Page 12 of At the Mercy of Midnight
At the far end of the hall, a small light pulsated softly like the beat of a heart. That was when she realised, the magic she had been able to feel the moment they entered the temple, resonated through her in time with the light.
She took in a quick breath. “It’s the source of magic,” Amelia said wonderingly. “Can you feel it too?”
Silas didn’t answer as they moved slowly closer to it, their footsteps making little noise as they shifted the dust and debris sprinkled across the stones.
Out of the shadows, appeared stone statues. Amelia glanced at the faces as they passed, taking in the lifelike expressions. She tilted her head, taking in a male depiction, his hand outstretched and face morphed into something she might have described as pain.
Silas had moved ahead, so she left the statues to catch up.
The light was at the top of a set of deep stone steps. Before she could lift her foot for the first step, Silas stopped her.
“You…you should wait here,” he said, turning to face her.
“I shouldwhat?”
Silas pressed his lips together before he answered. “We don’t know it’s safe.”
“Nothing about this expedition, or the Rift, is safe, Finley. That won’t stop me.”
He considered her, his face smoothed of expression. “It would be remiss for us to both be at risk. No one will know where we are if they try to find us.”
“Then you stay here,” Amelia said, folding her arms haughtily, “and I’ll press on.”
Silas shook his head as though she exhausted him. “This is not about competition, you stubborn thing.” He turned away from her and reached up to run a hand through the light strands of his hair, one side now darkened by his blood.
“This is not about stubbornness or beating you out,” she said angrily, bringing his frustrated gaze back to her. “This is about a lifetime of work. I’ve spent years of my life researching why our magic is destabilising, why our devices are faltering and our Monoliths failing us. This right here,” Amelia said, gesturing up to the source, throbbing with its own life, “could be the key to solving everything. I am not about to let you take all the risks to discover it. We do it together because…it isourdiscovery.”
The word ‘our’ left her mouth with displeasure, feeling wrong on her tongue, but it was no lie. They had both found this place, and it would mean that whatever they found would be theirs to share, for better or worse.
Silas’ blue eyes roamed over her face, taken aback. After a pause, he said, “fine, if you insist.” He gestured for them to continue together, and so they did.
As they started up the deep steps that led up to the beating pulse of light, Amelia felt the magical signature thicken around them. It was cloying and consuming, buzzing beneath her skin.
They took the steps slowly, moving with caution.
The source of light, white and blinding, sat upon a stone pedestal in the centre of the raised platform. When they reached the top, they both paused, the pedestal sitting before them.
The light surrounded two objects sitting across the uneven stone. There wasn’t a scrap of dust upon the surface which they sat, the orb of light around the items pulsating steadily.
“It’s…” She took another step closer.
“Blades,” Silas finished for her as they neared.
Two small daggers lay neatly side by side. The golden metal of the cross-guard and hilts shone brilliantly in the light they produced. However, as Amelia looked closer, she saw that the blades of each dagger vastly differed from one another. One made of a silvery gold that was smooth and sleek. The other, made of a dark material, almost completely black and was as jagged and uneven as its counterpart was smooth.
“My word,” Silas said wonderingly. “They’re crafted from the Monoliths.”
Amelia’s soft gasp echoed in the quiet chamber. “That’s…impossible. Anyone who has ever tried to harness the power of the Monoliths were consumed by the raw magic.” Even as she said the words, she realised he was correct. The differences in the blades were as stark as the North and South Monoliths in appearance.
“I know. It’s historically proven to be impossible to smith with Monolith stone, but…look at them.”
“You’re right,” Amelia whispered, awed, her eyes set upon the daggers as though she never wanted to look away.
“This is a very odd day,” Silas said.
“It is…this discovery will change the way we look at magic and the Monoliths. The implications this could have…”
Silas chuckled. “No, not that. You admitting that I’m right.”
