessment,” Carter replied through gritted teeth.
“Well, let me try this,” Juliette said. “When Zrak inevitably ignores me, you can attempt the crossing yourself.”
Taking a position in the center of the rock formation-laden path, facing the empty wall, Juliette breathed deeply, pulling the vial from beneath the neckline of her dress. Her hand gripped one of the daggers Rose had made from the custom holster, using the tip to gently slice the skin on her finger.
Blood welled, and as it did, she poured the droplets of Zrak’s blood atop it. She clenched her hand into a tight fist, more blood rising to the surface and mixing with Zrak’s. Enough of the mixture spilled between her knuckles, allowing drops to fall to the cavern floor.
This was the mixing of the Compass Point and their patron’s blood. Juliette also had Zrak’s artifact, the vial, used to hold his blood. And they were in a place with great magic, one the Lost God himself had found. The only thing missing now was Juliette’s will.
